# PTE Listening MCS #6: Principles of Artistic...

Listening: Multiple Choice, Single Answer #6 - Level 2 - Feeds Listening

> Listen to the recording and answer the question by choosing one option. Only one answer is correct.

What does the instructor imply about composition?

- Composition in painting is similar to composition in writing.
- Composition is less important than shape, tone, and color.
- Composition is the only concept that artists must understand.
- Composition must be complex in order to be interesting.

## Answer

Composition in painting is similar to composition in writing.

## Explanation

The speaker explicitly draws a parallel between the structural organization of visual elements and the way ideas are ordered in written communication.

What to watch: The instructor says the elements must be ordered "just like the words and phrases and sentences in a piece of writing." That supports the writing comparison. The option about complexity fails because a crowded composition "lacks unity" and simple, strong messages work better.

## Hints

- Focus on the speaker's comparison between different creative fields.
- The speaker suggests that the underlying logic of arrangement is shared across different media.

## Transcript

Composition is the organization of shapes and forms into a whole, an expressive whole. The elements of composition, line, shape, tone, and color, need to be well arranged, need to be ordered, they need to be coherent, just like the words and phrases and sentences in a piece of writing. All paintings have a compositional element. Successful paintings sort of suggest the third dimension, the sense that the design goes beyond the picture frame. A picture's unity, which includes the shapes, tones, and colors, is linked to what the artist has to say. The artist's message is strongest when it's clear. A composition is better if it says one thing strongly than if it tries to say too many things. A crowded composition is sort of fussy and splintered and lacks unity. Even a painting of a single object needs thoughtful composition, so the character of the object is present in every shape.

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