As with the previous exercise, here I start this exercise with a little more research into other artists and practitioners and how they approach the topic of describing a tree’s form and/or shape within their work. The methods and techniques are very varied and I quite enjoyed exploring these in this research.

Firstly I come across Bruno Munari, who appears to adopt a style which looks contemporary, clean and simple, offering a strong suggestion of the tree structure with the shape of the branches, trunk and foliage. The leaves look like they may have been applied in a finger painting style, almost giving this piece a child-like feel. It interests me that Munari names Leonardo in the bottom right of the photo immediately below which gave me a further interesting article about Leonardo da Vinci’s rule “the sum of the cross-sectional area of all tree branches above a branching point at any height is equal to the cross-sectional area of the trunk or the branch immediately below the branching point” https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3979699/.

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Investing in some time to research, I found many artists who, as explored above with Munari, describe and represent the trees and foliage in their drawings and paintings in various ways. I am really intrigued to see how various methods and techniques have been adopted over the time period between when these works and what styles they were produced in.

It appears that within the Victorian Watercolours book (first four photos below) the trees are rendered beautifully, with utter care and diligence in the production of branches, twigs, leaves and even trunk details. The light is captured on the canopy of the trees, also describing the shadows and various tones within the tree’s foliage and sometimes, individual leaves. I am amazed at the intricacy demonstrated here, especially as watercolour paint can be difficult to manage with minute and intricate details; I can see the effort and has been made to describe the trees and their features (bark, leaves, branches, trunk, twigs etc.) in great detail which when looking at the artists across the pages I have studied, seem to be a common theme in the Victorian time period (1800s).

Looking at Paul Cézanne’s Landscape With A Viaduct: Mont Sainte Victoire 1885-7, I can see the recognisable brushwork of Cézanne here, just like in his still life with fruit that I had studied before: the short, jabby painting technique is evident in both these paintings. I am challenged in what I see; the difference between Cézanne’s painting of trees, compared to the Victorian Watercolour artists in technique and overall outcome. The foliage in Cézanne’s trees is more block-like, not as delicate or detailed, but yet shows evidence of tonal variation on the tree canopies and trunks but also movement and direction. I am torn between thinking the paintings and their subjects look flat yet have depth and form. I feel this is down to the multi-directional flat brushwork. It’s easy to see that the painstaking detail is lost here, in comparison to the detailed work of the Victorian watercolourists, however, the characteristics and features of the tree are instantly recognisable, so one might argue that although the level of detail and style differs vastly, Cézanne is still successful in describing trees in his painting which are recognised and understood by the viewer. I am curious to see how I could use this as inspiration in my work, perhaps some experimentation in my sketchbook would be a great way to see how I could use and adapt the idea of taking the recognisable shape and features of a tree and exploring various ways of artistically manipulating them, yet still able to resemble a recognisable tree shape. This reminds me of an exercise in the Robert Kaupelis book of Experimental Drawing, 1980, Watson-Guptill, in which on page 21, he explores an exercise with his students that basic or “brief” brushstrokes can be “read” by the viewer, suggesting that few lines are needed by the viewer to be able to read the drawing and recognise the object.

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Moving further into the other techniques of describing tree forms in paintings and drawings, I found work by Bonnard, Gauguin and Matisse, which have captured my imagination. Matisse’s Tea, 1919, reminds me a little of Munari’s simple but effective description of a tree with the singular marks made to resemble foliage, a bit like finger painting, or primitive mark making. However, Matisse’s trees have more direction and energy to his foliage as the movement is described in the positioning of each individual leaf mark and the simplicity of the bending tree trunks and branches. I do notice that the trees in Matisse’s painting are even less realistic than Cézannes, and they also show little, if any tonal variation in the tree canopies, which would suggest light filtering through the leaves casting shadows or describing the dappling light, or texture to the leaves or bark which Cézanne and the Victorian Watercolourists seem to include. I feel that Gauguin is similar in his technique to Bonnard, Cézanne and Matisse, perhaps because they were linked in the time period and Post-Impressionist and/or Fauvism movement.

Another photo above is of a piece of work by Raoul Dufy, entitled The Paddock. I was surprised by how little realism the trees have in this painting, but yet how I instantly recognised the basic shape of canopy/ foliage, trunk and branches etc. Dufy looks to use large blocks of colour and then apply the detail of individual leaves, trunk and branches in a loose and suggestive line. I like the use of different blocks of tone to describe large areas of shadow in the tree’s foliage. Although the painting isn’t a realistic description, Dufy’s trees and foliage still show a loose representation of direction of form because of the line drawing depicting the leaves and branches and their direction of growth. The simplicity is quite easy on the eye and I find the description of form basic in comparison to the heavily detailed Victorian Watercolourists. However, the drawing still has character and a sense of spontaneity which the loose line only compliments and emphasises the overall style of this drawing/painting. This is something worth considering when looking at how I will describe my tree in this exercise. The experimenting I will be doing in my sketchbook will hopefully enable me to see how these various techniques and methods which I have studied, will change the overall feel and style of my drawing.

Lastly I looked at a surrealism painting by Paul Delvaux. I am not usually drawn to surrealism but I found that this painting was quite interesting in that the tree form had been used as part of the women’s hair. The leaves are intricate and well defined and I thought that the colours used in rendering the tonal variation were quite accurate to a realistic style, considering that the painting is in the style of surrealism. Although the trees are not completed in a realistic way, the trunk of the tree is presented with a detail description of bark, depicting texture and tone with the light and shadows playing on the intricate roots and bark texture. Again, I feel that these limited features of the tree being present are described in a way that they are still recognisable, if not completely realistic.

