Fine Art The final day 6th November

The final day 6th November

With today the last day of fine art, and the last of the subjects, it was important to go out on a high. I had to get in early to get everything ready for my installation. With a list of things that needed to be done, and with only a short time to do it, I worked out what would take longer, and what other things I could do while I waited.

I started with a trip down to 3D. I wanted to make my box heavier and fix my lid on with glue and nails. I also asked about hanging my cube up in the room. This was a very important part of the process because the weigh of the box was an integral part of the interaction I hoped for with the finished piece. I wanted to draw attention to how much mental "weight" depression could have on a person by letting the viewer physically hold the work and experience the 'heaviness'. Secondly, I wanted the viewer to think how difficult it would be to do normal day to day things whilst having that weight on them. I know from carrying it round the college and back to my house it is very difficult. It was such an effort for me to carry it around, to walk and open doors, that by the end of the day I felt physically exhausted. In a similar way, having a "mental weight" would make it very difficult and stressful to do anything.

As for the cube hanging in the room, I had an idea to make it more noticeable as well as deceptively light. However, I wanted it so once the viewer tries to hold it the box, the weight becomes apparent. This is a way of trying to get people to understand depression. It may appear to be light to an outsider, but in fact it isn't. People with depression might appear to be coping, but in their mind they aren't. This is a danger of depression, the person may not feel like they can reach out for help which can lead them to becoming isolated and more depressed.

With the lid fixed and the chain sorted I then had to make sure my cube was ready to be fixed to the ceiling. First I had to paint the black dog on it. I wanted the face to be noticeable, but not too much. It was like in the engraving with the skull in the truncated rhombohedron, only when you look at it closely will you notice the shape of the skull. This being much like depression, it can be something that is not easily noticed by other people.

With some spray paint and templates, I quickly sprayed the dogs head onto the corner of the box and some ribs on the side. I wanted the face of the dog to be protruding out of the box as if it was ready to strike the viewer. I also wanted to have the dogs ribs on the sides. While researching about depression, I found that one of the many signs was the loss of appetite.

After the paint had dried, I could have it fixed up on the ceiling with a chain. The chain itself was also a symbol. It represented the trapped and confined, held back feeling associated with depression. I then fixed up the paint a bit before moving onto the background. With such a dark black box, I wanted a contrast with white, not only so that the box itself would stand out, but also when the light shines on it there is a clear shadow cast on the floor.

Time was up. I was happy with my installation. The only thing left to do was present it to the group for feed back. I started by talking about the engraving and how I interpreted the angel being too depressed to create despite having all the tools around her, and how in today's world there are 'tools' to help people with depression. The problem is that depressed people can feel too isolated and cut off and cant use the 'tools' that are available to help them.

My initial ideas for this work started off as an image of a person in a box in the centre of a maze unable to get out because they are cut off from all exits. I also envisaged a black dog looming over the figure as if to cover and envelop them. I decided to change the idea, making the artwork more of a physical thing, a tangible object to enable the viewer to physically experience a weight just as someone suffering from depression feels that mental weight on them. I was going to paint a maze on the box, but with little time to do that it wasn't possible or practical. Also, too much detail might have detracted from the feeling I wanted to achieve. By painting the box all black, the cube itself has a presence in the room that I was happy with.

After explaining the meaning behind my installation, it was opened up for comments, which were mostly positive. There were a couple of questions on how and why I chose the chain, or about the dog, and if there was anything I would change. If I was going to take this work further, I would make the dog's face a bit bigger, and higher on the box. I would also smooth the edges of the box, but keep the corners sharp. I would also hang it a little lower so it would be easier for people to lift and feel the weight.

Fine art has been an interesting journey with both projects done in only a week. It shows just how much you can do with three days of hard work.

Fine Art The Black Box 5th november

The Black Box 5th November

With only today and tomorrow morning to finish my fine art piece, I had to get in early to have a chance on finishing it on time. With my box made yesterday and ready to be painted, I had to decide what would be on it. My original idea was to have the each side tell a separate story, or show a different state of depression. The thing that would be hard about that idea was it might take too long to paint. I had to finish on time and thinking up six different ideas in such a short time and paint them would be a hard task.

