Deep Seeing

"Deep Seeing" is a phrase I use to describe the trained observation of an artist working in the realist tradition. It is an essential quality which is necessary to paint well, and, unfortunately is very difficult to teach and usually comes into being only after years of effort.

You might say it is rather Zen-like. . . it is something which is gained without really being able to know exactly what it is, but which is undoubtedly known to exist when the goal is reached (to paraphrase Lao-tzu, "The seeing which can be spoken of is not the true seeing."). Part of it is the ability to break down what you see into various parts: to simplify complex views, to analyse the aspects of color (hue, value, chroma, color temperature, local color, etc.). Part of it is becoming very sensitive to subtle shifts in these (for instance, being able to understand the apparent contradiction of a "cold" orange), another is to see the motif not as you see it with your normal vision, but to actually see it as if it were painted.

These are but a few aspects which only "point the way" to what I call "deep seeing" is. Some people are born with it and others have to work at it for years before they "get" it. Some never end up really able to see in this manner. My advice is to try to observe very very carefully what you are looking at, and try different ways of approaching that looking -- for example note any shifts in chroma as a surface advances or recedes.

It aslo means to be able to impose ideas on your seeing: have you ever been able to use the principle of atmospheric perspective in a still-life, or a nude? It is like understanding that a surface which is soft, and has depth in its turning will cause our eyes to have to refocus over its surface as it turns in space, making part of it always out of focus, and hence a suitable place to have a soft or very soft edge (eg. a breast), while a hard surface which turns quickly (eg. the elbow) might be better painted using a technique which is less soft, and a hard line (like a crease) might use a very hard edge, a definite line to make it look like it exists in space.

Keeping so many ideas in mind along with everything else which goes on while painting (proportions, color, form, loading the brush. . . etc.) can seem an impossible task. The only way to manage it successfully is by experience. Little by little these concerns will become second nature to you and you won't even consciously think of them, they will just seem to flow from your brush. This is called "mastery."

I will be blogging more on this important topic, and would like to hear your views and ideas and experiences. What do you think?