SUBJECT TREATMENT IN GEOMETRIC ABSTRACT ART (2)

Concert in Blue Flat. Study, 12x17"                                                          ©by Ruth Zachary

Subject Treatment #2

Geometric Non Objective Composition:  (Another version of this study, Concert in Blue Flat Minor has since been completed in Collage.) The study is considerably different than the finished collage piece.

Some depth is implied in this image at  the sides, seen in the diagonal lines,

but the keyboard image appears to be be from a point of view directly above. Contrast

between black and whites seen as stripes or piano keys draw attention.

The vertical and horizontal shapes give the composition structure. Lighter areas carry the eye throughout the composition. Blacks at the edges tend to balance the whole.

Image and writing are the Copyright © of Ruth Zachary.

SUBJECT TREATMENT IN ABSTRACT ART, PART 1

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Subject treatment or approaches to creating an abstract or non objective art piece can still be described by the qualities displayed in the work, whether or not the viewer responds to the imagery intended by the artist, or whether it actually contains objective subjects.

Representation of three dimensions in a painting or art work that is flat is only an illusion. A composition may be described as an attempt to reproduce the effect of three dimensions or not. Either approach may be attempted in abstract art, even without recognizable or objective imagery. Much of abstract art has to do with the interplay of characteristics of dimension. 

The elements of design have to do with  the two dimensional aspect of the layout within the picture plane.

Organic Non-objective Composition

The success of abstract art depends directly upon the execution of good aesthetic characteristics, and the study of composition at an early stage of the work is more needed, than when the artist is using nature, and recognizable imagery in creating a piece of art, because with realism, familiarity with a subject often includes an intuitive sense about compositional principles. The study of composition while dealing with realistic subjects can be delayed but not so easily if working with non objective art work.

Organic composition includes shapes, and lines generally found in nature. Usually these elements  are irregular in character. Although completely organic, the above composition seems to lie completely on a flattened surface, (two dimensions) as if looking at it from above or from across a room. There is no attempt to create depth or represent three dimensions in this piece.  Perhaps this is why abstractions work so well in large interior spaces. Note the quiet areas near the edge of the composition, without actually using a mat, spacer or complex frame so that it effectively contains the composition within the central area.

Describing types or approaches of creating abstract art will be the focus of the next few blogs. Study of the characteristics of various works may increase the awareness of the artist or reader, as well as my own, and with it, greater awareness of aesthetics in good composition.

Writing and art work are the Copyright © of Ruth Zachary.

COLORING BETWEEN THE LINES

Suggested Picture Plane Shapes and Format Shapes as an Alternative Approach to the Conventional Square or Rectangle.

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The Picture Plane here refers to the space within the frame. It is limited to two dimensions, and does not include sculptural art, because generally the work covered here is not three dimensional. 

Picture Plane shapes are limited to the shape of the frame. Usually they are geometric, rectangular, square, round, oval, hexagonal, octagonal or diamond or rhomboid shaped. Occasionally the Picture Plane can be an Organic shape such as a primitive shield, a fiber wall hanging shape, or a Silhouette cut out of plywood.

Format Shape: this refers to the shapes within the Picture Plane, separated from the frame edges, by interior mats, spacers or borders.

Using Format Shapes may be seen as one kind of treatment or approach for creating abstract imagery, as well as working with realistic subjects.

The imagery is the sum of the shapes, colors, lines, and other elements that fill the space created inside the format shape, (or the entire picture plane, if the composition fills the areas to the edges.) The illustration above does not cover all possiblities. I am sure other people can think of additional shapes.

Often large abstractions are not typically framed with mats or spacers to separate the frame from the artwork. Sometimes the art work is planned to avoid using a mat, and includes elements that create the illusion of space between the frame and the composition in the central area. Quieter areas, either light, dark or neutral at the edge of the artwork usually creates that aense of separation from the frame.

It may seem that treatments and approaches that help the process of creating recognizable or objective imagery would not apply to totally non-objective art, but that is not the case.

Recognition of different types of abstraction can be cultivated. Once they are described, it can be seen that there are a great many different approaches that may be taken. In addition, once awareness informs one’s experience, possible variations of approach more readily come to mind.

Please Note, similar information is also being presented on my Montage blog but with an emphasis for those interested in more objective or realistic subject matter.

