Visiting artist Serena Korda

Influence - Horror films of the early 80s and 90s.

Question's why are we drawn to fear? 

Likes making things. Story telling and history is a key feature. 

Puppets and dolls are explored. 

Constructing and deconstruction.

Illusions. Charlie Chaplin.

Movements turned into a dance.

Choreography dance of the everyday 

Female hysteria

Concur fear of the unknown. 

Lens base and digital

Andreas Gursky 

Jonathon Yeo

I visited the national portrait gallery a couple of times whilst painting my portraits. The exhibition that is currently on is the artist Jonathon Yeo. What I like about his portraits is that he seems to capture a different side to the people he portrays. One thing that I admire about his paintings is that he paints them from life. Which is something that I would like to work up to. 

I also like the colour palette he uses and have been trying to examine it so I can bring that into my work. I think the earth tones are easy to look at and are calming. 

I found that I was not very keen on this lay out as you cannot appreciate the paintings as much as they are all cluttered. However you can see how they work well with each other as the colours do seem to compliment each other. 

I found it really interesting to see the drawings he made for the paintings and then the development in the actual paintings as you can see how he has worked it out, I like that the backgrounds are abstract.

Below is one of my favourite paintings I think the colours work together well. I also like the bold brush marks made as they create the form of the face very well. Which is something that I would like to do with my paintings.

'Prince Philip'

Group seminar presentation

Group presentation. 

Kentridge made a series of large drawings of trees in indian ink. He analyses the form of different trees. 

This piece was part of a series, so it is a development.

 Some of Kentridge's work for instance his piece above reminds me of Kara Walker's silhouettes.

Drawing project

For drawing I had an idea of making an animation.
The theme was based on the idea of the journey of learning an instrument.

Drawing - Journey

These drawings were experiments for the project 'journey'. I drew them with continuous line drawing as I find that a really successful way of drawing as it does not always have to look completely accurate. I think that I want to develop the landscape further. I may bring paint into my drawings as you can draw with paint.

I think that it may add to the continuous line drawings and make them appear more alive with the use of different brush marks.

Painting

Oil on canvas

Oil on paper

This painting is still a work in progress. I thought this image was intriguing as it was just a big group of people that appeared. I also liked the different emotions in the peoples faces which is like analysing their body language and enhancing some actions more than others like the man pointing his finger. 

Prismacolour pencils on board (composition idea)

Even though the last image is coloured pencil I think I am going to paint it but use different brush marks to get a different overall feel. I think it will be visually interesting to see it in two different mediums and what effects they both bring. Also the colours will be different. 

Lens and digital - video

This was a stop motion I made for lens base and digital. Most of the photos I took were in London apart from the part where people are walking fast were photos taken in Leicester. I thought that they fit the idea behind the video, which was travelling. Which is why I included the train and post signs. I think it would work if I put more post signs in to develop the idea further. 

I was pleased with the way the stop motion turned out although one thing that I would change would be the way the composition jumps around. I think I will use a tripod next time to make it more still. 

Composition ideas for painting.

For painting I started off by taking photographs like these. I was looking at the idea of exploring the people in the city catching them off guard. 

For the images I did crop them to decide what composition I wanted . I then started to draw continuous line drawings from the images. 

2013

2013

These drawings are ideas for paintings. In some of the compositions I put more than one photo together as I thought that it worked and enhanced the original composition as they may have the same expression or are looking the same way , which looks visually interesting as you wonder what they appear to be looking at.

oil on board (a4 board) 

Pencil on paper ( a5 Sketchbook )

Before I started the painting I worked out what composition would work best. 

Oil on board

(Work in progress)

I started to look at my photos and analyse them to make them work into a composition. For this painting I took two different images and cropped them and then put them together. From looking at the drawing and the painting I have decided that I need to change my  painting slightly as it does not look quite right. The jaw line is too thin and the hair line is also not wide enough . Another thing that I need to change is the eyebrows as it does not show his emotion as that is one of the things that I am focussing on.

I also need to change the drawing of the woman as it is not quite right. It is useful seeing them next to each other as I can see where I am going wrong.

Edward Hopper 1882-1967

Edward Hopper created paintings of the American life. He found it hard to find his own style and often returned to illustration. A quote from Edward Hopper " Its hard for me to decide what to paint. I go for months without finding it sometimes. It comes slowly."

In 1913 he travelled to Gloucester, Massachusetts , to gain some inspiration and started his first outdoor paintings in America. He painted 'squam light'.

Squam Light 

Edward Hopper trained under Robert Henri. Another quote from Edward Hopper " It takes a long time for an idea to strike. Then I have to think about it for a long time I don't start painting until I have it all worked out in my mind. I'm alright wen I get to the easel." 

Hopper found the idea of  power of the subconscious mind is the expression of every art.

Edward Hopper seemed to explore different themes regularly, from seascapes to cityscapes. 

Hopper travelled a lot to find inspiration of places to paint and documented through drawing. 

The atmosphere created in his paintings is very intriguing as it is dark most of the time. 

A key theme seems to go throughout Hoppers American life series. The people depicted all seem to be alone and isolated , in their own world.  He seems to focus on one individual as it creates an uneasy atmosphere.