Drawing Workshop at the V&A

DRAWING WORKSHOP AT THE V&A

We met at the V&A and spent the day doing a drawing workshop.  I really enjoyed this experience as it made me view the Museum in a different way.  I was more appreciative of the pieces as well as the people.  This workshop also allowed me to work on my drawing and time management skills.

Overall my favourite workshop so far!

Colour Workshop

COLOUR WORKSHOP

One of the workshops I undertook on my foundation course at Working Mens College was a colour workshop. We looked at the colour wheel, experimenting with making different colours from the three original primary colours. 

We went on to look at artists that use colour and how they use it, for example, Monet's Haystack at Sunset (see below). Looking at how he used colour to create shadows and light, without using any black or white paint.

I went to the local park from our college and experimented using Monet's style of colour. I took a palette  of just red, yellow and blue and a piece of paper. At first I found it challenging to be so experimental with my use of colours, however by the end of the session I found I was inspired and ready to keep experimenting. 

Mirror

MIRROR

The first topic on my Foundation course was Mirror. I began by brainstorming around this topic to explore the different avenues I could possibly go down. I found that by using images as a part of this process was really helpful in coming up with ideas.

*SKETCHBOOK PAGES*

I gathered even more inspiration and ideas from a trip to the V&A Museum. I enjoyed looking out for the less obviously linked pieces to the topic as I found that this broadened my thoughts even more.

Below are two studies I created from one of Paul Hogarth's displays in the V&A. I was particularly interested in this trumpet piece as I loved how Hogarth had taken such a mirrored surfaced object and drawn it in a way which completely took that texture away. It made me think about creating a piece to do with the topic of Mirror that was not so obvious but required thought from the viewer. 

I experimented with a variety of materials to see the kind of effects I could achieve with inspiration from Hogarth's style. The first experiment I did (above) was taken from the sketch I did in the gallery, to which I used watered down black acrylic to fill in. This gave the block effect which Paul Hogarth's original shows. For the second experiment (below) I decided to reverse the light/dark as well as focus in on a particular part of the trumpet. This not only emphasised the many shapes in the trumpet but also created more distance from the shiny, mirrored texture a trumpet would usually have. I used string as I thought that the textured material would create even more of a statement, showing the complete opposite of a typical mirrored texture of a trumpet. Despite the positives to these experiments I decided that I was going to move on from this idea of opposing mirrored objects as this  idea was not developed enough.

I decided that I did not feel excited enough by my idea and so, I decided to try another idea. This was to look at the relationships between people and objects. In particular I was interested a person and 'their object'. I began looking at family, friends and strangers. I settled on my sister as I knew her well and could therefore create a more real, understanding piece. If I had more time for this project I would definitely have considered using strangers as I feel this could give a really insightful view into people we don't know. 

At first I wanted to explore how an object/objects can represent someone, and mirror them as a person. However as my ideas developed I refined the objects down to just one. Below are a few sketchbook pages of me experimenting with technique and of my model and her object. I found this process really fun as I got to experiment with techniques and ideas whilst being able to ask my sister for her  input. 

(Bottom right, sketch I used in initial final piece)

INITIAL FINAL PIECE

Here are my four final outcomes for the Mirror project. They effectively show off the technique I was using (creating illusions and being playful with mirrors) as well as showing off a person and their object.What I learnt most from creating these was that the positioning of the mirror really determined the way one interprets the piece. For example, in the two left photographs I have mirrored them so that they are symmetrical (a technique that is supposed to make people/things more attractive). It is interesting however how the object ended up looking almost alien like!

Overall I think that my final pieces explore the topic Mirror effectively however the idea could still be pushed further.

IMPROVED FINAL PIECE

Although as a group we had finished the Mirror project, I felt that I could still push my idea further. I continued to think of people and their objects, objects that represent them. I wanted the individual and their objected to be more linked rather than set apart like my initial final piece. This is why I chose this photograph of the model Cara Delevinge. The foundation highlights the industry she is in as well as the pressures of appearance. The format of a photograph from one of her shoots also demonstrates the industry she is in. Overall I think this idea is much more consistent than the initial one. The bottom photograph below is my improved final outcome. I digitally mirrored the photograph to gain this much more professional and striking image. If I was to take this idea any further I would probably use primary sources to create the final image.

Make Something That Balances

MAKE SOMETHING THAT BALANCES

On my first day of my Foundation course we were all given the brief for a one day 'Balance' Workshop.  This was the perfect project to not only test our skills and thinking process but also the perfect chance to get to know out peers that we would spend the rest of the year with. 

We split in to teams and got started right away.  Our instinct was to go outside and search around Camden for materials we could use.  We ended up gathering lots of cardboard boxes and tubes.   Once we had gathered our materials we came back to the studio and began balancing.  We tried a few balancing sculptures, some that worked and some that didn't, and ended up creating a weird balancing creature.  

At first I thought it would be a negative to only have one day to complete the workshop. However  I quickly learnt how positive this short time frame was.  It highlighted the importance of working in a team to a deadline.