top photo: photograph by Yann Arthus Bertrand   |   lower photo: Kunsthaus Bregenz, Peter Zumthor

1. Groupings and Surface Variegation

Visual groupings help clarify and define overall composition. This study focused on two main themes of groupings: (a) consolidation of parts and (b) creation of a variegated overall surface.

a. Consolidation of Parts. Groupings allow an overall composition to be visually distilled into a few primary elements. Shared color, texture, and size, for example, all help to bind or “group” individual parts of a composition. The fewer elements in a composition, the more weight each carries and the more vivid the identity of each becomes.

b. Variegated Surface. The individual parts of an element create surface texture, variation and rhythm. How the parts are joined, what they are made of, their size, and so forth, ultimately determine the character of each element. A variegated surface is an important counterpoint to a distilled composition, balancing refinement and restraint with variation and texture.