• YOUTUBE CHAT TOMORROW Join us tomorrow, November 20th, for our monthly LIVE CHAT on YouTube! The topic is Color Wheel Corrections. We will begin this color theory discussion at 2 p.m. EST. Just click this
button to tune in. Now and then, something is worth repeating. Enjoy this encore from three years ago. It is a myth to think that mastering techniques is the most important resource an artist can acquire. No matter how adroit one is at pushing a brush, if our deep sense of seeing is lacking, we are limited in the quality of work we create. It is, above all we learn, our greatest artistic resource. Deep seeing allows our eyes to guide without interference. Rather than allowing our thoughts to inform our eyes, we allow our eyes to inform our thoughts. Rather than reaching into our mind's database for some rule, we allow our eyes to answer our questions. Rather than assuming, we examine. These are the three
important keys for deep seeing. Look at this photo. Did your thoughts instantly tell you what it is? If so, that's where we begin to hone the skill of deep
seeing. Look for this...directional movement that tells you what the bird is doing. ...and this...a visual path built within the directional movement. ...and this...the variations of value and saturation of hue. ...and these...the repetition and variation of lines and values that create the visual texture as well as the soft edges and the sharper ones. Our western tendency is to label the image first, but once we label a thing, we block our deep seeing. What I just directed you to do was to see internal movement in the first image, color-value gradation in the second image, and textures in the third. These are among the things that give the image its essence. If we
learn to train our brains to see the essence first--rather than the generic label--we begin to hone our deep seeing. We learn best one thing at a time. As you move throughout your day today, make yourself aware of how your thoughts label things. When a thought gives an image a generic label, substitute that label for a directional movement and a counter movement you see within the image. Spend your day looking for these movements as substitutes for your
labels. Tomorrow, look for value gradations. The next day, look for color changes within gradations. And on and on, checking each visual element and what it is doing. Developing this habit of deep
seeing can transform how you see the world, but more importantly, it will enhance the quality of your paintings. Enjoy a fun weekend discovering deep seeing! During my Language of Painting series, I explained the role of our visual elements. If you'd like to review those roles to better understand the behavior of elements, here are the links to each of those
discussions: Color --Value -- Shape -- Texture -- Size -- Line and Direction
You can access the archive of all my newsletters (as well as the Quick Tips and other stuff) at any time by going HERE.
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