Here are four photographs which I took for reference when I went on a walk to find trees to observe and potentially draw:

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Firstly, it was a wonderful feeling to be out in nature, being mindful and paying attention to the natural beauty around me, it was a relaxing experience to observe and draw outside. Secondly, it was quite refreshing to pay particular attention to the trees and take the time to really observe them, not only singularly, but also in their surroundings and relation to other trees and the earth, sky and other objects in view. I noted that all the different types of trees had a different shaped canopy, trunk, leaf structure, direction of growth etc. and so this prompted questions in my head as to how I would most likely attempt to draw them and distinguish these differences if drawing them together in a composition, and maybe which materials would be suitable for my selected style and method of drawing. It was quite nice to see the standalone trees with their shape contrasting against the blue sky, it made it more obvious for me to try to describe in my drawing and it made it clear where the positive and negative shapes were. I noticed that when I was looking at the trees amongst other trees, it was harder to pick out their individual features if amongst others of their type, because the attributes were very similar.

Within my most recent feedback from my tutor Simon, he recommended an author to help me with my perspective drawing development: Rex Vicat Cole. Whilst searching for this book, I also found that he had written another on the topic of trees: Cole, Rex Vicat 1965, The Artistic Anatomy Of Trees, Dover Publications, Seeley, Service & Co. I purchased this book and I find it fascinating; it is hard going because of the wording’s old-fashioned style but the content in this book is extremely comprehensive and will certainly develop my historic art knowledge dramatically in terms of tree formation and detail etc. I feel this book will not only greatly benefit me throughout Part 3 but for the rest of my artistic journey; it looks as if it analyses artists and their work in relation to others within the context of the era they were painted/drawn. I also feel, after reading a few pages into the book, that the style and content in which Cole writes, encourages an open-minded approach to observing the works of the artists discussed within the book whilst taking note of the true anatomy of trees to ensure that composure of the tree can be successful in the composition, whilst still retaining the artistic style of the artist. There is much to consider in this book, and although I agree with constructing trees correctly for drawings and works of art (in correlation with their true anatomy) I do believe there is much scope for artists/practitioners to be able to produce a drawing of a tree that is instantly recognisable as long, as it bears some of the characteristics of the tree such as a trunk and branches and sometimes a canopy of foliage, in an abstract style. This can mean that the overall style is open to interpretation and application by the artist and his/her mind’s eye.

Bibliography:
https://www.npr.org/2011/12/26/144127874/the-wisdom-of-trees-leonardo-da-vinci-knew-it?t=1568397962769

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3979699/

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwiJ_YqWrs7kAhXDjqQKHRqnDWEQjhx6BAgBEAI&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pinterest.com%2Fpin%2F524106475376510472%2F&psig=AOvVaw27n2Q9FjZUtptZ4wxViqBt&ust=1568482149323494

https://www.theartstory.org/movement/fauvism/

https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/29.100.64/ Paul Cézanne

https://www.theartstory.org/artist/matisse-henri/

Beginning to look at trees and their basic structure had intrigued me to want to observe a little closer at the bark, seeing as this is something that I am quite drawn to; textures and details sometimes overlooked. Although this exercise didn’t require closer observation at this stage, I wanted to explore this area lightly before continuing on further with the project.

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Above is a photograph of a drawing that was mounted, framed and hung in a gastro pub that I visited recently; it really caught my eye and so I took a photo of it to appreciateand analyse the drawing again at a later time. I think what struck me initially was the simplicity but intricacy of the drawing. It is busy and dynamic, light on detail and makes good use of semi-loose contour lines to give structure to the many view points and positions of the hands. I somehow made a quick link between this drawing and Anthony Green’s Study for Mrs Madeleine Joscelyne with her son, 1987 due to the multi-perspective drawning showing different views and angles of the object to enjoy within a single drawing. I feel that this technique is very effective for drawing the viewer in to analyse the composition which is abstract and dynamic. I feel this mutli-perspective style in both the hand drawing and Anthony Green’s work; it adds a contemporary feel to the drawing but again, makes me reflect that I have researched and come across this style of drawing before in my course research. Looking back, I rediscover the painting of Violin And Grapes by Pablo Picasso in my studies. The style of the broken pieces of the drawing pieced together or even the drawing with multi-perspectives integrated into the composition itself is an interwoven link between all of these drawings mentioned. I appreciate how each of the drawings/paintings demonstrate this in their own unique styles too. Green’s warped and destorted perspective of the room from a slightly-off bird’s eye view ensure that the room has a long sense of depth but also foreshortening effects due to the perspectives used. The drawing also entices viewers to even interpret that it resembles a drawing on a crumpled piece of paper, a screwed tissue, origami paper or maybe an unfolded box interior. This makes for a very interesting piece which gives an unusual perspective from using a familiar shaped paper plane.

Taking my research further and understanding how the artists working methods could be applied to my work, I was intrigued to see how I could manipulate my drawings and artwork to utilise a different viewpoint from the more familiar and traditional views and perspectives. During my research I found a few artists work which made my artistic mind feel very stimulated indeed:

Below are photographs that I found through Tate.org.uk and I note how different perspectives are used within these pieces due to the positioning of the figures infront of the mirrors. I have seen this technique before within the student course study notes: Eduard Manet, A Bar at the Folies-Bergere, 1881-82 (oil on canvas), page 48. Although the perspectives seem simple, they give further context to the figure within their domestic interiors, whilst adding interest to the scene. It reminds me a little of Picasso’s Violin And Grapes, 1912, in that the painters below have used the mirror as a tool to add additional perspectives of the figures and the interiors that would not have been visible had the mirror not be positioned there. When linking the study of the interior desomtic views in these paintings, and comparing to Geiger’s below, I do feel there is a huge difference in the domestic interior design. According to tate.org.uk, “for Whistler the drawing room was not only a rich vein of subject matter, it provided the whole context within which such paintings were produced, displayed and consumed.” This brings context to my thoughts about the contrast between Whistler and Geiger’s paintings, I do not feel that Geiger set out in his planning to design a painting that represented the era through its domestic scene, I feel like Geiger had the intention to merely contain his moment in time in an unoffesnsive or overly obvious scene, to give emphasis to the story and its figures within in, which if he included the use of mirrors within his paintings, I think it would add an element of complexity and a distraction away from this focus on the figures and the scene they are set. I believe that from article written by Tate and by my analysis of the two paintings below, that the time period with which these two paintings by Whistler and Sickert where produced, much more emphasis and poignancy was given to the interior domestic scenes and the environment the figures find themselves in. Here in these two photos, I believe that the use of mirrors in the drawing not only give physical and visual varied perspectives but also psyhoclogical elements within the context of the era they were painted. Why was it these women wished to look in the mirror at their reflections? Tate.org.uk explains “The woman’s psychological interior and her physical self, along with the reflected and actual spaces of the interior, converge onto the same flattened plane of the canvas”. This may offer some explanation as to why in the victorian era that mirrors were popularly hung on walls and so appear in these paintings.

