Week 3 Primaries of Design

Primaries of Design

Below are examples of what I call the Primaries of Design.  These consist of Line/Texture, (because both line and texture sit on or define a surface) Notan (Light vs Dark, the local value of objects without consideration of light and shadow), and Chiaroscuro (Light vs Shadow, when the effect of light overpowers the local value contrast).  Our Primaries of Design should not be confused with Visual Elements themselves.  They serve very different functions.  Primaries of Design have to do with the bias of the artists application of marks and shapes.  Our images may be composed with shapes, colors, spatial relationships, and the rest of our visual elements, but how we choose to bias these shapes, colors, etc. has a profound effect on the total image.  These choices made by the artist when applied distinctly, and consistently emerge as what we consider an artist's style.  Clarity and discretion of the artists bias in their application of marks over proportionate areas of the total image creates a unification we may call a style.  The method we use to compare or measure both visual elements, as well as our primaries in any image or composition is the same, proportion to the overall, and range of contrast within the image.  We will discuss further when we discuss Major and Minor Keys.  Combined, our visual elements, and the manner in which we put them down work in contradistinction with one another and like other languages a greater connotation can be achieved through the sum of their juxtaposition, dominance and subordination, and nuance of choices and relationships.  This is not to say that our visual language has a grammatical framework, it does not.

I have gathered illustrations and paintings below as visual examples and characteristics of our primaries of design.  Again these relate to the bias of our application.

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These primaries are the pillars of a whole style spectrum.  And just as we might look at one painting being predominantly one color by proportion, we also consider the range of contrast of other hues when we are designing a scheme.  A design scheme may favor one primary component through proportion of dominant influence.  But it may also contain a range of contrast from that primary to the others all within the same image.  This allows for great variety of styles.  It's important to note that artists and image makers may or may not be aware of these primaries as they are explained here.  Images considered both good and bad have been designed through various means throughout the generations but if we look at the images most coveted in museums around the world through this filter we can see the influence of line, mass, and form is used with distinction.  In the same manner with primary chroma of both additive and subtractive triads, when they are mixed together without bias the result in both cases is achromatic.  The same thing happens if the primaries of design are all applied to one another without dominance, distinction of style is lost.

From the earliest cave paintings until today, our primaries of design have influenced the distinction of  artistic styles. 

The cave paintings of Lascaux, France were painted approximately 17,000 BP and are line and notan dominant.  For hundreds of thousands of years these were the most common primaries used in creating visual imagery.  The image below is from the book of the dead approximately 1500 BC.

Some of the earliest accounts of the use of the depiction of light and shadow can be seen as in Ancient Greek art like the one below from approximately 300 BC.  But the contrast between light and shadow remains minimal compared to the surround establishing the silhouettes to define the matrix.  Chiaroscuro, depicting Light vs Shadow as the dominant separation within the design matrix would not gain popularity until the Italian renaissance.

In the Byzantine, Early Christian period artists made it popular to separate these components of line and mass into specific zones within their imagery, and began to use value gradients harkening back to the ancient Greeks acknowledgment of light and shadow within specific zones, mainly emphasized in the region of the faces.  This can be clearly seen in stained glass of religious subject from this period onward.

In the image immediately below we can see the clear change of execution from Notan in the overall image and Line becoming the dominant primary in the face.  This separation of bias remained clear but expanded to include what would later become known as chiaroscuro as you can see in the handling of predominantly the faces in the second image below.

Compare these two images below by Sandro Botticelli the presence of light and shadow is laid in with great clarity but the greater contrast in value remains between local values within the matrix.

And this image is divided into far more distinct contrasting  local value shapes.  Notice the total range in contrast in light vs. dark is greater than the more subtle range of contrast of the light vs. shadow areas in the face, neck, hair, and outfit.

In contrast to the image above this sculpting my Michaelangelo is void of local value variation and 100% Chiaroscuro dominant.

Leonardo Di Vinci pushed the range of contrast between light and shadow creating an astonishing example of Chiaroscuro.

Many years later Rembrant would also master this bias.

