The Portrait Society of America 37of composition that can transcend subjects
and styles, even down to the bare bones of
minimalism. These are undoubtedly the best
places to begin one’s journey of design study, so
consider the following.
MATHEMATICS
Formal composition began long ago with
the alignment of architecture, sculpture and
painting to the idea of mathematics. Divisions
were made that were analogous to those
found in a musical scale (an octave), applying a
filter of order to nature. Most art students are
taught these divisions early on as an easy way
to place elements within their composition:
divide a canvas into thirds, quarters and halves.
Whether this mathematical arrangement is
truly better or merely our preference from
2,500 years of exposure may be debatable, but
most would agree that a work feels slightly
“out of tune” if the elements or divisions of the
canvas don’t quite fall along these guidelines.
Artists of the past, such as Velázquez,
were known to study and implement this
mathematics, and while there may not be
documented proof from every painter of the
Renaissance through the Academies, measuring
out their paintings usually reveals at very least
an intuitive implementation.
Fortunately, there’s no need to pull out
a calculator to determine these divisions.
Three steps can create a series of lines that
intersect at harmonic ratios, as well as allow
one to determine the overall canvas divisions
(of halves, quarters and thirds). 1. (GREEN
LINES) Draw two diagonal lines from corner
to corner, creating an X. The intersection
reveals a ½ division of the canvas. 2. (RED
LINES) With the halfway points determined,
draw four diagonal lines connecting the
(outside) halfway divisions, creating a
diamond. Where these lines cross the
initial X-shaped diagonals represent the ¼
Nicolas Poussin, Abduction of the Sabine Woman. Work by Poussin was built on the foundation of classical
design, and became the standard for composition for the following 200 years of Academic artwork.Johannes Vermeer, Young Woman with a Water
Pitcher. Vermeer used mathematics to place the
hand on the right and the head, then used the
harmonic diagonals to place the elements that
create viewer eye flow. The head to the out
reached arm, following the cast shadow to the
table, following the fabric to the hand holding
the pitcher, following the side of the body back
up to the head.