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Working from top left, clockwise:
– Beachy Head: Brink – This is an usual perspective within an unsual shape of plane. I am fascinated by how Camp was able to construct this drawing; his ideas and imagination are powerful and show through in his design and execution of the overall piece. It feels as though the idea was to capture the most poignant moment of this scene with no wasted, empty or unnecessary scene creating an un balanced piece and I also believe the title of the painting gives extra emphasis on ‘the brink’ of the cliff in which the figures stand, ensuring the power of the story is supported by it’s name. As a side thought – I’d like to learn more about entitling artwork as I believe this is a topic that requires thought and research in itself. Because of the shape of the paper plane and the detail that is within the cross shape, it appears to make the drawing more dramatic and the energy of the sea is drawn up and over to the left hand side, giving width and motion, drawing the eyes around the unsual shaped artwork with vigour.

– Sketch Of Kitchen – Interestingly, this drawing adopts a fisheye effect. The results are brilliant and show intelligence and experience of the artist’s drawing skill whereby he demonstrates that the perspectives within the drawing are thought about and are accurate in execution. I understand that photopgraphers can adopt this perspective to obtain an interesting and contemporary scene within their photographs. This style of drawing reminds me of the distortion I would find when looking through a marbel, or even a transparent vessel containing water; the optical distortion adds an interesting effect which takes precision and patience to execute when applying marks to a plane.

– We Live In Financial Times – A great drawing with multi-perspectives of the shark within the same drawing, much like the artists I have discussed previously. It reminds me a little of a concertina effect or a hall of mirrors, and creates interest and energy to the piece. The colour palette and perspectives certainly add drama; a ferocity and sense of iminent danger or emergency, could this be what the advertising campaign team wished to portray when illustrating the advert with a well-known boisterous character? Especially as the sharks appear in succession, to be eating one another in a chain of events, it appears that there is a cross over of psychology and art here again as Luke White from tate.org.uk says “My argument is that the shark provides, throughout its modern history, an image not only of nature as hostile but furthermore, and more precisely, of nature being as rapacious, insatiable, and unfeeling as capital accumulation itself” https://www.tate.org.uk/research/publications/tate-papers/14/damien-hirst-shark-nature-capitalism-and-the-sublime.

– Hand With Reflecting Sphere – Escher’s drawings and artwork are a feast for eyes and stimulate the brain with their many optical illusions and trickery Escher is well known and respected for. I spent a while at https://www.mcescher.com/gallery/most-popular/, taking in the many drawings and their compositions in which he spent a great deal of time planning and executing, I am certain. They demonstrate intelligence, accuracy, competency and imagination, to name but a few. The photo of his work above show intricate and hyper-realistic use of tone and line, giving the drawing an extremley accurate representation of the metallic sphere’s surface and the light it reflects. This is something that I have touched on in Part One, and an area of study I would like to develop further. The surface of the sphere that Escher represents is just fantastic as I get a feel for the smoothness and heaviness, especially as the way the hand is drawn, with the fingers outstretched to support the sphere’s weight; I can almost feel it in my hand.

– Triptych August – Bacon’s series of works put together here, tell a story within the three seperate pieces singularly whilst simultaneously holding its own as a group piece of artwork. Although this style is different to the multi-perspective drawings that I have looked at previously, I do find it interesting as it is a different way of showing various perspectives; rather than having them contained within one drawing, they are spread across more than one plane, which I find dramatic and enticing. Naturally, I start to ‘read’ and observe from left to the right, and analyse the workings as a story which unfolds which doesn’t end how I thought it would, so I return to the middle drawing of the coupling of the figures to analyse further. To me, these drawings feel like a long piece of work, and emphasises that there are various perspectives within the story to be observed. I note that although the drawings could be standalone pieces, they work harmoniously together also as are linked in style, context and overall presentation. This method feels like a contemporary approach and something I would quite like to persue in my work in the near future. I feel that great care and diligence should be taken when in the planning stages, to design a piece of art that will be shared and explained across multiple planes.

Having turned my attention to contemporary artists who specialise within the domestic interior area, I decided to search within the WordPress student community for opinions about my research topic. Two blogs (mentioned below in bibliography) highlighted a particular artist called Philip Geiger who pays particular attention to capturing “the nuances of mood and feeling that make up the more peaceful moments of contemporary family life” according to https://www.hidellbrooks.com/philip-geiger, 2017. In terms of the content of this piece, I would say the scene doesn’t describe a busy moment in time for this family, the figures appear relaxed, peaceful and content with being in the moment, their attention captured by the small child. I notice the brushwork and how Geiger applied the oils to his panel; they are loose and expressive with care taken to describe forms and the light that illuminates the people and the domestic interior gently, conducive to the overall calm feel and style of the piece. The muted and pastel colour palette within this painting shows a delicacy that I feel works really well with the moment in time that the scene is setting. Life can be dull and lonesome, but in contrast we can find it colourful and enriched with memory-making moments. Geiger has captured this snapshot in time intelligently, showing imminent movement with the way the child looks to be unbalanced and the lady in the background nearing a doorway, illuding to her coming or going. He also picks up on this fleeting moment in time, emphasising the importance of the little everyday moments that enrich our lives if we stop to take the time to be really present; children grow so quickly. Within

