Seurat's method to compose "A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jadde" in Barnes Foundation 4 /Phrase technique

 

 

 

It turns out that the foundation structure can be made with the largest circular units.

Next, let's draw a little more details in the second unit.

It is the same way as carving wood;

gradually digging from rough cutting to details.

  

Seurat [Grand Jadde] the largest and second largest arc model

           the largest and the second largest unit

The pink arc has the effect of a musical phrase.

It is easy to imagine that the uncolored contours are made up of smaller circular arcs.

It can be said that the smallest unit of the whole pattern is an arc. (Arc is Atom of Art.)

These arcs produce various effects with the syntaxial devices.

Impressionist color paintings can be enjoyed intuitively by anyone.

It was easily accepted like a melody-centric pop song.

Cezanne's bather paintings and Seurat's last large paintings are not understood well .It must be perceived that a curve is a series of arcs to start with.

The ability is like hearing the perfect pitch of music,

It cannot be acquired without training.

The largest circular unit makes the foundation structure.

The unit of the second largest circle is used to balance the individual arcs.

Make a model of the second unit and overlay it on the first unit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It's easy to imagine that the uncolored contours are made up of smaller circular arcs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The pink arcs have the effect of musical phrases.

It's easy to imagine that the uncolored contours are made up of smaller circular arcs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The largest circular unit makes the foundation structure. The unit of the second largest circle is used to balance the individual arcs. Make a model of the second unit and overlay it on the first unit.

The three trees on waterside are very important as basic structure.

 

Seurat's method to compose "A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jadde" in Barnes Foundation 3/ reconstruction with the new units

Sometime Seurat became conscious of using the method of composition.
This time, I devised a new structural model.
One can see the same bend in the curve.
Curves with the same bend can be regarded as arcs.
If we consider the arc as the smallest unit, we naturally come up with the idea of ​​using a circle, which is an extension of it, for designing.
The unit is made of a circle and its vertical and horizontal diameter,
In addition, the square surrounding the unit will be added to call it ‘the framed circular cross unit’.
A square is easier to adjust the balance effect than a circle.

Though the method could be invented independently,
it is possible that the method to make the basic structure with the largest circle was known.Since Hokusai's "Tomegane" makes the basic structure with the curved circle of the bone of the umbrella,The technique seems to be logically guided.

Seurat [How he fixed the basic structue on the format]



 





As some figures are not outlined clearly due to the pointilistic finish,
I try to reconstruct thecomposition with framed circle-cross unit.

Seurat [Grand Jadde] framed circle-cross unit model

Seurat

 

 

 

Seurat's method to compose "A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jadde" in Barnes Foundation 2 /Background balance

 

I had not seen this painting carefully until I started this blog because it is not chromatically interesting.
Now I find it to be an interesting work for the study of "Grand Jadde".
It has extraordinary balance effect.

The circle-cross model can explain how balanced this painting is.

    Seurat [Grand Jadde study] circle-cross model　with the same sized circles

 

    Seurat [Grand Jadde study] out frammed structure model

Every line is a connection of arcs, and the basic structure can be made with only a kind of circle that makes the most arcs.

There are two tequniqus used:
A) One is a mesh structure in which circles are bundled.
B) The other is the way to move the units horizontally for making the trees at the top of the screen .

Seurat's method to compose "A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jadde " in Barnes Foundation 1 / harmony

The answer to the question "What is art?" is implied in the masterpieceｓ.
Seurat's [Grand Jadde] has become increasingly famous, but I could not find on line any art thesis to convince .
I expect the visual grammar can explain it
Firstly I make the arc model of harmony.




   Seurat [Grand Jadde] in Banes Foundation arc model
The arcs of a limited circle creates the effect of harmony.
The sense of rhythm comes out because the arcs of the same circle are nearby.
The contour line is a continuous melody of arcs.
In this way, art is made on the same principle as music.

 

 

 

 

Cezanne's apple and Albers's curvilinear composition

In the previous blog about Seurat’s [The model], I showed that he used the technique which I named [circle-cross model].

Seurat and Cezanne somehow reached the same technique.

As Seurat's paintings are illustrative paintings,
most people failed to see the form, just trying to read the content.

