STOP THE PRESSES!
This just in: we ALL make mistakes. Yep, sadly research and history has shown this to be unequivocally true for everyone, no exceptions, counting all creatures great and small, even squids on occasion.
Truth be told, slip-ups are just a part of life so we're better off laughing at them before someone else does. While many mishaps can be turned into opportunities, and others can be learned from, some are just best avoided altogether.
Artists, although closet-superheroes, are not exempt from muddling things up, often repeating the same error many times over before uncovering the source of the problem. Here are some common visual art blunders frequently made by the beginner, as well as the seasoned professional, with a few tips thrown in on how to hopefully avoid or correct them.
10 - Lost & Found:
"I have not failed; I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." (Thomas Edison)
GLITCH: Can't figure out what's not right
Finding the issue can often be as difficult as fixing it. You do all your normal checks, and then visually (even physically) measure, but you just can't seem to spot the 'Oops Factor' that snuck in while you ran off to make that 8th pot of coffee.
FIX: Short of learning to do handstands, artists have to jolt their brain in such a way that it forces the grey matter to view the piece in a different way.
Literally getting a different perspective often helps to solve this since staring at something for a long time, no matter how much in error it is, creates a sort of optical illusion for the brain in its struggle to make sense of what it's seeing. Stepping back, up, down, even turning the work itself upside down, sideways, or viewing it in the mirror will help the noggin to switch off the receptors that are blocking the visual messages from getting through.
9 - Whiter Shade of Pale:
"A #2 pencil and a dream can take you anywhere." (Joyce A. Myers)
GLITCH: Shading issues
The simple, scrawny, unassuming graphite pencil is the culprit in this second case. Yes, this plain, easy-to-use, everyday piece of high-tech equipment handed to us on our first day of school has the muscle to make or break a work of art. Using the wrong pencils during the different stages of a piece can be disastrous and lead you to hiding what you're actually trying to bring out.
FIX: There's a pencil (or charcoal) for every job. Keeping in mind that 'H' means HARD, and 'B' means SOFT. Boft? Considering how many teachers have handled a pencil over the years one would think that they would have corrected that spelling oversight, but it helps to think 'B' for "BLACK". The softer the pencil is then the darker, or blacker, the line will be, although the blackest line is achieved with charcoal. Also, the higher the number before the H or B then the harder or softer the pencil will be, which puts HB smack dab around the middle. Once you understand how and when to use the various pencil grades you'll have it made in the shade.
8 - What's Your Angle?:
"People who look through keyholes are apt to get the idea that most things are keyhole shaped." (Author Unknown)
GLITCH: Capturing the subject from the wrong angle
Have you exaggerated or foreshortened too much? This problem can often come about if you're drawing from a 2D perspective which flattens the subject and squashes the relief and features like a steamroller would Wile E. Coyote. Photography is also a problem when capturing 'pets' since most people take the photo from a 'human' point-of-view rather than down at the four-legged level, ending up with a head larger than a body, and that weird cross-eyed look. This is fine if your goal is to defy & disturb the conventional way of viewing and portraying the world as did Salvador Dali.
FIX: Take several shots from different angles. When working with animals, snap them from their level (yep, quack like a duck), and make sure you get someone to distract them from licking, and looking straight into, the lens. When working with humans, have them turn slightly to one side (preferably their good side) to depict jaw lines and cheekbones. Whenever possible work with natural lighting to bring out shadings that the eyes are accustoming to, which will help the capture the subject.
7 - Divine Design:
"A common mistake that people make when trying to design something completely foolproof is to underestimate the ingenuity of complete fools." (Douglas Adams)
GLITCH: Design composition SNAFU
Good composition in art is an art in itself. Once mastered it can be re-applied to other arts such as writing and interior or fashion design, helping you pen that award-winning manuscript, create that stylin' doghouse for Fido, or sew up that hot little number.
Plato's words of wisdom on this topic were, "Find and represent the variety within the unity". Huh, how do you unify variety? Basically, one strives to create variety, while keeping said variety confined enough to create a unity within. Clear as mud?
It all comes down to eye movements, or how the viewers eyes move, or travel, around the artwork. NON-wandering eyes are bad in this case. If the eyes get stopped, blocked, or fall out (of the painting, not the head) before reaching the intended focal point then there are some design issues that will make people squint so much that they'll quickly move onto the next work of art (or a good stiff drink).
