Three approaches to finding a composition

+ a handmade book of abstract studies

Aug 22, 2024

That’s no secret that I am a fan of making my own sketchbooks!

I’m in a period of exploring various directions in my artwork and one of my recent projects was creating a lot of quick abstract studies using acrylics and watercolours on watercolour paper. The main idea of the project was to first work on larger pieces of paper (A3 in my case) and then cut out little compositions using several techniques I describe below. After I had enough of these little studies I glued them into an old book cover and then added some collage papers, colour swatches and abstract studies to finish the book!

Process

Choose limited colours and supplies - create several colour palettes of 3-4 colours (I used watercolours + acrylics) and choose one type of substrate (in my case A3 watercolour paper).
Create as many large studies as you want. I used about 10 sheets of A3 watercolour paper and ended up with 40 little studies.
Experiment with various techniques:
- Combine drippy and washy marks + more textured and thick marks.
- Experiment with shapes - organic + geometric.
- Add texture with various tools and brushes.
- Add collage papers or other media (e.g. pencil marks).
Don’t think in terms of composition yet - just experiment with ways of using and layering paint and have fun.
Using the tips to find a composition (more details below) cut out small abstracts from the bigger pieces. It is better to cut out same size compositions if you want to create a handmade book later, but feel free to experiment with sizes.
The little pieces are your pages - arrange them to your liking and glue them down into an old book cover (it’s a simple technique I learned from Jeanne Oliver).
Continue working in the book:
- Think how you can improve less successful compositions (I have some tips below).
- Use the blank pages for further experiments (the back of your abstract studies remains blank).
- Add other studies, colour swatches, collage papers into the sketchbook to complement your compositions.

Finding a composition

Here are three playful ways you can experiment with composition within this project.

Abstract watercolour and acrylic paintings — 1. Use a viewfinder, 2. Unintentional compositions, 3. Use masking tape

Use a viewfinder

I created my own very simple viewfinder using watercolour paper and a stationery knife - think about it as a frame or “window” that you move around the large piece to look for interesting compositions. Use a pencil to trace the most interesting compositions and cut them out. Don’t overanalyse the compositions at this stage, choose what you find pleasing intuitively.

Unintentional compositions

Cut your large piece into even pieces without intentionally looking for compositions - e.g. I cut mine into 4 even pieces (first into halves and the again into halves), feel free to create even smaller pieces. It’s possible that you will end up with some pieces that don’t really work compositionally, but that’s fine! Analyse and edit them at a later stage. If you are making a book, adjust the resulting compositions to size using your viewfinder.

Use masking tape

Before starting to paint divide your large paper pieces into sections using masking tape (I did 4 sections). Paint over as if there is no masking tape. Let it dry and remove the masking tape revealing the compositions, cut them out (adjust to size if needed).

Don’t worry, if some of the compositions don’t work - you can continue resolving them at a later stage or just leave them like that and let them be! It’s all about play, learning and experimentation.

Don’t throw away the leftover bits from your larger pieces - you can use them as collage papers, colour & texture samples or for your inspiration board! They also can end up being little compositions themselves.

Analysing and editing the compositions

The best compositions tend to have enough variety, contrast and a pleasing visual path for the eye to move around.

When looking at your compositions think about the following:

Colour and value - is there enough contrast? Lights better work near darks, and colours work best near their complements.
Shapes, texture, patterns and marks - is there enough (but not too much) variation?
Size and scale - are there both smaller and larger objects within the composition?
Negative space - is the piece too busy or is there enough “quite” space? Do you need to cover up some of the parts?
A focal area and a pleasing visual path - is there a main point of interest in the composition? Does the eye move freely around the piece or does it get stuck in a certain area?
Cropping - how the edges of the piece affect the overall feel of the composition?
Is there a specific structure according to compositional “rules”, such as rules of thirds or odd numbers?
Overall balance of the piece - how are the elements arranged in relation to each other? Is there a sense of balance?

When analysing the compositions try rotating them or take a look from distance, make notes about what works and what doesn’t. Juxtapose different pages and think how it affects the overall feel and whether they work better as a pair. Even if you don’t like a piece, find an area that you like and analyse the reasons you like it.

I found these articles very helpful as a starting point in understanding and analysing composition:

Next steps

You can continue working on your compositions and add more layers of paint, collage elements or crop them further, but feel free to leave them as they are - these are learning pieces and the process matters more than the results.

If you decide creating a book consider filling it in by adding colour swatches, other studies and various scraps of paper - half of the pages are blank (the back sides of your studies), so you can continue experimenting.

Mixed media sketchbook pages with abstract paintings — Some of the pages from my book

I added some of my abstract landscape studies, collage papers and colour swatches to complement my abstract compositions.

Try the same three techniques with working on representational pieces - it will help you to find unusual compositions and angles when cropped (you can try florals, landscapes, still life and even figurative drawings).