2011 Joan Kresek
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After the forms have been simplified into shapes, remove any sense of vanishing point perspective, volume via shading, highlight and shadow, or chiaroscuro. It is as though the shapes have no mass or depth, only length and width. It is as though the shapes have no volume. True flatness is not concerned with the form of the objects, figure/ground, or a focal point or area of emphasis. Remember to keep the imagery somewhat recognizable.
Note: The method demonstrations will continue to use my still life “Favorite Things” as the source drawing.
Simplification The most basic method in abstraction is simplification and stylization of a detailed drawing into a geometric drawing (Brommer, 2009). Begin by carefully observing your still life drawing. Decide what the basic geometric shapes of the composition are. Work them out roughly on sketch paper. Do a thumbnail drawing, representing the shapes as contour lines, without their details. Do as many as you need, but check the original to make sure you are maintaining the essence of the objects.
In Methods of Abstraction: Part 1, it was important to maintain the appearance of three-dimensionality in the forms. As we employ the first basic principle of abstraction – simplification – in the methods reviewed here, we want to remove the presence of form, reducing the image to Flatness. This kind of abstraction also has no depth to it. Cubism was a defining moment for flatness in Modern art. Cubist artists worked to create spatial ambiguity; representation of form without a clear and singular perspective. Greenberg wrote that, "...the Cubist counter-revolution eventuated in a kind of painting flatter than anything in Western art since before Giotto and Cimabue - so flat indeed that it could hardly contain recognizable images." (Chris, 2011). In an attempt to make the objects look flat, the shapes cannot show any sense of depth or where they are in space. Therefore, after the forms have been simplified into shapes, remove any sense of vanishing point perspective, volume via shading, highlight and shadow, or chiaroscuro. It is as though the shapes have no mass or depth, only length and width. It is as though the shapes have no volume. True flatness is not concerned with the form of the objects, figure/ground, or a focal point or area of emphasis. There are many levels and combinations between the original still life and the simplified flat abstract drawing. It is important to keep the imagery somewhat recognizable, and use a number of methods for abstraction.
