Came home Tuesday from a week in beautiful Baddeck, Cape Breton. I was teaching a four-day workshop on abstract painting. There were seventeen students, presenting a full spectrum of art experience and age. I brought along my teaching assistant — my four-month old puppy, Romeo. He was very helpful and, except for some occasional puppy outbursts, extremely good.
Having had such a long career focusing mainly on abstraction (never wanted to paint anything else, although I could if I necessary), I really enjoy passing along any bits of insight I may have. I’ve come to the conclusion that abstract painting centers around composition. Without a good strong composition, nothing works. Color, forms, images all need the tension and balance of a good composition. A good composition is not a formula. But it is about focus, how the story is told. It’s the framework upon which the other elements rest.