Choosing A Subject

For everything in this world there is someone who has painted it. Whether it is a person, place, or thing somewhere someone has put it to paint.  It does not matter what you choose as your subject, as long as you feel comfortable painting it. 

Some of the better subjects are ones that will offer color and contrast. For instance, a bowl full of bananas with an apple in the center.  A vase full of blooming flowers is the perfect still life because of the colors and shapes.

You should look for many things when choosing a subject.  If it is a landscape, you want some texture.  What I mean is there should be different buildings, trees, or animals to add interest to the picture.  You do not want to saturate the painting with activity but you do want to keep it interesting. 

A scene which is full of busy people can be good as long as the activity stays in one place on the canvas.  Making the background as busy as the foreground can over stimulate the senses.  By adding the activity to a tranquil background, the painting takes on a sense of order.

You may choose to do portraits.  Do not underestimate the subject.  There is a term, "photogenic", which means that someone's beauty shows through the lens.  You may see someone as plain and uninteresting.  Under the eye of the camera, this person can transform into a vision of beauty.

The camera is the perfect tool to choose a subject.  By taking pictures of what you want to paint, you can determine the contrast, lighting, and textures.  You will be able to see what the view will look like framed.  This can give you a better understanding of what you are really looking at.  Taking a picture will show you the true view.

Another reason an artist may take a picture of their subject is timing.  If you are doing a portrait, you may not be able to finish before the person has to leave.  Even a boat in the harbor will put out to sea sometime, leaving you with an empty pier.  The lighting changes every minute of every day.  By taking a picture of the subject, you can preserve the moment so the painting can be done at your leisure.  Even if you are using artificial lighting, there could be other circumstances which do not allow you to finish your work.   The camera can become your new best friend when it comes to painting.

It can actually be fun taking pictures of different subject matter.  Then you get to go home and choose which angle will make the best painting. You can experiment with lighting in this manner as well.  By shooting from all angles, you can get many different views.  There may be something the camera saw that you missed.  Accidents can sometimes make the best artwork. 

Never overlook anything when it comes to choosing a subject.  One of the most intriguing art subjects I ever saw was a dandelion which had gone to seed.  The artist had shot a closeup of the puffy seed head.  He then painted it in shades of blue.  It took several people almost three days to determine exactly what the subject was.  Yet the painting fascinated all of us for quite some time.