In art and
iconography
Iconography, as a branch of art history, studies the identification, description and interpretation of the content of images: the subjects depicted, the particular compositions and details used to do so, and other elements that are distinct fro ...
, a motif () is an element of an
image
An image is a visual representation of something. It can be two-dimensional, three-dimensional, or somehow otherwise feed into the visual system to convey information. An image can be an artifact, such as a photograph or other two-dimensio ...
. The term can be used both of figurative and narrative art, and ornament and geometrical art. A motif may be repeated in a
pattern
A pattern is a regularity in the world, in human-made design, or in abstract ideas. As such, the elements of a pattern repeat in a predictable manner. A geometric pattern is a kind of pattern formed of geometric shapes and typically repeated li ...
or design, often many times, or may just occur once in a work.
A motif may be an element in the iconography of a particular subject or type of subject that is seen in other works, or may form the main subject, as the
Master of Animals motif in ancient art typically does. The related motif of
confronted animals
Confronted animals, or confronted-animal as an adjective, where two animals face each other in a symmetrical pose, is an ancient bilateral motif in art and artifacts studied in archaeology and art history. The "anti-confronted animals" is the ...
is often seen alone, but may also be repeated, for example in
Byzantine silk and other ancient textiles. Where the main subject of an artistic work such as a painting is a specific person, group, or moment in a narrative, that should be referred to as the "subject" of the work, not a motif, though the same thing may be a "motif" when part of another subject, or part of a work of
decorative art such as a painting on a vase.
Ornament
An ornament is something used for decoration.
Ornament may also refer to:
Decoration
* Ornament (art), any purely decorative element in architecture and the decorative arts
* Biological ornament, a characteristic of animals that appear to serve ...
al or
decorative art can usually be analysed into a number of different elements, which can be called motifs. These may often, as in
textile art
Textile arts are arts and crafts that use plant, animal, or synthetic fibers to construct practical or decorative objects.
Textiles have been a fundamental part of human life since the beginning of civilization. The methods and materials us ...
, be repeated many times in a pattern. Important examples in Western art include
acanthus,
egg and dart, and various types of
scrollwork.
Some examples
Geometric, typically repeated:
Meander
A meander is one of a series of regular sinuous curves in the channel of a river or other watercourse. It is produced as a watercourse erodes the sediments of an outer, concave bank ( cut bank) and deposits sediments on an inner, convex ban ...
,
palmette,
rosette,
gul in Oriental rugs,
acanthus,
egg and dart,
Bead and reel
Bead and reel is an architectural motif, usually found in sculptures, moldings and numismatics. It consists in a thin line where beadlike elements alternate with cylindrical ones. It is found throughout the modern Western world in architectural d ...
,
Pakudos,
Sauwastika
The swastika (卐 or 卍) is an ancient religious and cultural symbol, predominantly in various Eurasian, as well as some African and American cultures, now also widely recognized for its appropriation by the Nazi Party and by neo-Nazis. It ...
,
Adinkra symbols.
Figurative:
Master of Animals,
confronted animals
Confronted animals, or confronted-animal as an adjective, where two animals face each other in a symmetrical pose, is an ancient bilateral motif in art and artifacts studied in archaeology and art history. The "anti-confronted animals" is the ...
,
velificatio,
Death and the Maiden,
Three hares,
Sheela na gig,
puer mingens. In the
Nativity of Jesus in art, the detail of showing
Saint Joseph as asleep, which was common in medieval depictions, can be regarded as a "motif".
Many designs in
Islamic culture are motifs, including those of the sun, moon, animals such as horses and lions, flowers, and landscapes. Motifs can have emotional effects and be used for propaganda.
In
kilim flatwoven carpets,
motifs such as the hands-on-hips
elibelinde are woven in to the design to express the hopes and concerns of the weavers: the elibelinde symbolises the female principle and
fertility
Fertility is the capability to produce offspring through reproduction following the onset of sexual maturity. The fertility rate is the average number of children born by a female during her lifetime and is quantified demographically. Ferti ...
