Елементи образотворчого мистецтва

Writing "Elements of Fine Art" would not have been possible without the freedom and independence that Itten nurtured in his Berlin school and without the experience that he had accumulated in the earlier stages of his life.

This book became both a protocol of the current teaching process and a summary of his 15-year artistic and pedagogical research. The parallel existence and interweaving of these two spheres, characteristic of Itten's personality, becomes a conscious means of expression.

The subtitle "Diary" reveals something important about the structure and idea of ​​the book, if you take it as the author intended: not literally, but metaphorically. After all, the presented pages are the result of daily work on the principles of fine art, work that did not end with the writing of the diary. Therefore, this book does not offer once and for all achieved results, but visualizes the process of searching and finding, in which certain topics are considered again and again from one or another angle. This approach corresponds to the development of Itten, whose progress can be depicted not in a clear straight line, but rather in a spiral movement.

"Itten ... recognized - for which he was sometimes reproached by purists - that there are different ways of seeing and artistic expression, and started from this understanding: in his own diverse creativity, but above all in his teaching activity, which was called to lay the widest possible foundation, to develop as a spontaneous expression , as well as accurate observation of nature and rational thinking. Therefore, the "Diary" as a result and protocol of such an educational process retains its relevance even in our times, which are characterized by the pluralism of artistic currents." — Peter Schmitt, Foreword to The Elements of Fine Art

"Modern trends in art demonstrate an excessive emphasis on the power of love and on the power of reason. The real greatness rests in the middle. Knowledge of polyphony is an indispensable aid in the process of creating a work of art. However, this knowledge alone will in no way be enough to generate artistic value without the help of the power of love. Armed with this knowledge, we can study counterpoint without fear of harmful consequences. On the following pages, I've written down some things you should know.

In the following pages, I deliberately pay very little attention to the description of the most modern artistic exercises, in order to present the most general from the fog of the modern outstanding. — Johannes Itten, Introduction to The Elements of Fine Art