University Campus Suffolk

This week has been manic so far and its only Wednesday…this is the life of a Third Year Fine Art student.

The auction was a massive success and a great night. The variety of work in the end was overwhelming and beautiful to look round. This has been a big urge for people to work harder and keep producing work. I am a strong believer that quantity becomes quality, and that the longer you work and the more you do the bigger chance there is of you creating something special.

Rothko is still a big inspiration in my work and writing, this quote is the basis of all of my work, its a collaboration…we are a team…

“Like the Cubists before them, the abstractionists felt a beautiful thing in perceiving how the medium can, of its own accord, carry one into the unknown, that is to the discovery of new structures. What an inspiration the medium is….”

(Mark Rothko, source of artist quotes painter of the Sublime: ‘Beyond the Aesthetics’, Robert Motherwell, in ‘Design 47, no 8, April 1946, pp. 38-39).

Rothko’s work has that aura that draws you in and makes you feel like you are in a different world. This is what I aim to give off with my work…to transport people with my art.

I always believe that simplicity can be more engaging than complicated art, and this resonates in my work…

Is simplicity a strength??

is the basis of my project me and natural resources, and the relationship between us??

These are all worries of mine in reference to my own work, and they are constant thoughts of mine. When peoplecompliment my work maybe I should question them, and ask why they are pleased to view my art?

Is it enough to make art that only I understand?……

It seems that my work has become layers…

I would usually start with a neutral beige or brown background with a hint of brightness, white and orange have become favourite light areas for me, which is why I feel naturally blue has become my darkest shade.

This then gets topped with drips and shapes not unlike Fiona Rae, whose work has always fascinated me. Obviously my work doesnt focus on the animated way of painting that Rae does but the techniques are similar, minus the palette of course!

I would like to look more into Rae and her way of working as I would suggest it is quite different to my own. Her work has many layers and is above all, interesting….

In my previous post I asked myself a few questions about materials and music and video, and basically I have been thinking about it quite a bit in the studio this week and here are my current thoughts..

no to music being involved, it’s rather personal and may complicate my project.

YES YES YES to brick dust and other building materials! Definitely the next step for me, along with a video of me working, something I think will be a great one off addition to this blog, bring on next week. So much to do so little time.

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This is a revamp of an old painting I did last year. My theme has been to mix earthy materials such as chalk, dust and tissue with paint and make a three dimensional piece of art inspired by the natural world. It’s not just artists that influence me but all the people in the studio. The urge to make work and be better is such a big push and this piece shows what I can do given an hour or two and a quiet studio.

This is a combination of all the techniques that I have been using. Here you can see dripping, dust sprinkling, palette knife scratches, pouring and the same use of earthy colours and textures.

Writing this I worry that my work is so process based that it lacks any meaning at all. But to me this series of work I have created is my first honest showing of my technique and interests and how they are interlinked.

These images are of a darker state of mind, a feeling of isolation yet warmth. The attempt of light coming through he dark facade that is shown upfront. Deep browns and black make for the majority of this canvas with the warmer tones coming from tan and yellows. My earlier posts study that of a journey made by my paint and all my pieces have this in mind. My aim is to capture the path that paint/chalk/water makes when let free of their hold. This is the justification of my work being very spontaneous and every piece is a one off, how posh that sounds.

I have also realised recently how much music influences my work and how I have a certain playlist I listen to whilst making work and maybe this means something. My work mirrors that of the somber relaxed music I find essential to making work, musicians such as Coldplay, Ben Howard, London Grammar, Paolo Nutini and The XX, all easy listening music that is kind of acoustic and intriguing. They all make you think which is why I believe they connect with me. Like art, I love delicate voices and singers such as Ellie Golding and Birdy who both have angelic qualities. It’s like my art could have been a song, there is the beginning of my thoughts, the middle and climax, and the after thoughts, where you reflect on what you’ve heard or in this case seen. A nice analogy I think…

Is is my work progressing enough?

is music something I should look into?

earthy materials?

brick dust?

should I film myself making art?

The next few weeks are going to be jam packed….

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The auction is drawing near and the works have been hung this week and advertised. I think the biggest worry is that people won’t understand and therefore buy your work. It’s not so much about rejection as I feel content with my own work which I guess is a good thing.

My work has recently been moving very quickly and expanding into an exploration of natural materials and paint. It follows the relationship they have with one another and the role in which I play in creating the outcome that eventually becomes the art.

I have been using chalk and acrylic paint, along with a lot of water and some pretty strong acrylic paper. I find that the wetter the paper the less work I have to do to create a reaction. The acrylic paint becomes consumed by the water and forms a ‘lake’ which dries with a deeper edge and a pale inside which is quite pleasing to the eye. This is a strong contrast with the dust elements I am using and the sand texture. Mixing both delicacy and industrial techniques and feeling. These small pieces on paper show the bond between the chalk dust and water that has been an ongoing theme I have wanted to try. I like the way the water carries the dust down the page and they move together.

