66 Watercolor artist | DECEMBER 2019
Watercolor Essentials
101 Commercial Street
(watercolor on paper,
30x22) uses light and dark
(Emphasis by Contrast) to
lead the eye to the blue front
door. The door itself is an
example of Emphasis by
Color; the door isn’t the only
cool blue in the painting, but
it’s framed and isolated by
the warm sunlit clapboards.
The perspective lines of the
building across the street
also point to the door
(Emphasis by Placement),
along with the diagonal
shadow line. Following the
rule of thirds, it occupies the
lower-right sweet spot.AN ABSENCE
OF FOCAL POINT
Lack of a focal point can lead to con-
fusion, but many artists intentionally
omit a single, or dominant, focal
point. Th e idea is to put the emphasis
on the entire surface for an allover
design. Th ink of the paintings of
American artists Agnes Martin (1912–
2004), Ad Reinhardt (1913–1967) and
Jackson Pollock (1912–1956), and
you can see how powerful the absence
of a focal point can be. Th e journeys
into these paintings can be powerful
and action-fi lled or produce a distinct
feeling of calm and peace. Here the
absence of a focal point is the point.EXPRESSING YOURSELF
As artists, the options we have to
express ourselves are limitless. Th e
emphasis on a focal point can change
the way our work is seen, as well as
how it’s felt and understood. It’s the
choices you make—and where you
take the viewer—that make you the
unique artist you are. WAIn his large urban watercolors, award-
winning artist Tim Saternow
(timsaternow.com) reveals the fl eeting
beauty of the old factories and gritty
streets of New York City. His work has
been exhibited in numerous galleries
throughout the U.S. and internationally.
He teaches workshops on painting,
drawing and linear perspective in New
York City, and in workshops at the Art
Students League of New York. His work
is represented by the Kobalt Gallery, in
Provincetown, Mass.“The emphasis
on a focal point
can change the way
our work is seen, as
well as how it’s felt
and understood.”
although he tended to blur the foreground elements.
Th is haze also naturally occurs when depicting
objects at a great distance. Faraway mountains and
trees—even the far end of Sixth Avenue—become
fainter and the color tones cooler. We refer to this as
aerial or atmospheric perspective, a tried-and-true
technique of landscape painting—and a great way
to emphasize the foreground elements.ACCENTS
Along with a strong point of interest, there can be
multiple lesser points, all with varying degrees of
emphasis or strength, called accents. Th ese are usu-
ally less powerful, but they’re important in helping
guide the eye around the composition.