Part 5 Assignment 5 - first attempt

sketch used for No.1

Prior to starting this assignment, several options were on the cards, My increasing inclination was to move towards abstraction for the assignment series, during my progress through Part 5. The idea to use something relatively humble as a single piece of rock for my motif only began to develop when I was in the process of doing the exercise - Abstraction from natural forms. While trying to pin down a  theme from my list, a chance passing glance at this rock prompted me to study its contours and distinct patterning more closely, setting the process in motion. From the start I intended to use the rock only as a source to explore ways of putting a composition together with various paint techniques and materials. I wanted to incorporate many techniques and materials from earlier exercises in Part 5, plus a few others I had picked up elsewhere along the way through the course.
By attempting sketches from various angles and distances i.e. close-up detail, side views and face on views, including parts of the outer contours, and from playing about with cropping, a long narrow format began to suggest itself. The same motif occurred repeatedly in separate guises, yet I could see plenty of scope for variation, though finding a pleasing composition proved more problematic than first anticipated. It took several sketches before I began to feel comfortable with the subject, which was surprising since I found it so inspiring when I first noticed it in amongst a collection of rocks around the house and made the decision to use it. This could have been due to choosing a detail of something already relatively abstract as opposed to a more identifiable subject. Although, on reflection I don't think there is any difference in reality, it depends on how it's perceived. Subsequently several alternative views materialised, most of them later turning out to be useful, which was not apparent to me at that stage.



The choice to go with a palette of unrealistic colours was made after a spontaneous quick experiment, using up some old paint left over from the previous exercise - from man made form. This amounted to a mixture of tube consistency crimson and vermillion acrylic with additions of cadmium orange,  on the white surface of a sketchbook page, and a tangle of fairly dilute pthallo blue lines applied over from several angles with a long flat bristle brush. I was impressed by the intensity of this combination, played down by the dull blue lines over.  I thought about alternatives but came back to using a combination of the above colours, including some sap green to make dark inky blue/green mixtures with pthallo blue and paynes grey.
After this I also did a number of quick colour and paint application experiments, with
variations of similar colour combinations using paint in different ways. The following, which I mostly incorporated into the series all worked well:
Wash-off technique - placing still damp painted surface under running water spray of a shower head to partially remove the paint in repeated layers.
Oil pastel and glue resist under watery paint.
Resist: leaving selected dry and wet areas on surface before applying dilute paint.
Scratching back into wet paint with paint pusher.

for No.2

Immersing watercolour paper into water then dipping into dilute paint and allowing it to run over the surface.  For this I considered Helen Frankenthaler's and Morris Louis colour stain paintings. I had done several experiments using a similar process, on small A6 sized paper earlier in Part 5 and was very impressed with what materialized.
Mixing matte gel medium with paint and water produced more visible brushstrokes depending on the consistency, especially over a surface of still damp medium.
Masking fluid was a nuisance to work with, it gave variable results and I found it could easily damage the paper on removal.
In addition to wanting to take the above experiments further I was keen to use a mixture of found materials in a least one painting, which transpired into the first (No.1). Thereafter things became a work in progress, one sketch or experiment leading to another, partly influenced by the above experiments.

No.1: acrylic and mixed media on gessoed canvas glued to thin wooden board.
I combined a few pieces of old discarded paintings, brown paper and gesso and glued them down on the surface. The canvas texture was left on view here and there. I combined transparent and opaque layers of paint plus very dilute to dry brushed paint consistencies. I removed some damp paint here and there with a rag at various stages. At this point I had already started to build up the surface layers for No.4, but hadn't begun the other two.


No.2: acrylic and mixed media on gessoed mountboard.
This only emanated from a spur of the moment decision inspired by a tonal sketch. The sketch contained textured areas that brought to mind sand or other rough textured material. This was in sharp contrast to smooth textured areas, giving it a dramatic appearance.

No1

To build areas of relief and texture I glued on bits of otherwise discarded materials: plasterboard tape, offcuts of handmade paper, crepe paper, smooth thick paper, open weave cotton and sawdust, which was mixed with pva. The sawdust is a bit smoother than sand and wonderfully malleable . As I was doing this I was aiming for the right balance. Even so I relish this part of the process, often more so than painting.

No2

 No.3: acrylic and pva on 300gsm watercolour paper
Morris Louis and Helen Frankenthaler's soak-stain paintings and artists using similar techniques had an influence on this one. Also in part from earlier exercises (see above list of experiments) - several of these kind of experiments on small A6 sized paper earlier in Part 5 and was very impressed by what materialized.
First of all I squeezed pva through a nozzle (after a bit of practice) to make basic design outlines.
Then I briefly dipped the paper support in a bath of water. Then I dipped it in dilute paint: dark blues, orange and red, one after another and tilted the paper various directions, encouraging the paint to run over the surface.

No3

Following this I waited to allow the paint to absorb a little. The surface was still well soaked in paint which gave time to manipulate it. I continued adding and removing paint - dripping on paint in fairly dry areas and tilted again to allow it to run over surface and removed in places with a damp rag. Added further dark paint towards the corners with a wide foam brush. Because of the amount of liquid applied the paper buckled. Although it straightened out a little when dry. I think it would have been more successful possibly using pre-stretched paper or even a thicker board like paper, as I have found that even pre-stretched paper often buckles. The glue initially resisted the paint a little more than I wanted, leaving too many white bits scattered around, place so I re-applied paint onto most of it to try and give it a more subtle appearance and it seemed to work reasonably well. Also, the runny paint would have moved around the surface easier if I had mixed flow improver with it - something to bear in mind for the future..