FIX: The eyes have it - an artist has to predict the viewer's eye movement around the piece. You can actually control these movements with clever placements of objects, figures, and even color or shading around the areas of interest. Learning to manipulate the negative and positive space, as you would your spouse when trying to convince them you've found that 'perfect' pair of shoes, is something well worth mastering.
6 - Location, location, location:
"Nature is by and large to be found out of doors, a location where, it cannot be argued, there are never enough comfortable chairs." (Fran Lebowitz)
GLITCH: Always Centering the Subject
Like the headliner accepting an award centre stage, human nature drives us to plunk the main subject smack dab in the middle of the frame. After all, the subject is the most important and obvious part of the piece, so why wouldn't you put it in the most important and obvious spot?
Although many believe that by placing the subject in this area there's less risk of messing up the proportions with the rest of the piece, reality is that by centering your subject every time you run more risk of creating a stagnate or lifeless piece.
As mentioned, much like a hypnotist, the goal is to manipulate the viewer's eyes to wander around the piece as naturally as possible. If the eyes find what they're looking for immediately then their movement or journey will end, and they won't bother exploring your masterpiece any further, missing the subtle beauties you've painstakingly tried to insert throughout. All the other behind scene characters will then be lost, and you've just wasted your creative energy on a piece that teeters on unoriginal, unexciting, and maybe even - gasp - plain.
FIX: Experimentation is the only way to solve this. Make several sketches with the subject in different areas of the frame, take several photos, or use a cut-out frame to look through and move the subject around. Visualize the possibility of your subject in every space possible depending on the compositional elements, angles, and goals that support the theme of your piece - Kazam! - Only then will the best pose be found.
5 - Size (& shape) Matters:
"Dare to turn life on its end, and you may find that topsy-turvy is a truer perspective than turvy-topsy." (Robert Brault)
GLITCH: Perspectives are off
Perspective in art is paramount since it can give your work life by giving it a sense of depth. Some people shy away from creating environmental pieces since perspective can be somewhat mind-bending to set up. Aligning things correctly without any guiding principles can put an awkward slant on your work, and having to consult a ruler every other stroke can make life so tedious you'd consider getting a job as an M&M's quality control inspector that makes sure they are no W's in the mix.
FIX: When creating three-dimensional quality on a flat two-dimensional surface, we use perspective as an aid. Although there are a few quick and simple tricks you can use along with the popular 'best-guess technique' to fill in the details if you're in a rush, I do recommend doing actual study on this topic (course or book) if you produce a lot of scenery, landscape, or environment pieces. Keep in mind that it doesn't have to be perfect to 'appear' correct. If you learn to form a convincing setup of angles to start from you will soon develop a visual perspective, a 'feeling', for the recession of forms.
There are two principal forms of perspective, parallel and angular, which help to create the illusion of depth. In parallel perspective, one vanishing point is used, and all lines parallel to each other converge to this point. In angular perspective, lines which are at right angles to each other converge to separate points.
Since logic dictates that objects of the same size look smaller the further away they are from you, the first secret of drawing perspective therefore is to become aware of space, spacing, and apparent relative size of 'stuff' in relation to the viewer's horizon. The horizon, to which all these lines converge, is always at the level of your eye, so you'll want to check that the bits and pieces appearing in your composition converge properly to correct levels without going cross-eyed.
4 - Environment of Your Product:
"A good short-story writer has an instinct for sketching in just enough background to ground the specific story." (Lynn Abbey)
GLITCH: Visual balance across the different 'zones' (Proportions in shapes and colors)
Similar to how proper sizing and location affect proportions in art, determining the right scales and weights between backgrounds, middlegrounds, and foregrounds is crucial for your little grey cells to make sense of the masterpiece.
If your Mona Lisa looks like she's floating in empty space or overpowered by her environment, then you're probably lacking Zen in your zones.
FIX: Some do it first, some save it for last, and some just overdo it, but for a background and middleground to compliment the foreground it's usually best worked at it in stages as the piece develops. Sometimes, less is more, and just adding a few lines, smudges, or scribbles here and there can often create just enough interest without attacking the main character, while providing the crucial grounding needed to keep Mona from getting lost. A soft hue or watered down shade can be the ticket, but if your main figure is vibrant then you can jazz up the surroundings. Keep in mind that, like bank accounts and acting sober, balance is the key.
