The Large and Small of It

When traveling to different destinations, I often come across outdoor sculptures of common objects made gargantuan. A twenty-foot-tall chair you can climb into brings out the child in most. On the flip side, miniature objects also have the power to fascinate. Playing with the scale of design, objects or elements can lead your eye through your art, tell a visual story differently, create emphasis or add playfulness.

TECHNIQUE ONE: Wonderland

Remember Alice in Wonderland? She was ten feet tall and then she was ... very small. Try playing with the large and small of it in realistic compositions. Make the rabbit huge or the child tiny. Or just alter the scale in a still life slightly to create tension within the painting.

TECHNIQUE TWO: One More Time

Using multiples of an image that has a variation of scale can attract attention. Repetition and variation create a good foundational composition. (Photo by Sandra Duran Wilson.)

Step 1

Choose a pattern or design that you have drawn or a photograph you love and make copies of it, varying the scale.

Step 2

Make multiple images, flipping one or changing the color via your computer or copier.

Step 3

Piece the images into an interesting pattern. Glue them to your surface and finish your art.