PAINT AT HOME
Don’tjustdaydreamthedaysaway,
stareoutthewindow withpurpose
says LANCELOT RICHARDSONW
hen we are stuck indoors,
it can seem like our
options for things to draw
are limited. However, many everyday
subjects can be rich with inspiration.
Window views are ever-changing
and can be used in a variety of ways.
Not only can we paint the view from
the window itself, but we can also
make the window the focus of an
interior scene.
Window views are a recurring
subject in the history of art. They
frequently appeared as a backdrop
to portraiture made during the
Renaissance period, to create a
sense of distance and contemplative
space, and have since been used in
a variety of ways, including capturing
a location, becoming a vehicle for
symbolic meaning, and being a
useful compositional tool.
The most obvious approach is
drawing the view from the window.
This can be an attractive option with
a rural view, but crowded townscapes
can make interesting drawings too.
While including everything you can
see is a fun challenge, it is fine to
be selective as well.
One option is to pick a single
subject out of the scene that interests
you and make a study of that one
particulartreeorbuilding,perhaps.
Anotheroptionis topaycloser
attentiontocompositionanddesign
bycroppingdowna widerscene.
Therearea fewconsiderationswhen
followingthisapproach.Firstly,doyou
wantmoreskyormoreland?Clouds,
withtheirever-shiftingpatternsand
colours,areanalmostinexhaustible
subject.Youcanopttoletthem
dominatea compositionorevengo
therouteofmakinga true“skyscape”
byleavingoutthelandentirely.TOPRIGHTLancelot
Richardson,Night
ViewStudy, ink
andwatercolouron
paper,14x21.6cmLEFT Henri Le
Sidaner, Table
Overlooking the
Courtyard, 1926,
oil on canvas, size
unknownViews from
Windows
It pays to think about which
element (or elements) you want to
focus on, and how can you use the
surroundings to emphasise your
chosen subject. Break things up
unevenly – let the land, the clouds,
and the rest of the sky take up
different ratios of the page.
Think about how to portray depth
as well. Can you identify a foreground,
a mid-ground and a distant element
in your chosen scene?A window can help with this, as
it can be as much a subject as the
landscape outside, creating strong
compositional lines and accents of
detail. Take Adolph Menzel’s View
from a Window in Marienstrasse, for
example. As much prominence and
care has been granted to the window
latches and open shutters as to
the courtyard outside. Paintings
of windows such as this bridge the
© FINE ART IMAGES/HERITAGE IMAGES/ALAMY gap between a landscape and an