In the video, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7hhrTPP2zV0, Geiger talks about his inspiration for his domestic interior paintings from two artists, Vermeer and Dahouk(? – not sure on spelling and cannot find this second artist mentioned) and it is evident from Vermeers interior scenes that Geirge sees potential to take inspiration from here and make it his own. Geiger explains he is enthused by thresholds and objects moving from one source of light to another in this video, which is clear in the painting below. I was already drawn to the lady around the threshold before watching the YouTube video on Geiger so now he has brought attention to it in his interview, it certainly adds further detail within context. The portrait layout of the piece gives a good sense of height and makes me feel that this building could potentially be of a period style/age because of the tall, wide doorwars and the solid-looking wooden floors. The ladies and child appear to be dressed in contemporary clothing, suggesting that if the building is a period property, then perhaps it was passed down through the family generations, which would give a lovely addition to the story that is building within this painting. The sparcity of furtniture and furnishings in this work suggest that Geiger wished to focus on the subject of the interior scene and the figures within it, especially as how they appear to be lit by the light from the right hand side. However, because a vast proportion of the piece’s negative space is used to describe the domestic interior, I still feel that the property that the firgures are contained within is still relevant and important to this scene and it’s context. Geiger explains, when discussing Vermeer’s work, that he is intrigued by a “single subject against a wall” and how it could be potentially powerful and expressive. The contrast of colours that he has used around the old figures in this drawing, between the hair colour and the walls is quite strong, so I feel that this was intentional in his planning and concept.

Reflecting back on my analysis of this drawing, I can see how it is fully relevant in todays era, as the work was completed in 2018, our society at this time often struggles to make time to stand still and enjoy being present in the moment with our loved ones. The fleeting, warm and peaceful feel of this scene ensure my thoughts are drawn towards the child and it’s iminent movement and energy but also the adoration and love the figures hold for the child that holds their attention; this is a message to its viewers, to try and find time to observe and enjoy the everyday moments that life gifts to us. They may seem menial to some, but when exposing this level of intimacy within a domestic interior to its viewers so openly within a work of art, it gives the moment and the messages received, weight and substance. Lastly, I understand and receive a a warm and emotional response from this painting by Geiger, and actually many of his other works, because of the colour palette, the light sources and how they react on the figures and interior, the loose and expressive brushwork and density/solidarity to the paint, the privlidge to be observing this intimate scene etc. During the aforementioned YouTube video, Geiger expresses his wish that his paintings retain the vital emotional reponse to the subject within his work. I feel that he achieves this wonderfully through careful and extensive planning through to completion.

Bibliography

https://www.tate.org.uk/art/research-publications/camden-town-group/juliet-kinchin-from-drawing-room-to-scullery-reading-the-domestic-interior-in-the-r1104375

https://mariannaoca.wordpress.com/2016/09/29/research-point-contemporary-artists-who-focus-on-domestic-interiors/

https://rosefineart.wordpress.com/2015/03/22/research-point-contemporary-artists-who-focus-on-domestic-interior/

https://www.hidellbrooks.com/philip-geiger

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7hhrTPP2zV0

Starting out this exercise with experimentation for monochromatic colour palettes with various types of medium. It’s clear to see from my findings that the watercolour media was my favourite and the one that gave me the broadest range of tonal values and effects from my technique and experience.

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A quick couple of sketches in my sketchbook to test out the concept of a monochromatic colour palette. The top sketch has a pencil outline and the bottom two are predominantly tonal with a little contouring.

Researching various methods of utilising monchromatic colour palettes within art I found a very talented artist who has an unusual way of incorporating various tones through monochrome in her work. https://theartofeducation.edu/2019/01/28/10-mixed-media-artists-to-inspire-you-and-your-students/ (Various artists work is showcased here for all utilising the mixed media approach. I am taken with Lauren Collin’s work (http://www.laurencollin.com/) and how she creates added layers of paper, a completely monochromatic piece sometimes, but textured and layered, with tonal gradation appearing with the cast shadows from the cut paper layers. Of course, these shadows will appear differently in different light sources, adding a different feel to the piece if preferred. http://www.laurencollin.com/beast/vary4v1gom9zuwirdijr53joemqypf (The paper sculptures here, some using mixed media, are mesmerising)

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My chosen subject was a corn on the cob in the kitchen. I wanted the feeling from the drawing/painting to represent that a process is yet to be completed; the viewer would subconsciously piece together the image and the process and think that the corn was yet to be removed from its husk and cooked. I quite like the idea of a story within a drawing. As you can see below, the angles I took photographs from and took thumbnail sketches in my sketchbook show a variety of ways in which I looked at studying my subject for my drawing. I really liked the contrast of the smooth, shiny pot and bumpy, plump sweetcorn kernels against the matte papery husk and wiry tufts out the top of the cob. There was so much interest in this drawing which I wanted to capture in a really dynamic and unusually cropped way. I didn’t want to look straight on at the pot on the stove, I wanted the corn to stand proud as the main focus of the drawing, possibly entering the frame from the corner with the round lip of the pot taking the eyes around the drawing.

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As you can see from the photographs above and the one below, I felt the need include less of the pot in the drawing as it looked like it was overwhelming the picture, looking cumbersome and offensive. I found a viewpoint which I thought gave the impression of a full picture without being over-the-top whilst retaining interest and diversity in textures and tonal variation.

The thumbnail sketches above give evidence of my quick observation drawing from different viewpoints to see how the drawing would feel under my fingers and when drawn within a frame.

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Above I experiment with the colours that I thought would look effective in this piece. As the task was to produce a drawing with a monochromatic colours scheme, I could only use one, but I could black and white to the true colour to create tones and shades to produce a greater range of tones which I could utilise in my drawing. I experimented with this and watercolour paint in the initial trials at the beginning of this exercise. I selected watercolours mainly due to its versatility in blending and producing a broad range of tones.

In summary, I am reasonably happy with the outcome of this piece, although if I’m honest, a little disappointed too. the negatives are that I feel it looks overworked, flat and the textures are not contrasting enough to my liking. Also the structure of the tiles, the lines and perspective looks warped, I felt that although I have studied this on the course already. the focus on the negative space got a little lost here. The focus slipped for culminating all of the learnt techniques and methods, and became more out of want and need to create an interesting piece whilst trying to describe tones and detail with a monochromatic colour palette. I Find this interesting however, it is not lost on me how the exercise may read relatively simple, but executing a well thought out drawing with this technique is actually quite hard. I feel through my inexperience that I have underestimated the level of planning and practise it may take to get the drawing accurate and portray the feeling that I wanted to. A question to ask myself going forward when setting out to create a piece with intent to describe a ‘feeling’, is to ask myself how I propose I will do this; which methods I will use to create that effect etc.

