Have you every built a large puzzle?
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| Northern Pintail on the Wetlands - 16 x 20 matted $550 |
Building a large puzzle demands lots of organizational skills ie. separating the pieces into useful piles. Each piece by itself really looks like nothing. Just a blob of colour. Sometimes several colours. But really just a blob, by itself it tells the eye very little about the puzzle.
But the tiny blob begins to grow . . .
As you work on the puzzle you find other little pieces that fit to your first piece. With each piece comes more information for the eye/brain to interpret. Your work with your painting is the same, especially with the background.
Start with abstraction . . .
When I start a painting, I often start with the background and work forward. With my painting of the Northern Pintail Duck, this was certainly the case. Using my colour scheme with a wet wash, I suggested wetlands melting into the sky. If you cover the duck's head and just focus on the background it really just looks like masses of colours. There is really nothing for the eye to 'understand' and bring meaning to.
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| Abstraction starts in the background but tighter and tighter detail tell the story. |
Notice what happens as you move down the painting (this really is moving from the back of the background to the front of the background) there are suggested shapes. By themselves nothing. But the dark green edge suggests a waterline, the dark clumps suggest tall grasses at the water's edge. Suddenly your eye says, "hey, those are billowing clumps of grasses and there is even a bit of water in there." Your eye sees meaning.
Tighter and tighter detail tells the story to the eye . . .
As your eye moves into the Mid-ground there are more abstract shapes but also sharper edges. The green and gold washes become reflections of the wetland grasses and the blue becomes water. The background recedes and becomes flatter. The tight detail of the duck crossing over the background and mid-ground offers more reassurance to the eye. "Yes, this is a duck, those most be grasses, water, reflections"; everything makes sense.
Sharp and Crisp ends the story . . .
The sharp, crisp grasses poking out of the water in the foreground, confirm the tale. The eye completely understands what is happening and how to interpret the shapes and colours. It is happy. And of course, so am I. Using these tools, I used the power of suggestion to give an interesting and realistic background for my picture. This is also the kind of background that delights the eye as so much is left for it to interpret. Every eye loves that challenge.
To really get a feel for how the bits of detail work at each level, isolate each section with your fingers and see how abstract they really are. Then slowly move your fingers to allow a little of the suggested details show. Notice how your eye immediately gets to work and 'makes sense' of things. (Actually, I guess it really is your brain doing all the work, your eye just feeds in the information. )
Painting Backgrounds is a subject that has interested me alot. I have talked about it many times. Here are a few posts on the subject, if you put 'painting backgrounds' into my search box on my blog you will get more to see.
Backgrounds that Paint Themselves
What's Going on Back There
Painting Those Pesky Backgrounds
Next week, another look at Backgrounds to Foregrounds - the Planes in the Picture.
Working with Wildlife Artist Wendy Mould, AFCA bridges the gap between the Entrepreneur and the Artist in the Marketing World. Contact Wendy to Register.
Be sure to like and share my posts.
Tighter and tighter detail tells the story to the eye . . .
As your eye moves into the Mid-ground there are more abstract shapes but also sharper edges. The green and gold washes become reflections of the wetland grasses and the blue becomes water. The background recedes and becomes flatter. The tight detail of the duck crossing over the background and mid-ground offers more reassurance to the eye. "Yes, this is a duck, those most be grasses, water, reflections"; everything makes sense.
Sharp and Crisp ends the story . . .
The sharp, crisp grasses poking out of the water in the foreground, confirm the tale. The eye completely understands what is happening and how to interpret the shapes and colours. It is happy. And of course, so am I. Using these tools, I used the power of suggestion to give an interesting and realistic background for my picture. This is also the kind of background that delights the eye as so much is left for it to interpret. Every eye loves that challenge.
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| Block out the duck with your finger as you look at the isolated background |
Painting Backgrounds is a subject that has interested me alot. I have talked about it many times. Here are a few posts on the subject, if you put 'painting backgrounds' into my search box on my blog you will get more to see.
Backgrounds that Paint Themselves
What's Going on Back There
Painting Those Pesky Backgrounds
Next week, another look at Backgrounds to Foregrounds - the Planes in the Picture.
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Originals, prints and Instant Printable Cards for all Seasons available.
Special Note: Instant Digital Valentine Cards are now Ready - Print, Fold and Give. They are great for Pet Lovers, featuring Cats and Dogs - of course Max was my inspiration for the dog drawing!
Special Note: Instant Digital Valentine Cards are now Ready - Print, Fold and Give. They are great for Pet Lovers, featuring Cats and Dogs - of course Max was my inspiration for the dog drawing!
Special Opportunity Coming Up:
Marketing Workshop - Let's Get Your Art Out There!!
Sunday, Feb 24, 2019 10-3pm with Wendy Mould, AFCA
Need a focus for your Marketing Strategy? Unsure where to start, where to head next? Marketing takes so much of your time away from the Studio, learn where to focus your energy and ways to maximize your time. At the end of the day you will have plans and be ready for Action.
Cost $84 Tx Incl
Working with Wildlife Artist Wendy Mould, AFCA bridges the gap between the Entrepreneur and the Artist in the Marketing World. Contact Wendy to Register.
Artists reading this post also find the following valuable:
Matching Colours to Values here
Playing with a Very Limited Watercolour Palette here
3 Ways to Turn Drawing Despair into Action here
Playing with a Very Limited Watercolour Palette here
3 Ways to Turn Drawing Despair into Action here
How to Find your Starting Point here
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Have a great Artful Day,
Wendy
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