Paris, August
This comprehensive catalogue retraces the important moments in the history of 19th century art. Its original presentation brings to life the paintings of the Orsay Museum collection, namely. – The history of the major movements in painting from 1848 to 1914
This project focuses on my love of Paris, by recreating scenes that I have visited during my holiday there back at 2013, and took inspirations from visiting the Orsay Museum and brought a book, which feature famous French Impressionism paintings that are display all around in the museum. I decide to use these inspirations to work on this project, especially after watching a film that made me want to create this.
The book I brought back from my trip to Paris, titled “A Fuller Understanding of the Paintings at the Orsay Museum”, tells and review the great movements in the history of French painting between 1848 and 1914. Inspired by the beauty and richness of the works of art, it views the paintings that are displayed at the Orsay Museum, and gives the histories and descriptions of the artworks, and the artists that created the paintings. This book and my trip to Paris have been major inspirations for my studies and interests to the French art, especially the Impressionism, and artists, like Vincent van Gogh, Paul Cezanne and Paul Gauguin. The book has helped me explore my understandings of their art, and learning their stories and the colours and styles that they use to create their masterpieces
Paris, Texas
Release date: 24th October, 1984
Distributed: Argos Films (France)
During my spare time after a day at university, I took an interest in watching this Wim Wenders classic; his story of one man’s journey to the desert in order to escape an urban situation is used as a metaphor for the country that Wenders says has “colonised our imaginations.” I wanted to watch this, because not only of its legacy and cultural the film carries; throughout music to video games, but because of the critical acclaim reception and the messages that it carries about life and family. The film captures the powerful emotions throughout the story, and thanks to the beautiful cinematography and colours; the shots of each landscapes really do become their own characters, and it influenced me to capture that same feeling to my paintings.
Bibliography:
Bayle, F. (2011) A Fuller Understanding of the Paintings at the Orsay Museum. Musee d’Orsay, Paris, France
Ebony and Ivory
This project focuses on the effect and the invert of the black and white images, by using Adobe Photoshop to help me make this possible, and I have focus on recreation, by using the subject matters that I have use for my previous project, “Travels of Sketches” and turn them into paintings and working on a different material (cardboard)
Covehithe Church (Threshold)
Back at March, I had a group tutorial about our work, and my lecturer and four other work colleagues have given me ideas for my studies and my lecturer suggested I should “recreate” some of my drawings I did for my “Travels of Sketches” project, into paintings, focusing on black and white, instead of colours, must like the drawings that haven’t got any colours. Thus the project was made for my next study.
Athena Hall (Threshold & Invert)
I have got the idea of looking into the past and present elements of my subject matters, after one of the lecturers have viewed my drawings from my “Travels of Sketches”, and pointed it out about how interesting each drawing have different looking architectures, in terms of the appearances and the materials that the buildings have featured. This has given me the idea of viewing into this detail, and I decide to capture my paintings, using only black and white, because of the age period of the subject matters, given it that old appearance; also my drawings are colourless, borrowing the inspiration from that. I also got back into using cardboard, and the reason for this, is because not only it’s different to work with, but it’s the material of it, the texture it has got, and upon painting my images on it, it gives me that “worn” and “used” appearance, showing that the pictures have been around for a long while.
Covehithe Church (Invert)
The title is an reference to the Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder song of the same name, as “Ebony and Ivory” are the keys on a piano (Ebony are the black keys, and Ivory are the white keys).
Lust for Life
Release date: 17th September, 1956
Distributed by: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Over my summer break, I have took an interest in watching this film, based on the 1934 novel of the same name by Irving Stone (1903-1989), and it focuses on the life of the tortured artist, Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890), and the reason this film got my attention, is because I have always admired Van Gogh’s works and he has served as an inspiration in my artworks; plus I have been reading Stone’s novel, and I want to see if the film did justice to the source material. Upon watching this 1956 classic, I absolutely admire this film, and can really appreciate the artistry and how inspiring this film carries in Van Gogh’s life and his works. Watching the scenes where Van Gogh travel to places; recreating the beautiful landscapes into his canvases, by sketching them out, has inspired me to gather the ideas for my next project, which is doing sketches of places I have been; from Paris to all around Suffolk. It also makes me think about my work afterward, and really appreciate the inspirations that Van Gogh has impact in my works and me as an artist.
Story and My Critical Reception
The story focuses on the life of Dutch painter, Vincent van Gogh, who is regarded by many as a tortured artistic genius. His obsession with painting and combined with his mental illness, leads him through an unhappy life, full of failures and unrewarding relationships. He earns some respect among with his fellow painters, especially Paul Gauguin (1848 – 1903), but he does struggles to get along with them, and the only one constant good in his life is his brother Theo, who is unwavering in his moral and financial support. Van Gogh only manages to sell one painting in his lifetime.
