The Investigation of Figure-Ground Relationships in Painting

The thesis problem involved the investigation of figure-ground relationships in painting. This study dealt with varying experiments in space, color relationships, the juxtaposition of form, and value relationships. The media used were those common to oil, watercolor and drawing. The investigation entailed the development of form and space relationships in a series of paintings. The study included a critical evaluation regarding achievement of the expressive aims, and the conclusions drawn from individual paintings, as well as from the series. The fundamental locus lay within the figure-ground relationship and that has been the emphasis