Simplifying Architecture

Because buildings are man made structures that we can really associate with because of their symmetry, they become a strong attraction for an artist to depict at face value. The intellectual symmetrical brain will want to indicate all the details. The skill is to resist this and end up with just an impression of the scene, even a cartoonish look if possible.

Do Not Emphasize Windows

This alley scene would be overwhelming to paint in detail. This was done in about three hours. The windows away from where the eye normally looks were down played so they would not be distracting. It’s amazing how the mind adds to a simplified painting. The goal of this painting was to end up with only a simplified impression. As a result, you feel the place rather than seeing it.

Helpful Hints

• If you have a small portion of sky you may not need to add clouds.
• The use of fog is an excellent agent for simplifying.
• When your paintings look like the background of an animation studio-produced movie, then you know you are on the right track.
• If you can count the brushstrokes in a shape you know it is not overworked.
• If you end up with a disastrously busy painting, try putting the entire scene into heavy fog by scumbling. You may end up loving it!
• Reduce the amount of white snow, white water on waterfalls, rapids and seascapes to a minimum.
• When facing a scene with clutter during plein air, pretend you are a well known movie director and you have a whole crew with cranes that can remove objects until you leave only the characters necessary for your story.

Simplify Roofs and Reduce Stones and Bricks

Refrain from indicating all the shingles an d tiles on roofs. Suggest just a few bricks and shingles placed well within the boundaries of the painting while respecting the peripheral area. Remember, let the viewer’s imagination do the rest. Make them larger than scale so they can be easily distinguished from a distance. There is no need to do architectural renderings.

Merge Leaves

For flowers and foliage, merge all the smaller flowers together in large clusters. The same applies to deciduous tree leaves. The presence of bushes and flowers also helps offset rigid straight lines in buildings. Notice the diffused edges of the flowers where they meet the walls.