László Paál - Seeing The Forest For The Trees

Being unable to see the forest for the trees refers to the state of being caught up in details of a situation or problem to the point that it renders one unable to see the situation or problem as a whole. I generally agree with this sentiment of being blinded by details, but I have found the opposite can also be true - that involvement with details might actually shed more light on the whole than a general awareness of the whole ever could. 

László Paál (1846-1879) is a good example of a painter whose involvement with detail - contrary to the popular expression - tended to add to the whole rather than detract from it. Appropriately enough, the details Paál became involved with were trees, but this thorough treatment of trees did not blind him to the existence of the forest.