Abstract Art

Reflecting on last week’s tutorial, I decided to work bigger and started researching into artists that used methods, which conducted large work. I was drawn to the works of Cy Twombly and Jackson Pollock, their style depicted marks and splattered which related to the nature I had researched earlier. There loose and abstract way of working, allowed me to explore different techniques of working which allowed me to expand my techniques and ways of working.

I created figure 3 by splattering acrylic paint, which created lumps of mark, this created a textured surface in such a simple way. However, I felt I could have exaggerated the lines, which would have given more depth to the piece. Although the colours of black, white and green have beautifully blended into each other, I felt it didn’t relate to my research. This has made me realise how colour is vital and this needs to be taken into consideration.

Figure 6, I tried to recreate the circular forms within my nature research, I felt this was a successful drawing and really enjoyed working in this way. Although I was unfamiliar with this style of drawing, it enabled me to quickly accumulate a similar style to my intricate drawing in figure 5. I admire how the circular shapes have given fluidity and created an abstract pattern which is quite loud compared to my smaller pieces. I have realised working bigger is better, and this idea of constructing detailed with abstract will be very interesting to see how they both work together.

The textured surfaces I created with abstract and detailed art, had interested me and so I researched further into a book by Bernhard Edmaier, who looks at patterns of the earth. I was able to investigate into unusual surfaces, which was interesting. I responded to this research by imitating my version on them, by focusing on the pattern, shape and colour.

By combining pva glue with watercolours, I was able to create a texture with a shiny surface while also creating something with intricate detail. The two medias combined together, caused the solution to be thick which allowed me to have more control of the brush. Using colour has always been a weakness of mine, but using this technique has let become more confident in experimenting with colour. I feel this piece is strong; it brings out qualities and colours within nature that a viewer may not notice. I feel this piece is quite abstract, although it is meant to resemble detail within water, I feel it is similar to the detail within a leaf. This can be developed into further more detail, where embroidery could be placed on top to allow certain areas to stand out.

references: http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/images/h2/h2_57.92.jpg

http://www.cytwombly.info/prince2_files/untitled_bacchus_series_2005.jpg