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Line
Line is different than lines. Line refers not to one-dimensional (or in the case of wavy lines, two-dimensional) strokes, with their continuous, dashed, dotted or random patterns; line means direction.
(That said, I will now proceed to use the two words interchangeably.)
Lines of varying angles have different emotional ties -- and these ties can differ from culture to culture. For simplicity's sake, though, we'll deal with Western connotations of the variations in line. Consider three basic types of lines:
- Vertical line
- Horizontal line
- Diagonal line
Vertical Lines. Vertical lines connote authority and power - a line to (or from) heaven. Church steeples, pillars, monuments are examples of vertical lines.
Horizontal Lines. Horizontal lines makes us think of stability and expanse. A foundation.
Diagonal Lines. Diagonals say "movement". They can also imply the opposite of vertical and horizontal lines, i.e., loss of power, or struggle, or instability.
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Say you're building a bank. You want to inspire trust and authority, correct? Hence the use of nice, strong pillars and wide, flat roofs at so many large banks.
Have a look at some examples to the right. | 
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Now say you're building an amusement park. The rides could be laid out in a simple grid fashion, but stability and authority don't coincide with the notion of wild or fun -- so the paths between rides are winding, curving lines.
Check out how wild the site is for the Looney Tunes movie. Diagonals all over the place! The only horizontal and vertical lines inside the picture are there to help make the site navigable. | 
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