No.4 Acrylic and oil pastel on gessoed 300gsm watercolour paper
Inspired by a technique by Gemma Guasch, from the book: Acrylics - Creative Techniques. It is referred to as the 'wash-off' and basically consists of appliying acrylic paint in various consistencies,  using a range of applicators, then partially removing the paint with water spray, sponges or damp rags.
For this one I kept to roughly the same palette as the other with more white, pale and mid orange and reds, I reduced the amount of blue, restricting it to a rough emulation of the meandering lines running across the rock surface. Just prior to this I added  lines of dark red and white oil pastel, loosely following the painted lines, to add a little more interest and I gently rubbed off any areas painted over from following applications.   I discovered that paint applied with a sponge  roller produced mottled patterns covered in tiny paint spots. When I placed it under the shower the still wet spots were removed leaving the drier areas intact, revealing a particularly interesting textured appearance of the lighter toned layer below. Finally, for subtle shadowed areas, I added some very watery paint using the same inky blues as for the lines. During the layering process I had to be watchful of how dry the paint was. If too dry not enough or no paint would be removable and if too wet most of the paint, if not all would disappear under the running water. Some paint that was pre-mixed with matte gel medium seemed to hold together when mixed with water and resisted water slightly more, which helped a little, but there was no real discernible difference. A lot of it was a case of trial and error, but at least small experiments I had done beforehand put me in good stead, so by then I was quite familiar with the process. A conglomeration of my preliminary work was definitely instrumental in bringing about his particular composition.

No4

Up to a short way into No1 painting I intended to use the same composition for each one in the series. During the painting I decided more interest could be created by varying the views between each one, without too much risk of spoiling the look of continuity, I think this has worked as they all have certain characteristics in common: same basic palette, subject and format. Orange gradually began to creep its way in more and more, until by No4 it was the predominant colour. All the same, I am not altogether comfortable with the colour combinations. No.s 2 and 4 convey a similar diagonal emphasis, very noticeable when placed alongside one another and likewise No.s 1 and 3 a vertical emphasis.
As time went on I suddenly noticed that I had been unconsciously working away from direct observation of the subject. I had already realized, as with the Towards Abstraction project,  this way of working allows for more freedom of interpretation which I feel is a decided advantage in my case, being of a tendency to adopt a rather constrained style normally.
What I intended for the series was essentially four different abstract interpretations of patterns and contours on a piece of flat rock and layers of strata around the sides and in this respect I think it has been successful.
I found the biggest hurdle was achieving cohesiveness in individual paintings, particularly the first three. I think I managed to bring it about by calming down much more, areas towards the corners and repeating areas of colour close in range, such as the oranges and blues in No.3. Concentrating on directing lines towards the focal area also seemed to help - case of constant adding and subtracting. Though the subject is unrecognisable there is a sense of depth in all of them. They also have a tactile quality apart from No.4 which is completely smooth.

Artists whose work  I considered were:

Morris Louis and Helen Frankenthaler soak stain paintings:

http://www.wikiart.org/en/helen-frankenthaler/glow-ii-1968

http://banditblog.com/helen-frankenthaler/

Jackson Pollock
Lee Krasner abstract florals:

http://www.patternpeople.com/pattern-pairs-erdem-x-lee-krasner/

Jose Manuel Broto - Day Celebration 1983

http://www.march.es/arte/palma/coleccion/artistas/jose-manuel-broto.aspx?l=1

Jane Frank, particularly the Aerial Series and Crags and Crevices
Although an abstract expressionist painter, Jane Frank's style of painting is sometimes referred to as 'geomorphic abstraction' (wikipedia - Standing Apart) having a sculptural quality built up with many layers. Described as a laborious process, concerned much with trying to make a three dimensional space on the canvas surface to give the effect of deep voids or passages going back or moving away.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Jane_Frank_Crags_And_Crevices.jpg
http://www.wikiart.org/en/jane-frank

Jaap Wagemaker
http://tunodajyuku2.blogspot.ie/2013/10/jaap-wagemaker-living-desert1957.html
The way Frank and Wagemaker have utilised found materials, I find particularly intriguing.

Angie Zimmerman's fascinating paper sculpture of cast paper pulp (which I would like to make use of in the future), photo collage and wood,  inspired by elements of the natural environment melded together.
http://frankjuarezgallery.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/untitled.jpg

Galleries: Crawford Gallery, Cork - Louis Le Brocquy and Barrie Cooke, Crawford Art Gallery, Cork

Louis Le Brocquy - Samuel Beckett 1994, 93x73cm underglass
multi directional mark making appears to be done with a fine brush. It is a spare delicate style. There are thin dark underlayers of transparent paint. The eyes look hollow and ghost like. Thick impasto of white paint is applied on the nose, forehead and cheeks. Many layers appear to be built up to develop the whole. 
Ink to a sketch of Samuel Beckett by Louis Le Brocquy
 http://aldin89.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/image_of_samuel_beckett.jpg

This is the actual version on display in the gallery:
 http://www.crawfordartgallery.ie/pages/paintings/LouisleBrocquy2.html


Barrie Cooke, Portrait of John Montague 3'6"x4' Large painting with a lot of impact.  Done in a loose gestural style. Spontaneous looking marks, watery paint, no impasto, Paint a little thicker around the neck,and hand - locations of main colour contrasts. The complementary palette of orange and blue tones appears to be placed exactly where emphasis is needed most. Most of paint looks scrubbed on and allowed to drip on the jumper.  Horizontal black stripes in the sitter's top are echoed nicely by the black and white horizontal band behind. This seems to be balanced out by the slightly diagonal but upright stance towards top right and the vertical dark line to the sitter's left side, also the gaze to the left.  I don't think the paint application can be appreciated  very well in this online image:
http://www.crawfordartgallery.ie/pages/paintings/BarrieCooke3a.html