Wednesday, March 21, 2012

"They will never shoot you for what you leave out of a picture."

When Norman Rockwell took on the challenge of illustrating Mark Twain's Tom Sawyer, he went to great lengths for authenticity, traveling to Twain's hometown of Hannibal, Missouri, to research characters, costumes and props.  

Here is his initial charcoal drawing for the scene of whitewashing the fence. Tom Sawyer has escaped his chore by convincing his friends that it's a special privilege to paint a fence. Twain lists the loot that they paid Tom, including: a kite, a dead rat, a cat with one eye, and a window sash. Tom sits on a barrel, chuckling into his hand at his pals, who work hard at the job he was supposed to do.


At some point Rockwell must have felt that his original conception was too literal, too much "on the nose." His finished composition removes Tom Sawyer entirely.

Rockwell once said that "every single object shown in a picture should have its place there because it contributes to the central theme of the picture. Otherwise it simply does not belong and should be discarded ruthlessly."

Or as his hero Howard Pyle once said, "They will never shoot you for what you leave out of a picture."
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18 comments:

  1. AnonymousMarch 21, 2012 at 9:30 AM

    This is great advice! And this is one of my favorite scenes in all literature.
    When it comes to great things that have come from the United States, you can't do much better than Rockwell and Sawyer.

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  2. Mark HengMarch 21, 2012 at 10:02 AM

    Interesting- I notice in final painting that the rapt attention the boys pay to the paint is the humorous heart of the story. And we're seeing it through Tom Sawyer's eyes, instead of at his eyes as in the sketch.

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  3. Matthew MeyerMarch 21, 2012 at 10:05 AM

    My art teachers went over this very same point many times, using almost the same example. Howard Pyle and NC Wyeth also had some great lessons about not being overly literal with your illustrations. It really stuck with me. Now I cringe whenever I see illustrations that stuff too much in just for the sake of having it.

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  4. JesseMarch 21, 2012 at 10:25 AM

    In an Andrew Wyeth book he said his dad wanted to bring to life a part of the book that hadn't been fully described.
    I can't remember the exact quote unfortunately. But it was to the effect that the author has painted the picture in the imagination already, so the illustrator should pull out just the suggestions of detail. He was referencing "Blind Pew" from treasure island.

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  5. VickiMarch 21, 2012 at 10:40 AM

    Wow, that's brilliant. As a beginning illustrator, I have struggled with making the picture fit the text exactly. I know it ought to say something that the text doesn't say--that it's not just a picture of the words--but this is a beautiful note. And the example that you show makes it perfectly clear. If I had only seen the first drawing, I would have thought it was lovely. But the second one--as Mark said--shows us the scene through Tom's eyes, not showing us Tom.

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  6. Dan GurneyMarch 21, 2012 at 11:35 AM

    Rockwell's remark brings to mind two others that broaden the idea and help us see how it applies equally aptly outside the realm of art:

    Perfection is achieved not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away."
    Antoine de Saint-Exupery (1900-1944)

    "Music is the space between the notes." Claude Debussy

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  7. Tom HartMarch 21, 2012 at 11:58 AM

    Rockwell's choice is a great example of the truth represented by the excellent quotes that Dan posts.

    Or, to boil it down even further, the famous - Less is more.

    It's not without exception, but it's so often THE rule to employ.

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  8. Tom HartMarch 21, 2012 at 12:00 PM

    ...or course it's not just a matter of simply leaving things out, but the question of WHAT to eliminate. Rockwell's decision here was masterful.

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  9. Novice NaturalistMarch 21, 2012 at 12:41 PM

    Discard "ruthlessly": Sounds so simple. Think I need to print it up and post it, maybe in more than one place and for more than just the art in my life!

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  10. Novice NaturalistMarch 21, 2012 at 12:41 PM

    Discard "ruthlessly": Sounds so simple. Think I need to print it up and post it, maybe in more than one place and for more than just the art in my life!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Ian SchoenherrMarch 21, 2012 at 2:12 PM

    I don't have Pyle's own words, but in an item about his Art Students' League lectures, The American Art News for March 25, 1905, said, "He teaches the necessity of elimination - that is, after a composition is once created the eliminations are more important than the additions..."

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  12. Anita rocks!March 21, 2012 at 2:58 PM

    Mark Heng, i think you described it perfectly and in most ways i think it helps the reader focus mainly on its subject its representing. And also too much can overwealm the viewer...

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  13. James GurneyMarch 21, 2012 at 11:50 PM

    I think it was Willa Cather who said to "Kill your babies." Whoever said it, it's another interesting thought about the creative process because it addresses the bond we form with something we've created, and the emotional difficulty of removing it. I find I have to get overcome a certain resistance to take something out of a picture, especially if I worked hard on it.

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  14. Celeste BerginMarch 22, 2012 at 1:26 AM

    enjoyed this post...Rockwell was a genius!

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  15. runningheadMarch 22, 2012 at 5:01 AM

    I'm pondering the differences between Illustration and Fine Art. For a narrative piece the advice seems sound. However,before I read your peice I'd seen this image and never known which of the two boys shown was Tom.

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  16. Tom HartMarch 23, 2012 at 9:37 AM

    You know, Runninghead makes an excellent point about this particular illustration. My earlier reaction to the final version was exactly the same...i.e. not being sure if one of the boys is Tom himself.

    That doesn't of course diminish my appreciation of the value of good editing.

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  17. AngelineMarch 23, 2012 at 11:43 AM

    Love this story!

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  18. casey sattlerMarch 23, 2012 at 1:11 PM

    Of course the real dilemma is after you've struggled and struggled with taking things out -- the client says -- can you put it back in?
    It's all sort like a big puzzle sometimes...

    ReplyDelete

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