In class exercises: 

1) Make viewfinder from 2 corners

2) Prepare thumbnail sketches by drawing grid of thirds on each layout (portrait, landscape, square)

3) Begin  thumbnail sketches based on the following parameters

•  Prepare thumbnails: Draw a minimum of 8 rectangles (approx. 3x4)- 4 should be horizontal/landscape format and 4 should be in vertical/portrait format- and 4 squares (approx. 3x3) in graphite

• Compose  a variety of open and closed compositions, all using 3 shapes. Make sure that you develop open and closed compositions in each of the formats (horizontal, vertical, and square)

• use free-hand sketching, ink washes, or cut silhouettes of organic shapes for this process, as demonstrated.

for next week:

You will sketch 3-5 simple objects from observation, so choose very simple forms that will be easy to draw quickly. A wide variety of sizes is desirable, though you could always change the size in the drawing.

 I suggest having 7-10 objects handy so that you can decide what to use once you understand the assignment. (example: egg, bone, pinecone, seashell, starfish, flower, leaves, etc.)

You will work in black and white media and have the option to use solid black ink with a brush (in which case, you will need wet-media paper)

In class exercise: The "Rule of Thirds"

We will examine the application of the "rule of thirds" in the illustrations below, then return to this exercise

Step 1: Thumbnails: Draw 4 rectangles (two portrait, two landscape) and 2 squares. 

The Golden Ratio is 1:1.6. 

The rule of thirds is a simplification of the Golden Ratio (aka, Golden Mean or Golden Section). The Golden ratio is 1:1.6, and the rule of thirds simplifies this as 1: 1.5, which is the same as 2:3. (pictured above)

If you are basing the dimensions of your composition on the rule of thirds, the height to width ratio should be 1:1.5, which is the same as 2:3.  Therefore, your composition might be 4x6, or 5x7.5, or 7 x 10.5, etc. Your thumbnails do not have to use these proportions, but should be approximately 5 x 7.5 with squares no smaller than 5 x 5

Step 2: Draw grid on each

Whether or not the height and width of your composition are based on this ratio, you will divide your composition into 3rds both vertically and horizontally. Draw this grid on your composition and use the lines to guide the placement of your shapes.

Remember these tips to using the rule of thirds

• experiment with applying the rule of thirds to dark vs. light; horizontal vs. vertical planes; full chroma vs. neutral; large shapes vs. small

• use thirds to guide the major movements in your composition

• use the points of intersection to guide the placement of focal points in your composition (ie: saturated color, a key figure, or point of light)

Step 3: Sketch 3-5 organic shapes on each thumbnail

You may work from observation, memory, 2D reference, or imagination to sketch your organic shapes. The emphasis in this exercise is to compose with solid shapes (no value contrast to imply volume in this exercise), so please do not linger over the details of the shapes yet. Fill in your solid shapes with graphite, OR use ink washes on wet media paper, OR cut and paste silhouettes from construction paper or similar

Elements of art: 

• shape encloses a two dimensional area and can be organic or geometric (one dimensional is a line; two dimensional has length and width)

• form encloses a three dimensional area (length, width, and depth. Example: a circle is two dimensional, a sphere is three dimensional)

• line (line quality, ie: thick, thin, delicate, broken; contour; hatching)

• value (dark and light gradients- these can create vibration or movement)

• texture (conveys tactile sensation)

• space (organization of shapes and subject matter, including use of perspective)

• color (consider palette, chroma, contrast)

Open vs. Closed Composition

In an open composition, the image leaves the edges of the composition to imply a continuation of the scene. In a closed composition, everything is contained within the borders. Look at the variety of approaches here.

questions:

• Does the artist use symmetry? If so, how?

• What provides balance in these images? Or imbalance?

• How are the objects in each image related to each other?

• How consistent are the sizes/proportions of the objects or specimens to each other?

• How are the colors and values distributed? 

• What leads the eye across the composition?

Open Composition

The "Rule of Thirds"

The Golden Ratio is 1:1.6. We will discuss this in further detail in the coming weeks.

The rule of thirds is a simplification of the Golden Ratio  (aka, Golden Mean or Golden Section), and is 1:1.5, or 2:3.

Below are a few examples of this rule. Can you identify what falls on the horizontal and vertical divisions?