Select/Deselect

Another of my little self-memos is a note just saying “Select/Deselect”. That’s just a compact way of saying “You have to do a bit more than focus on what’s interesting – you should also intentionally de-emphasize what is not”.

In this case there is a big complex tower behind this arch. It’s three stories of bay windows, decorative carvings, and a peaked roof. It’s not like it wouldn’t have been fun to draw. But, if what catches your eye is the arched gate dappled with leaf shadows, then you have to consider every other element as a potential distraction.

I’ve selected my subject and ruthlessly deselected everything else. I didn’t even include the tree making the shadows.  If you feel like you’re losing energy before finishing a sketch, (I certainly did with the last one at the Islamic library) or if you just feel your pieces are cluttered or overworked, this is something that might help.

This last one – I got nothing clever to say. I was on they way home, there was a bit more light, and I thought hey, that just looks fun to paint. Sometimes that’s all there is to it!