3 - Hue Said What?:
"All colors are the friends of their neighbors and the lovers of their opposites." (Marc Chagall)
GLITCH: Colors don't work with the piece or each other
Color, when used correctly can be therapeutic, but incorrectly can prompt the desire to shove hot pokers in one's eyes. One simple color can influence thoughts, impede judgments, and give birth to ideas. It can create action, and cause a reaction.
Color, when used correctly can be therapeutic, but when used incorrectly can prompt you to contemplate a stroll on hot coals. One simple color can influence thoughts, impede judgments, and give birth to ideas. It can create action, and cause a reaction. It has the power to control hunger, anger, and blood pressure, as well as our comings and goings (red means stop, green means go). Picture yourself surrounded by hues of aqua and you're instantly transported beachside drinking a coco-loco, but introduce the wrong color somewhere and you might feel like there's a straight jacket tightening around your shoulders.
FIX: There are a few basic rules to remember that help with mixing, blending, and applying colors. Get yourself a decent color wheel to better understand the relationships between the colors, their compliments, as well as analogous neighbors. Remember that warm colors are made up of reds, oranges, and yellows (think sun and fire), while a cool colors are made with greens, blues, violets (think sea or snow), then ask yourself what sentiment (or temperature) you're trying to give off.
2 - Old Family Recipe:
"To learn something new, take the path that you took yesterday." (John Burroughs)
GLITCH: Not doing what you know (and are good at)
We've all heard the adage "write what you know". It's a rule of thumb that's a recipe for success even outside of the writing kitchen. Full-time artists trying to earn a living from their work need to hone their best skills in order to sell in an ever-uncertain, economy driven, luxury-based art market, so it's a wise selling strategy to simply to 'do your thing' to your fullest ability. Although this may sound obvious at first read, the beginning artists, and even some veteran, may not have a clue what their 'thing' is, or even how to find their 'voice'.
FIX: Experimentation and exploration in art is never a waste and is necessary for growth and discovery. Like flipping through the page of your favorite cookbook, the only way to know if a recipe is any good is to whip it up. Sampling a few classes outside your comfort zone may ensure you're not missing out on uncovering one of your many hidden spices. Without taking it too personally, make note of comments from those looking at your 'stuff'. Ask a select precious few friends for the cold, hard truth. It's the best way of possibly finding out if you're just fooling yourself and wasting time on something you don't really have a taste for, which may be preventing you from selling yourself short and trying a new ingredient that ends up being the perfect banquet of skills in finding your strong suit, and adding the icing on your cupcake of success.
Focusing your abilities doesn't mean reproducing the exact same feast over, and over, and over, and over again, unless of course it's flying off the shelves like the latest low-gi, low-cal, low-carb, low-fat, low-flavour health bar. Although it's possible to always find something fresh and inspiring in our everyday surroundings, monotony has a 'use-by' date, and gets under everyone's skin after a while, leaving a bitter taste.
Find your bowl of forté, mix in some balance, stir up a bit of variety in the batter, and you're sure to cook up a winner.
1 - Its A GOAL!:
"Give me a stock clerk with a goal and I'll give you a man who will make history. Give me a man with no goals and I'll give you a stock clerk." (J.C. Penney)
GLITCH: Planning - or lack of
Topping the GLITCH charts is an error that happens in all walks of life. It's unlikely that you'll manage to find your way out of the parking lot and onto new horizons without a good plan, even in art. All too often people begin sketching, painting, or snapping away without any established goal, even if only a mental one.
Winging it is a great exercise which works wonders if the intention is simply to get the creative juices going, similar to mental 'stretching' or 'warming up' before the big game or workout, but it's not good if flying by the seat of your pants is normal practice, and worse if it becomes a frequent-flyer habit.
FIX: Take a moment, grab a cuppa, pause, and make a plan. Is it actually your intention for the feet of your figure to be dangling off the page? Think about what you're trying to portray, and what you want the viewer to experience. Figure out your design and pack up all of its attributes - size, perspective, and proportions - then working from large to small, outline your main form first, after that the details will be smooth sailing into the sunset.
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