Writing and Images Above are the Copyright © of Ruth Zachary.

COMPOSITION; A SERIES OF EXPERIMENTS

Watermark 1. This image was made by layering five views of a photo.Unfinished. © by Ruth Zachary

In the last post the above image with a white background was shown. The black background was created by selecting white under the Selection Menu, and filling with black. This left a small outline from the previously white areas, either a mistake or a bonus, depending on how one sees it. The white outlines show in many of the layering experiments I tried later.

Another experiment was to take the different camera views and arrange them differently than just in a horizontal configuration, as can be seen below:

Watermark 4. Vertical and horizontal layering in one composition. Unfinished. ©by Ruth Zachary

I do not find the multiple directions in this experiment as satisfying as Watermark 1. The sharp peaks on the edges looked like fallen and broken formations in a cave, a rather unpleasant image. Rounding many of the sharp peaks still did little to ease the tension and confusion and lack of space suggested by the different directions.

Cropping the whole and preserving the left 2/3 portion of the above image, and turning the remaining part counter clockwise seems like a viable option for rectifying the composition.

Using cutout sections for use in collage might also be very useful.

Watermark 7. (Layering other textures with the Cavern-like imagery using modes.)

I also used layering with the original image. Two other textural layers were also altered by changing the modes, and some of these resulted in interesting imagery for carrying to completion. 

Watermark 7 is quite interesting for its landscape qualities. See the white outlines? Once again, I would try retaining the bottom 2/3 of this arrangement, with modifications before considering it complete. If you are interested, one more image was shown on my montage blog of 07-06-14, Experiments and Accidents, which you can access by clicking on this link. http://rzmontage.blogspot.com.

I would welcome comments by other people on these experiments. Leave your comments at the bottom of this post.

Images and writing are the Copyright © of Ruth Zachary.

EYE FOR THE UNUSUAL

Watermarks. The white residue from overflowed water became the image for layering with modes.

Creating Abstractions with Photography is one more way of collecting imagery to use for layering with modes with Photoshop. (process described throughout the month of June)

Collecting interesting papers and images for collage can also be enhanced by letting your imagination notice imagery in close-up view! Photos of ice crystals on a window, or crazing of old paint can expand your collection. Noticing a spill on a glass tabletop where several plants get light from the south window, led to photographing the pattern, and using it to create imagery. The spill became more noticeable as more overflows occurred, and dried so the residue built up in layers. It looked like wax. I even cautioned friends not to clean it up.(The water mark was cleaned off after photos were taken)

Finally I took four pictures of the watermark, from different perspectives, three with the flash, and one where the flash did not go off. Then I processed them on the computer, copying them into  one Photoshop document. The stains were cut away from the plant part of the image, and included some of the dark of the table, and the negative shadows around the plant leaves.

I forgot that it is important when working on a project like this to keep the background completely open. If the images are merged, they cannot be moved around or changed again, nor can a layer be copied into another document without the solid background coming along with it. I found a way around my mistake, and will show that later on.
Actually, I explained it on my Montage blog today. To see how that worked, use this link to that site, post dated July 6, 2014. 

The four different angles were put into different layers, flipped, up, down and sideways over the open background. One was repeated in a fifth layer. More possibilities remained for placing the shapes in other configurations.

The shapes were arranged, so that the composition could be layered in Photoshop as a continuing experiment for use with modes. The dark forms resulted from the photo when the flash failed to go off. The contrast is dramatic, and seems quite amazing and other-worldly to me. Please Note: The Jpg image below has recorded white where transparent would appear in a Photoshop document.

Watermark Abstract created from repeating a photograph of a water stain, by flipping horizontally and vertically. Unfinished.

More variations from these shapes will be shown on the next Post.

Writing and Images on this post are the Copyright  © of Ruth Zachary.

SUMMARY OF LAYERING EXPERIMENT SERIES

Chippewah 13 b. Design 13 variation with three dark panels, using same settings. Note: Elements of the composition were copied and pasted at the edges to anchor the design and suggest continuity beyond the edges.           ©  by Ruth Zachary

OBSERVATION SUMMARY of the PREVIOUS SERIES OF SIX PARTS :

1 Changing the mode of top layers affects the appearance of all layers beneath.

Tip: Keep a permanent copy of the PSD documents you start with, so

            you can recover steps that may get lost as you work.

