Creating Dynamic Compositions: What Do I Do With the Background?

Beginning with tips on stimulating the imagination and getting ideas, the prolific Sandra Angelo (see Building a Nature Sketchbook and Drawing Your Loved Ones: People in VL-1/98) launches into a discussion of six principles of composition that she claims will turn any picture into a portrait. Using samples of her own illustrations, Angelo demonstrates how to enlarge a subject to fill a space, use converging lines to focus the eye, take a "worm's eye" or a "bird's eye view" of a subject, and work with the "principle of thirds" in composition. Basing her work on photographs, she offers suggestions for enhancing even bad shots of good subjects by creating color harmony, eliminating distractions, adding texture and cropping out bad backgrounds. To further illustrate her points, she enlists the aid of Steve Miller, a portrait artist to the stars (Eric Clapton, Stevie Wonder, Mariah Carey, et al.), who puts Angelo's principles into action, from choosing a photo reference to final color finish. While the program concludes with a forceful (and, in my opinion, unwelcome) 4-minute pitch for Angelo's other products--videos, books, public appearances--this would, nevertheless, be a solid addition to most arts and crafts collections and is therefore recommended. Aud: H, P. (J. Reed)