Compare the Rembrandt image above to the Manet painting below.  The Rembrandt image is a beautiful depiction of Chiaroscuro, and the Manet clearly has little to no form lighting at all!  It was written that Manet painted this after he visited Spain and was inspired by Velazquez's paintings.  But by this time Japanese prints were a new influence in Parisian artists.  This more Notan approach was considered too modern for the salon paintings of the day and placed Manet with other impressionists.

There were other artists who understood this triad and explored changing the bias of their marks within an image like Hans Holbein had done.  Look at the clear distinction of application of marks in the handling of the mans hat, to his hair, to his face, and his shirt.  This approach illustrates the importance of clarity to the execution of marks in various zones.

Gustov Klimt many years later revisited the Line/Texture over Mass bias from the Byzantine period.  This time merged with the influence of the Ukiyo-e style of prints during the 1800's from Japan.  We see some of the pattern motifs in this image, and in other Klimt images he applies gold leaf as in earlier Byzantine art.  His balance of tonal contrasts places Mass as the dominant contrast with Line/Texture as supporting bias, completely diminishing the effect of Form.

The influx of Japanese prints from the 1800's into Europe inspired many of the Impressionists and post impressionists, like Van Gough.  In fact without Hokusai there may not have been a Van Gough.  

Henri Matisse himself was worried that his minimalist approach would be misinterpreted by younger artists.  His paper cut outs such as this one were clearly Mass dominant and Line secondary.

Baus Haus is clearly the balance of Mass and Line with no visual reference to light and shadow.

This image is also line dominant but includes variation of value within the mass area of the image.  Since the tonal variations do not have clear reference to light and shadow or a light direction it remains a textured mass.

This is a contemporary poster design by Mac George that has Mass, Line/Texture, and Form.  Like Hans Holbein, he has made the distinction where he leans heavily into one bias or another.  The distinction of application within the individual zones gives it clarity.

Again clarity is key when designing and combining these modes.

Art history as it is explained may concern itself with the story of the human visual enlightenment throughout time.  The artists, their origins, and circumstances, and the social and economic causes that molded and places them across the human timeline.

For the artist, visual communicator of today, it is important to become aware of not only the manner in which these primaries of design have molded and defined the styles in the past, but we must also become more self aware of our own personal bias.  We need to  "Understand what great artists knew, and know ourselves".  

We all have our own personal affinity to certain primaries, and that to a large degree defines our style, our visual clarity and our visual failures.  The Primaries of Design provide a spectrum of design possibilities as broad as the color spectrum.  Below are more examples of images that push these bias.

More than our choices in manipulating visual elements, how we bias our application can have a greater impact on our individual styles.  When we are self aware of our personal bias we gain the key to change our natural bias in an effort to overcome bad habits, "break the rules", or become more inventive in designing new robust styles.  Establishing visual boundaries as to how we bias our application of marks is critical in the collaborative arts like animation.  This is evident in great movements and by great artists throughout art history.

 

Above are a couple images that are designed (tonally) by Notan and Chiaroscuro.  Sometimes people attach the term graphic to a Notan design but graphic can be too vague and general a term, sometimes referring to edges or type or spatial condition.  Again a design matrix that is divided by Notan is one in which the greater tonal contrast is between local values of light and dark.  A design matrix that is divided by Chiaroscuro is one in which the greater tonal contrast is between light and shadow. 

This painting by Charles Hawthorne is Notan dominant.  The rise in popularity of this design bias was the result of the influx of Japanese prints that influenced the impressionists artists.  Hawthorne studied these processes in Europe and taught them in the United States in the early 20th century.

I have added some images below that have distinctive drawing or painting styles.  When the style has one dominant primary and another secondary or subordinate, the style is usually more clear and successful.  That goes for any combination, but when your application or bias is unclear or too confusing there is a good chance your design will be unsuccessful.  Just as when your Matrix is non-committed your composition will appear mushy.  In the animation images below, are images from some animated films whose distinctive styles are both memorable, timeless.  

The image below is by Valentine Serov, look at the difference of the texture of her dark hair and dark skirt.  The amount of contrast in the form handling on the woman's face is also different than the application of her blouse.

Like Sleeping Beauty, the delicate features stand out because the texture of the background is even and has become a wall paper.  This is due to the break-up of the background texture being very consistent.