2 Changing one or more layer modes will affect the composition. To save each version you like, it must be saved as a separate document and closed.

           

Tip: With each version, Save As a JPG file, Naming each piece saved.  The document you are working on will retain its layer order, left in the PSD mode. You can also save each version as a PSD file, but if you merge layers, you may not be able to return to the multi-layered file you started with, unless you saved it in that format in a separate place.

3 Changing the position of each layer can affect the entire appearance of the composition. Techniques to use with Modes;  reversing layers, flipping layers vertically, or horizontally, moving a layer, making some layers larger or smaller, reducing the transparency of one or more layers, distorting the configuration of one or more layers, or cutting openings in some of the layers and then changing the modes.

4 Changing the order of the layers top to bottom can affect the entire composition.

           

Tip: Be sure you know the memory limitations of your version of Photoshop with your computer, or it can freeze up. More than 4 layers at a time can be very memory intensive. Making changes and closing the PSD document periodically will  ensure that your PSD working document will be saved as long as you do not merge the layers. Experimental versions can be made as long as you like the    results.

5. The Artist is in charge of making a satisfactory composition.  The Computer is not the Creator. Imagination is required to experiment with new techniques. The process of choices, large and small is almost like handwriting… ultimately it results in the Artist’s style, experience and competence, uniquely different from any other person’s work.

6. These experiments can be carried much further. As each layer is brought into the sequence, changing the contrast, color range, and other settings on individual layers can produce even more variations of the compositional options, available with the original layers at the beginning.

Writing and Images on this site are the  © Copyright of Ruth Zachary.

EXPERIMENTS WITH LAYERS USING MODES PART # 6

Chippewah 14. Unfinished.      © by Ruth Zachary                             

CHIPPEWAH 14 Dancing Around White, Layer 3 in top position, Mode - Darken

            Background Layer, Chippewah, Mode - Normal

            Layer 1, KP Mod, - Second from Top position, Mode- Multiply,

            Layer 2, Pale Blue Dawn, second up from bottom, Mode- Exclusion

Chippewah 15, Unfinished.                                                  © by Ruth Zachary.

 

CHIPPEWAH 15 Dancing Around White, Layer 3 in top position, Mode -  Saturation.

            Background Layer, Chippewah, Mode Normal. Four areas were cut out, and      

            left white. If the background was transparent, the effect would be different.

            Layer 1, KP Mod, - Second from Top position, Mode- Color Burn,

            Layer 2, Pale Blue Dawn, second up from bottom, Mode- Lighten.

Chippewah 16,  Unfinished.     © by Ruth Zachary

 

CHIPPEWAH 16  A new unnamed open layer with rectangular light shapes and black

            shapes was created and left in normal mode in the top position.

            Dancing Around White, Layer 3 in next to top position, Mode -  Multiply.

            A Copy of the Background Layer, Chippewah, Mode Normal was made to  

            replace the former Background Layer, which was locked.. The four white cut out  

            areas were selected, and filled with Slate gray. 

            Layer 1, KP Mod, - Now in middle position, Mode- Hard Light,

            Layer 2, Pale Blue Dawn, second up from bottom, Mode- Multiply.

Completing a Composition involves more than just changing modes to alter it from a previous state. Breaking up the major configuration of the elements into three to five parts, (in this case, two unequal parts) is often effective. Shifting the angle to a diagonal tends to suggest a more dynamic landscape, figurative interaction or architecture.

In the future I will  go into more complicated aspects of composition.

But next time, I will post the last part of this series of experiments, #7 noting some of the observations I have made about working with Layers and Modes.

Writing and Images, shown in progress are the Copyright © of Ruth Zachary.

EXPERIMENTS IN LAYERING, USING MODES, PART 5

Chippewah 12 Continued Experiments in Layering, using Modes.   Unfinished.   © by Ruth Zachary

CHIPPEWAH 12 Dancing Around White  Layer 3 in top position. Mode – Saturation.

            Background Layer, Chippewah, Mode -Normal

            Layer 1, KP Mod, - Second from Top position, Mode- Multiply, Changed right  

                 side edge to balance composition. Note, this layer is smaller with space around it.

