Promoting Great Art and Composition
309/365
Welcome back everyone! I truly appreciate all of the support thus far! As this 365 project creeps towards the finale, it’s always great to know some of you are cheering me on!
Today we are looking at another artist that is promoting great art and composition through his blog. His name is Scott McD and he offers something a bit different. Opposite of this site, he’s more interested in the fantasy art which is great because it shows you that these design techniques can be applied to all flavors of art. You can find him analyzing artwork in a different fashion that points out new techniques and ways of understanding. Let’s take a look at some of the pieces he digs into.
Even though I haven’t had time to go through most of Scott’s analyzed works, I did notice his Table of Contents which is full of artists he’s looked at further.
I thought it would be fun to quickly slap on the dynamic symmetry and see if Yigit Koruglu used it. Turns out he did! You can see the smaller characters locking in on the polar point in the lower left, the creature is on the baroque diagonal, it’s tentacle is locked in on the right vertical.
When we place the Major Area Divisions we’ll see that he has the creature’s face in the middle, it’s jaw is locked into the grid, and the middle tentacle parallels the sinister diagonal. Even though Scott McD analyzes it on the golden section grid, at least he’s not claiming the rule of thirds helped guide the artist’s compositional decisions. Koruglu is using the Root 3 grid and it’s basic armature as a starting point. Aside from the fact that he’s very familiar with other design techniques like aerial perspective.
Here’s another fantastical creation by Koruglu!
For fun I lined up two side by side 1.5 grids. Sure enough, they are locking in and paralleling elements.
Here we have the Major Area Divisions in place which show us even more locking in.
Daybreak by Maxfield Parrish
In this one, he analyzes how Maxfield Parrish uses dynamic symmetry to place his elements. I remember the first time my best friend told me he discovered a new artist. It was Maxfield Parrish…almost similar to Mucha and some other Art Noveau designs.
Here’s another one by Parrish.
Gala Contemplating the Mediterranean Sea by Salvador Dali
In this one by Salvador Dali, Scott analyzes the gestalt principle called the Law of Pragnanz, and something neat called “spacial frequency.”
Here’s another one by Dali.
We can clearly see how he’s using the dynamic symmetry of the grid to compose the elements within his painting.
The White Goddess by Charles Vess
This is a fun piece by Charles Vess. He creates a very romantic composition, full of energy and movement (see Day 302). Scott analyzes this with the golden ratio points, but it appears that Vess is using dynamic symmetry. I’m a sucker for these wild tree limbs and roots!
With the 1.5 rectangle grid in place we can see elements locking in.
Seven Handed Musician by Artur Sadlos
This is a fun one by Artur Sadlos where Scott analyzes the composition, textures, and other elements.
Another cool piece by Sadlos.
I hope these have inspired your art, or perhaps you learned a new technique. Don’t be afraid to dig deep into the art that you love, because you’ll surely discover something that will change your work forever. See you guys next time!
