Ornament styles

As you know, the art of ornament is very ancient. It originated in the Paleolithic era. Interestingly, ornamental images deliver aesthetic pleasure. It has a strong impact on the person, causing a chain of associations that allow to understand and appreciate the work.

The main pattern of ornament is the periodic repetition of the motive. It is characterized by translations of real forms of objects in terms of ornamental images, a high degree of decorative generalization, and the absence of aerial perspectives.

According to their graphic capabilities, all such drawings are divided into three types:

• graphic ornament with specific drawings of people, animals, plants, landscapes or architectural motifs;
• non-visual ornament, formed from geometric elements, abstract forms, devoid of specific subject content;
• combined ornament, which is a combination of graphic motifs and abstract forms.

It should be noted that the ornament is also classified by pictorial motifs (floral, geometric, anthropological); according to style accessories (antique, gothic, baroque); by nationality (Ukrainian, Belarusian, Greek); on the visual form (flat, embossed, counter-relief).

Types of ornaments are multifaceted, which is very successfully used in painting, architecture, sculpture.

Byzantine ornament





Baroque ornament





Celtic ornament





Rococo ornament





Ornament of the Empire style (late classicism)





Gothic ornament





Classic ornament





Romanesque ornament





Renaissance ornament