Finding Direction

I use photos as a reference for many of my paintings, which means that I’m composing the painting (in my mind) as I frame the photograph. Usually, something catches my eye - light patterns, or shadow shapes, or colors.

But something else that feels important is the direction or trajectory of lines. These lines might be a tree branch, a roofline, or the side of a building. When I find my eye is led around the image by a series of these linear elements, I know that I’ve got something to work with.

This snowy snapshot of my neighbor’s backyard doesn’t have much in the way of color…

…but there are many interesting vertical, diagonal, curvy and horizontal lines that all create a visual pathway around the composition. This is what I wanted to show in my painting.

Joy’s Backyard - 24 x 24 inches - mixed media on wood panel

Many things change and are adjusted as the painting progresses, but the leading lines remain. It’s important for an artist to pay attention to these lines so that she’s not leading the viewer right off the edge or into a corner. Lines that have a variety of character are more interesting than lines that are the same in width, length, or angle.

The next time you look at a painting you like, see if you can identify the movement and direction that the lines take you!