COMPOSITION - 3 RULES I Wish I Knew When I Started Painting

Yes, it’s important to paint well, but if you paint a wonderful portrait in the bottom left corner, it doesn’t really matter how well the face was painted, the painting will always look weird. That’s why composition is so important. And that’s what we’re going to talk about today.

If we can compare making a painting to building a cathedral, drawing the block-in is like placing the foundations, scumbles and impastos are like the sculpting the ornaments and techniques like glazing, which happen near the end are like finishing with the stained glass in the rose window. But even before any of this can happen, there is something even more fundamental than drawing, something so primordial that it defines the entire idea of the painting : composition. Think of it as the floor plan or the design of the cathedral. Everything has to be meticulously thought out so that there is harmony between all the parts and so that it conveys the vision of the artist with great intensity.

The composition can truly make or break a painting, that’s why today, I’m going to share with you 3 fundamental principles to make your paintings exciting, dynamic and eye-catching.
Rules, the better you know them, the more exciting it is to break them. Composition is always about thinking outside the box. In this spirit, for each rule, I’ll show you an interesting way to break it.

Chapters:

00:00 Intro
01:43 Rule number 1 "Dead Center is dead"
06:07 How to break rule number 1
06:52 Rule number 2 "Use the Thirds"
09:33 How to break rule number 2
12:28 Rule number 3 "Balance and symmetry"
14:40 How to break rule number 3

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About me (bio) :
Website :

I am an artist living and working in France. I learned the techniques of the Atelier of the Nineteenth century and now I try to share some of my knowledge with the rest of the world, because I think that beauty still has an important role to play in artistic creation. I do mostly drawing and oil painting, and my goal is always to provide techniques, thoughts and explanations that can be useful to anyone, from beginners to more advanced artists.

The material I use most of the time (not necessarily in this video) :

Drawing
Equipement
✓ Kneaded eraser
✓ Plumb line
✓ Small mirror
✓ An old synthetic brush
✓ Masking tape
✓ Cutter
✓ Sandpaper or sanding block
✓ Mahlstick or Hand rest (DIY)
✓ Level ruler
Graphite
✓ Pencils 2H, HB and 2B
Charcoal
✓ If available: Nitram charcoals (H, HB and B)
✓ Square charcoals
✓ Natural charcoal box
Black and white chalk
✓ Sketch pencil Conté white
✓ Square Conté noir : HB and 2B
✓ Chalk or pencil holder
✓ Pencil sketch Conté Pierre noire : H and HB
Sanguine
✓ Sketch pencil Conté : Blood and blood Medici
✓ Crayon Polychromos Faber-Castel : sanguine
✓ Sketch pencil Conté white
Oil painting
Palette
(Extra-fine paint, recommended brands depending on availability: Lefranc Bourgeois, Winsor and Newton, Royal Talens Rembrandt)
✓ Titanium white PW6
✓ Yellow ochre PY42
✓ Burnt Sienna PR101 or PBr7
✓ Venetian red or English red PR101
✓ Permanent Alizarin crimson (Attention: do not use the traditional pigment, which is not very light-fast) PV19 or PR177 or Quinacridone Rose PV19
✓ Cobalt teal blue PG50
✓ French ultramarine blue PB29
✓ Raw umber PBr7
✓ Burnt umber PBr7
✓ Ivory Black PBk9
Brushes
✓ About ten filbert hog bristle brushes sizes n° 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12
✓ Some flat brushes
✓ Round sable brush or round Kolinsky sable n° 4, 8, 10, 12 (from the size of the nail (about one inch) or synthetic imitation
Medium
✓ Linseed stand oil
✓ Odourless mineral spirits
✓ Safflower oil
Surface
✓ Linen canvas, fine grain universal coating
✓ For studies : Canson oil-acrylic oil paper Figueras
Others
✓ Palette
✓ Foam and spalter brushes
✓ Palette knife in the shape of a water drop, no souldering
✓ A few small pots, containers, jars...
✓ Paper towels

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#art #painting #inspiration
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Thanks for watching !