Just as I was mapping out my drawings, the tutor came to see what I was doing. After I told him my ideas and how I would like my cube to turn out, he asked if it had to be so detailed. The main purpose of the cube is to have the ability to feel the weight of depression as if it was a physical thing, so why not have it more as a dark abstract object? The talk moved to having a black box hanging so the people could come and feel the weigh of it and also view it as an object.

I find talking my ideas through very helpful. Having to try and gather my thoughts together so that someone else can clearly understand makes me think carefully on how my idea is formed. Also, the questions they ask are useful because they make you think of things you may have forgotten.

With ideas being tossed around, I thought keeping the black dog on the box was something important. It interested me having the idea of depression as not only something that hangs over you, but as a being, an animal that is always following you. With so much happening from the last day, my design had become something very different from the original 'maze'. However, I think this is a good thing and the interesting part is my original idea or concept hasn't really changed very much. There is still a black dog looming over a person, only the person isn't in the painting now. I think that's much more engaging for the viewer.

With a lot to do and little time, I got down to paining my box black. This is something that would take the longest as the paint would have to dry in between coats, and I would have to give it at least two coats of paint before it would be dark enough. I started with the top, then worked my way around. By the time I had done the bottom, the top was just dry enough to paint again. I had to do three layers of paint so that I couldn't see any of the white showing through. While it dried, I went to look up ideas for putting my black dog on the box. By the time returned, the class was over and I had only 5 minutes to get to my next one.

With so much still to do, I have to get in early tomorrow so I can make sure I have the nice people in 3D all to myself.

Fine Art One Fine Box 4th November

                                                                      

One Fine Box  4th November 

Last week's Fine Art was a group session. Our group made a 3D interpretation of the engraving Melancholia I by Durer. Today's lesson was the first of three that will be my own take on the subject. This was difficult in many ways; I already had ideas that I put into the first interpretation and I wanted to make something different to that one, but it still had to have the same theme as the engraving.

After doing a bit of research, the idea of a maze came into my mind. I wanted to draw on the fact that depression can be where it feels like being trapped in a maze, as well as having a weight on your shoulders that makes it hard to get up in the morning and carry on with the day ahead. Even with people's encouragement you still cant find your way out of the depression. This linked in with the angel in the engraving. Despite having the tools around her to create, she still couldn't bring herself to do anything. With this in mind I wanted to have a image of a maze, and at the centre would be a figure in a box. They would be surrounded, wanting to communicate and find their way out of the depression, but they are unwilling or unable to do so. Hanging over them would be a symbol of depression, a black dog. It would be heavy and oppressive, almost as if it might crush them.

While talking to the tutor, the idea of taking the puzzle side further came up. Instead of making a painting I thought about making it more of a puzzle, or something the viewer could interact with. We talked about it being a cube or die, with the sides showing different states of depression. After talking it through, I had a lot to think about. The idea of the box really interested me. I liked the idea of being able to lift the artwork and actually feel and imagine the weight of carrying the depression with you. If I was to do a box, I needed to get it done today so I could have time to paint it. As soon as the group knew what they were doing I was off to 3D to make my box.

I'd never made anything in wood before and making a box seemed like an easy task. I was wrong. It needed precise measuring and a steady hand to make a cube. It started with measuring. I wanted the box about 14in by 13in, but the problem was finding materials to make it.

After a quick look I found a large piece of wood that was ideal for what I wanted. It was only slightly smaller then the original size I had in mind. With the pieces mapped out it was ready to be cut and time for me to have a go on the saws. It was very much straightforward, all I had to do was cut the sides and top out making sure I kept everything even. I had two goes with the saw, once to cut the sides of my cube down so they would fit together, and another to cut the top off them. This took more time than I thought as I had to make sure the measurements were all correct before I could start cutting. After that was done I had to fix my box together. I started by clamping the sides so I could have them standing upright, then I glued them in place. After I had done the sides of my box, I could then fix the bottom onto it with more glue. This was a messy procedure, but it was all worth it. After using a couple of nails to make sure everything was secure, my box was done.

