Composition of Outdoor Painting || Preface & Chapter 1

Study by Mary Highstreet (L), Original by Glen Dean (R)

Composition of Outdoor Painting by Edgar Payne

Preface & Chapter 1
(pp. 1-26)

So let me first say, it is a very dense book!  Don't be discouraged, however, there was so much invaluable advice for the artist that if you can comprehend it, it is a must read!

I am just going to point out the main principals that stuck out to me and things I want to take away.  If you are reading this along with me, or at any point in the future, feel free to leave constructive comments on the book as well as your thoughts below.  The full reading plan, for those interested in following along, can be found HERE.

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Summary of Main Points:

1.  Balance.  We must have a proper balance of both artistic freedom and fundamental principals.  We must learn rules to avoid common artistic pitfalls.  But, too many rules and we risk loosing originality.

2.  Artists, even those who delve into fantasy, must go back to nature to achieve realistic and believable depictions.  If we never look to nature and reality, we run the risk of our art looking fake and contrived.

3.  The enjoyment for the artist should be in the process (in the work of painting) and not the outcome (the finished artwork).  We must learn to value the work art takes even more than the end result.

4.  The artist is never done learning.  "The true artist is always the student." (p. 20)  "The study of art is a lifetime matter." (p. 22)

5.  Enthusiasm is key for the artist, it pushes the artist to continue to seek out and enjoy artistic pursuits.  On the other hand, a lackadaisical approach will lead nowhere.

6.  Art is not a means to an end.  If we only pursue and derive our passion from art alone, we miss bigger and more wide-reaching influences.  Artists need to look everywhere for inspiration:  from philosophy to science to almost anything on earth.

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More Details:

A.  Preface

Here, Payne lays a solid foundation for art application via a necessity to build on art history, study of nature and solid ideas, as well as the knowledge of already conceived principals of art.  And in so doing, shooing aside the idea that art is only talent or only imagination.  Not to neglect the latter, but instead bringing the need of a proper blend and balance of both processes to the artist's table.

B.  Chapter 1:  The Approach to Art

1.  Origin and Purpose

Art is the result of an artists desire to express and the need for appreciation.  Idealization, perfectionism,  and a desire to excel are often attributes of the artist.

Art is a universal language.  In it's beauty, a get-away, an escape from mundane in life: "relief to the jaded mind, and windows to the imprisoned thought." (p.2)

Artistic principals have been developed and established since the beginning of artistic expression, even as far back as the caveman.  Why reinvent the wheel?

2.  Talent and Genius

We artists need to preserve our most basic artistic instincts (our talents and gifts) in the arts and not let it be squashed by teachings of principals.  But our natural abilities are merely a starting point and without determination, perseverance, and hard work our natural talent will go to waste.

3.  Elementary Principals

"...truths and principals are [a] stabilizing permanent foundation [for the artist]." (p. 5)  Edgar Payne points out an expression from the Bible, "there is nothing new under the sun."  Many "new ideas" are often innocent re-hashings, ignorant of the exact same old ideas long ago thought of.  Rather than claiming these principals as our own ideas, we should look to art history and study the fundamentals so we can avoid imitation, however innocent.  If learn from the past, are merely guided by those principals, and on top of that apply our own creative faculties, it can steer us to originality.  "To be original one needs to learn the ideas of other painters in order to be different from them."  On page 7, Payne lists attributes necessary for the artist, and fundamentals of design that must be mastered.  

We must have a proper balance of both artistic freedom and fundamental principals.  We don't want our paintings to go off the deep end one way or another, the results could prove disastrous.  We must balance "no thought" strictly rule driven methodical methods with the other end of the spectrum, extreme liberty no limitations what-so-ever imagination overload.  Where you, the artist, fall on the balance is up to you.

4.  Opposition of Influences

Every problem we face in art is a matter of opposing forces (nature vs. principal, light vs. dark, patterned vs. minimal), and we the artist are a third element that has the ability to choose how to balance them.