            Layer 2, Pale Blue Dawn, second up from bottom, Mode- Exclusion

When using this experimental method to create new compositions by layering in Photoshop, the next step after a promising experiment, is to intentionally make changes in the composition. I think the above image could be lighter, and could increase in contrast, with lighter lights, but probably no darker darks.

Because of the contrast shown above, the blue/ purple oval creates a point of emphasis.

The next change would likely be to take a portion of the design and repeat it in a different orientation, by rotating it, and repeat it again smaller, or with an alteration of shape, someplace else in the picture plane, keeping the three areas assymetrical. Uneven numbers of repeated shapes or colors carry the eye throughout the picture plane, without  becoming static, as frequently happens with even numbers
of interest. This change is not shown here. But there are other kinds of adjustments to a composition to make it more interesting. (Maybe a topic for future blog posts?)

One way is to shift the purely flat geometric arrangement to include dominant diagonals.

Chippewah 13,  With a divided layer, plus rotation to create diagonals in the composition. Unfinished.

 

CHIPPEWAH 13 Dancing Around White  Layer 3 in top position. Mode – Saturation.

            Background Layer, Chippewah,  Mode -  Normal

            Layer 1, KP Mod, - second fromTop position, Mode- Difference,  rectangular  

                  shape cut in two parts, rotated  each somewhat, so lines are more diagonal,

            Also Cut out curved openings in several shapes,  to show through to the next layer.

            Layer 2, Pale Blue Dawn, second up from bottom, Mode- Luminosity

The above version is likely one I would complete, with a likely satisfactory outcome.
I like the colors and the dynamic created by the diagonals.

Not shown: Probably I would repeat shapes in the "almost margins" to create irregular extensions in the completed composition. I might also create the finished composition in collage, with possible variations from what is shown here.

Another way to vary the composition might be to cut out organic shapes, as open spaces or as shapes cut out of the image layer showing... in this case, Layer 1 -  KP Mod, shown below

Chippewah 15, Altering the design to improve Composition. Organic Cut-out Areas. Unfinished.

 

CHIPPEWAH 15 Dancing Around White, Layer 3 in top position, Mode -  Saturation.

            Background Layer, Chippewah, Mode Normal. Four areas were cut out, and 

            left white.  If the background was transparent, the effect would be different.

            Layer 1, KP Mod, - Second from Top position, Mode- Color Burn,

            Layer 2, Pale Blue Dawn, second up from bottom, Mode- Lighten.

This is for demonstration only: I would change the color scheme of this arrangement, perhaps add a light valued texture to the white areas, plus add one more organic cutout to this image. This might be a dark shape that intersects the two large cut out areas, creating a point of emphasis. Since it is not finished, and I cannot plan further until more steps are executed, please consider this as an example of how experimentation works, one step at a time and not pre-planned from start to finish. It really is an exciting way to work, and involves risk, because some attempts never work out.

SUMMATION- PART 6 -  NEXT TIME 

Please note: My spelling may not be the best. Since I lost some visual ability a few years ago, I cannot see some letters clearly, and they run into each other, I tend to add or leave out some letters.

Writing and Images on this post are the Copyright © of Ruth Zachary.

WE LEARN FROM OUR MISTAKES. PART 4

CHIPPEWAH 10 , Experimenting with Modes in Photoshop. Unfinished.

 

CHIPPEWAH 10 – This time I ADDED  LAYER 3, into top position. Dancing Around White,  

            Shown below, Mode - Multiply

            Background Layer, Chippewah,  Mode Normal

            Layer 1, KP Mod, - second from top, Mode- Multiply, Flipped horizontally

                    Notice the linear arrangement has changed from the previous orientation.

            Layer 2 Pale Blue Dawn, second from bottom, Mode Luminosity

 

Hi  Blog Viewers –

In the last post, June 4, 2014, where CHIPPEWAH 7 was shown on my blog?  I explained  I would not use that piece as a finished composition, but only to show the dramatic color difference resulting from mode changes. This was meant to show a technique to be helpful to viewers, but not to be an example of a finished composition.

Although I am pleased that Google is showing my Abstract Art posts and my new images,  clearly I do not know the criteria for what is shown, and usually no text accompanies the images  to explain to viewers what is the bad, the good or the ugly.

