Notes on Painting ~ Rhythm

North of Here, acrylic on canvas, 24 x 24 inches

Rhythm is as necessary in a picture as pigment; it is as much a part of painting as of music.
~Walter J. Phillips~

​I am thinking about rhythm as I continue with my posts here considering my paintings as they relate to the elements of design. Besides music, lots of things have rhythm. I enjoy the rhythm of the seasons, a rhythm to my days, and the calming rhythms of ocean waves. And I enjoy adding pattern, through repeated elements or motifs, into my painting compositions to create a visual rhythm. Repetition is probably the easiest way to express rhythm in painting by repeating any of the design elements throughout a composition.  Repetition can suggest movement through a visual tempo and provide a path for the eye to follow.

Dreams Grow Wild, acrylic on canvas, 24 x 24 inches

​Another form of rhythm that I like exploring in my painting is linear rhythm. This is expressed as a rhythmic character of lines that may move the viewer’s eye throughout the composition. Whether very bold or more subtle, linear elements can set up a rhythm within the composition as well.

Birdsong, acrylic on canvas, 18 x 24 inches

​Rhythm may be created with an alternating pattern such as short/long or dark/light, which also can be very effective for suggesting movement in a painting.

Bittersweet, acrylic on canvas, 18 x 24 inches

Perhaps it is because of the natural rhythm of the landscape, particularly this undulating mountain landscape where I live, that I am so interested in expressing that in my work. Tree lines on ridges, curving roads winding through the mountain sides, and of course the repetition of the mountain forms themselves, all inspire a sense of visual movement of the land that seeps into and informs my abstract landscape paintings.

What May Change Us, acrylic on canvas, 24 x 30 inches

Rhythm is something you either have or don’t have, but when you have it,
you have it all over.
~Elvis Presley~

I have added a “Shop” page here on my website where I am offering the paintings that are a little bit larger available to purchase directly from me. I have considered how best to offer these works ever since a gallery I had in mind closed. With shipping costs what they are I decided the best way would be to calculate shipping individually for international buyers, and buyers within the US will still receive free shipping. All the pieces shown in this post are available to purchase directly from my new shop page. Clicking on any of the images will take you right there. And all other available works are in my Etsy shop here.

*All images and content in this article is ©Ann Thompson Nemcosky.
Please do not reproduce in any way. Thank you.*