A Path for the Eye

Perspectives from The Artist's Road

Dawn in the Switching Yard WC John Hulsey

“Composition is the gravity that holds a painting together.”
- Frank Webb

In the article, The Artist’s Road Guide to Composition, we discuss ways that can strengthen a composition and direct the viewer’s eye where we want it in a picture.

A tried-and-true method to lead the viewer into a painting is to create a “path for the eye”. The path can be anything, perhaps a road or a stream which starts at the front edge of the picture and leads us up toward the distant horizon. It is all the more interesting if it contains sinuous or winding curves. Alternatively, creating a path for the eye can be accomplished by simply making a value or color change to draw the eye toward the focal point. Masses and shapes, or uprights, like trees, fences, phone poles or even buildings or shadows can also be used to frame the sides of a composition, directing the viewer’s …