featuring words from Randy Sexton

The question for beginning and advanced painters: Should you move elements around in your painting?

Randy Sexton explains that, for an experienced painter, you realize that editing things, or simplifying the composition, is part of the artistic process. This can apply to all painters; studio, landscape, figurative, etc. Sometimes, certain things just don’t work in a scene, and this is where practicing discernment as an artist comes in. What elements should you move or remove while composing a scene, and still keep your individuality as a painter? By using your artistic discernment, you may begin to realize that incorporating a slightly different relationship with shapes will help you arrive at a better result.

Randy tells beginning students not to worry about moving around elements. As a beginning painter, you should be focusing on skills around color mixing, and making decisions about composition. Nature provides so many opportunities for beauty that you can get into, without moving elements around. Look at the scene straightforward, when starting out!

It is a multi-prong, not one-size-fits-all topic. Tucson Art Academy teaches each students with different knowledge levels and skill sets. There may be someone who comes into this painting world from a different direction, maybe with more drawing experience, who would have better luck moving elements around as a beginner. For most painters, it is most helpful to work directly from what the subject matter is. But, Randy does recommend stepping out of your comfort zone and moving elements around when you feel ready.

Want more tips like this from Randy?

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Also, check out Randy’s video download package, “Let Your Brush Sing! How to Push Paint to the Edge:”

To learn more about moving elements around, listen to Gabor and Randy on the Concept to Canvas podcast here.