Waterfalls and Simplified Physics

Waterfalls seduce with their ability to infer movement.  To make a painting with this inference depends on your plan.  The plan is linear like a map and, it does not generally give a strong sense of  space.  The illusion of space depends upon an ambiguous harmonic field  which will also generate unity.  With blurred ambiguity this harmonic field  encourages  multiple readings of  the image. In other words, a painting which we will enjoy examining for a long time. Many great artists  begin with ambiguity.  Art students also often begin with ambiguity but, unless they are alert, they will  find themselves inevitably pulled  toward  a less interesting regularity and  legibility.  Vigilance and practice  sustain ambiguity. I begin this step-by-step demonstration by painting a blurred field of ambiguity  (see example 1).

example 1.  

We look into chaos ( the field of ambiguity) and  we make guesses about what we  see or imagine.  We visualize better when we can find edges.  Edges give us the possibility for orientation and classification. If we have enough edges we recognize something unambiguously.  At that point we are certain of what we see and need no further information.  If we are certain we do not sustain our looking, our attention.  Good paintings don’t let us have  that condition of  certainty.  We not only search for edges,  we also search for where edges intersect and where they continue.  Part of our  visual brain ( visual cortex) is devoted to identifying verticals and horizontals and their varying degrees of inclination and orientation.   A simple design exploits  this trait of ours.  For example, we quickly read a “T” intersection as a locus for our attention.   Furthermore, we do not need to see the segments of the “T” as uninterrupted.  We will infer their continuance even if we only see parts of the  “T”.  This is how illusions are created.  In my following step-by step demonstration I use the “T” design.  The bottom stem of  my “T” is broken and slightly zig-zagging.  It crosses the flat plane of the water’s surface  in a weaving pattern of light. I also incline the viewer’s attention toward the interior of the painting  by subtly angling the edges of the horizontal planes(top cross bar of the  “T”)  toward the center.   In example  2,  the photo,   the superimposed red dots show you the overall “T” design.  And, they show you how I  narrow the  proportions of the  falls in the painting  to make them appear farther back than in the photograph.

example 2.  

My purpose was to  expand  and  bend the space in the painting vs. the photo. Patrick Cavanaugh, a brain scientist, refers to these artists’ methods for attracting and holding our attention  as a system of  simplified physics because,  artists use the same  cues  for generating illusions on canvas as we use in our brains to create a sense of visual reality.  Example 3 shows the painting evolving with more edges and greater varieties of value(brights and darks).  Example 4  shows the finished painting. Notice in the final painting I eliminated much of the reflected light on the water  as seen in the bottom of the photo because, this light was too competitive and redundant with the light coming from the falls. It made the space appear too shallow and flat.

example 3.

example 4.

Finally,  I  invite you to an exhibition of my Oregon Landscapes opening Thursday evening in Portland, Oregon at the Attic Gallery on 206 SW First Avenue at 503 228 7830. I also wish to extend an invitation to you to join me this July in New York’s  Catskill Mountains  as I conduct a week long  plein air painting workshop  from July 15-20th, 2012  contact the  Hudson River Valley Art  Workshops at 518 966 5219.