Call out on your own the dominant primary in these images below.  Some are rendered completely through one bias (like line in the image below) and other artists mix it up.  Remember keeping the bias distinctive helps the clarity of the image.  It's very possible to have all 3 primaries within any given image, the key is to make the areas and transitions clear.

Look at these images by Serov of Konstantine Korovin

the first one appears to have a lot of Chiaroscuro, and yet we compare it to the second image with his head blocked out we see that Serov set up the painting as Notan dominant, and delivered Chiaroscuro in his area of focus, the sitters face.

Here are more images that I hope will make clearer these three modes.  As you will see that any image from the beginning of time until now reference these primaries in one manner or another.  Images that have defined periods of art and human history usually call out the bias most popular of the day.  This does not mean that we are telling the same story over and over again, it means that Line, Notan and Chiaroscuro define the primary elements from which all styles can spring from.  And  artwork throughout history is connected in a more accessible manner than we may have thought.

In the photo of Rodin and his sculpture below the sculpture is light with a strong light direction where Rodin appears as a silhouette.  Silhouettes define the contour in a manner tangent to Notan.

 Robert Fawcett clearly designs his drawings by creating designated areas of different design bias.

Klimt appears to have been influenced by both Japanese prints as well as art of the Byzantine period, here displaying the gold leaf.

NC Wyeth

NC Wyeth's approached lighting and design in his illustrations differently in different situations.  I have grouped them by the range of his approach.  By doing this we see the genius of his design sensibilities.

Mulan off style drawing

In the concept image from Mulan below the design is very weak.  There is a variety of shapes which we might find appealing individually, but as a composition, there are too many shapes similar in scale, no real area of focus, and a minimal area of rest.  The tonal break-up varies without purpose of local color, or light and shadow, and sporadically relies on line for depiction of both shape and texture.

In contrast to the image above, this image below is very clear in its design bias.  This one is clearly Mass dominant and Line secondary.  There is an isolated light area (in the second image) that appears to be strongly Form driven, and yet the characters in this area are more Mass or Notan dominant.  Also important to note is the very subtle gradients in the larger Mass area remain very subtle.

See the image below

Form over Mass dominant is the bias for 

"A Tick Tock Tale"

The interaction of the effect of light is the dominant design bias in these images below, with Mass (local value grouping) supporting the design.

Genndy Tartakovsky and Samurai Jack

Clearly Mass over texture/Line dominant background keys provide a clear depiction of the priorities of this type of design.  Offering clarity to the parameters of a style allows what we would call elastic performance capabilities.  This means that within the style there remains a great flexibility as how to apply the bias while keeping the "look" of the world.  When the design of a show is minimal it is of great importance to lean into clearly depicting of the manner of the bias which determines the style.  For instance what is the range of shapes and the depiction of their gradients?  Also, what is the range of texture/Line to be used to display distinction from shapes as well as from other textures/Lines.  

We always want to ask; What is similar, and What is different?

This is true within all of our visual elements themselves, and the distinction between them that manifests through the bias of the artists' application.

Tyrus Wong

In these designs for Bambi by Tyrus Wong he is using a technique of Counterchange (a faux form technique in which the illusion of form is created through interpenetrating light and dark gradients to imply the illusion of form, without rendering form).  In this process as others, the distinction of shapes are very important to the clarity of the images.  Tree trunks, branches, groupings of leaves, and blades of grass are distinctly different.  This brings a level of clarity in a would be complex illustration.  Tyrus Wong was an avid watercolorist who employed this technique that is often used in that medium.  Many other artists through history have used Counterchange within their images, but for Bambi it allowed the painters to paint backgrounds which have a deep, rich feeling of light over dark, and dark over light giving the impression of dappled light in the forrest.  When characters (with their various values) moved across these backgrounds they would appear as if they were going into light and dark without animating tones on the characters.  Again leveling up to the genius of their choices to create the illusion of life, and not rendering every detail.

Syd Mead the Futurist Illustrator

In these images Mead has designed in areas of focus, interest and rest.  Though we are discussing line, mass, and form we still need remain focused on the grouping details and rest.  These images display large areas of detail (areas with a high concentration of small contrasting marks) which need to be balanced with areas of rest.  Look at these images to map out the difference.

