when one figure is much larger than the others in the painting, they
call this  ______________scale.I believe it starts with an h

Hi oodoobee!


The answer to your question is ?Hierarchical scale.?


From Erica Werth?s Art Terms:

?Hierarchical scale or figures of different sizes; the larger the
figure, the greater the importance.?

Erica Werth: Art Terms 
http://puffin.creighton.edu/fapa/aikin/Web-files/ART219%20Webfiles/a_comprehensive_list_of_art_term.htm



An example of hierarchical scale in the painting ?Madonna and Child
Enthroned between Saints Lucy and Eligius.?
http://web-kiosk.pomona.edu/Images/Previews/Painting/Kress/P61_1_5.jpg

?The artist's careful manipulation of scale and compositional space
draws our attention to the Virgin and Child, emphasizing their
importance.  Presented in hierarchical scale, the Madonna and Child
are proportionally larger than the three subordinate figures;?

Pomona College Museum of Art
http://web-kiosk.pomona.edu/Obj47$34*839971


Search criteria:
?* scale? larger figures 
?* scale? artist OR painting
?Hierarchical scale?


I hope you find this helpful!


Best regards,
Bobbie7