Thursday, October 14, 2010

Value Study

Church Door
12" x 8"
pastel
My inspiration for this study was the slice of bright light in the background.  The problem was to make the foreground darker.  Another struggle with a white building.  Cast in shadow, the front was darker than the sky.  Took many layers of color.  Liked playing with all the curved shapes, the door, royal palm bases, flower pots, window.  Also liked using the strong verticals as "slices" of composition.  The diagonal of the stair railing echos the roof angle in the background, and the diagonal slashes of sunlight on the foreground palm.  I didn't think about all of these comparisons while sketching, realized some after I finished. Getting a design to work like this one does, hitting all the right notes, makes it worth while.  Composition is visual music, created first by letting go.  Don't think, just see.

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