Ky Nielsen

line and Mass

Areas of Focus, Interest, and Rest

In any image we design we should be conscience of the distribution of detail.  This should not be taken for granted, but a clear decision as to where your area of focus, (that area in which we may have our greatest concentration of small, high contrasting marks), an area of interest (that area of your image that has a higher frequency of visual break up and interest which may lead to the focal area but is in itself not the focal area) and the area of rest (the area with the least tonal, color, shape, contrast, or least information in general).  In images where there is an abundance of line mass and form, the distinction of shapes (either figure or ground, or both) as well as a clear presence of the distribution of rest, interest, and focus will allow the artist to maintain a balanced design, and maintain image clarity.  In these images below the artist has designed in a few areas of focus, interest and rest.  

Homework week 2

Notice in the photo above there is a strong light source but per our assignment the drawing below was altered by the artist to be Notan dominant, and line secondary. There were deliberate choices made in this depiction to make clear the stylistic difference.

From one image design five different images changing the design bias.  You can try designing  an image with one dominant bias and change the bias in your area of focus.  The change of mode will be the contrast in the image that will aid in defining it as a focal point or areal.

Here are some more example sketches

Week 2 The Visual Story

The Visual Story

To tell the visual story is to visually deliver a full story of a place, person or people, or characters and their relation to the space, the relationship between the characters, the inner world of the characters thoughts, emotions, their point of view about the world around them and how they see themselves in it at any given moment.  Showing this internal world in some sort of external visual way is at the heart of composing shots and scenes in film.  Sometimes the character is in complete harmony with their internal world but more often there is some conflict or contrast between what’s happening on the outside with what is felt on the inside.  Sometimes the acting at its best will convey this unseen world of inner thoughts. Sometimes the actors have to telegraph thoughts and feelings with just a glance or look.  Christain Bale, in an interview said that if he has shot where he has no dialog, he will write the dialog so he has it in his head during the shot so his expression will be true and convey what needs to be said.  So much can be told through the pose or expression of a character and how the camera is positioned.

As story artists, and designers we look for ways to create a visual context and continuity that will become the baseline of the story or “the normal world”.  From there we build visual contrast, conflict, harmony, or tension through the choices and the relationships we establish within our compositions.

Two goals for anyone striving to create clear visual communication for film or painting are image clarity and image message.  Is your application clear and accessible?  And is your image message expressed in a way that leaves no doubt to the viewer.  This doesn't mean that you cannot lead or misdirect the audience.  On the contrary, if your purpose is to do so you need to be in control of it.

Establishing the Context

In the world where... may be the announcer's lead in and yet this is exactly what we need to visually establish.  This is what I mean by context.  What is the prevailing conditions of the world and characters, their emotional state, their code, how they see the world and how the world sees them.  This is the exposition of the story.  This is where we set the visual rules.  Let me be clear, previously I stated there are no rules, and it's like Peter O'Tools statement in Lawrence of Arabia about destiny, "Nothing is written until you write it!"  Establish a visual context for a film or a painting is defining the parameters of you visual elements to work within.  From there the success of your visual communication relies on maintaining consistency and continuity, and the build and release of visual dynamics.

Image Clarity is not about achieving technical proficiency, or excellent craftsmanship, or achieve popular tropes of 'appeal'.  Rather it is the ability of the visual artist to create visual statements that deliver the expression, message, story in the clearest manner.  It is popular in some areas of fine art for artists to be cryptic with their visual message in order create a contradiction or paradox by which the viewer is asked to complete the artists statement.  In animation, film, as well as advertising, comics, and illustration achieving clarity of image is extremely important.  Even if your goal is to misdirect or set up your audience, you don’t want to confuse them, or lose them.  It is helpful to be sensitive to how you want the viewer to enter you image, or be held back from entering your image.  Here are a couple examples from The Godfather.

During the first few minutes of the Godfather we are introduced first to the Godfathers mafia family on the day of his daughters wedding.  In the top two images we see the interior of his office and an exterior with another mafia boss.  Overall dark with some high contrast, and what we cannot see here is that though we are close to these characters (the Godfather on screen left in the first image) and the group in the right image, we cannot hear their murmuring, WE ARE NOT INCLUDED IN THEIR CONVERSATIONS.

