Composition

Vision and Value: If these forces that pull inward and press outward are organized within a predetermined area, we may call the design a composition. The size and shape of the area or format are accepted from the start, as is the ring for a boxing match. Before anything is placed in this blank space, it reveals an intangible, invisible system of dynamic tensions of its own--rather, we read tensions into it. When the drama of point, line, shape, and color commences, the tensions will realign themselves and become part of the overall visual drama. [Vision and Value Series. New York: Braziller, 1965.]

Ruskin - On Composition
. . . . Composition means, literally and simply, putting several things together, so as to make one thing out of them; the nature and goodness of which they all have a share in producing. Thus a musician composes an air, by putting notes together in certain relations; a poet composes a poem, by putting thoughts and words in pleasant order; and a painter a picture, by putting thoughts, forms, and colours in pleasant order.

In all these cases, observe, an intended unity must be the result of composition. A pavior cannot be said to compose the heap of stones which he empties from his cart, nor the sower the handful of seed which he scatters from his hand. It is the essence of composition that everything should be in a determined place, perform an intended part, and act, in that part, advantageously for everything that is connected with it . . . . In a well-composed air, no note, however short or low, can be spared, but the least is as necessary as the greatest: no note, however prolonged, is tedious; but the others prepare for, and are benefited by, its duration: no note, however high, is tyrannous; the others prepare for, and are benefited by, it exaltation; no note, however low, is overpowered; the others prepare for, and sympathize with, its humility: and the result is, that each and every note has a value in the position assigned to it , which, by itself, it never possessed, and of which, by separation from the others, it would instantly be deprived . . . . Similarly, in a good poem... every syllable has a loveliness which depends not so much on its abstract sound as on its position . . . . Much more in a great picture; every line and colour is so arranged as to advantage the rest . . . . It is not enough that they truly represent natural objects; but they fit in to certain places, and gather into certain harmonious groups.... we ought to see that the work is masterly, merely by the positions and quantities of [the elements] . . . .

. . . . it is impossible to give rules which will enable you to compose. You might much more easily receive rules to enable you to be witty.

If it were possible to be witty by rule, wit would cease to be either admirable or amusing: if it were possible to compose melody by rule, Mozart and Cimarosa need not have been born . . . . The essence of composition lies precisely in the fact of its being unteachable, in its being the operation of an individual mind of range and power exalted above others [other operations].

But though no one can invent by rule, there are some simple laws of arrangement which it is well for you to know, because, though they will not enable you to produce a good picture, they will often assist you to set forth what goodness may be in your work in a more telling way than you could have done otherwise; and by tracing them in the work of good composers, you may better understand the grasp of their imagination, and the power it possesses over their materials.

[On Composition, pgs. 161-164, The Elements of Drawing, John Ruskin, Dover Publications, Inc., New York, 1971 [Originally Published in London, 1857]

Vision and Value: The square and the rectangle, more neutral than other areas, remain favorite formats. Their tensions do not intrude too forcibly into the events taking place within their boundaries. French painters over the years have recognized three basic types of stretcher frames for their canvases (1) Figure, which is almost square and ideally suited for figure paintings; (2) paysage, or landscape-type, which is rather close to the Golden Section rectangle; and (3) marine, a very long rectangle ideal for seascapes. Circles, triangles and rhomboids are difficult types, because they are commanding in their own right as shapes. The perceptual forces in the square or the not-too-narrow rectangle are easier to work with. They run from top to bottom and from side to side at right angles to each other, and from corner to corner diagonally through the center of the format where all tensions cross unless modified by a tendency of the eye to seek an area just above the middle as the psychological center, the visual center, as it is sometimes called. There is also a tendency in many people, especially those of Euro-American societies, to sense more visual weight or pull to the right than to the left, an unconscious desire to slide into that area by a left-to-right movement of the eye. On the other hand, I believe I have noticed the great Japanese film director Akiro Kurosawa making far more use of right-to-left movement s of actors and paraphernalia, and of the camera. Could it be that the directions of the way people write and read are the determining influences? The psychological and physical peculiarities of the flat surface do not end there. There is a strange compatibility of the "three-dimensional map" of the mind with the two-dimensional surface. The physical surface seems to endeavor to maintain its integrity unimpaired; nevertheless, instead of our seeing a point, a line, or a shape lying directly upon it, we are more likely to perceive it as though it were lying in front of the surface, or, in more intricate arrangements, behind the surface--that is, in depth. Pictorial depth enhances the quantity and, in many works, the quality of the space. Our aim, therefore is to become extraordinarily aware of this phenomenon in order that it may be used to structural and expressive advantage. [Vision and Value Series. New York: Braziller, 1965 p. 33.]