The enjoyment for the artist should be in the process (in the work of painting) and not the outcome (the finished artwork).  As I have read recently, this statement is true for kids too, we must praise the process and not the outcome.  If we constantly praise the outcome, it leaves kids with little determination to work hard, and instead they will select the easy route to get the finished result.  I am a product of the later methodology, that of praising the outcome.  I know all too well the feeling of admiration when one receives praise of the finished product, it leaves you little room to want to go back to the drawing board.  This way of thought, of praising the outcome, has been detrimental to me personally as an artist, and now I am working to correct those long instilled principals.  I see the gain in learning to enjoy and even praise the process itself; it produces a desire for hard work and perseverance, which are essential to artistic life.

We must enjoy painting in and of itself, and it will eventually end in a great product.  If we just seek a reward, skipping hard work and imagination, we only cheat ourselves.

5.  Rules  

We must learn to value the work art takes even more than the end result.  If all we see is the finished product, then the means of getting there may escape us. "The glamor of any achievement should never overshadow the means of producing it." (p. 14)

We must learn artistic head knowledge first, then understand how to apply it.  You must learn rules to avoid common artistic pitfalls.  For the artist rules are to be used as a guide only not a means to an end.  Too many rules and we risk loosing originality.

6.  Imagination and the Emotional Impulses

Artists use Imagination, Emotion, and so called "feelings," to produce originality in artwork.  These natural instincts and emotions are key to achieve unique creative expression in art; something that cannot come from techniques alone.

7.  Nature

Artists, even those who delve into fantasy, must go back to nature to achieve realistic and believable depictions.  If we never look to nature and reality, we run the risk of our art looking fake and contrived.  

Here is an analogy for this idea (which is one I was challenged to do before):  

Grab a pencil and paper.  Now, without looking, try drawing a dollar bill from your imagination.  Get every detail you can remember!  Be sure to finish drawing until you can't remember anymore.  Put down your pencil.   Now, find a dollar bill.  What did you miss?  How much of the image and details could you conjure without the dollar bill right in front of you?  For me, I remember drawing a rectangle, and oval, a generic stick person and some dollar signs, that was the extent of my memory.  When I looked there was so much more detail!  I remember being frustrated: how could I not remember more?  The dollar bill is something we see every day, but yet our brains cannot store all their is to know about it without careful study.  The same is true with nature, for the artist to convey natural objects we must observe nature itself both carefully and continually.  To drive the point home, how much more does nature change than the dollar bill?

Going to nature for study doesn't have to produce a photorealistic copy, "A pictorial representation is always a translation.  Nature suggests ideas for interpretation, the artist supplies ideas of how the interpretation is to be made." (p. 17)

8.  Abstract and Visual Quality

In order to awe and inspire, artists must conceal their methods and principals so that the abstract meanings shine forth.  Skill, craftsmanship, and a handling of pigment can be, in and of itself, beautiful.  If the craftsmanship is ignored, the painting as a whole will suffer.

9.  Knowledge and Discipline

The artist is never done learning.  "The true artist is always the student." (p. 20)  "Self taught" artists are so commonly put on a pedestal.  Much of my childhood I was self taught, but I realized my limitations and the need for further study.  Being "self taught" can only go so far.  There is nothing wrong with artists seeking out education.  As Edgar Payne exhorts, natural decision making is important and comes into play during the painting process, but between sessions "[the artist] may put any amount of time he chooses on research, analysis and conscious effort." (p. 22)  "The study of art is a lifetime matter." (p. 22)

Enthusiasm is key for the artist, it pushes the artist to continue to seek out and enjoy artistic pursuits.  I have been utilizing this in my current studies, it helps to battle the blank canvas and build myself up to prepare for a painting.  To get that enthusiasm, I ask myself questions like: "What subject matter would make me excited to paint today?"  On the other hand, a lack of enthusiasm, is swift to kill all endeavors.

10.  Direct and Remote Influences

Art is not a means to an end.  If we only pursue and derive our passion from art alone, we miss bigger and more wide-reaching influences.  Artists need to look everywhere for inspiration:  from philosophy to science to almost anything on earth.