The film shows Van Gogh’s love of art, and he once wrote to his brother, that it was impossible to see the world and not want to paint it. He saw the goodness of the simple people and showed his sympathy for them, which he struggles, due to his illness and his societal awkwardness.
The film is excellent and moving, and the end is truly beautiful in its tragedy. It is impossible to mention all the aspects of the film I liked but this classic can be seen based on Kirk Douglas’ (1916 – ) performance alone. Lust for Life is an unforgettable experience.
‘No artist was ever more ruthlessly driven by his creative urge, nor more isolated by it from most ordinary sources of human happiness, than Van Gogh’. – (Irving Stone, 1935, back cover)
Vincent van Gogh
An 19th century Dutch Post-Impressionist painter, who is remember for his extraordinary amount of artworks, working in different art forms, and his bold colours and expressive brush works. Van Gogh has always been an inspiration to my art, and watching the “Lust for Life” film, which focuses on his life, has made me understands even more of his works and him as a struggling man. You watch him face his inner demons, and creating such brilliant pieces along his journey, yet it has gotten more recognizable after his death. He was truly one of a kind.
I have also visited the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, back at 2013, and upon seeing his work in front of my very own eyes, they made me double think about how extraordinary and influential his works really are, influences many, and visiting there is like being in an old abandoned world, with lost and sorrow being left behind. His drawings has inspired my sketches, because of the style and his composition he has to create many art, and his paintings has left an impact in my work, because of the subject matters, colours and details he has used and chosen to creates such excellent pieces.
Illustrations:
Lust for Life: 1956 theatrical release poster
Lust for Life: Vincent van Gogh
Lust for Life: Vincent van Gogh and Paul Gauguin
http://silverscreenmodes.com/lust-for-life/
Bibliography:
Stone, I. (1935). “Lust for Life”. London: Penguin Books
During my last summer break (2016), I have been travelling around Suffolk, visiting to places, taken pictures, and after having thoughts about what I should do in my next project, I have decide to recreate scenes by drawing them out, and for this the locations that I have chosen to draw and study are places from Paris, London and all around Suffolk; especially after watching an art film that really make me want to do and continue with this opportunity.
For my second project, I have fully committed to drawing, and I have focus on recreating scenes by looking at the photos that I have took, which feature the locations I have been to; after being influenced by the places that I have visit over my summer break (2016), and my interest in photography, which I took pictures, for memories to look back to in the future. For the locations over the break that I have chosen, I have use pictures from my visit to Bury St. Edmunds, Covehithe, Ipswich and London (one day trip before the break). The reasons are because, based on the photos, I wanted to focus on the different composition; with its nature and buildings, and wanted to use more than one location to show my travelling influences, to give me the opportunity to explore with different areas to create new art. An another place that I wanted to explore is Paris (5th – 7th August, 2013), and exploring this would be perfect for my project, especially comparing to my local areas of Suffolk. Visiting to Paris feels like going into a different world, as it has some beautiful and breath-taking architects and scenes, and my visit to Paris has been a major influence to my art and myself as an artist.
The idea of sketching and recreating these landscape pictures, was inspired and pinched after watching the 1956 film “Lust for Life” which tells the life of the tortured artist, Vincent van Gogh (1853 -1890), and seeing his drawings, while watching him travelling throughout the film, has inspired me to expand my ideas and helped me take a new direction with my project. I want it to make this opportunity a reality, because I love exploring different locations while travelling; gives me a clear view to see and expand my interests in art and gives me the chance to use my photography skills as primary sources, and travelling has been an art tradition, so it would be perfect for my art.
In my journey of sketches, I have completed ten A3 (42.0 x 29.7 cm) sized drawings of locations, using charcoal, and when I was drawing them one by one, I was working on different and similar styles, to show my influences, as I was going for the same direction as the Post-Impressionists does in their drawings. It’s also important to explore the “time period” of the age of the buildings that I’m appealing in my drawings, because of the different point of views and the perceptions that I and the audience sees.
To explain why I was using that medium and the drawing style that I was going for, because of the similarity of the medium and the style that Van Gogh has focus on his drawings; even know he uses black chalk, I have gone for charcoal to challenge and learn myself to use it, since I rarely use this medium for my art. I have gone for those sizes of my drawings, because it’s the similar sizes as Van Gogh’s sketches; bigger than normal size papers (29.7 x 21.0 cm) and also I want it to challenge myself to work on bigger size drawings (when it comes to drawing, not painting).
The artists from the Post-Impressionism era that has helped to become my inspirations toward this project are Vincent van Gogh, Paul Cezanne, Paul Gauguin and Pierre-Auguste Renoir, as (all for their drawings, style, colours and subjects). Also inspired my projects are modern/contemporary artists Bonnie Griffith (style, colours, and subjects) and Sergio Lopez (landscape, style, and teaching). Those two have helped me to make my drawings appeal to modernism, and it made my drawings look fresh and contemporary.
