MITCH ALBALA
Real World Composition for Landscape Painters 

September 11, 12, 13, 2024
TOTAL WORKSHOP PRICE: $395

Media: Open to painters in all mediums. The topics of composition we cover are universal and not media-specific. For acrylic painters, the expectation is that you know how to manage acrylic’s rapid drying time, how to blend with glazing and/or scumbling, and have a Sta-Wet palette and know how to use it. 

Level: This is not a workshop for first-time painters (those who have never painted or mixed color at all); however, it is ideally suited for intermediate to advanced painters who want to understand and take greater control of their compositions.

For many artists, composition remains the most elusive area of their practice. This is because its energies are often abstract or hidden beneath the narrative story of the painting. The goal of this workshop is to expose these energies — and by doing so, take greater control of your composition. The workshop takes a “real world” approach to composition: rather than learning a checklist of theoretical design elements and principles, you will work with aspects of composition that are directly observable within your subjects. You’ll learn what choices practically affect your compositions, and be able to implement what you learn immediately. Working from photographs, with practical exercises in both black-and-white and color, critiques, and analysis of master compositions, this workshop will cover: 

SHAPE IDENTIFICATION - To take charge of your composition, you must be able to see it in terms of foundational shapes. Learn how to use the 3-value notan to define the primary shapes of your composition.

VARIATION and DIFFERENCES are the key to dynamic and interesting compositions. How do various shapes differ from one another in their “pacing and spacing,” size, weight, and orientation?

THE PICTURE WINDOW and FORMAT applied to the subject has a profound effect on the composition. What will be included, what will be left out, and how do the primary shapes relate to one another? How does format — horizontal, vertical, or square — affect the composition?

MOVEMENT animates a composition. Learn about movement through diagonals, the difference between “direct” and “implied” pathways, circular movement, and how to diagram movement in your subjects. 

ACTIVE NEGATIVE SPACE - Negative space presents itself differently in landscape than it does in still life or figurative painting. Negative space is often the sky, large bodies of water, or wide open fields. Learn four methods of “activating” these spaces, to ensure that they are fully integrated into the composition.

https://mitchalbala.com