Sculpture 'two words' project

The aim of this project is to select two words from a variety of choices and create a sculpture based from your choice of words. I find the concept of this very intriguing and inspirational as you could potentially create anything of different textures and sizes. A few words that stood out to me were 'loose' 'hollow' 'extensive' 'close' and 'intimate.' I considered the outcomes to be something that would spread out or start from a point that could be extended. I considered what materials I could use for the types of words I was looking at and thought that maybe the best media would be plaster or string or wire as this can be manipulated and twisted. For starting points and for a way to test out my ideas, I'd like to use plasticine to play around with extensive positions and to see how I can manipulate the shape into something that bends and twists to test how this would work with other materials.

Out of all the words we were given, i was most drawn to 'intimate' and 'extensive.' The words create an image in my head of something that was close together but also continuos or growing. 

Pictures found using google

I started to look at different shapes and styles to find a way to show something which would show something which both extended into something bigger/taller and also something that was close or tight. 

I want to create something which represents intimacy but also continuous or growing. 

Artist: Nettie Wakefield

Group presentation on artist Nettie Wakefield

http://www.nettiewakefield.net/

Nettie Wakefield's works titled 'reversed portraits' are A3 sized pencil drawings of the backs of peoples heads. 

She is currently working on a masters degree specialising in drawing and she has been working independently on projects and exhibitions since 2009. She currently lives and works in London.

Her inspiration for the series came to her from sitting in a lecture theatre when she noticed the person in front of her had an interesting hairstyle. As she began to draw the back of her head she starting to consider who she was and what she looked like from the front. This series is aimed at provoking intrigue and curiosity from the viewer. 

The reason she chose to focus on the back of peoples heads is to discover how much information you can gather just by looking at somebody from behind. 

The reason i chose to look at Nettie Wakefield's work is because i found the concept of looking at something from a different prospective interesting. I like the way that her work is designed to make you think about how things which normally go unnoticed can still hold a lot of information about a persons personality, and in this case what they might look like from the front.

In relation to my own work, i really like how simple the subject is but it can stir thoughts in a viewer. I love the realistic style and how each individual hair is captured almost as if its moving. 

In the future, for my own work i'd like to find a simplistic subject which has a lot of meaning that makes the viewer want to know more information.

Inspirational Quotes

This quote is derived from Cesar A. Cruz's work titled 'To Comfort The Disturbed, and to Disturb the Comfortable: Onward children of the sun.' 

It is believed that Banksy is related to the quote above in relation to art.

I think that this is a very powerful sentence and i love the way it basically describes that art is something of an eye-opener to people that believe that they live in an 'ideal' world.

Personally i think that some of the best concepts are to show people and make them think about the things they normally turn a blind eye to.

I also think that the part about comforting the disturbed is very powerful as i think that using art at something to express ones own emotions is very effective. 

- Edgar Degas

This is another quote which is pretty relevant to the previous one. The message is mainly about opinion and about concept in an artists work. 

I think that art is showing a message, whether its societal issues, current issues or ongoing problems such as war, racism, sexism ect. 

It also related to the physical subject and how it may not be always aesthetically pleasing or it may be a magnificent art piece but it is essentially valueless as it doesn't have a clear message or mean anything to the viewer. 

Artist: Annette Messenger

While conducting research for the sculpture project i came across Annette Messenger. I also saw her work in the Tate Modern in London. Her work caught my eye as i like the way her work is in clusters and collections.

picture 

trendland.com

I like the way that her work is a collection of things which accumulate to one big piece. The context of her work usually relates to things happening in society such as feminism and culture. 

I like the idea of using a collection of objects to represent what you are trying to communicate and i'd like to do the same with my own sculpture work.

picturehttp://trendland.com/

Artist: Jonathan Yeo

Jonathan Yeo is an artist that i saw in the National Portrait Gallery in London.

Sienna Miller

Pictures from http://www.jonathanyeo.com

Jonathan's paintings vary in size and some are arranged in groups. His popular works are of recognisable people, actors, actresses and politicians. Some of his paintings are sized based on the popularity of his subject. 

The reason i chose to look at his work is because i find the way he focuses on the face of the subject and the rest of the painting is very out of focus and seems a little unfinished. 

picture (http://www.google.com/hostednews/getty/media/ALeqM5iw7yivRcnRibcwwG_SV_f4az0MvA)

Other the the style of his paintings, i like his use of colour. The backgrounds make his work seem very natural and almost make it look like the backdrop used in photography for school photographs. Collectively they look like variations of skin tones and pastels. 

Shebah 2013

picture http://www.jonathanyeo.com/gallery)

I particularly like this painting of the artists wife as the pose is very natural, it looks almost as though it was painted from life rather than a photograph. He has created this with his trademark 'unfinished' look which makes it a little more natural. I also like the way the colours are very neutral and light. 

London Galleries

The concept behind this really intrigued me, the way that the piece shows that creativity and individuality is controlled and the lack of freedom of imagination. 

Tate gallery, London 

Jannis Kounellis, Untitled 1979

(picture www.tate.org.uk )

I felt inspired by this piece mainly because i liked the concept that everything which begins must have an end. Both the painting and the meaning are very simple yet it makes you think of things related to time and passage.
This has inspired me to take a similar concept with my print work. This could be related to decay and the way things fade into nothingness. I want to execute this by using ink in printing to show how things fade over use/time.

Lee Ufan, From Line. 1978

Picture (www.yiaos.com)

This painting created by shooting at pockets of paint under a layer of plaster, i like the way the marks are very uncontrolled and random.

Niki de saint Phalle, Shooting picture 1961

picture (guineveregetssober.com )

What is a studio?

Week 2. What is a studio?

• Definition of a studio: 'an artists work room.' Studio derives from the latin work for 'study' or 'zeal' meaning diligence. 
• A studio can be a place of solitude, somewhere to work without any distractions. 
• A personal place to create work and not worry about mess in your home.
• Somewhere to create and explore, to display older work and to work from it or to develop idea's. 
• Benefits of working in a shared studio place such as university include being able to observe and learn from the work of others, to assist and be assisted by people around you and to socialise and share idea's.
• Having your own personal space allows you the freedom to create whatever you want, the space is entirely for artwork, painting, sculpture, or drawing. 
• There are negatives to sharing studio space is that there are most likely going to be distractions, other people to consider, less freedom of spreading out work and clearing up after working.

What is Art?

Week 1, What is art?

• There is no definite definition for 'art.'  Anything can be considered art.
• Art is a matter of opinion, something which makes the viewer think about what the message is. 
• Art can be a message or a representation of current issues, the artists personal life or an emotion. 
• Art raises questions, social views and may even change opinions about the subject. 
• Art is something that is different in the 'eye of the beholder'
• There is a huge change between the first works of traditional artists to the variety of modern art created today. Some may consider something only which is photo realistic or of a particular subject to be art. Today, art can be any media and any subject although a lot of art is heavily debated.
• Art is a form of escapism to some, a break from every day life, to create an image of a utopia or even dystopia from the real world.
• definition: the expression or application of human creative skill and imagination, typically in a visual form such as painting or sculpture, producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power.