The Machinations of the Artist’s Eye
How various artists engage and capture the world in front of them
Author’s note: The photograph above contains two shadows of me. I was walking around Lake Harriet in Minneapolis and noticed that I had two shadows, one cast by the sun above, and another cast by the reflected sunlight off the lake’s surface. I stopped and had some fun with it.
Just as we cannot go to the same river twice, no two people will encounter the things in front of them the same way. Life is, if nothing else, an intensely personal experience. We bring with us to each new scenario our own perceptions, prejudices, preferences, and creativity.
Each artist encounters a new scene with an eye toward their particular art. Before them lies a world of possibilities filled with raw materials to feed their creativity. They will take a moment of time, and through their art, render it eternal.
When a painter encounters a scene, they begin to frame the scene, deciding what would be included and what would not. They ponder the different mediums they could employ, giving consideration to watercolor, acrylic, or oil paints. Would the painting be on paper, wood, canvas, or something else? They think about how big it would be, and what would be done with it when they are finished. Would this piece be for…
