Home › Forums › The Learning Center › Composition and Design › Two questions about composition: Focal points and Design Principles
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October 7, 2022 at 8:44 pm #1487789
Hello again!
I started studying some aspects related to composition. Right now, I’m focusing on being able to establish a proper focal point. I made a small study as you can see below with extremely simple patterns and drawings. In each of the four boxes, what detail in particular is more likely to draw your attention the most? Just asking because I want to verify that I executed the theory properly.
Another question is, when composing a picture, is it necessary to have in mind all of the design principles, or is it possible to make a satisfactory job, say, for example, having more rhythm and balance than the others? Not sure if I’m explaining properly.
Thanks in advance!
Arthur
October 19, 2022 at 11:46 am #1488974I feel it’s normal for the CONTRASTING element to attract one’s attention.
Design principles do not CREATE design, but serve to evaluate a design. If you’re unhappy with a design, go over standard design principles. They may show you where you’ve gone wrong, or could improve. Rhythm and Balance are both design principles.
There are times when it seems impossible to design anything with pencil and paper. This is when cutting up bits of this and that, and moving them around like puzzle pieces, can really help. Remember that design can be analyzed into all kinds of details (principles) but it’s the UNITY, or cohesiveness, of your work that counts. Try out different arrangements, then let us see them. : )
December 8, 2022 at 10:57 am #1494612Hello. I was going to skip over this because BeLing had said the essentials. Then I studied your drawings more carefully and got drawn in. Apologies for droning on a bit.
It looks like you are following some kind of course of study here and these are practical application exercises. I say this because I get the feeling that you might be following some broad directions here, such as ‘create a rhythmic pattern of one simple shape then introduce colour contrast to the design’. Or something like that.
Studying the principles of design can be useful and informative in the sense of how a particular image works or not as BeLing suggests.
In the top example with the pyramid shapes, there appears to be a blue colour over the pyramid shapes and the space between them (it’s a bit hard to see for certain as the picture is quite flat). Blue—yellow are complimentary colours giving strong contrast. It might also be argued that the contrast in that drawing is also one of positive-negative space. I see these as pyramid triangles, point-up rather than point down. I think this is because they appear to be sitting on a baseline, and of course because of the blue (still unsure about that and just how much it covers, if it’s there at all). The yellow then, contrasts because it is a negative space.
The cloud-like letter A contrasts because it’s a letterform and is thus unlike the other shapes. However the opposite it might be said, of contrast is conformity or similarity. In this respect the letterform conforms to the same general character as the cloud (or moustache?) shapes. Much of the time a designer must try to satisfy these two ‘opposites’; there must be contrast but we also need conformity.
Similarly the faces conform in that they are the same size(ish) and general form, but contrast in the colour and spatial positioning and grouping. A very good typographic designer once said “Contrast, to be effective must be sharp; timidity in employing contrast will result only in conflict”. There will always be exceptions to such ‘rules’ but this is a good one to keep in mind.
The focal point, then of the top three drawings is going to be the ‘odd one out’ either because of colour form or positioning.
The fourth drawing is a little unclear; I can’t quite make out what’s going on and what the shapes are, but it doesn’t really matter. The symmetry and the directional nature of the objects direct us to the centre of course. There is also some degree of contrast in form and in colour, although they do have much the same overall size.
I used to do an introductory exercise with new students in which I asked them to draw a square about four inches square and then to draw a one-inch black circle inside the square. The majority of students placed the circle in the centre of the square. This creates symmetry and symmetry is not wrong but, from a design point of view it is quite passive. Placing that circle towards the edge of the square creates immediate tension and is much more dynamic.
Very occasionally a student would place the circle touching the edge of the square and it’s interesting in a nerdy sort of way what happens when you do that. The tension is lost or very much diminished.
A—is calm and passive (but not wrong). B—is much more dynamic; there is visual tension in the design. C—still more dynamic than A but much of the tension in B has been lost.
In answer to your second question, such rules as these are useful in understanding how images work on us but applying them too rigidly in practical work can be problematic.
PLEASE how do I make these dreadful yellow things go away? OMG there's even more of the awful things now.
www.instagram.com/john_humber_artist
www.instagram.com/john_petty_letterformSeptember 7, 2023 at 5:42 pm #1525463Now, I shall relate a factor regarding the creating of a focal point that I may have either read somewhere, or have discovered on my own, from pure experience.
In a piece of art, a focal point becomes almost immediate, and decisive, when in a natural landscape, for example, you were to place a man-made object, such as a truck, or a plow, or a shovel.
The focal point becomes even more decisive, when you place a human, or animal figure.
Just a thought you may wish to consider.
wfmartin. My Blog "Creative Realism"...
https://williamfmartin.blogspot.com -
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