Looking for the Composition

 

6/11/22 Maple Leaf neighborhood

During one of my very first Urban Sketchers workshops in 2013, instructor Frank Ching said that 80 percent of the success of any sketch is the composition. Back then, I had no idea what he was talking about, and it would be several more years before I gave it much thought. Although I’d like to say I’ve paid attention to composition for a while now, there’s nothing like making a daily thumbnail (especially before attempting a “real” sketch) to make me look for the composition.

That’s not surprising. What is surprising is that I am enjoying the 30-Day Challenge almost more than I care to admit. More than halfway done, I thought I would be complaining by now about how tedious thumbnail studies are. Instead, I’m enjoying them immensely. When I think of them as small sketches in their own right as well as being instructive, they are fun and not tedious.

6/12/22 Maple Leaf neighborhood (from photo)

6/13/22 Roosevelt neighborhood

6/13/22 Roosevelt neighborhood

The one dated June 14 (at left) was especially interesting. Ching Hung had shared a photo of her stairway that she had used for a study, so I gave it a try, too. It’s one of very few times I’ve drawn from a photo of something I haven’t seen with my own eyes, which I generally don’t like to do. But in this case, it was easier to abstract only the values and shapes because my brain didn’t “know” anything about what I was seeing.

6/15/22 Maple Leaf (from photo)

6/16/22 Gas Works Park

6/16/22 Gas Works Park

6/17/22 Gas Works Park (from photo)