What Grabs My Attention?

Scanning through photos, I notice that I respond to visual elements of the same scene depending on the angle and distance from which the photo has been taken. Change one aspect and my attention is grabbed and engaged ... or not.  What grabs my attention and engages or inspires me may not, and probably will not have the same effect on someone else. For me, the subject matter is rarely the thing that grabs my attention.  It's usually a spot of colour, a curved line, a shape, texture or pattern.  Rhythms and harmonies of shapes and colours make me want to dance; they nurture me during times when life is difficult. Seeing the glow of late afternoon sun reflecting off a rusty pipe has always brought me joy.

The video above is a collection of photos that present similar images that challenge me to examine the differences in my responses.  I notice that to some images I respond emotionally, others I respond to intellectually.  Some evoke very little response. I find it fascinating that I respond emotionally to certain arrangements of shapes, values, lines and/or colours whereas just a slight tweak of any of those elements can leave me cold or simply spark my brain to think about composition in an academic manner rather than evoke a meaningful feeling within.

How can this exercise of glancing through photos help to strengthen my work?  Perhaps at the early stage of facing a blank sheet of paper or a blank canvas a bit of extra time to gaze about and feel the space of the studio, the feelings within, the sounds of birds, wind or water, the time of day or night, the season, the weather, the bustle of a crowd or the clink of glasses at the cafe table beside me ... perhaps these moments of listening, feeling and observing will guide toward a sketch or a painting that more closely expresses the experience of time and place. Perhaps I will be guided more directly by my inner artist and my analyzing brain will be silenced enough to not get in the way.

Thanks for taking the time to watch the video and read the blog post. I would love to know what ways you have found that quiet your brain and awaken your heart.

Chris Carter