Why artists still swear by this 19-year-old painting book

THIS title has been around for some time — nearly two decades, in fact. First published by North Light Books in 2007, I was surprised to come across it on the shelves of a bookstore in Kuala Lumpur. As a watercolourist, I initially hesitated to pick it up. The cover gave the impression that it was primarily an oil painting manual. That impression changed within the first few pages.

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What is interesting about this book is the way painter and instructor Ian Roberts, the author, approaches painting almost like an architect building a house. It begins with laying a foundation — understanding composition by identifying possible armatures — before moving into the abstraction of masses and colour shapes and refining these within what Roberts calls the picture plane to guide the viewer’s eye.

His method helps the beginner dissect what would otherwise be an overwhelming scene into manageable parts. By identifying structure — the verticals and horizontals that lead the eye — and simplifying tonal values into clear masses, one can arrive at a strong composition on which to build the painting.

SOLID FOUNDATION

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The book covers much of what is commonly found in art instruction — colour, value, light and greens. But what makes it stand out is how Roberts shows the importance of simplification. He explains why constant drawing practice sharpens one’s ability to see structure and reduce complexity into value masses with just enough information to form a solid foundation.

In the Twelve Composition Basics, for example, he uses thumbnail sketches extensively to show you how to develop that instinct for better paintings. There are also other exercises throughout, many aimed at oil painters, but equally useful to painters in general.

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These include developing a colour vocabulary, visualising the colour wheel in three dimensions and mastering edges. There is even a section on mixing lively greens. An earlier print of this book contained a CD, I understand. This one doesn’t come with one. Nevertheless, what is within the hardcover is written clearly enough that can serve as a guide.

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Roberts also maintains a YouTube channel under his name where he expands on many of the topics covered in the book. Yet the strength of Mastering Composition lies in its quiet clarity on the page itself.

In an age where many art tutorials focus on quick effects and surface detail, Roberts returns to the fundamentals: structure, observation and simplification. It is perhaps why this nearly two-decade-old book still feels relevant today — and why it remains one I return to whenever painting begins to feel unnecessarily complicated.

MASTERING COMPOSITION:

Techniques and Principles to Dramatically Improve Your Painting

AUTHOR: Ian Roberts

PUBLISHER: North Light Books (ISBN: 978-1-58180-924-4)

© New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd

المصدر: New Straits Times