As we cut to the exterior of the wedding reception we have the master on the left which has a ridiculous amount of wires crisscrossing the frame, then all the shots at the reception have something or someone blocking the foreground, clearly again WE ARE NOT ALLOWED INTO THEIR SPACE.

Once visual rules are established it is important to maintain consistency and continuity.  The rules may change, or we may establish other visual conditions to reflect conflict, however we carryout consistency and continuity within the context of the show visual changes need to be motivated.  Likewise if we are to  symbolize, or give meaning to something, some one, or some color we have to adhere to consistency and continuity (which often means restraint in areas where not appropriate).

Image Message begins with your intent and a clear idea of that which needs to be visually stated.  All your compositional choices should be based on creative ways to make that image message as clear as possible.  It's said; “a picture is worth 1,000 words”.  If your picture is to be worth 1,000 words, you have to present relationships within your composition that are capable of communicating every last one of them clearly.  All your compositional choices should help to clarify, and support the image message.  Without depth of story or a clear image message the decisions you make will only satisfy a subjective abstract idea that may become confusing or hold no meaning to the viewer.

Our visual components, their application through the orchestration of their relationships are the tools of our visual language through which we communicate.  If we do not consider the text and subtext of the image clearly it is impossible to define a clear plan to achieve it.  When the artist is unsure, vague, or just not thinking through the intent of their image they tend to look for cliché ideas of composition.

“There are no general or standardized rules for Composition”

Visual language is just that, the ability to communicate ideas, thoughts, and feelings, through the relationships of visual elements established within their compositions.  It is not related to technical rigor and or rendering techniques.  The fact that we can visually communicate with great discretion might imply that there is a common visual language but rules lead to predictable outcomes which will severely limit the artists range of expression and ability to visually communicate through their own voice.

Over the running time of a film  the story intensity can be mapped out.  The visual intensity needs to mirror the directors story intensity and it is not up to the Production Designer, or Art Director to plot the map.  It is their job to creatively manage the manipulation of images that will best reflect the directors vision.  Color, Shape, Tone, Space, Line, Rhythm, and Movement all contribute to the viewers experience.  Based on the story, Director, and Designers, sensibilities each movie may lean into some of these "visual components" more than others, but all images contain these elements.  To tell the visual story that rises and falls, or mirror's the emotional track of our protagonist, or any other significant driving force in the film, these are the visual components we have to work with.

Single Image Story

Checkers by Norman Rockwell

The Story

The story in the Rockwell painting above appears as follows,  The clown, usually considered as a fool, is beating the circus owner in a game of checkers. The other two performers watch the game intently and only add to the boss' embarrassment at being beaten by the clown.

The Clown outsmarts the ring master, manager, and dancing girl

Performance

The clown displays an intellectual advantage with confidence while the others are stumped. 

Composition

If you can narrow the moment into a few concise words it is the best place to start.  That is principally the plot.  We find character in the actions, and interactions of the characters.  From here we build the scene.

In the design or blocking of this composition the clown is isolated and prominent by his uninterrupted silhouette cut out against the tent and table.  Separated from the other figures he balances the grouping of other characters (When objects or characters overlap severely they tend to read as a single compositional element), and their individuality is downplayed so that they retain their secondary place in the picture's hierarchy.  The eye lines of the three people on the left are all trained on the board, while the clowns eye line is directly at the circus manager.  The position of the clowns head is as tall as the tallest character on the left which in his singularity makes him appear taller.  Helping this is the visual force created by the strong narrow vertical shape that the clowns body makes.  The base he is sitting on adds to the vertical height.  A spiral rhythm of shapes move our eye around this image including edges of shapes, to shadow shapes, to implied interior axis lines.  In contrast to these curved forces, the shadow lines in the background behind the clown are straight.