In my sketchbook, pictured above, I actually prefer the look of the corn on the cob here rather than the final piece for the exercise. The texture between the corn kernels and the dry, rough and matte papery husk is a good contrast. I achieved this by using wet on dry for the corn kernels, giving a feel of roundness and shine and a dry brush technique for the leaves of the husk, which gives the impression of a dry and scratchy surface. This wasn’t successful in the final piece because I didn’t follow this technique. It has become apparent that if I exercise with media to try to reach a certain aim, I must document or annotate how I got to that place because then there is a learning trail to follow for when I wish to recreate this effect again. I’d say these learning outcomes outweigh the unsuccessful outcome of my drawing.

I do quite like the colour I have chosen and used with the final piece but because it reached an overworked stage. some of the purity got lost with the mixing of the tonal variations. Something I need to work on and know when to stop. I think if I were to try again with this piece, I would take it slower and try to observe there to the greatest contrast of tones are first, before adding in the detail, hence why I feel that some of the tonal variation is lost in my drawing. I did find by using a monochromatic colour palette that it was more difficult (maybe due to my inexperience) to describe the tonal variations to create a feeling of depth. Maybe some prior practise and experimentation with tonal variation in this medium would have benefitted my drawing here.

Overall, I am liking the freshness and simplicity of the background but also the looseness and fun way I have approached the drawing in itself. I didn’t want to go too loose with the line but also wasn’t aiming for a real accurate description with life-like drawing. As for my learning that I have experienced in this piece,, it’s safe to say I have a lot to work on here, reflecting and carrying forward in my drawings, to ensure these techniques and methods are grounded with solid foundations to ensure my drawing and further artwork is competent with an in-depth knowledge of application; I am keen to make the most of my learning throughout these exercises and be mindful not to miss a learning opportunity.

It’s been a week since I last worked on this exercise; I have been taking time off to think about how I wanted to progress, Occasionally I will hit a block and need time away to reflect and gather ideas before continuing with a piece of art work. I experimented with the mixed media in my sketchbook, as demonstrated below, to get a feel for how the mediums work together; what properties and tendencies they had when laid down and applied to different surfaces etc. I quickly discovered a set of three chisel and point permanent pens in three shades of green, which gave a huge amount of versatility. Using experience from the previous exercise with the line drawing, I used this method again here as I really liked the spontaneity of the line and the expressiveness which is what I hope to utilise in this drawing to show a bit of drama with my still life to compliment the mixed media effect.

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It quickly became apparent that I felt my way towards using a gel pen with black ink to describe the line and using the chisel nib of the green markers to describe blocks of tone, (much like the recent previous exercise) defining smaller areas of darker tone with the pointed nib where appropriate. Initially I did want to keep this piece relatively simple and use textured paper as the plane with very little background detail. I drew my still life onto a rough brown textured A4 paper plane and really liked the outcome. To follow simon’s advice about possibly adding a wash, I tried this in my sketchbook and liked the look and feel of it as a shadow, so I also applied this to my final drawing.

This was my final piece. Yes I was happy with it, no, I couldn’t put my finger on why I didn’t think it was finished. I described the line and the tones, rooting my subjects to the foundation. Why was it still feeling incomplete? Here is where the week away from working on this drawing occurred.

After some research at looking at other OCA student’s blog and re-reading my course notes, I finally understood that I was missing some creativity and drama in my drawing, and although I was confident with my subjects and how I had drawn them, they and the background were missing that certain something. I decided I wanted texture, or at least the feel and idea of it. Something that would inspire the viewer to feel like they were at the place my drawing had occurred. I undertook some experimenting in my sketchbook and found that an idea popped into my head; frottage, why not utilise this technique here to describe sand? Acknowledging the texture of the paper and knowing that a pastel would be cut by the tooth of the paper, I instantly made the connection to apply broad strokes with the side of my pastel pencil (sepia hue) whilst the paper lay on a wooden surface, to pick up the grain of the wood to give the idea of waves leaving their mark on the sand on which the objects lay.

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The final stop on developing my drawing was adding the grass and sand details to the final drawing and applying a little more depth with the pastel pencil to the fir cone and a few stones. I found with the still life using tone (exercise 2) that I didn’t add enough tone so I have implied more here and it looks more effective, in my opinion.

I find myself very happy that I have waited, reflected and not rushed on with the drawing, instead drawing on the recent experiences and new-learned techniques to use in developing my drawing and although they may not enhance the drawing to some, I have learnt how various techniques and mediums can be combined to create an artistic impression of a still life using alternative tools and materials to describe tone and line too.

I found that this drawing has changed its since the initial conception, it started quite simple and light, with little detail. The focus then changed to adding a scene with the still life, this occurred as the drawing progressed, I almost found this happening rather than consciously deciding this, which is a new experience for me. I question how the visual perception os this drawing would be changed with a more detailed and realistic line drawing or even a change of colour palette. I found that with the pen nibs being a chisel and point, it gave me great broad strokes of colours which almost gave quite a stubby contemporary feel, which actually complements the loose line I have adopted to describe the outline of the shapes of the objects. Perhaps I could develop this drawing’s texture and mixed media feel with applying some sand to the paper to really push the boundaries with this drawing’s theme?

21/07/2019

I decided to go ahead and take a risk; I’ve applied sand and dried seaweed to my final mixed media still life drawing and I am pleased with the results. To ensure I have stayed true to the exercise’s guidelines, I have taken the exercise as it is entitled ‘Experiment with mixed media’. Previously, I felt that I had experimented with mixed media, but upon reflection and after really finishing the mixed media drawing for good this time, I’ve found there was so much more to give and I’m glad I have taken the time to reflect on the exercises for a little while after I have completed them. This has enabled me to deepen my understanding of what I have achieved, or not achieved, and put it into context within my artistic style and voice, but also in amongst other artists and their voices too. It has enriched my learning and imprinted the experiences into my mind from which I can recall and utilise when moving forward throughout this course and my learning journey. Taking the time to think about each individual task, experiment or challenge has also enabled me to reflect more effectively each time, by asking myself questions that will ensure that I have learnt and understood the opportunities to be gained from each challenge. I’ve also learnt by putting into practise, that it is perfectly acceptable to take a risk and feel enlightened by the reflection period after, when asking myself questions why it did or didn’t work and what I can do about it; an important life skill not just reserved for art! Because of this period of reflection on my drawing above, I was able to develop just that little bit further to create a more interesting, textured and dynamic piece of artwork which captures the essence of me wanting to reach out and really ‘feel’ the work.