I find the smaller art is for me, and even within the smallest works, it’s the tiny delicate areas I enjoy the most…finding beauty in the smallest of places. I also feel the amount of water I have used has given a new vibrancy to my work, as if it is almost glazed. Interesting because that could be a nice effect to cover my work in a sort of PVA glaze. That would then be cementing the trace I have captured, keeping it forever.

These me middle images of my sketchbook show the diversity in style and scale I have been looking at. a lot of my sketchbook works comes from dipping paper into the excess water I have and using what’s left of my palette from that day, I like this because no two pieces are the same or even feel the same to me, and it gives the mixture of whatever I have used that day a chance to run, to esacpe, to show itself other than in a plastic cup, but as art…

In a recent post I talked about working with steel which is still an idea I am pursuing. I have bought some metal and glue and am all set but what’s holding me back is the reality that it won’t be the same effect I am so keen on. It’s something brand new and scary. But exciting also.

For me this project is about my exploration into visually commentating on the relationship between paint, water and the earth (in some ways).

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These images are of recent works I made in response to viewing some mixed media images online. I was inspired by the brick dust and earthy materials for these paintings and used chalk to create the textures on the surface. Once again I used masking tape to have a clear sharp edge within the work although I enjoy the fact that some paint slips underneath the tape and ‘escapes’. The theme of this project has become very process based and is a journey almost of the life that I have with the paint and what we can create together; collaborating with chalk, sand, glue and hopefully soon metal.

Process is very important to my work and in the end the journey is more irritant for me as it makes the art what it is. There is an attraction for me in watching my work creat itself and knowing that there is a chance of something beautiful as a result.

Rothko is a constant in my research and practise and this piece to the left has all the colours of my work this week, blues and yellows, very fresh but still natural. The colours of the sky and the sun, and the sea; the areas of the earth…

No. 6 (Yellow, White, Blue Over Yellow on Gray) is a physically simple piece of art yet pyshcologically it draws you in and holds deep emotion, like all Rothko’s work.

For me what I take from Rothko’s art is the ambiguity of his subjects, is it landscape? Is it abstract? Are there figures?

The colour is the subject and each person interprets it in their own way and each person gets out of his art what they put in; almost a mirror of your self.

Beautiful…

Another area of exploration I am currently looking into is the way I hang my work and which way up they should go. my initial thoughts were to nail my paper pieces into some chunky sheets of wood or steel, for a natural or industrial feel. This is still an idea I am yet to try. As is turning my work so that they go against the force of gravity, something I have never been keen to do but may try. The act of ‘dripping’ is all to do with gravity playing its part as well as me and the paint. Dismissing this would change the aim of my work completely. It would throw off the viewer. I don’t think I am ready to commit to doing this just yet.

These pieces, although on paper and not of something skill based, these are the soul of my project and show exactly the relationship I want to portray. This is the beginning of my final works. Yay.

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A slightly unrelated blog post.

Recently I have seen many films about art and it’s affect on the world, starting with Monuments Men and just last week The Book Thief.

Art in film has always been a major influence on my life and as an avid cinema goer along with most of my family, my dad and brother mainly, it’s a joy we all share. Film has a way of sweeping me into a world away from reality just for an hour and a half, where I can forget my worries and be a part of someone else’s life. Just like art, the role of film is to transport you to a new exciting place. This is what art does to me also. Looking into the paintings of Turner and Rothko just to name a few, can bring your soul to the surface and give you a life changing experience.

Monuments Men told the true story of a group of older gentlemen enlisted in the American and British army to help regain art that Hitler had stolen during World War II. The overall feeling of the film was that art is worth a lot to many people and can change us. Two men died in the journey to recovering the art and by the end of their story you felt that it was worth it; the achievements of the worlds greatest creative souls needed to be saved. Michelangelo’s Madonna and Child statue, Raphael’s Portrait of a Young Man and many other world famous pieces of art were all included and as a whole reconfirmed my love for art, both classical and contemporary.

The Book Thief, although not so much about art and more about books, still holds that same message that creativity is important for us as people. It is a form of expression and what is most unique about both art and writing is that no two people will respond the same. It is the most individual way of showing ones self to the rest of the world. The Book Thief follows the story of a young girl who gets adopted by a family in Germany during once again World War II. The family take in a young Jewish man hiding from the Fuhrër, and the man and girl bond over their love for books and together they steal and read books whilst he is in hiding. This touching story, although fiction, could be just as true as any other War story. The importance of a creative outlet once again the main message.

Although slightly irrelevant to fine art practice, I find that film, especially art in film, can help inspire me creatively, as does reading. The emotional attachment of art and books to many people not just in the film but in the cinema screen, is a great influence in my life, to carry on loving art, both viewing it and making it.

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