I've always sought to find an internal calm within the movement in nature~~growth patterns, waves, shorelines, streambeds.

Today it occurred to me to analyze my pieces according to the Golden Mean, asking if the internal relationships of the composition embody the Fibonacci sequence that we can find in nature everywhere...

I'm pleased to see that while in the midst of this waterfall, the main contrast areas may not be AT the point of a Fibonacci spiral, yet significant anchors to the scene are there, such as the black crack coming down the rocks, or the last, lowest shelf edge of the cascade.  I seem to be finding these points without consciously doing so! And yet, shapes in nature have 3D relationships that compel me as well. For eg. in the piece below, I took lots of time to develop it, and had to "knock down" the far rock face that was competing with the water, jumping into the foreground and defying the illusion of space. So, the shapes and planes that interlock in space have a logic all their own, and using the Golden Ratio is just one tool to use to simplify nature.

The Rule of Thirds is a shortcut to the Fibonacci relationships, and I always compose with awareness of  how the shapes relate to those imaginary  points where the lines dividing a scene into 3rds would meet.  That is, if each side of the format is divided into thirds, and you mentally impose a grid on the scene, 2 or 3 of the main contrast points~~ of value or color ~~will be located there. It's like an internal spotlight for me as I create,  or sometimes I let it be more obvious.  Check out Iris Flamenco in pastel florals for a twist on a spiral shape...