I have been playing with the idea of creating an installation of my studio space. I came up with this idea because my artwork is all about processes and how that influences my work, so I thought instead of having one or a series of works on the wall as a final piece I would create this environment that people could walk into and feel the atmosphere of an artist working. The reason I thought of this idea was not just because I use process as my main element to my work, I did not want to present a polished piece of work that just shows just one process that I used through my year at university because I did not just use one process and I do not believe that I can get that across without presenting it this way. Like I said in a previous blog this is the part of the process that makes me more stressed than I need to be.
Composition within Jackson Pollock’s artwork is something that is not just created with one element, there are a combination of elements that Pollock juggles with, but with composition it is not just about the way Pollock puts the art together, it is also about the scale of the painting whether it is in a frame or not.
As Metzger’s points suggest that creation something in any medium that the artist can find always included process, which generally takes the structure of something more than just merely juggling the materials.
Even though Pollock’s paintings are created with different materials that range from everyday objects to paint, the layout of the composition is thought about in detail, as Pollock uses black paint to almost sketch out the initial outlines on the painting before throwing on more materials to create detail. (Cole, I (1999) Gustav Metzger: Retrospective, Art ass Process: A Baker’s Dozen. Oxford. Museum of Modern Art, Oxford pp. 31-38)
I can relate to Metzger’s point of juggling multiple elements to create a structure of a painting. I have found that working with process as the main element to my work a lot of parts need to juggled to achieve what I want. I have to think about what tools I want to use, the colours of paint, the technique and also how much I want to apply to the canvas in the first place. In a way it is almost like having a routine to you own work, things about what parts you want where and do you want a lot of materials on the canvas or not. It is definitely a thought process that I go through every single day.
Cole, I (1999) Gustav Metzger: Retrospective, Art as Process: A Baker’s Dozen. Oxford. Museum of Modern Art, Oxford. pp. 31-38
In my dissertation I briefly touch upon the process of traditional western art that do not so much include the processes of making as representation or evoking of temporal experiences of more than pending duration in the content of the outcome. Traditional ‘history painting,’ which is designed to tell a narrative through expression, gesture and motion, comes into this division, perhaps even more conclusively than in generally realized. (Cole, I (1999) pp. 31-38)
When I was writing this for my essay I thought that it had nothing to do with my work and how I was creating it because I was thinking more about the process and how that effects the composition as a whole. But now that I look at the writing more carefully I can see that my artwork does actually fit in the this process pretty well. My artwork is expressive and has motion throughout it. As well as my work Jackson Pollock’s artwork also fits into this process. Pollock would apply layered pigment in the most irregular ways, the paint would either be poured, dribbled, flickered or splattered across the canvas, Pollock would not use the traditional method of using a paint brush to apply pigments, he would use sticks, trowels, and anything he could get his hands on. The one thing that Pollock does well is that there is no central point to the painting, every inch of the canvas is covered equally, the reason for this is because Pollock would constantly move around the canvas which was on the floor always. (www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/57.95/, (no date)
Thinking about the processes in this way makes me realize that no matter how much I want to get away from Jackson Pollock and the styles that he uses, there is a correlation between my artwork and Pollock’s.
Cole, I (1999) Gustav Metzger: Retrospective, Art as Process: A Baker’s Dozen. Oxford. Museum of Modern Art, Oxford. pp. 31-38
https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/57.92
Using Metzger’s natural process, it suggests that painting of a flat surface can be used to create organic substance and detailed content. (Cole, I (1999) pp. 31-38)
Applying this process to my work makes me realize that creating a composition on a piece of un stretched canvas seems to create a more organic piece of artwork than if I was to plan every single bit of detail. Looking at the work that I have already created makes my think that the outcomes of each and every one of them is organic in their own way, I do have to say that there is some structure to my compositions for example the size of canvas, the paint and tools that I use to apply the paint to the surface of the canvas. The format is definitely an important part of the process, as the format of the artwork is just as important as any other element involved in creating a composition, the size can influence the way the spectator or the artist themselves see the art when it is finished.
Metzger also suggests that another one of his points is that documenting the process of artwork is where the artist is being recorded and photographed to document the progress of their work. This type of process has been used in different types of art like music and theatre to show their development. Documenting process became a big part of the art industry people were becoming more interested in the way the composition was made than seeing the final composition that the artist created behind closed doors. (Cole, I (1999) pp. 31-38
Cole, I (1999) Gustav Metzger: Retrospective, Art as Process: A Baker’s Dozen. Oxford. Museum of Modern Art, Oxford. pp. 31-38
When I began this year I wanted to get far away from Jackson Pollock as possible, the reason is because I wanted my artwork to be remember as something that I did and not copied another artists’ technique. I was thinking about what I would want to say in my work, but the thing was that I did not know what I wanted to say in general. All my life I have found that I am kind of hiding a part of me that I do not want people to see, this was what it was like for most of my life but know all I want is to show the whole world who I really am as a person and an artist.
When I am an artist I express myself more than I do in life, and I do not want there to be two different versions of myself. So during my final year I thought to myself that I would put myself out there more and see what happens, it turns out that it was not as bad as I thought it would be. I have realized during this process that over thinking everything is not a good idea because in the end you will not get anything done. I have put the same process to my artwork, trying not to over think anything and seeing what the results will be at the end.
I am still not a hundred per cent what my final piece is going to be I have a few different ideas for example creating an installation of my work space using three dimensional printing, use the marks that I have on the wall or finding a way to display my canvases whether that is individually or together. This is the one thing throughout my course that I always over think because I want it to look like a professional piece of work.
Like I said previously I have always over thought this part of the process because I want it to look good enough to be in an exhibition, another problem that I am facing at the moment is that I need to try and get my multiple ideas down to two. Having two definite ideas means that I can get a space that fits the propose o what I want to create.
When creating my paintings I try to make them with some invention. Through the process of creating a small composition I engage with the process as much as possible, which in result creates something that has a lot of movement, or it could show a memory or even both as the same time. Which lead me to think about Gustav Metzger and the thirteen points of process, this process in particular is called invention art, or ‘artistic creation’ as a process, mainly mysterious and generally engaged and spontaneous, which was either physical or mental, or even both. (Cole, I (1999) pp. 31-38)
Cole, I (1999) Gustav Metzger: Retrospective, Art as Process: A Baker’s Dozen. Oxford. Museum of Modern Art, Oxford.. pp. 31-38
