Painting More Details Can Kill It!
A discussion about composition
There are many struggles we go through during the process of creating a painting. Creating a well-composed painting is a huge one. The public has no idea and only sees the finished product.
We get past this struggle by knowing why we are painting a particular vision.
One such struggle that surfaces many times while painting is when to stop!
Many good pictures are ruined by constant striving to make them better. Over-modeling and accenting detail or highlights is an over-influence of realism. (Edgar Payne from “Composition of Outdoor Painting”)
I love this quote from the book “Composition of Outdoor Painting.” It says exactly what we may go through to create our vision.
How do you know when to stop?
I taught weekly painting classes for about 15 years in my hometown. During one of my demonstrations, a student said, “Are you going to stop before you kill it?” She had a big smile on her face when she said it. The phrase “killing a painting” had become a joke for quite some time. The good thing about it being said is it told me I…
