{"id":1528909,"date":"2024-05-09T22:43:44","date_gmt":"2024-05-09T21:43:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.jacksonsart.com\/blog\/?p=1528909"},"modified":"2026-03-31T16:05:26","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T15:05:26","slug":"tips-for-creating-strong-composition-and-illusory-depth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jacksonsart.com\/blog\/2024\/05\/09\/tips-for-creating-strong-composition-and-illusory-depth\/","title":{"rendered":"Tips for Creating Strong Composition and Illusory Depth"},"content":{"rendered":"

Strong composition can be the key to a successful painting, perhaps even more so than colour and contrast. So says Jenny Aitken in this chapter from her new book Painting into the Light<\/em>, where she shares key tips for creating a successful composition and achieving illusory depth. Throughout the book, she also offers guidance on how to infuse your paintings with vibrant light. Aimed at intermediate artists, it includes explanations on simplifying the image, tonal control, creating atmospheric depth, working outdoors and indoors, and capturing accurate colour through step-by-step demonstrations, and illustrated techniques.<\/p>\n

\n
\"\"
Painting into the Light: How to Work Atmospheric Magic With Your Oil Paints<\/em> by Jenny Aitken
Search Press<\/a><\/small><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Tips for Creating Strong Composition and Illusory Depth<\/h2>\n

by Jenny Aitken<\/small><\/p>\n

Composition<\/h2>\n

I tell people about the \u2018three Cs\u2019: composition, colour, and contrast \u2013 and the first is the most important. For any painting to be successful it needs a good, strong composition: it is simply the bones of the whole painterly animal!<\/p>\n

Guiding the Eye<\/h2>\n

Even if every other element is top-notch, if your structure isn\u2019t guiding the eye in an effective way, all your fine work risks being lost.<\/p>\n

Analyse what you like about the image, then edit out anything that detracts from the energy of the composition. It is easy to miss the obvious and get distracted by the painting as a whole \u2013 forgetting the fact that you are composing a visual story.<\/p>\n

Good composition provides a compelling journey, or \u2018eye path\u2019, around both the surface of the canvas and through the illusory depth of the image.<\/p>\n

Think of a focal point as the lighthouse in the ocean of your painting, drawing the eye and keeping it from drifting out of the painting. Not every painting has an obvious subject, however \u2013 so when deciding on your focal point, ask yourself these questions:<\/p>\n