The Visual Story

"In this intimate and moody interior, Sargent depicts French artist Albert Besnard (1849–1934) and his wife, sculptor Charlotte Dubray (1855–1931), celebrating the birthday of their eldest child, Robert (1881/2–1914). The overhanging light and the glow of the birthday candles illuminate the face of the young boy, but the mother is the dominant figure in the foreground, while the father, relegated to the background, is virtually faceless. In his own work, Besnard espoused what he called the "environmental" portrait, using his sitters’ surroundings to represent character and "express their relationship with the world in which they live." Here, the crimson walls, decorative wall coverings, and Asian-inspired lampshade suggest the family’s refinement and aesthetic impulses." Metropolitan Museum of Art

Sargent was a brilliant painter and the most sought after portrait artist on both sides of the Atlantic during his career.  It has been documented that he grew tired of painting portraits of the social elite.  But he did have many conversations with his artist friends like Albert Besnard on capturing more in a painting than a likeness.  In few of his commissioned portraits but mostly in the portraits and paintings he did of his friends and families he was capturing more personal aspects than likeness alone.

The Daughters of Edward Darling Boit

This was a very different composition than any of his other group portraits and the question still remains, was Sargent attempting to capture more of the personalities of the young girls than just their likenesses.  Rather than grouped at play they seem isolated and the two older girls clearly are uncomfortable in the scene.  If it is true, his instincts and observation skills were keen.  In later years, all the girls remained single, and the two older girls suffered emotional issues later in adulthood.

Dr Pozzi

Sargent clearly revered Dr Pozzi painting him in the rich red robes much like Catholic clergy, elegant shoes and pose.  Dr Pozzi was a well established doctor of gynecology and Sargent didn't miss the fact while painting exceptionally long hands and fingers.  This painting was done in 1881 but held from exhibition until 1884 around the time of his Madam X scandal.  Dr Pozzi was rumored to have been one of Madam Gautreau's lovers.

Madam X

Madam Gautreau 

The image on the left is a photo of the original painting considered a scandal, and the image on the right is the changed painting we know today. The backlash of the scandal drove Sargent to relocate to England. Sargent did numerous sketches of Grauteau prior to this portrait for exhibition.

Portrait of I. N. Phelps Stokes and her surrogate dog

Rather than a formal gown Sargent chose to portray her in day ware.  Originally she was to be painted with her great dane.  When that didn't work her husband stood in for the dog, and Sargent made sure it wasn't going to be interpreted as a double portrait.

Madame Paul Escudier (Louise Lefevre)

Unlike so many other portraits by Sargent, this one was clearly different.  Notice how she is a half step into the shadows and illuminated in her mid area and arms.  The emphasis in this painting seems to center around the lighting in the room where she is but occupying space.

President Theodore Roosevelt

In this commission of President Roosevelt he chose to capture a scowling ham fisted Roosevelt after the president offended him.  As the story goes, Roosevelt was walking Sargent through the white house looking for the best light.  After a while Roosevelt exclaimed "The problem with you Sargent, you don't know what you want!"  Sargents reply was "and you don't know what a portrait is!"  At that he turned with a scowl, and placed his hand firmly on the newell post, Sargent said, that's it.

This conversation piece epitomizes the cultured expatriate world of Venetian society. In the lower right corner is Boston-born Daniel Sargent Curtis (1825–1908) and his wife, Ariana (1833–1922), the owners of the seventeenth-century Palazzo Barbaro on the Grand Canal. Behind the older couple is their son Ralph Curtis (1854–1922) and his wife, Lisa (1871–1933). The palazzo was a popular gathering spot for the artistic community: Sargent was a frequent guest as were Claude Monet and poet Robert Browning. Henry James wrote The Wings of the Dove (1902) in the library.
Sargent conveys the dazzling effect of Venetian light shimmering off the canal as it defines the elaborate gilt decor and carvings, the ornate furnishings, and the sparkle of the glass chandelier. When Sargent completed the painting, he presented it to Ariana as a gift. She declined the unconventional portrait, citing her son’s casual pose and her own flushed cheeks as an affront to decorum.

Phil Hale artist

 In this portrait look how the direction of his face and eye line is heading off screen right while his head is also on the right of the screen.  The viewer’s eyes will travel faster following the subject’s eye line that is why we might give them more distance between their eyes and the edge of the frame. This situation creates a lot of negative space behind this head.  Also his left arm being so close and parallel to the frame creates a tension along the right side of the image and our eye will travel faster along the right side of the image and seem to float across the lost edges of the left side of the image. The higher eye level of the artist makes the subject more submissive even if his head occupies the upper right area of the image.