Cezanne's paintings are only landscapes and still lifes, and their contents are not important.
Only those who understand the shapes noticed its importance.
This was why Cezanne was said to be the father of modern art.
If you look at everything on the level of formal art, most of architecture and sculpture can be enjoyed just by looking at photos,
All works can be classified because of their geometric structure.
A necessary condition for a masterpiece is that its shape has a unique structure.
The creator becomes the inventor of the device to create a new structure.
 This time I introduce a neglected work by Albers.                                                    
 

     Albers [circle]  circle-cross model


The pink part of the spiral of "Circle" is made by connecting different parts of the same circle. As a result, the distortion is slightly different from that of the circle even though the bending is the same.
This is how to draw a Cezanne apple curve. I call this type of curve linear abstract art “Cezanne’s apple-like abstract art”: curves are made of arcs of a few circles.

 

   Cezanne [Seven apples]  circle-cross model
It looks like a structure deliberately designed using a circular cross model.
A) Six types of circular arcs are used to create a basic structure. (Scale 6)
B)There are intersections of three or more circles in several places.
C)The balance effect is achieved by the units (the circle and its vertical-horizontal diameter) which are arranged in a straight line.

It is likely that Cezanne discovered the compositional technique intuitively and Albers could see the technique in Cezanne’s still life.

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How Seurat designed [The Model] in Barnes Foundation

In the previous blogg I have shown that the central nude in [the model] by Seurat are mostly made of the arcs of two types of circles, which makes harmony.

Seurat [The Model] circle-arc model

It is easy to guess how he started.
The pink circle which makes the left thumb of the central nude passes through the center of the picture.

    Seurat [Model] how he started

I make the circle-cross model.

 

Seurat [The Model] circle-cross model

Obviously the blue circles make the basic stfucture.
So I make blue purple circle model.

      Seurat [The Model] blue circle-cross model

Secondly I make  red circle-cross model which shows how Seurat created harmonious sense.

 

      Seurat [Model] red circle-cross model

Though Cezanne is likely to have rediscovered the technique by himself Seurat possibly got the hint from the study of classical painting.

 

 

 

Proportion in art is integer ratio, not Golden Section / Vasalery [Pebble Series]

Since the early days of Greek philosophy men have tried to find in art a geometrical law, if art (which we identify with beauty) is harmony, and harmony is the due observance of proportions, it seems reasonable to assume that these proportions are fixed,
The geometrical proportion known as GoldenSection has for centuries been regarded as such a key to the mystery of art, and so universal  is its application, not only in art but also in nature, that it has at times been treated with religious venaration.
  Herbert Read   (The meaning of art)

The problem is that even if the golden section is used for a hidden structure, the effect is indistinguishable from integer ratio.

I have shown in my blog [Mondrian did not use golden ratio but integer ratio for proportion] that even Mondrian who is most associated with Golden Section used simple grid for composition.

The geometrical laws of art must be in every work.
All artworks have a simple natural number relationship.
Art can be explained scientifically if the smallest unit is a geometrical element that can be easily counted visually.

Flute is an instrument that can be found anywhere in the world, and we can listen to each sound separately.

The musical scale is naturally devised, unified by the equal temperament, and finally theorized by the pure temperament.

The curved lines in a painting can be seen as a series of several arcs.
The arcs can be extended to circles.
Since a limited number of circles are used for one work, it can be called a scale.

This time I pick up a work, in which the scale is consciously used.

“Pebble Series” by Vasalery is a series of masterpieces as pure abstract art.
Dozens of them now can be found if we bother to search online,

                       Vazalery [Pebble series]
vaz

                       Vasalery [Pebble series]circle-cross model

 

    Vasalery [Pebble beries] concentric circle model

 

                                                   Vasalery [Pebble series 2]
Though the design is asymetric the sense of balance is extremly good.
The trick must be due to the hidden structure.

 

 

                                                   Vasalery [Pebble series 2] circle-cross model

 

                                         Vasalery [Pebble series 2] concentric circle model

 

 

 

Looking at these concentric circle models, we can see that the painter had decided the size of the circles in advance.

A loop shape is counted as one.
If two or more shapes overlap, it becomes a network, and strings and dots are counted.
The number of concave and convex in a loops is the same and countable.

By quantifying the quality of the shape in this way, all the works can be classified with distinct differences in shape.

The complexity of the structural devices seems to explain why some shapes are very interesting.

Though there are countless artworks,
a sensor called taste judgement distinguishes only a small number of masterpieces.
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