The Golden Mean and the Rule of Thirds

The composition of a drawing or painting is crucial to its success. A strong and solid design draws the eye and stirs emotions. Though there are no hard and fast rules for composition, there are guides that are helpful when designing a layout. Two of the most popular guides that have been used throughout history are the Golden Mean and its relative, the Rule of Thirds.

The Golden Mean The Golden Mean or Golden Ratio has gone by many names through the ages: The Divine Proportion, The Golden Section, Medial Section and Golden Cut. Its visual representation shows up again and again in the world that surrounds us, from the architecture of The Great Pyramids to the paintings of Leonardo da Vinci to the Fibonacci Sequence that we see in nature and the galaxies.

Golden Mean’s Origins

The Golden Mean’s origins are rooted in mathematics. The unique number known as “Phi” — 1.618 — represents a “Golden Ratio” that can be found in art, theology, cosmology, nature, architecture — even financial markets.

Phi is derived by dividing a line so that the longer section divided by the shorter is equal to the full length of the line divided by the longer. You’re probably scratching your head if you are anyone like me. I’m not a mathematician and the very thought of math gives me agida, so I need a visual example. Here’s what Phi looks like when it’s geometrically reduced down several times into what are known as Golden Rectangles.

Philosophical Interpretation

Thousands of years ago, ancient Greek philosophers, notably Aristotle, started converting the mathematical Golden Mean into a philosophical interpretation. The Greeks felt it was an attribute of beauty and believed that there is a close association in mathematics between beauty and truth. They believed there were three "ingredients" to beauty: symmetry, proportion and harmony.

Similar interpretations can be found in ancient Buddhist, Christian, Islamic, Hindu, and Judaism teachings. Its definition varied a bit from discipline to discipline, but the essence was always the same: Stay away from the extremes. Find the middle track. Out of moderation, comes virtues. Truth. Beauty. Balance. If you can travel the middle path of moderation and temperance, goodness and beauty will accompany you. The Mean was so essential to Greek philosophy that they inscribed it on the Temple of the Apollo at Delphi: μηδὲν ἄγαν μηδὲν ἄγαν — “nothing in excess.”

The Golden Spiral

Using Golden Rectangles as a guide, you can create a design guide known as the Golden Spiral. Connect the nesting points of the Golden Rectangles with the arcs of 1/4 of a circle, sizing each to fit. The Golden Spiral design integrates movement, direction, and asymmetry in a pleasing arrangement. You will find several examples of the Golden Spiral in Renaissance art, including Botticelli’s The Birth of Venus and Michelangelo’s The Creation of Adam.

When designing a picture, whether a painting or drawing, keep in mind how you want to direct the eye. Using the Golden Spiral, you can draw in the eye with shapes, lines and colors and gradually lead the eye to your center of focus. You can turn the spiral around and flip it in any direction and use it as a guide to place your center of focus.

In this painting, the brightest area (the yellow building), is the middle of the spiral, and the eye is drawn along the shoreline and upward and around to it.

A variation of the spiral can be found throughout nature, including flowers and plants, weather patterns, outer space, and sea shells.

The Rule of Thirds

A relative to the Golden Mean is the Rule of Thirds. The Rule of Thirds states that an image is most pleasing when its subjects or regions are composed along imaginary lines which divide the image into thirds — both vertically and horizontally. Here’s an example of the division of a rectangle using the Rule of Thirds:

You don’t need to perfectly align everything with the thirds of an image. The important thing is to place your main focus approximately where the lines cross. In most cases, try to avoid putting the focus in the middle of the picture.


For landscapes, this usually means having the horizon align with the upper or lower third of the image. This can make landscape compositions much more dynamic. Also, placing your subject off center can provide a sense of direction for the eye. I find that I often use this method to place the focus of my paintings.

Next

I hope you enjoyed this lesson on the Golden Mean and the Rule of Thirds. Hopefully, you will think about these methods when you draw or paint a picture. Next time, I will take a break from my online instruction and show you some of my latest artwork. I’ll include my recommendations for beautiful places to paint and draw.