Illustrations:
Steve Taylor – Covehithe (Church), 2017
Steve Taylor – Athena Hall Car Park, 2017
While I was developing my dissertation proposal back at last year, I decide to focus and study on two art genres that they have always interested me, and doing this make my dissertation a bit easily for me to write up about. On my dissertation, I have explored and discuss the influences of religion and elements of fantasy behind the imaginative artworks by three different artists, and I have chosen their landscape scaled paintings; inspired by my previous works at university. The religion theme came after I have discovered it in their works that the artists I have chosen (John Martin, Salvador Dali and Glenn Brown) have used/focused in their paintings.
Fantasy Art
This art genre has always appeal me for a long time, and I began taking my fantasy art interests seriously, when I was studying at College. I began looking into this through my dad, as he has grown up reading the Conan the Barbarian magazines and he had art books on the sub genre of sword and sorcery, as he was into that art as well. What appeals me about Fantasy Art, is the imagination and the creativity that has, and gives you the freedom, to come up and make up anything you wish to create; it’s the enjoyment that you get out of doing that! There have been many artists in the fantasy art movement that I have studied and admired, but the one artist that has inspired me the most, and remain my all-time favourite artist; the American fantasy artist, Frank Frazetta.
The Study of Frank Frazetta
Frazetta (1928 – 2010) was an extraordinary artist, his range of fantastic paintings and sketches have full of powerful imagination, and he has influenced many artists within the genres of fantasy and science fiction. He has influenced me as an artist, to continuing with my interest in Fantasy Art and he has inspired me to use my imagination and creativity in my art, and seeing his work is truly magnificent. While studying Frazetta and his work, I have brought two books that are about him and his paintings and drawings.
One was “ICON”, which shown and studies mainly on his fantasy paintings (as he was a comic artist, before finding fame in the sword and sorcery genre of fantasy art), and going through this book takes my breath away, in term of how extraordinary he catches his imagination and transferred them into paintings. The other is “Rough Work”, which is a collection of his drawings and sketches, and it’s like going through one of his sketchbooks, and seeing them is also inspiring and influential.
Landscape Art
I begin to study and became interesting in landscape art, after studying it for my fine art course at university in my first year. I have chosen to study it, because of my photography interest, as I have enjoyed capturing parks, seascapes and holiday trips; to capture beautiful scenes and for memories. I have continue to study landscape art for my final year, because I wanted to create art, from something I have enjoyed doing and to show my strongest interest to be displayed in my upcoming degree show. For my inspirations, I was heavily inspired by the art movement of Post-Impressionism and the artists I admired the most are Vincent van Gogh and Paul Cezanne.
Van Gogh, Cezanne and French Impressionism
What is Post-Impressionism? It’s mainly a French art movement that has been around in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and it focuses on artists that studies and expressed emotions rather than simply optical impressions, concentrating on themes of deeper symbolism. This has inspired me even more, after my trip to Paris (August, 2013), and went to visit the Musee d’Orsay, as its home to many collection of French impressionism paintings. I have bought a book from there called “A Fuller Understanding of the Paintings at the Orsay Museum”, to bring back home, and it has helped me to discover and admire many other artists and paintings. For Vincent van Gogh (1853 – 1890) and Paul Cezanne (1839 – 1906), my two biggest influences in the Impressionism era, they have created emotional, but brilliant landscape paintings, and their work has influence my work, because of their use of simplified colours and definitive forms, as they have strongly used in their beautiful paintings, and their subject matters has also been inspiring towards my primary sources.
Illustrations:
Frank Frazetta – Savage World (1981)
http://frankfrazetta.net/Savage_World.html
Frank Frazetta – Atlantis (1972)
http://frankfrazetta.net/Atlantis.html
Vincent van Gogh – Daubigny’s Garden (1890)
http://www.vangoghgallery.com/catalog/Painting/96/Daubigny%27s%20Garden.html
Paul Cezanne – Mont Sainte-Victoire (1887)
http://tribulations.fr/couleur/#.WNqs84WcFMs
Bibliography:
Bayle, F. (2010) ‘A Fuller Understanding of the Paintings at the Orsay Museum’. Paris: Musee d’Orsay
Fenner, A. (ed.) and Fenner, C. (ed.) (1998) ‘ICON: A Retrospective by the Grand Master of Fantastic Art, Frank Frazetta’. Nevada City: Underwood Books Inc.
Fenner, A. (ed.) and Fenner, C. (ed.) (2007) ‘Frank Frazetta: Rough Work (Spectrum Presents)’. Nevada City: Underwood Books Inc.
BA (Hons) Fine Art Student at University Campus Suffolk/University of Suffolk (2014 - 2017). I have studied many art forms throughout my art studies, including painting, drawing, sculpture, graphic media and photography; never have a strong subject, just enjoy exploring the world of art!