, including the desire for children.
Pennsylvania Dutch hex signs are a familiar type of motif in the eastern portions of the United States. Their circular and symmetric design, and their use of brightly colored patterns from nature, such as stars, compass roses, doves, hearts, tulips, leaves, and feathers have made them quite popular.
The idea of a motif has become used more broadly in discussing
literature
Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to inclu ...
and other narrative arts for
an element in the story that represents a
theme.
[James H. Grayson. ''Myths and Legends from Korea: An Annotated Compendium of Ancient and Modern Materials'' (p. 9). New York and Abingdon: ]Routledge
Routledge () is a British multinational publisher. It was founded in 1836 by George Routledge, and specialises in providing academic books, journals and online resources in the fields of the humanities, behavioural science, education, law, ...
Curzon, 2000. .[Alain Silver and James Ursini, (2004]
Some Visual Motifs of ''Film Noir''
Gallery
File:Corinthian capital1.jpg, Composite capital whose design includes acanthus leaf, and volute motifs
File:Elibelinde2.jpg, Elibelinde kilim motifs, symbolising fertility
Fertility is the capability to produce offspring through reproduction following the onset of sexual maturity. The fertility rate is the average number of children born by a female during her lifetime and is quantified demographically. Ferti ...
File:The Cloisters Apocalypse MET DP225756 (cropped).jpg, Saint Joseph sleeps through the Nativity, Cloisters Apocalypse, c. 1330
File:IntegrityBarnstar.png, Pennsylvania Dutch motif known as a hex sign
File:Gebel el-Arak Knife ivory handle (front top part).jpg, Gebel el-Arak Knife with Master of Animals motif at the top of the handle
File:Sheila-na-gig, Kilpeck.JPG, 12th century sheela na gig on the Church, at Kilpeck (England)
File:Orna115-Rosetten.png, Rosette designs from Meyer's ''Handbook of Ornament''
File:Wallpaper group-p2-3.jpg, Illustration from '' The Grammar of Ornament'' Egyptian No 7 (plate 10), image #20
File:Greek key on a stove in the in the D.A. Sturdza House, in Bucharest.jpg, Greek key tiles on a stove in a house from Bucharest
Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north ...
(Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, a ...
)
File:Cartouche on the house with number 9, on the Doctor Dimitrie D. Gerota street from Bucharest (Romania).jpg, A cartouche on a Neo-Baroque city-house from Bucharest
File:Porte d'entrée Paris.jpg, Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau (; ) is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. The style is known by different names in different languages: in German, in Italian, in Catalan, and also known as the Moder ...
mascaron above a door in Paris
File:28 Vynnychenka Street, Lviv (02).jpg, A festoon
A festoon (from French ''feston'', Italian ''festone'', from a Late Latin ''festo'', originally a festal garland, Latin ''festum'', feast) is a wreath or garland hanging from two points, and in architecture typically a carved ornament depict ...
, a widely used ornament in Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic p ...
, Roman, Baroque and Neoclassical
File:Persian Silk Brocade - Paisley - Persian Paisley - Abdollah Salami - 1939.jpg, Paisley (design).
File:Expo 98 January 2016-5.jpg, On a building in the Parque das Nações in Lisbon.
File:Wallpaper group-p6m-1.jpg, Illustration from ''The Grammar of Ornament'' (1856).
File:Tønder motif.png, Motif in lace.
File:Boteh tissu.jpg, Persian motif in textile.
File:TajFlowerCloseUp.jpg, Motif of a plant, Taj Mahal
See also
*
Three hares
Notes
Further reading
*Hoffman, Richard. ''Decorative Flower and Leaf Designs''. Dover Publications (1991),
*Jones, Owen. ''The Grammar of Ornament''. Dover Publications, Revised edition (1987),
*Welch, Patricia Bjaaland.
Chinese art: a guide to motifs and visual imagery'. Turtle Publishing (2008),
External links
*
Visual motifs (essay) Theater of Drawing
{{DEFAULTSORT:Motif (Visual Arts)
Decorative arts
Iconography