[FlorentFargesarts]

Thanks for watching ! Let me know what your composition tricks are in the comments below. Before you go, remember to help the channel by leaving a like and (if it's not done already) subscribing ! As always, joy and inspiration to you !

[RoundBrushStevesteve]

Have to say, I really like the position of the face when you moved it at the start.
I think breaking rules can make things different and difference can also be appealing.

[jacqfuters_]

I have to say, of all composition books, videos etc I've read and watched, yours is the clearest and actually helps me to understand better composition. Thank you.

[rogercawkwell]

Musical correction! Dividing a string in thirds give rise to a perfect fifth, not a third. (you have to divide the string in five parts for that) ;)

[HappyAbbyDunnivan]

Thank you SO MUCH for creating this video! It has been incredibly eye opening and I love the depth of detail you are diving into! I have always wanted more than just the basics on composition, and you gave so many great detailed facts and tools to use for interesting compositions! Thank you so much.

[chukukaogude]

You know I found out after painting landscapes and cityscapes, that I was missing something. I took some time learning all about PERSPECTIVE...The problem that made my paintings boring wasn't the lack of perspective. IT WAS THE LACK OF COMPOSITION!!!

I realize now it's best to create the composition first then use perspective to complement it. Perspective is used to help our composition sit in a believable 3D world. (If you want that with your painting. Some people ignore perspective and go all on composition and I've seen it still work.) It is not the main thing that causes the emotion, intrigue and feel. I was making a perspective first, then trying to find a composition into the perspective. Doing composition first allows me to make a lot of rough drafts and ideas of how they painting should look. Then I can go into it later and put some perspective in there.

Before then I was just doing random perspectives and trying to throw things into it. What I didn't know was it was limiting my creativity. It was also time consuming starting with perspectives.

[boyfmbalcatta]

Thankyou for a well contrusted lesson in art composition. As an oldie starting out in art, it is an invaluable aid to me making a mess on a surface seem logical.

[chhavi_KS]

This channel must to be grow Your teachings are really to the guiding points. Clearer as they could be. Understood perfectly. Thankyou sir!🤗

[robinbest]

A great pleasure to follow someone who so clearly knows what he's talking about. I have great respect for those who are good at what they do.

[jaxobophiuchi]

Perfect analogy: “make the important elements rotate around the center like the Earth orbits the Sun.”

[UnbeltedSundew]

That was the weirdest explanation of the golden ratio I've ever heard, but because of it I learned some new stuff about it. It's also known as the Fibonacci Sequence and more importantly most natural forms follow the golden ratio from human proportions to the spirals of a shell. That's one of the reasons why historically artists and architects loved to incorporate it in their works.

[beehivebeliever]

I appreciate all of the knowledge you share so much

[maninani]

It's so informative! Thank you so much! I would love to hear more about the composition from your perspective.

[mts]

Merci pour ces vidéos qui sont de bonnes bases pour se mettre ou se remettre à la peinture !

[gigigirl]

Thank you for making such a clear presentation that is so informative. Please make more presentations like this of this fascinating element in art.

[priscillaallen]

Wonderful information. This video is hugely helpful. It is the first time I have come across the idea that composition can affect a viewers perception. Thank you!

[pianist]

Great and educational video as always, Florent!

[JeanneSilver]

You are absolutely an amazing teacher. I am not a beginner but what I have learned is so vital especially about glazing underpainting and all of that. If I had money I would have done your course. An admirer from afar. I mean art 😂

[scmcdougal]

Appreciate this I’ve had to watch it a few times for it to sink I’m glad I’m realizing it now 6 months in

[SketchWithBex]

Thank you for another wonderfully informative video. I always learn so much from your channel. Thanks for sharing your expertise and creating these wonderful resources 😊❤