C O N S I D E R:

Composed

Structure

Orderly make-up

Constitution

Aggregate

Organization of the parts to a unified whole

Putting together . . . . in accordance with [literary: rules of grammar & rhetoric; etc.]

Act or process of producing a [literary] work

Short essay

Piece of music

Grammatical formation of compounds

Agreement or compromise

Set up of type for printing

Make or form by combining things, parts, elements

Be or consisting a part or element of

Make up or form the basis of

To put in proper form or order

To organize the parts or elements

To create

R  E  F  E  R  E  N  C  E  S 

1 Composite adj [L compositus, pp. of componere] [1563] 1: made up of distinct parts: as a cap: relating to or being a modification of the Corinthian order combining angular Ionic volutes with the acanthus-circled bell of the Corinthian b: of or relating to a very large family [Compositae] of dicotyledonous herbs, shrubs, and trees often considered to be the most highly evolved plants and characterized by florets arranged in dense heads that resemble single flowers c: factorable into two or more prime factors other than 1 and itself [8 is a positive __ integer] 2: combining the typical or essential charactaeristics of individuals making up a group [the __ man called the Poet -Richard Poirier] 3 of a statistical hypothesis: specifying a range of values for one or more statistical parameters -compare Simple 10

2 Composite n [1656] 1: something composite: compound 2: a composite plant 3: Composite Function 4: a solid material which is composed of two or more substances having different physical characteristics and in which each substance retains its identity while contributing desirable properties to the whole; esp: a structural material made of plastic within which a fibrous material [as silicon carbide] is embedded

3 Composite vt [1923]: to make composite or into something composite [composited four soil samples]

Composite function n [1965]: a function whose values are found from two given functions by applying one function to an independent variable and then applying the second function to the result and whose domain consists of those values of the independent variable for which the result yielded by the first function lies in the domain of the second

[Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 10th Edition. Springfield, MA, USA: Merriam-Webster, Inc. 1995.]

Composition [< L composition- (s. of compositiõ) = composit(us) (see Composite) + -ion- -ION; r. ME composicioun < AF] n. 1. the act of combining parts or elements to form a whole. 2. the resulting state or product. 3. manner of being composed; structure: this painting has an orderly composition. 4. make-up or constitution. 5. an aggregate material formed from two or more substances. 6. Fine Arts, the organization of the parts of a work to achieve a unified whole. 7. the art of putting words and sentences together in accordance with the rules of grammar and rhetoric. 8. the act or process of producing a literary work. 9. a short essay written as a school exercise. 10. the art of composing music. 11. a piece of music. 12. Gram. the formation of compounds: the composition of "bootblack" consists of "boot" and "black." 13. a settlement by mutual agreement. 14. an agreement or compromise, esp. one by which a creditor accepts partial payment from a debtor. 15. a sum of money so paid. 16. the setting up of type for printing.

Compose -v.t. 1. to make or form by combining things, parts, or elements.... 2. to be or constitute a part or element of... 3. to make up or form the basis of. 4. to put in proper form or order... 5. Art. to organize the parts or elements of (a painting or the like). 6. to create (a literary, musical, or choreographic work).....