Above, you can see that this piece is the final mixed media still life experimental drawing that I will be submitting for marking. The sand and seaweed has been added, which I believe adds further interest to my drawing. Perhaps, it may seem ‘childish’ and naïve because of the crudeness of the seaweed and straight edges of the adhesive where the sand is held. I do understand and am aware of these points. I also feel that the seaweed does a look a little cumbersome and out of proportion with the scale of the still life objects drawn. Feathering the edges of the adhesive to ensure the sand blends away rather than leaving a straight edge may have given more subtlety to this addition. Although, because of the darker colour of the sand, I did try to reserve it for the areas where the tone would be darker because of the shadows cast by the objects. I wanted my mixed media drawing to embrace the roughness of the coastal scene, which the loose and expressive lines compliment. I also wished for people who saw this piece to want to reach out and touch it and really feel it. I’ve found so far in my journey that I am drawn to artwork that inspires the viewer to recollect memories and emotions (for example, when I looked at the Totes Meer painting in a previous exercise and delved into the psychological effects of the piece). I enjoy the thought of people reminiscing of a time they experienced the beach; the sand between their toes, the smell of salt in the air, the sound of the waves crashing. I am intrigued as to how artwork can stir up activity cognitively. An all-senses stimulating art, if you will. This is something that I would like to explore more, how can I include other senses into my artwork, taking the viewer on a journey of discovery. I wish my artwork to be more than a feast for the eyes…

I find it truly fascinating that through developing my reflecting techniques, I have been led further into my journey of discovery and really reap the rewards of research and reflection. Below are websites I have studied and further knowledge I have gained due to this exercise.

WordPress Blogs:
– https://rachaelgrundy.art.blog/2019/04/30/part-two-project-two-exercise-three-experiment-with-mixed-media/
– https://saraoca.wordpress.com/2019/03/22/project-3-exercise-3-experiment-with-mixed-media-2/ (I love how Sarah has followed a period of development and has really taken risks with adding newspaper and other techniques to add dynamism to her piece)
– https://artjillkuhn.wordpress.com/2019/04/29/thick-or-thin/ ( I am fascinated by the stitched lines in the plane before other media is added; a brilliant take on mixed media and directly links to my vision of textured artwork)
– https://steveatoca.wordpress.com/2019/06/29/project-3-exercise-3-experiment-with-mixed-media/comment-page-1/#comment-60 (Steve’s work with the coloured card is really striking; I like how media is added to the coloured card after it has been adhered to the plane; almost reminds me of Andy Warhol’s pop art.
– https://www.tate.org.uk/art/art-terms/m/mixed-media (Tate states that the mixed media wave started around 1912, linking the technique to Picasso and Braque; interesting that the cubists were looking at mixed media with their still-life works and collages.
– https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30509140 “nonpharmacological intervention useful for the stimulation of cognitive functions and for increasing the well-being of people with dementia and their caregivers.” (A study on the cognitive stimulation of viewing art for patients with Dementia) – I was drawn by this study because of the links between cognitive stimulation and artwork.
– “In art therapy, through stimulating cognition with lines and colors, the patients are provided with a non-verbal channel of communication and are able to overcome inadequacies of self-expression due to impaired language ability and can vent negative emotions” https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2095771816300755 (Interesting to see how communication is occurring through the application and viewing of art. I believe there is extensive non-verbal communication that occurs from the piece of art to the viewer.

Embarking on this project, I understood that I needed to identify my starting point, which would become clear when I knew how I wanted to draw the lines that would describe the forms in my still life composition. I know from experience that different types of line can actually radically change the feel, atmosphere, appearance and dynamism of a drawing, so this research into types of line drawing was not underestimated on my part.

I created a still life from various pieces of fruit; the pieces I have picked are abundant with texture and form which I thought would be fun to try to describe in my line drawing. What a challenge: how to describe the texture and patterns within the shapes of the fruits whilst maintaining focus on the line itself.
Below are the photos from different perspectives to try to get a feel of how my still life composition would look from different angles. Here I tried a home made viewfinder to see what if any cropping would need to be done to achieve an interesting perspective of my still life. This preparation (along with the thumbnail sketches later) provided me with a great insight into how my drawing would come across, ideas of how to tackle the concept practically and also how interesting I could make my drawing by adjusting some pieces of fruit to produce interesting positive and negative areas. I thought that positioning the fruit on my table with the serving hatch door open, table and chair would be a nice and easy background that would relate to the still life easily without causing a distraction; the serving hatch relates to the food being prepared and delivered through it to the table, almost like a process which had come to an end, a nice story within my drawing.

