COMPOSITION IN BLACK AND WHITE

 

Playing with Letters, unfinished study 

for black and white abstraction © by Ruth Zachary. 

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The Shape Shifting Approach to Composition

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Moving varied shapes around the picture plane is my first step in starting a composition.

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When using color, the shapes are best when they are varied by hue, value, and size. I prefer organic, irregular shapes in uneven numbers. I prefer to work in related hues, or family colors on the color wheel. The values of the shapes might range from dark to light, unless they are to be placed against a background, which should contrast with the shapes.

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Some of the same principles apply when arranging shapes in a realistic composition. A variety of blacks, grays and light tones are effective when limited to black and white, as I have been showing  in planning this series of illustrations.

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In collage the first step is to put the shapes, either 3, 5, or 7 into a pleasing arrangement. When working on the computer, I create a set of irregular shapes, and try the same shapes in several different configurations. Diagonals are more dynamic, and often suggest depth.  The more rectangular the shapes are, the more the composition appears to be on one plane.

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In black and white I do not use layers in different modes. I use layers one over the previous layer to arrange shapes. I began with the letters on the bottom or background layer, gathered from an assortment of sources to vary the texture from the first studies in the series. Over this I arranged the shapes in different relationships to each other. There will be several versions of this same beginning, with different textures, drawn lines, etc. 

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One way to change relationships within the picture plane is to divide it into thirds and reposition . This often changes the number of shapes as well as the relationships, offering surprises and challenges.

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The last step is usually to move some of the shapes within the picture plane to a new position, to rotate them, extend some of the lines to carry the eye, repeat some shapes or accent colors, and to balance the dark areas, by deepening or lightening the values, moving them, (or changing the hue when working in color.) To compare this process to working in color, see my post on ruthzachary.blogspot.com

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I like the connotation of Shape Shifting as a title, because it is a metaphor for adjustment within the self, the way an artist tries to put various design elements into good relationship with each other in a composition.

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Writing and Images on this blogsite are the sole © Copyright of Ruth Zachary.