Dynamic vs Static – how to compose better paintings.

It is so easy to paint a boring picture! I’m sure we all have failed paintings tucked away somewhere that just didn’t work out right. They are dull and lifeless and, well, just boring! And the number 1 reason for a boring painting is a boring composition. I’ll try and give you some ideas to remedy this in this post, but first a quick story to set the scene…

My wife Donna and I drove up to the Saliente Monastery way up in the hills near us so that I could paint there. It’s a stunning building sat atop a mountain at just over 1,000 metres altitude. But this is January, and while it was warm in the valley, it quickly became apparent that it was freezing cold at the monastery. The sun was shining in the cloudless sky, but a bitter wind was whipping around, limiting my choice of painting spots.

However, I was determined to paint as we had come all this way, so I quickly set up the easel right in front of the main building and just began painting. No planning. No looking around for a better location. No thumbnails sketches. Nothing. I just painted what was there in front of me. Big mistake!

After half an hour I was feeling the chill. After an hour I was so cold that I couldn’t feel my fingers and the oil paint itself was becoming all sticky and was refusing to move around on the support. It was time to call it a day and head home. We clicked a few photos and jumped back into the warm of the car.

However I determined to plug away at it in the hope that I might just be able to rescue it. Another Big Mistake! If the starting composition is awful, then there is nothing that can be done. Adding texture or details or more colour won’t mend a rotten composition.

The painting was just about blocked in, but even at this stage I sensed it was a failure, so I gave up on it. There was no sense in wasting more time on a painting that would never improve.

From Static to Dynamic

Then I saw a photo that Donna had taken of the same building, but with a dynamic composition.

It was all diagonals and perspective and, even though it was the same place on the same day, the composition was exciting.

I made a thumbnail sketch of both views to compare them, and then painted the dynamic version (below). (For more info on the value of making thumbnail sketches, see this post)

I hope you can see the difference the change in composition made to this scene. I was much more motivated to paint the dynamic version and I think it resulted in a much better painting.

In conclusion…

Never be in a hurry to paint a scene – even when the weather is against you. It saves so much time and energy (not to mention paint!) if you spend a little while searching for the perfect – and sometime unusual – dynamic composition. It will be there somewhere! Then check it with a quick thumbnail sketch, and you will be ready to paint a successful picture. That bit of time spent beforehand in the planning will save you hours of time later!

I hope you found this post interesting and helpful. Please give a thumbs up if you did.

#enpleinair #art #painting #sketching #learningtopaint #oilpainting #Composition #artist #paintingtips

Coffee and the painting process

With every year that passes I am reminded that learning to paint is not instant. It’s not something that just happens overnight. You don’t wake up one morning at the start of a brand new year and are able to paint. No, it can be a slow and painful process, taking years, if not your whole life.

While this may sound gloomy, it actually isn’t. It’s great! it means that we have our whole lives to explore new ideas, new ways of working, new subjects, and by doing so we are growing in our knowledge and our ability to paint. Every time we put brush to canvas or pencil to paper, we are learning something new and are achieving something that no-one has ever done before. It is enriching, rewarding and fascinating!

Imagine how bored you would be if you could just produce a masterpiece every time! Where would the challenge be?

Coffee mugs (Gouache) Andy Walker

A slow learning process is a bit like the process of making coffee. Sometimes an instant cup is just what we want, and it gives us that caffeine hit in a moment. But for a better taste and a more gratifying experience we have put in the time and effort and make a “real” cup of coffee.

I once went to learn some glazing techniques for ceramic tiles from a well-known potter in the Lake district in the UK. She was an elderly lady, and the first thing she asked me was if I’d like a cup of coffee. Having said, “Yes”, she then disappeared into the kitchen and for about twenty minutes I could hear the grinding of beans, the boiling of water in a steam kettle, the slow percolating of the coffee through a filter, and the pouring of milk into a jug. When she finally emerged I had a perfect cup of coffee that tasted and smelt so good! But it took time!

Coffe Cup and Figs (Oil) Andy Walker

So, don’t try for, or expect, instant art. Work at it bit by bit. Allow things to percolate slowly into your mind and hands. Enjoy learning a little bit more with each painting. Respect the process. And I am certain that with each painting you will grow and develop and become the artist you are meant to be!

Wishing you a Happy New Year, Your friend, Andy Walker

#painting #learningtopaint #oilpainting #stilllife #coffee #paintingtips

Memories are made of this…

Traditionally the end of one year and the beginning of the next is a time for looking back, reminiscing, mulling over what you did, saw and created over the last 12 months.

One of the best ways I have found of doing this is to flick back through any sketchbooks made during that time. This is, of course, assuming that you kept a sketchbook (!), which is something I heartily recommend you do. The drawings, sketches and paintings you made during the year come alive again, as do the memories.

So here is some of my sketchbook from 2023, which I hope will be an inspiration for you to start your own in 2024. Some sketches are better than others, but that is the nature of the beast. However all hold happy memories of where, when and how they were painted.

I hope you enjoyed watching! And if you are wanting help with sketching en plein air, then check out my course here: https://www.udemy.com/course/sketchbook-secrets-the-art-of-sketching/

May I wish you a very Happy New Year. Andy

#art #sketching #sketchbook #watercolortips #sketch #Gouache #drawing