Neil, having done some writing and now taking some art lessons, I am
continually amazed to find a concurrent theme and that is learning how to
see things, finding out what is and what is not important and continually
"editing" the work in progress.
Part of art is first learning the fundamentals...how to see things, how to
lay things out, the mechanics. This is similar to writing and learning how
to use verbs, adjectives and trying to stay away from adverbs unless you are
writing for a yellow journal. <G>. Once you have the fundamentals, you then
go to work continually focusing on 'subject, subject, subject". Regardless
how good it is, if id doesn't add toward the subject, edit, edit, edit. Of
course, you can save the good stuff and use it later.
In flying, one has to learn the fundamentals..how to control the airplane
but after that, one must continually practice the skill, learn to remove the
extraneous, focus on the important and "edit, edit, edit".... small changes.
If one begins making large changes, one might as well start a new painting,
new article/story of flight.... by the time BIG changes are required, it is
too late to salvage the work.
My art teacher said, "Some students come in knowing how to draw but they
have no understanding of what light does.. no appreciation for how it
changes... others come in understanding lights and darks but having no
appreciation for perspective.. and yet others come in knowing nothing about
anything...." He went on to say that the fundamentals of art can be learned
(as I have said about writing and flying) but it is when one strives to
create that science becomes art....
One man's opinion...
Wiley