When Is Too Much Too Much?

In my last post, my conjecture concerning a failed experiment concluded by saying that the reason for said failure was my inability to leave anything out.  The piece just had "too much stuff" in it; you could say it was "overstuffed."  In my quest to determine if my theory about the composition was valid, I thought perhaps I should try systematically cutting off parts to see if it was improved; a scientific experiment of sorts.  Hypothesis: too much stuff.  Experimental methodology: cut off some stuff.  Dependent variable: loveliness of the composition. 

As I went to get the trusty exacto knife, it suddenly occurred to me: why not use Photoshop to crop it, instead of an actual 3-dimensional implement of destruction?  That way, I could crop it one way and observe the result, then go back and start over, as many times as I wanted to.  Genius!

The original mess

Version 2:  The first thing I did was to cut off the edges a little.  I didn't think this was a great improvement.

Version 3:  I trimmed it down a bit further.  Not bad.  But now the upper right corner seems too light and doesn't really go with the rest of the piece.

Version 4:  I took off some of the light area on the right side, and I'm starting to like it better.  There is still a tension between the gold/rust diagonal and the gold/rust bar at the bottom.  My eyes bounce back and forth between them.  Hmmm...

Version 5:  Here, I eliminated the bar at the bottom completely, making the gold in the center the focal point, and simplifying the composition greatly.  No more push-pull; the composition is more static.  Has it become boring?  

I realize this was all kind of tongue-in-cheek, but in spite of my silliness, there is something to be learned here.

Of course, you may be thinking, "Who cares?", and I wouldn't blame you.  But if you have any interest at all, I'd like to know which version you think is best, and why. 

Is less really more?  By golly, I believe it is!  Next thing you know, I'll become a minimalist.  No, wait... what am I saying?


 And now on a nicer and less brain-taxing note, lovely Laura of Shine the Divine: Creativity as a Spiritual Practice has generously given me a Beautiful Blogger award.  Laura is a brilliant writer whose spiritual insights always inspire me.  Thank you, Laura!

Because many bloggers don't do the awards thing, I'm just going to say:  Please visit the blogs I have listed on my blogroll; they're all wonderful!