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Beginning sketches in my sketchbook, I found that my lines naturally flowed around the page with my pencil, the pieces of fruit moved my eye and pencil to move from the melon, round the bananas on the left, round the fruit in the centre and flowing off the page with the cherries and their stalks. I really loved the effect of cropping this perspective to ensure that the stalks ran off the edge of the drawing, it adds a little interest and uniqueness that I want to capture in my drawing. I decided to be brave, and following my tutor’s advice: “be true to your creative self”, I wanted to carry the style of loose, dynamic and variable line in my drawing. I didn’t feel that this piece would fit the style of a very detailed, accurate and technical drawing with my creative take on how I wanted to portray this composition. After the initial sketch in pencil, I then progressed onto the trying which media would give me these spontaneous line results which could also be sharp and manipulated to give varying thicknesses of line and agility when describing the texture of the fruit surfaces, which I found to be the indian ink and a dip pen. I did have some concern on the shape of the line however, after a little experimentation with the types of nib in the dip pen, I selected the rounded nib which would eliminate the angular lines when turning/ changing direction. Although I wanted a sharpness to the boundary of the line itself, I still wanted the shape of the line to be soft, which it wasn’t with the flat nib. I also found that I wasn’t keen on the pointed nib as it scratched the paper surface and caused quite a bit of friction when trying to change direction, which I wanted complete freedom to move the mark making material any way I chose to ensure that the line felt free and easy on the paper. I also took inspiration here from the course notes by using a black plane and white medium to draw with (page 43 – artwork by student Carol Smith, Driftwood,white ink on black paper) I don’t feel this worked well for me this time, it was too moody and really clashed with my idea of a fresh and light composition to reflect the properties of the food on the table. I also don’t think that psychologically, people like to see the colour black (or green) with fruit associated with food as it can bring on negative feels with regards to food spoilage and decay. I did experiment with laying down a colour and compose my lines on top of this coloured background to see if a different colour would give a good effect. Still, I didn’t like this, although, Simon did offer some advice in my Assignment 1 feedback, where I could have experimented with a diluted ink wash in my drawing to describe tone. I hadn’t known this was a possibility (I believe this is referred to as ‘unconscious incompetence’ – whereby the person is unaware of the technique to adopt in the appropriate place/time resulting in incompetence. I read about this when reading about how develop myself and my learning to ensure success when undertaking challenges: http://frederikbisbjerg.com/blog/unconscious-incompetent-people) so I trialled it and have to say, it positively added to my drawing and does indeed bring an element of form and interest, I would like to keep this technique in my still life using line.

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Here I look through Robert Kaupelis’s ‘Experimental Drawing’, 1980, Watson-Guptill, book and I come across different lines producing drawings which capture my interest.
Photo:
1 – pg. 27, Drawing by Jon Wells: Cross-contour study, I was intrigued at how this drawing looks like it is drawn with a continuous line which has a wave effect in that each line has influence on the one closest to it. I like how the portrait suggests form with simple yet effective bends/ curves, closeness in the lines
2 – pg. 71, Drawing by Katherine Helstrom: another drawing using cross-contouring lines, however the lines are looser as being made with graphite stick, in which the pressure could be increased and decreased to suggest form, which the properties of the graphite stick also look softer and less refined than the the ink drawing by Wells. The spaces between the lines are further than Well’s drawing which produces a more relaxed and suggestive drawing which is not as detailed, but still gives the idea of what the objects in the still life are. I like the tonal variation in this piece and understand the different methods adopted by Wells and Helstrom to achieve a suggestion of form.
3 – pg. 57, Drawing by Pablo Picasso: I was drawn to this drawing (lower half specifically) because although Picasso offers two variations on the same subject: the origin and more detailed drawing above and a heavily simplified drawing below constructed out of simple flat shapes. I really like the bottom simplified drawing in that the shapes all connect and add structure to the bull’s shape, although no form is suggested, other than maybe a little on the tail, all the shapes are contained within the bull’s frame which ensures that although the drawing is busy with lots of crossing lines, angular and rounded, that the drawing retains a clean and light feel to it.
4 – pg. 80, Drawing by Joseph Raffael, Scottish Bubbles, 1975, ink on paper: On a different method, this drawing is busy, fussy and dramatic, with lots of areas of interest. Not all the lines here touch or are continuous but the use of negative space is clever as it describes the texture of the smooth water that is not being disturbed like the other areas of the drawing suggest. I think this still would be far too busy for my liking, but I appreciate the different styles of line and suggestion of form here. This reminds me of my work experimenting with cross-hatching to describe tone in an earlier project on the course.
5 – Pg 148, Drawing by Kathy Albers: This drawing captured my eye purely because of the shape of the composition. It is in a circular shape which really alters the feel of the drawing. Kaupelis states “she also created an image that looks convincingly contemporary”, Kaupelis. R, Experimental Drawing, 1980, Watson-Guptill. I find it fascinating how the shape of the composition can drastically change the feel of the piece. Maybe this is something I can experiment with my still life drawing?
6 – pg. 36, Drawing by Giovanni Segantini, Male Torso: Another line drawing technique picked up on here: the lines are intentionally obvious and follow the form so tone is suggested by the closeness and overlaying of lines (similar to drawing 1 above by Wells), almost like cross hatching. This technique is called bracelet shading or hatchuring, which according to Kaupelis, was first developed by Dürer. I can see evidence of this in his drawing: Portrait of Agnes, c. 1494.
7 – Lastly, this drawing was purely chosen due to its interesting and expressive marks. I adore the use of positive and negative spaces here, and really like that the saw blade itself is almost like a hole in the paper (a bit like Patrick Caulfield produced in his Reserved Table, 2000) and theres is so much busyness and drama behind the saw, which is picked out by the sharpness of the white angular lines to describe the saw blade, This is a great contrast and adds a lot of impact into the drawing. Close observation shows a wealth of different lines and marks which even bleed over the saw blade’s surface which ensures that the background and the saw are still connected. There’s also softness in the drawing with the smudges created by the charcoal, I believe this is a great drawing showing mixed media usage successfully. I hope to take elements of this drawing through to my still life composition, perhaps I could use a variety of washes to suggest a little form within the drawing, whilst still focusing on the line as the main study of my drawing.

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In my research, I appreciate Henri Matisse and his simple and joyful ‘Orpheus and his lyre, 1945, pen and ink on paper, which I found on the Bridgeman Education Library. https://www.bridgemaneducation.com/en/asset/1220326/summary?context=%7B%22route%22%3A%22assets_search%22%2C%22routeParameters%22%3A%7B%22_format%22%3A%22html%22%2C%22_locale%22%3A%22en%22%2C%22filter_text%22%3A%22line+drawing%22%7D%7D. I really like the simplicity and almost cartoony effect of his drawing, I don’t believe it holds absolute true life-likeness to a human form, but in the spirit of the greek mythology that the subject is within, there is opportunity to be freer and more dreamlike with the shape produced. I think from the style of the line that the drawing was created quickly and spontaneously, rather than great thought and time invested into each line.

