Observational ink on paper drawing- ‘Mechanic Greenery’

The Equivalents Project- Talya Riggs

Primary Sources and Responses

Secondary Sources Research

Secondary Source Responses

Combining Formal Elements

Visual Language in my workIn this piece of my work I looked at visual language. I used bright colours to attract attention and bring objects to the foreground whilst using more pastel like colours to send subjects into the background. I used two tone shading so that the piece did not lose it’s vibrancy too complexity and put clashing colours next to one another to ensure they both stood out. I avoided dead straight lines which I feel ensured that the synthetic colours of the piece did not

stop the shapes looking organic. This particular piece of work was mainly inspired by the works of David Hockney . Despite the fact that Hockney mostly painted landscapes, and I was painting a still life I still tried to use similar visual language. The brightness and boldness of the colours were inspired by his as well as his approach to make a painting seem very warm or very cold depending on the colour scheme. Hockney also mainly used two tone shading for his subjects and smooth lines instead of straight ones.

Techniques

In this piece in particular I used a variety of mixed media techniques including; a negative space collage, a ink drawing, a charcoal and chalk drawing and a tracing paper collage. The negative space collage includes cutting without planning shapes that show the negative space around the subject which really gives you a better understanding of the shape of it. The ink drawing was a good way too add detail but also had to be done with caution as mistakes could not be easily covered up. The charcoal and chalk were good for detail and for presenting the possibility of gradients from one tone to the next. Finally the tracing paper collage meant that to portray highlights you’d have to keep adding layers of the paper which was almost like working backwards when compared to the usual creation of tone.

In this piece I was inspired by cubism. The techniques I used were very different to the norm it included isolating shapes from their colours. I Created a colour grid of sample colours that can only be mixed using orange and blue. I then created samples of different textures and patterns made using these colours and then cut out shapes from previous works and arranged them into a collage composition. The origins of the shapes and the colours they were in completely contradicted each other, creating a very flat look.

In these pieces I used the same composition starting point too create two completely different artworks. In the first I started by creating a collagraph using different textures and then made a relief print with it in black ink. This meant that the work was very bold and the contrasts drastic. It also created a very flat, if complex, image. However with the second piece I experimented in 3D models. I made it out of cardboard and paper which meant it was fairly easy to manipulate but the cardboard always had to provide structural support as the paper was too weak.However unlike when I made the first piece, for the second I had to really consider the subject from all angles as unlike the first it could not just look good from one side.

Creating and Developing work

To create this composition I selected interesting elements from previous pieces of my work and combined them, originally I created four and then selected this one. I preferred it to the others because the difference of shapes and because I felt it was not overly complex.

I then developed my composition by creating a collagraph from it. In this collagraph I really focused on the textures each section should have and the marks they would need to convey tonally what the original subjects had looked like.

Next I ran my collagraph through the printing press. When doing this I had to ensure that no metallic items were in the press as it could damage the material, and to keep my hair and hands away from the rollers to prevent injury.

My finished print was a further development of the original composition. It was entirely monochrome and flat still portrayed the complexities in tone and texture that the original shapes had. It was also a reverse of the original. To further develop it I added light colour washes or patterns to areas I wished to be more prominent.

Next I further developed my work by translating areas of the print into 3D models which I did observational studies of. I then further explored on the page different approaches, view points and ideas on how to make my design three dimensional

Using the concepts I had explored before I developed my original composition into a 3D paper and cardboard model that holds the same shapes and subjects.

I then further developed my work by rearranging my 3D sculpture several times and photographing it to create brand new compositions, all sharing the same base elements.

Evaluation/SummaryI feel that throughout my project I managed my time fairly well. To begin with I was in the habit of starting my work with great care but then running out of time before having to move on to the next piece of work and hurrying it. However by the end of the project I had learnt to not waste time trying to make things absolutely perfect in my weaker areas and instead focus my energy on my stronger areas. I also had more time to do the homework assignments at home as I would finish the research portions in my free periods at college. During the length of the course I found that the original observational stages were quite hard for me as I was not used to drawing to perfectly to scale quickly and wished to spend more time on the finer detail of what I was drawing this meant that a lot of my earlier drawings were left unfinished with only a basic outline and one small area done in great detail. However colour mixing was much better as I found I could fairly easily match colours. My first larger scale composition was fairly successful as the charcoal and chalk sections went fairly well and I felt were good representations of my subject however I made quite a few mistakes when drawing with ink when it came to scale and had to try to cover them up with chalk.