Thanks to the help of the lovely people down at 3D, I was able to complete my box by the end of the day. Now all I have to do is paint it and I'll be finished.

Fine Art Research The black dog

The Black Dog

The dog has been used as a symbol in myths and folklore, poetry and paintings for centuries. Usually they symbolise loyalty, protection and fidelity. Dogs are probably the oldest and closest of man's animal companions, so it is easy to understand why they embody so many qualities associated with loyalty and companionship.

The dog has also long been considered a liaison between the physical and non-physical worlds. Ancient Egyptian, Greek, Roman, and Celtic have all described the dog as a sacred guardian of the 'Otherworlds'. Dogs are often the guardians of ephemeral domains.

Some of the earliest references to the "black dog" is in folklore, where the black dog was associated with the devil, bad luck, or even an omen of death. Seeing the black dog was not a good thing. The black dog was often said to be larger then a normal dog and have glowing eyes. It was thought of as a bad omen and was said to be seen around crossroads, places of execution and ancient pathways.

The "black dog" is also recognised as a synonym for depression. Winston Churchill used the phrase "black dog" when referring to his own depression. Paul Foley said, "(the black dog) ... is an ever-present companion, lurking in the shadows just out of sight, growling, vaguely menacing, always on the alert; sinister and unpredictable, capable of overwhelming you at any moment."

Today, the black dog is a symbol of dark and menacing things, a nagging depression that can follow you relentlessly.

http://www.blackdoginstitute.org.au/docs/Richardson.pdf

http://www.blackdoginstitute.org.au/docs/Michael.pdf

 http://www.blackdoginstitute.org.au/docs/Foley.pdf

http://www.blackdoginstitute.org.au/docs/Huet.pdf

Fine Art research Michael Price

Michael Price

Michael Price is an English artist born in Stoke-on-Trent. After a lot of traveling, he moved to New York in 1999. In 2007 he started a studio that teaches artists the old ways of using natural and mineral pigments and their application in oil binding mediums.

In his paintings, Price tries to achieve a sense of timelessness through his exploration of the nude and human figure. In his art he looks at the nude to find the incredible beauty that he sees in the core of the human figure. Almost all of his work starts with drawing from a life model or occasionally looking at ancient Greek sculptures. After drawing many different poses and studying the movement and form of the model, these studies are then taken and used to create the final artwork. Price not only sees the human figure as a body, but as something beautiful, an extension of our divine nature. When he is painting his nudes, Price tries to make them seem as though they are in a timeless universe, revealing the archetypal images as a spirit or energy in the physical world we inhabit.

This way of seeing the tangible and finite world, provided Price with the inspiration for his painting process. He wanted to use the same mineral pigments and gold leaf like the old Renaissance Masters did. The colour for his paint is produced from rocks and crystals including lapis lazuli, azurite and cinnabar mixed with an egg tempera. They create the vivid colours he works with.

In using this style of oils he had to learn a whole new way of painting. Instead of painting over any mistake because the colour of the paint was too bright and translucent to cover the underneath, he had to plan out every part of his paintings. Just as the Renaissance Masters did with their paintings, geometry became very important to Price. This was not only in terms of the proportions of the figure, but the relation to the rectangle, making note of the height and the width. Many of his works refer to the Old Masters who steeped themselves in Euclidean geometry and the philosophical ideas of their day. “Homage to Dürer, Melancholia I” is Price’s modern take on the Master’s angel contemplating the Philosopher’s Stone. Price takes the old ways of painting and turns it into his style of a timeless world.

Price hopes that his works hold up a mirror for people to see the beauty in the world, a world sometimes there isn't much good news to be heard. He believes they need only look to find it.

 

Fine Art artist research Mathew Borrett

Mathew Borrett

Mathew Borrett is a Canadian illustrator and visual effects artist who works with architectural illustration and also creates wild and sometimes elaborate imagined structures, some underground, some in cityscapes. He creates networks of compartmentalised dwellings that appear to be carved into the face of a cliff or dug into the ground with isometric perfection.

