The movement, the space, and the relative values are all well defined. With just a few simplified shapes, the essence of the composition is fully set. I develop the composition further, using all 4 values. When the shapes are this simplified, the basic structure of the composition is more apparent, so it’s easier to evaluate the composition. I place in a second value, #4 in my 4-value progression. A simple linear sketch begins to define where the major shapes will go. I lay in a #2 value to “kill the white.” This fills the space with some tone, making it easier to judge the values that come next. If I have to remix often, my values will shift and I will deviate from my original 4 values. I pre-mix large piles of the 4 values so I won’t have to remix my values again and again as I go through the exercise. Four values also corresponds to Carlson’s “theory of angles,” which says that landscape values can be divided into full light (1), half light (2), half dark (3) and full dark (4). Four values may seem like a very limited range but it is enough to describe the basic structure of the composition. There are also some diagonals, conveniently marked by the logs in the water, that help carry my eye across the pond. As busy as the original scene is, I see the makings of an interesting composition: there is an almost circular movement around the periphery of the scene, indicated here by the yellow arrows. Color is enticing, and may even be the reason I choose to paint a subject, but it can be distracting when trying to drill down to the shapes beneath all the detail and complexity. Original photo: I first convert the image to black and white. The goal of this exercise is not necessarily to create a realistic rendition of the scene but to induce the perceptual shift that is necessary for simplification. Can using a limited set of values reduce the scene to its most fundamental shapes and planes? I like to do this exercise in acrylic because it dries quickly, allowing me to make changes quickly without muddying the edges. It is much more difficult - and infinitely more eloquent- to paint a thousand points of light with only one hundred strokes.” Exercise: Simplification and Massing with Limited Values It’s easy to paint a thousand points of light with a thousand strokes. How can thousands of leaves, twigs, branches, and ripples in the water be consolidated in a simpler set of shapes? Because of its busyness, this isn’t the kind of subject I usually choose, but I know that many painters take on subjects like this and are able to produce very strong and clear compositions. Recently one of my students brought in the photo shown below - a very complex, busy, and detailed scene. If we use fewer values, however, the shapes become more clearly defined - and simpler. There are many values in any given subject, and trying to distinguish between 15, 20, or more values quickly becomes unmanageable. To simplify you must first be able to clearly differentiate one shape from another, and the key to shape differentiation is value differences. Accessing simpler shapes with limited values Simplification requires us to look deeply and to extrapolate, which is more difficult than just copying what we see. Fortunately, painters have a tried and true method of instigating simplification. Simplified shapes live beneath the details and narrative. Our instinct is to focus on things we understand, like details and narrative. Simplification is not something the average painter does naturally. If we are successful at this task, our painting will have better structure and form, and read more clearly to viewers. A landscape painter’s first and most important task is to reduce nature’s vastness and complexity into more visually concise and simplified shapes. But trying to translate all that into a painting requires a different type of visual processing. When we observe the landscape, in all its depth and breadth, we are able to visually apprehend its many complex shapes and details with no thought at all.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |