A Yogi-ism for Artists

You can observe a lot by just watching. (Yogi Berra)

The other morning I hunted high and low throughout the house for my favorite coffee mug.

I checked the car, the studio, and the dishwasher.

As I closed the dishwasher, I looked up at the counter and noticed my freshly washed mug serenely sitting there.

I had looked, but I did not see.

As artists, we learn to see, to acutely observe.

It does not suffice to just "look."

My art took a giant leap forward when I was finally able to focus on fully observing my subject.

To do this, I narrow my field of vision.

I observe all the details of the one section of the subject.

The whole is divided into parts.

What do you need to focus on to really see?

 Willem Claesz Heda   Still-Life with Gilt Goblet   1635  
Oil on panel, 88 x 113 cm  
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam