Importance of composition in art

To be a successful artist you need to know how to compose a good picture. A camera records things as they are rather than as an artist wants them to be. Those learning to be artists tend to ignore composition both through lack of knowledge and the inability to put down accurate lines.

Composition in art refers to the arrangement of things. The most common mistake is to put the horizon far too high up in a drawing. Eye-level in any picture must fall on the imaginary line which lies directly ahead of you when you draw that scene. You cannot start to draw a landscape seated, and stand up half-way through it. The eye level must remain constant. A low horizon will give an impression of great space and calm.

Look at a picture or whatever scene that is in front of you. Stand on a chair or bench to look; then sit down and, finally, lie down to look at it. For most purposes, however, the ideal level for the horizon is about one third of the way from the bottom edge of a drawing.

Observe how the Figure 1 illustrates correct and incorrect eye-levels. It also shows another aspect of composition. The two trees in the top drawing are both the same in shape and size and are of a equal distant from you. They therefore divide attention.

In the correct version I have balanced one tree against three, placed at different distances. You will notice the house as the object of attention. At the beginning you may draw the out line in pencil using an HB pencil with a sharp point. Practise these illustrations a few times and complete them with pen and ink.