The next two pieces were clearly much more satisfying, and I would wish one of them had appeared as a promotion, if that was the intent. The image above is closer to being  finished. Not yet done, I would change the contrast, and perhaps lighten it, among other choices, to feel it is complete.

So in the future, I will place the most satisfactory images at the top of my post, and the sequence of changes may not be in order. But I believe that people learn from making mistakes, and others too, can learn from mine. I will not exclude the steps in the development of an art piece, because readers might learn more by showing the problems that come up along the way to the finished work.

But perhaps the better images will be promoted by placing them at the top of the post. If I were having a show of my work, I would certainly want all of them to be as good as I can make them, and I would want all the images to be a consistent body of finished work. That is not the focus of a blog, but rather to share the process of creating artwork with anyone who is interested

I will show the settings and changes, as usual, and hopefully followers can sort this out.

Dancing Around White, Organic Abstract. Another  Textured Layer Adds to the Variations Possible When Changing Modes.

As can be seen, working with more layers allows even more possible variations. Care must be taken to save the originals and the preferred results as separate documents with unique names.  With many layers it is possible to run out of memory, and the main document must be closed and saved to really preserve the changes made. (Photoshop saves 20 steps or more so the artist can go backward, but
that uses memory.) Closing the document preserves it at the stage of closing.

CHIPPEWAH  11, Another  Change in Mode Settings Produced Another Configuration of Colors. Unfinished.

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CHIPPEWAH 11 – Dancing Around White Layer 3 in top position. Mode – Saturation.

            Background Layer, Chippewah, Mode Normal

            Layer 1, KP Mod, - Top position, Mode- Multiply,

            Layer 2, Pale Blue Dawn, second up from bottom, Mode Luminosity

I would enjoy any feedback from viewers. After all, this is my motivation for sharing my work. If you have questions, please ask and I will try to answer on this blog. Thanks


Images and Writing are the Copyright © of Ruth Zachary

MODE CHANGES IN LAYERS 3

Chippewah 7, Experiment in Layering.         © by Ruth Zachary

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CHIPPEWAH 7- Background Layer, Chippewah. Mode - Normal

            LAYER 1, KP Mod, - Top position Mode Saturation

            Layer 2, Pale Blue Dawn. Middle position,  Mode - Color

The above image may be compared with other renditions shown on the previous post, May 30th, 2014. The mode settings were recorded each time the change produced a significant difference in the image. The main colors above changed from orange tones to blue and green. I would not use the above piece as a finished composition, but only to show the dramatic color difference resulting from mode changes.

Chippewah 8, Experiment in Layering.   © by Ruth Zachary.

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CHIPPEWAH 8- Background Layer- Chippewah, Mode- Normal

            Layer 1, KP Mod, - Top position, Mode -Difference

            Layer 2, Pale Blue Dawn Middle Position, Mode -Luminosity

Mode changes to two different layers produced a dramatic difference from an image resembling the original Chippewah image, to the one above which looks more like KP Mod,  one of the other layers in the experiment.

Chippewah 9, Experiments in Layering Using Modes. © by Ruth Zachary

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CHIPPEWAH 9 – Background Layer, Chippewah, Mode -Normal

            Layer 1, KP Mod, - Top position, Mode - Multiply

            Layer 2, Pale Blue Dawn, Middle Position, Mode -Luminosity

In this case, one mode change was made to the K P Mod layer, but as you can see, the main color scheme has been altered, with brighter colors and with more contrast between light and dark. The design emphasis has changed so much that the two images might seem to be related, but no longer the same composition.

In spite of the seeming ease in achieving so many positive results, the method is not a sure fire guarantee of success. The person creating designs in this way needs to have a good sense of composition, and to be able to see which combinations have produced a promising result. Often after the design looks good, many other adjustments need to be made, with contrast, intensity of color, or placement of shapes.

There are times when I have spent hours experimenting, without producing one composition that met my standards. There were many mode changes that I did not bother to show on this blog, at all.

I would like to hear if anyone is trying similar experiments, and if you have any questions.
Please feel free to leave comments.
 

Please note: The copyright imprint on the web images are for publication here. The finished art work does not contain the imprint, and is named and signed in the normal way. Images and writing are the copyright © of Ruth Zachary.