For the equivalents project I researched a great number of artists representing different artistic techniques including painting with bright colours, detailed sketching, cubism, printing and photography, as well as looking into the techniques of colour mixing and different kinds of printing. I used drawing in my research to help me understand and explore the different techniques, with some artists, such as Van Gogh I drew studies of small sections of their work to understand the mark making involved to make the greater picture and with others such as Durer I also created a response, drawing from a still life composition in front of me to see if I could mimic the techniques he used. The aspects of this research that I found must useful was the close up studies of the artist’s works as it helped me understand in full the techniques they utilised to create their works and how I could use them to improve my own. The resources I used for my research were the websites artcyclopedia, grove art and about.com.

I developed ideas mainly by moving compositions in to different mediums and rearranging them as well as taking elements from several different compositions to make new ones. For my cubist responses I could have done more however as I due to a lack of time I only created one composition where there could have been more, out of which I could have picked the best developed one. To slightly compensate for this I did also make a large composition using the negative space cut-outs from the first. To develop my works I used drawings to help guide me. I would outline basic shapes to fill in with the paint for my colour matching colour studies and I drew several initial compositions to choose from and develop into my final print. I also used drawing to study and rearrange the ideas in my print into concepts that could be translated into my three dimensional models. The aspects of development that went well were probably the developments of my first large piece into different mediums, as it meant I could convey one idea in lots of different ways at the same time, as well as the development of my composition as it combined all of the best elements of my previous works as well as branching of into two completely different mediums, the screen print and the 3d model. I chose to use cardboard and paper for this model as they were fairly cheap materials that could be easily manipulated and painted. I also decided to use a mixture of both in my model so I could have the cardboard for the areas that needed more support and the paper for areas that needed more detail. I chose to use the process of folding for the triangular shaped sections of my model as it was easier and faster than using slot joints and I chose to use the slot joint process for the stripy section of my model as it better provided the shapes I wanted.

For my drawings my main contextual reference for drawing was Albrecht Durer as he made his art exceptionally detailed whilst still retaining the bold contrasts needed to make his work stick out. For painting my main influence was David Hockney as I enjoyed the brightness of his colours and the sense of temperature and atmosphere he managed to create with them. My contextual influence for my 3D model, despite him being a photographer was Paul Strand as I liked how in his works the subject always filled the page in with very bold and powerful contrasts. Visually I feel my work developed to be quite bold and dramatic like the artists I studied, I tried to step back a little from the intense detail and instead try to created a whole image with vast contrasts not just in colour and tone but also in subjects. I tried to convey the dramatic difference between natural and manmade materials. However this became quite hard in the print because despite the boldness of the image is still used so much detail that the manmade cogs and the natural plants blended together slightly.

The most important features of my work I feel the difference in mediums and the attention to detail. I think that by exploring so many different mediums I could appreciate all the different dimensions of the objects I was studying and by looking so carefully at the detail I had a better understanding of each dimension individually. During this project I followed the brief as firstly I explored may different techniques and approaches to drawing in 3d and 2d from direct observation, firstly from focusing on different areas of the drawing, focusing n the scale or the tonal plus working in a range of mediums including pencil, charcoal, chalk, ink and collage. I also focused at one point on the negative space, drawing where the object wasn’t rather than where it was to better understand it’s shape. I also developed a print, some acrylic paintings and a small collections of 3d models as equivalents for what I saw and understood.

I feel my final pieces communicate the possible dimensions and interpretations of still life compositions. In my final pieces I did not just create equivalents for what was there but what could’ve been. I took my observations and made new compositions and explored possible interpretations of the still life. I feel that my equivalents were not just observations or equivalents for the physical and literal sense to the still-lifes but equivalents to my own personal and psychological responses to the still -lifes.

If I was given the chance to repeat the whole project I would have spent less time on the finer detail and tried to explore even more mediums and have more examples of each medium. I would also spent more time on my sculptures to perhaps paint them a more neutral colour and create more of them. I would do this because I feel I haven’t explored all of the different dimensions of the subjects fully and if I had done so I may have concluded the project with more interesting and unique final pieces. I also feel that whilst the final model is a fair equivalent to my personal response to the still life it could have been more accurate and meaningful with a little extra work.

From the project as a whole I have learnt several new drawing techniques such as looking at negative space and accurate estimating proportions. I have also learnt how to use new mediums such as charcoal and chalk and acrylic paint. I have learnt how to you a printing press and how to make collographs and use them to make relief prints. I have also learnt how to make 3d models to accurately convey ideas and responses. Furthermore I have learnt about visual communication and how certain colours or approaches to a medium of piece or art as a whole can produce results that convey completely different things and give the viewer certain emotional responses. I have learnt how to present my work in an aesthetically appealing yet practical manner and how to record my progress on a blog using relevant examples to convey my progress and summarise the project. I have learnt that I work best when I give myself a fairly wide window of time to complete my work and do not rule out or ignore ideas that could improve my work simply because it seems like a risk. However to develop I need to learn how to quickly convey an idea to be developed at a later date and to understand what parts of my research are helpful and what are a distraction.