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Edgar Payne
Hi Carol,
One of the quintessential books on design is by Edgar Payne and is called "Composition of Outdoor Painting". Even though it is on landscape it deals very effectively with placement of the masses and using line to move the viewer thoughout the compositon. What I really enjoy are his use of thumbnail sketches to explain the different concepts. I always do a thumbnail drawing to see if the composition will work correctly. I find if it looks good in a two by three inch format it will look good at twenty inches. As a teacher I have my students practice thumbnail sketches by first doing them with whatever shapes they find pleasing, then I have them add value to the shapes. During this exercise we discuss balance and movement and rythym, all these topics are covered in detail in Payne's book. After umpteen little abstracts we apply thumbnails to the model or still life by looking for the big value masses and lines that carry the eye through.
Unfortunately it is a real "Payne" (sorry) to find this book. I bought it as a birthday gift for myself a few years back. I think I got it on Amazon for around $40.00. Original copies are around but they are very pricey.
Hope this helps.
Vianna
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