In comparison, Manuel Bennett creates an untitled nude drawing which is similar but different to Matisses’s. The similarities end with using black line only and no tonal variations, however the lines differ in which Bennett’s are smoother, more linear and give the impression that possibly more thought and time is given to each line, which also appears to be unbroken for the majority and only small details are free from joining any other line. I quite like this effect and will probably use this when detailing the strawberries as they looked messy and too complicated when I tried to detail with all lines touching. The Bennett drawing I studied can be found here:
https://www.bridgemaneducation.com/en/asset/3585322/summary?context=%7B%22route%22%3A%22assets_search%22%2C%22routeParameters%22%3A%7B%22_format%22%3A%22html%22%2C%22_locale%22%3A%22en%22%2C%22filter_text%22%3A%22line+drawing%22%2C%22page%22%3A%223%22%7D%7D

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Exercise 1 Outcome

The drawing above is my final piece of work for this exercise which is shows the end product of my research and experimentation for drawings using line within this project so far.

Overall I am happy with the piece, but being critical, there is a lot that didn’t work for me that I would like to discuss.

The tone washes that I used, are a bit messy and I thought at the time and from looking at previous work that I experimented with, that this would look good in my final piece. I’m not sure whether I got a bit blasé with the wash and didn’t pay attention to the varying tones in the composition and light sources/shadows, but I feel they look clunky and could have been applied more intelligently to compliment the line rather than distract from it. The drawing below is my initial attempt at drawing the still life with line, in my sketchbook which I feel using the ink wash more sympathetically and gradually to not distract from the importance of the line. I was free and expressive with my lines, using much more ink than I did with my final piece which I think gives a contemporary and powerful impact when observing the contrast of the dark lines on the lighter paper.

I also found that the paper I produced my final drawing on was a creamer colour than the pure white plane of my sketchbook. I’m quite annoyed with myself that breezed over this aspect, however, it’s another note to add to my learning diary; check to make sure the colour of the plane is the same when moving from preliminary to final pieces.
I’ve also learnt that the A3 paper was much bigger than the A5 sketchbook plane and I may have underestimated this when transferring the study from a little to big working space. The final drawing doesn’t look as close together or linked as the the sketchbook piece, perhaps the individual pieces of fruit could have been scaled up even more to show a more connected piece as a whole composition.

I also feel a few perspectives don’t quite work in my final piece either. The melon for example, I think it looks too open and tilted towards the viewer. In my feedback from my tutor for Assignment 1, Simon advises to work on my perspective skills , specifically ellipses. I received this feedback after I completed this final piece and upon analysing the perspective, I can agree with Simon wholeheartedly; I have some work to do as this weakness is evident across my drawing work across the course thus far. I have dug out my perspective drawing books which I had studied in my Interior Design course, completed a few years ago. For some reason, I haven’t quite made the connection between my technical drawing from previous, to my drawing within my art work currently. It would appear I categorise them differently at present, so I will be experimenting and practising with perspective drawing to improve my technique and combine my different styles for when it is appropriate.

I do feel that the drawing was successful in that I combined a few different line drawing techniques to produce an expressive and spontaneous drawing which is fresh and light. These were my aims when researching and experimenting in my sketchbook so therefore I feel that my chosen tool and medium of dip pen and ink was the right choice for my composition and it’s subject. Although this was specifically a line drawing, and I did use ink washes to describe tone to some degree, I tried to use my lines in a style that would describe tone by following the form of the pieces of fruit; much like the hatchuring and cross-contour techniques discovered above. I did find it difficult to stay true to the line drawing focus and after the previous exercises, of engaging with techniques to describe form by tonal gradations, I found it quite restrictive to not be tempted to use the tone washes to depict at the dark, mid and light tones within the composition. However, I believe I was successful in describing form with the line as described previously.

Detail And Tone provides an exercise where by I am challenged to produce a coloured drawing of a single object, varying the effects of form and depth with hatching and cross-hatching techniques. As suggested, I begun with identifying the tonal differences from dark to mid to light, and lightly suggested these on the cartridge paper with an HB pencil. It was quite difficult to resist the temptation to fill in the large areas of dark tones with the colouring pencil as a flat expanse shape of colour, however, I continued using hatching and cross-hatching to build up colours, blending them where appropriate. I thought I had started off quite heavy with the dark tone hues but as I introduced the mid tones I realised that I probably needed to apply a bit more pressure to get a stronger colour as there would not have been an effective contrast between the darkest and the lightest tones.

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Working on the shadows, I pulled from my experience in Part One of the course, the technique of hatching and cross-hatching to build up depth with tonal gradation within the shadows, which when observing closely, I could see more than one shadow being cast by the orange due to the two separate lights acting on the orange causing two shadows that overlapped in the middle negative space between the orange halves.

I found picking out the highlights with the putty rubber quite difficult on the orange flesh as the highlights were so tiny but I found after some experimenting first in my sketch book that with the cross-hatching naturally leaving a lighter tone showing through the spaces in between the lines, I felt like little more was needed other than a few spots picked out to show the reflective wet surface of the inside that had been cut open.

Overall I feel like the piece I have produced (pictured below) is a good attempt at Project 2, Exercise 1 and I am pleased that I have learnt to routinely take a break and step back from my work to observe the overall drawing; in this particular piece it has shown me where the uneven tonal variations need to be amended and the shadows didn’t look quite right from a distance so I evened those up too. I also found that I needed to erase the initial outlines a few times as they were either too small or positioned in such a way that made the drawing look unnatural and unbalanced because of the negative space that was left around the positive when drawn in the first few attempts. Even though I am very happy with the outcome of this piece of work, building up the tonal variations with colour whilst executing cross-hatching and hatching methods, I still think that I could have made the orange halves even bigger on the paper plane and made them more of a focus. I think they are too small and there is an abundance of wasted negative space around the two orange halves, that if I had drawn them bigger, I could have got in some more detail and varied strokes with the building up of the layers of cross-hatching whilst ensuring that the orange remains the focus of the drawing and not the chopping board they sit on.