COMPOSITION DISCUSSION

COMPOSITION DISCUSSIONWhat is it? Why does it matter? How do I do it well?What is composition?

Why does composition matter?Does it matter where you place notes in a piece of music?

What makes an effective composition?Does it convey the feelings, ideas, and emotions the artist wants the viewer to understand?Does the viewer see what the artist wants them to see?Are there things that distract from the message and meaning of the artwork?Artists often make multiple sketches in order to get the most effective composition possible.

Good compositions usually dont happen by accident, it takes some careful planning.

First thing to think about is BALANCE

Why is balance important? Is it ever appropriate not to have balance? We create balance by manipulating visual weight. So what is visual weight? Visual weight is the ability to draw the eye. Something that is more noticeable has more visual weight. The more we want to look at something the more visual weight it has.

Mass can cause visual weight.

Unusual or bright colors can cause visual weight.

Unusual or isolated shapes can cause visual weight.What do you notice first?

Eye gaze or direction of gesture can create visual weight

Placement causes visual weight.Things placed right in the center attract our eye.Anything that touches the edge attract our eye.

Subject matter also creates visual weight. Humans usually prefer to look at:other humans!

animals next

A GOOD ART WORK NEEDS FOCAL POINT! WHAT IS IT?ANSWER: The area that draws the eye first.Make sure the viewer sees what you want them to see. You can do this by:1. Creating the greatest value contrast at the focal point.

2. Blur (or do not detail) everything else.

Artist often use the RULE OF THE THIRDS!

Things that are placed on the line of the thirds or the intersecting points tend to be good places to put things.Why wouldnt you want to place a object in the exact center???

Answer: Thats all anyone will ever see!Think about your EYE PATH. The Eye Path is a guided tour through your art work.Notice how the eye flows from the focal point to other areas of interest and stays in the art work.

THING TO BE CAREFUL OF: Too much negative space. Fill the picture!

But dont overwhelm the viewer with too much stuff.

Dont have objects sit on the bottom of your paper or canvas it looks very 2nd gradish!

Match your composition to the mood of your art. Horizontal give restful feeling, verticals give static or stately feel and diagonals show action.

Dont be boring with your compositions. Change it up, try something new with your compositions.

Try a composition that goes off the edge on three sides. Artists use it all the time and it almost always works.

26DONT float your subject matter in a sea of empty space it is a sure sign of a beginning artist.

Change your mind set from drawing something to creating an art work.

If you go off the page on one side you might want to balance by going off the page on the opposite side.

Avoid a bouncing eye path.

Artist use overlapping and irregular spacing to avoid bouncing eye paths.LASTLY: Is there anything distracting in your composition?

Now lets look at some famous artworks What do you think about their compositions?