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Art & Art History vocabulary · Visual Elements & Composition

Focal point

Meaning in art & art history, with examples

/ˈfoʊkəl ˌpɔɪnt/nounCommon term

In art & art history, focal point means: The part of an artwork that draws the viewer's eye first and holds attention, often created through contrast, light, colour or the direction of lines.

In Turkish: odak noktası

How it is used

Common in critiques and visual analysis: Where is the focal point? The focal point is the child's brightly lit face. A composition can have one main focal point and several secondary ones.

Example sentences

  1. The red cloak is the focal point; everything else in the painting is in muted browns.

  2. Your composition has no clear focal point, so the eye wanders around the page.

Common collocations

  • main focal point
  • create a focal point
  • clear focal point
  • secondary focal point
  • compositionThe way the parts of an artwork, such as figures, shapes, colours and empty spaces, are arranged within the picture or space.
  • contrastA strong difference between two parts of an artwork, such as light and dark, warm and cool colours, or rough and smooth surfaces.
  • vanishing pointThe point in a picture, usually on the horizon line, where parallel lines moving away from the viewer seem to meet.
  • foregroundThe part of a picture that seems closest to the viewer, usually at the bottom; the areas behind it are the middle ground and the background.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Visual Elements & Composition

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