Borrett also explores imaginary landscapes that have a science fiction or fantasy feeling about them. His underground structures are maze-like and are remindful of Escher's work in the way they extend underground in fascinatingly detailed cutaway views of interlocking rooms, tunnels, stairways, and halls. The beautifully complex maze of tiny rooms sometimes appear to be carved from a solid white page. Many drawings seem to defy logic, which makes them more fascinating. Borrett divides space in an interesting way. Some drawings look as though they have developed from more traditional architectural subjects, especially the ones which feature cut-away sections.

Borrett says about his childhood, "During those weeks of the summer when too much pollen was about, I’d retreat to my room where I would draw, build elaborate things out of Lego, and make primitive computer graphics on my Commodore 64. If I really liked something I’d built out of Lego, I would draw instructions on graph paper for how to build it again."

Borrett also said that he had, "a fascination with maps and architecture, a penchant for detail, and recurring dreams of finding strange hidden rooms in his house." It is obvious that these childhood experiences were important in his development as an artist and the influences can be seen in his wonderful detailed maze-like drawings.

The labyrinth-like structures in his drawings are surreal and puzzling. Scale, physics and logic are of no importance. Bedrooms exist with no entrances and doorways lead you nowhere as you wander through the maze. Borrett's drawings draw you in and invite you to get lost in a hidden world.

Photography artist reseach Man Ray

Man Ray  Photography

Man Ray was born Emmanuel Radnitzky in 1890. He was an American artist who spent most of his career in Paris. Man Ray was associated with Dada and Surrealism, while his work included photography, painting, film, sculpture, and prints.

Man Ray is best remembered for his photography, despite the fact he considered himself a painter. His experiments with photography included photograms (camera-less pictures) which he called 'Rayographs' in reference to himself. Man Ray was also a fashion and portrait photographer with many of his photos published in magazines such as Harper's Bazaar, Vu, and Vogue.

Throughout the 1920s and 1930s Man Ray experimented with photography through portraiture; a means of capturing the activities of his avant-garde friends. He described himself during this time as "an official recorder of events and personalities." The list of people in his portraits is impressive. Salvador Dali looked like a circus magician. The Surrealist Meret Oppenheim was photographed in the nude, smeared with black ink from an etching press. Ernest Hemingway, James Joyce, Gertrude Stein, Picasso, Matisse, Duchamp, Salvador Dali were all his subjects. Many of the portraits have a feeling of playfulness.

Man Ray also experimented with a technique called solarization, a kind of overexposure which adds a silvery, ghostly quality to the image. In a solarised black-and-white portrait of Lee Miller, who was his lover and model, her hair looks like "a helmet of beaten gold."

Man Ray had a distinctive technique; he worked quickly and didn't instruct the sitter because he wanted the portraits to appear natural. His portraits of the social elite during this time suggest a mutual respect between the subjects and the photographer. The great artists and writers who sat for him probably understood that they themselves were equally in the presence of a great artist.

Photography for Man Ray operated in the gap between art and life. In some of his photographs he seemed to be documenting sculptures. Man Ray said he would photograph an idea rather than an object, and a dream rather than an idea. During the 1920s he at his peak as a conceptual innovator. It was at this time he produced his most recognised and popular photograph, "Le Violon d'Ingres".

Le Violin d'Ingres is a photograph of his lover, an actor known as Kiki. (The title is a French expression that means "hobby".) Man Ray drew two black shapes on her back to make her appear like a musical instrument. The photograph references a painting called 'Le Bain Turc' painted by neoclassical French artist Jean August Dominique. The resemblance of the shape of Kiki's back to a violin, with the added f-holes make this a classic Surrealist work. Le Violon d'Ingres is a visual pun, depicting his muse, Kiki, as his Violon d'Ingres, his 'hobby'. She is presented as a passive instrument or plaything.

Man Ray was an innovative and creative photographer and artist. His contribution to photography marks him as one of the greatest artists of the twentieth century.