Composition

Dividing the picture plane

Before you begin drawing on a surface, think first about how you will place everything on

the picture plane.

The picture plane is the illusionary flat surface on which you create a drawing or painting.

• The principles of art help determine the organization and provide the solutions to compositional problems.

Principles of Art

Movement Rhythm Balance Emphasis Variety Unity Proportion

The Rule of Thirds

The simplest way to create a composition is to divide the picture plane in an asymmetrical manner. One technique is referred to as the Rule of Thirds.

This is done by dividing the picture plane into three equal portions on the side and bottom of the page…kind of like a tic-tac-toe game. The key is to draw this lightly or in your mind.

The Rule of Thirds

This will give you a visual marker of the best location to place your emphasis or the point of visual interest.

The key is to not place your emphasis in the middle of any of these squares but instead to place it on the crosshairs of the grid.

For example:

When a viewer looks at a work of art, the first place their eye goes is to the center of the picture. If your main emphasis is in the middle, there is little reason for the viewer to look at the rest of the piece.

By placing the emphasis in one of the side boxes, the viewer’s eye movement is stopped. In order for

a viewer to see all of the work you put into a drawing or painting, you need to keep their eye

moving.

What is the emphasis of this picture?

Do you see how the picture changes with a different composition?

How about this one?

Does this picture have the same emotional impact as the previous composition?

The artist, Edward Hopper, tried to capture the loneliness of the city in the 1920’s.

With a different composition, Hopper would have lost some of his desired intent. Do these people look as lonely?

The Golden Section

There are several other ways to compose a work of art. One of the oldest and more difficult ones to employ is referred to as the Golden Section.

In the Golden Section, objects can be broken down into a 3 to 5 ratio. This method of composing was drawn from the mathematical designs of nature.

A spiral shell is a perfect example of such a composition.

This method is sometimes easier to use after you have started your composition and need to check a problem area.

Can you see how the Golden Section is used in this painting by Seurat?

Piet Mondrian was a big advocate of the Golden Section.Can you spot the emphasis?

Sometimes, an emphasis is non-existent or difficult to find.

In Marcel Duchamp’s Nude Descending a Staircase, the emphasis of the painting is on the movement of the shapes. This is done by repeating lines and shapes to create a rhythm.

The similar colors keep everything unified.

• Lines of movement are lines (implied or actual) that connect the main emphasis with other information in a picture.

Salvador Dalí also used repeating images to create movement and rhythm.

This painting has an asymmetrical balance.

Dalí also uses a variety of repeating images to keep the eye moving and to unify the entire painting.