Studio: 10th April

I have been working into the three colour study paintings with glazing; this is a slow process so these pieces eventually will run alongside a body of other work. I have also been generating more drawings to explore composition and context and relevant reading. These sketches are bring together figures which are intended to link - some repeat a figure in a different position, some show progression of movement.

I wanted to experiment with placing figures next to each other - I don't think this works as they don't inhabit the space convincingly. Perhaps I could add colour to suggest depth.

I quite like the way the composition suggests a dynamic between the two figures, although this is odd as the scale of the girls is inconsistent and again the space isn't convincing. However, the awkwardness works in terms of creating an ambiguous image. 

is beginning to create some depth and I like the way the figures link through touch. The egg looks odd, the figures sat on it doll-like and the middle figure seems to want to roll her off her seat. Curious how the diagonal emerged (made less obvious by the shadows) - not sure how I feel about this as a compositional device although it does lead your eye through the image.

 

Another more static composition using the diagonal - this reminds me of the Midwych Cuckoos and has more potential for employing the gaze. Strong shadows work and this links to my development of under painting in oil to heighten tonal values. I very quickly added vertical brushstrokes to suggest trees to place the figures in a setting - this certainly creates a space and a sense that they have emerged into a clearing.

Introduction of colour glazes of yellow, blue and red. Interesting to see how the background glaze affects the overall look. At the moment I prefer the yellow as it interferes least with the later layers.

 

Added vertical lines in background and marks in foreground to create context - think the figures will look more convincing in a setting rather than abstractly floating.

Added some colour glazes over the background lines to try to push them into the background and some mark making to right and central foreground. Remember that these could be viewed together or separately as they are all different sizes.

 Detail of red ground - the yellow seems to emerge the most where the blue/brown recedes

Blue ground painting - red highlights in the hair and on the socks push forwards. I don't think the blue background works with the blue clothing as it appears too overpowering in the whole image.

This is my favourite figure because of the way the body twists in on itself. Here again, the red and yellow pop where the blue is more harmonious and muted with the green marks in the background. I have begun to use red on the ground to bring the bottom of the painting forwards.

Reflection

It feels strange to be working on smaller scale paintings to investigate colour but it is forcing me to make decisions as I go as I tackle the technical aspects. I know that I need to keep drawing and am also planning to do some printmaking to test compositions for bigger pieces. I am now being tempted by my new canvases but know I need to stick with what I am doing while I enhance my theoretical and practical knowledge. Relatively, the paintings seem more muted which is a success as I intended to reduce the saturation. However, I am still really bothered by the lack of gaze as this is such a dominant feature of my work, so I need to revisit this using drawing to find a way to integrate the two ideas.

One month reflection

The group crit gave me really positive feedback on my use of lack of gaze and how this opened up a different sense if unease and power in my work. I am wondering now how I can combine the two. The tangled hair idea has great potential as it seems to hold energy like Samson's (and Delilah) - it works with drawing but need to experiment more with wet media. Certainly the feedback that I have had has been more in favour of the moving than static compositions. I find it funny that I wrote that I was tempted by my new canvases but was holding back...I'm relieved that I did as I hadn't taken the new series of photos at time so I may have regretted it later, but I prefer to begin quickly and work on multiple pieces. Perhaps this is why I have found this unit really difficult so far.