The staging and positioning of figures and elements composed has everything to do with the way in which we read an image.  Phil Hale has broken many rules to achieve the image message he desires.  For the vast number of shots in a film, or the various ways any artist will choose to communicate their story what we may consider as rules cannot apply.  Adhering to such rules would only limit our range of visual expression.

From Jaws: Sargent Brodie is caught between the business owners and the city council members who wants to keep the beaches and possibly take their chances with the shark attacks.  Brodie is way to the right of the screen creating great visual tension in this image below.

And again we see Brodie pressured by the council in the foreground right.  Speilberg chose to keep the tension on him so he short sided Brodie.

In the first two images below and compare how we meet Thelma and Louise, who couldn't be more opposite.

Compare the upper two images from the beginning of the film to these images below at the end of the film.  They have transformed through their experiences in the film to become the same desperate women on the run from the police.

From Revolutionary Road

The skewed eye lines and Cathy Bates being off to the left creates more tension.  At the same time the parallels at the left and right sides of the frame and the light in the center creates a static environment that enhances the dynamic eyeliner and position of the actress.

The chair facing inward and it's shadow in the foreground closes the frame along the bottom and the door frames on the right and left creates a frame within the frame making the space closed.

The choice to include the door jam close to the edge of the frame on the right is not a casual choice.  It frames her in and she becomes less important in the image message.  This could be the result of the film maker trying to deliver some subtext of how she is feeling at the time, possibly boxed in.

When we consider the eye line, the bit of perspective of the sink and the shape of the shadows dynamically framing Kate Winnslett we realize that there is a lot more in the composition to move our eye around the frame than just block the right side of the frame.

I have cropped the image below to exclude the door jam framing her in and closing the composition.  Notice how she appears more important or their conversation seems to appear more intimate within this image below.  This is not only because along with the shadows and sink that I mentioned above, but here she anchors the eye line and the space to the right feels open forcing her to appear less framed in.

Casablanca

Consider this image from Casablanca as Elsa and Rick discuss their situation.

On the outside they are composed but their emotions are 

complicated.

Elsa is trying to tell him why she disappeared from his life suddenly and her complicated emotional dilemma.

  

In these shots Rick is cynical and sarcastic carefully guarding his conflicted feelings as Claude Rains is delivering a straightforward internal assessment of Ricks’ private loyalties to the underdog throughout his past.  This was set up in the first shots of Rick in the movie.  As others were shot against simple backdrops or in crowds of people, in contrast Rick was shot in front of shadow walls and palm fronds.

In this shot Claude Rains steps forward, into the complicated background of shadows and blinds behind Rick as he says his life in Casablanca is simple and he alone is the master of his domain.  This shot ends with a voice overlap to the next shot of a Nazi soldier urging him to come to meet the arriving German officer and Rains responds obediently.  His dialogue is in direct conflict with his situation and his body movement and background arrangement explains the internal complexity of his situation.

Wizard of OZ

In this scene from Wizard of OZ Dorothy is singing ‘Somewhere over the Rainbow’ which stands today as the most memorable tune from the movie known for its’ lavish use technicolor and fanciful design.  Here is a beautiful contrast, and the perfect counterpoint between her real world and her imaginary world within.  In this case Dorothy is singing what she is dreaming of (her inner world) so the environment was designed to illustrate the baron and bleak world, almost surrealist with its’ flattened desolation.  With her colored fantastic journey yet to come it is critical that the real world be as foreboding as it does.

 To Catch a Thief directed by Alfred Hitchcock

In this opening Hitchcock uses his visuals both directly and metaphorically to deliver very direct exposition.  In France there are a series of cat burglaries.  The police suspect the notorious ex cat burglar John Robbie and they send some men to bring him in for questioning.  At this point we don't know that he is being framed but Hitchcock, in a very creative manner delivers a large amount of visual information that connects a black cat, a newspaper article and Cary Grant (John Robbie, the ex cat burglar).