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The Ocean by Design

See how four famous artists created dynamic compositions about the sea

September 2012

Winslow Homer (1836-1910), The Gulf Stream, 1899. Oil on canvas, 28 1/8 x 49 1/8 in. Catharine Lorillard Wolfe Collection, Wolfe Fund, 1906 (06.1234). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY. Image copyright © The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Image source: Art Resource, NY.

How does Winslow Homer draw our attention to the man in the boat?

Once you understand the elements of art, you can begin using them in your own artwork. But how do you put them to the greatest effect? Follow the principles of design! These are guidelines 
for organizing the elements of art into a composition. They are emphasis, contrast, balance, rhythm, and unity. 

Focus, Focus, Focus!

Artists use the elements of art to place emphasis on, or draw your attention to, the focal point of a work of art. In his 1899 painting of a ship on a stormy sea, The Gulf Stream (above), American realist painter Winslow Homer uses line, shape, and color to place emphasis on the man in the small boat at the center of the painting. A small white sunlit section of the boat with a streak of bright red (the color of blood) draws our attention to the boat and surrounding sharks. The man’s body and the boat itself are diagonal lines, indicating their dangerous position on the unsettled sea.

Paul Klee (1879-1940), Battle Scene from the Comic Opera The Seafarer. 1923. Watercolor. Collection Trix Duerst-Haass, Muttenz, Switzerland. © 2012 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. Image: Erich Lessing / Art Resource, NY.

How does Paul Klee use color to emphasize certain areas?

In his 1923 The Seafarer (above) Swiss/German abstract painter Paul Klee (klay) places emphasis on a man in a boat, but this is a very different looking battle. The top and bottom are in sharp contrast—the tonal values change from blue-black at the top to bright blue at the bottom. The boat rests on a thin line separating top from bottom. Klee uses a horizontal red line to draw attention to the strange sea creatures below the surface. Who do you think will win this battle?

Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849), The Great Wave off Kanagawa. Print. Image: Gianni Dagli Orti / The Art Archive at Art Resource, NY.

What image dominates Hokusai’s print? Is this the focal point? Why or why not?

Balancing Act

Faith Ringgold (b. 1930), Sonny’s Quilt, 1986. Acrylic on canvas, 91 x 72 in. Collection: High Museum of Art. Faith Ringgold ©1986.

How does Faith Ringgold use the line of the Brooklyn Bridge to establish rhythm?

Another way artists create emphasis is by choosing how to balance their compositions. Japanese woodblock printmaker Katsushika Hokusai (cat-soo-shee-kah hoh-koo-sigh)uses an asymmetrical balance in his 1826 The Great Wave off Kanagawa (above). The huge wave on the left dominates the composition and threatens to engulf the small boats and men on the right. The curved lines of the wave and repeated curled-edge motif at its crest draw our attention to the focal point—Mount Fuji in the background. 

American contemporary artist Faith Ringgold uses symmetrical balance in her 1986 Sonny’s Quilt (right). The left and right sides of the work are nearly identical. The repeating vertical lines of the iconic cables of the Brooklyn Bridge draw our attention to the subject—the artist’s friend Sonny Rollins, a jazz saxophonist. 

Rhythm of the Water

You probably associate the word “rhythm” with music, but works of art have rhythm too. Artists create rhythm by adding visual “beats” throughout a work, using line, color, or shape. In The Gulf Stream, Homer creates rhythm by repeating v-shaped waves throughout the composition. Patterns can also be used to create a sense of rhythm. Compare Klee’s The Seafarer and Ringgold’s Sonny’s Quilt. How does each artist use pattern to develop rhythm?

It All Comes Together

Unity is one of the most difficult principles to describe—it occurs when the elements of art and principles of design come together to form a complete work. When a work of art is unified, it has a sense of order and is pleasing to the eye. Do you think all of the paintings on these pages achieve unity? 
Why or why not? 

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