August 8, 2011 - Thinking In Squares

Sa’id envisions lines in the sand.
The pieces are not yet framed in glass.
-- "Deryk," Chess Sans Voir

I am trying to solve a problem of composition.

[N.B. - Said problem-solving is not made easier -- albeit not made significantly harder -- by the tweedling of a kiddie show on the television and the occasional soprano piping at my knee: "Mama, pease I can haff . . .[item]?" [Item] can be anything, but basically it translates to "undivided attention." She is my delight.]

This week, I completed a 4x4 (foot) artwork for a commercial space, Local Market in Golden, Colorado. It was a sound project, with sound subject matter, and I am glad to have it ready for their ribbon-cutting on August 22. (Yes, it will be for sale. You can preview it here.)

Now, to balance the other side of those large walls -- and in part just to see if I can do it -- I want to do another 4x4 in the next ten days. I further want to do the second painting as a diptych.  This presents some interesting problems, because my panels are 2x4 feet each, but mountains tend to be horizontal-ish things.

So. How to create two separate canvases where the images flow across as a single composition, yet keep each canvas standing on its own as a complete painting?

This problem was well-solved, over and over again, by Marcel Mouly. Although they are single images, if you divide any of his images into quadrants, each quadrant is a beautiful complete composition. Here's a nice collection for that game.

Oh, and if you'd like to purchase any little somethin' somethin' for me from that Mouly site, as an unbirthday present or for any other reason, please be my guest.