Assignment 1

For my first assignment I chose a porcelain tea set that I inherited from my partner's grandmother who passed away five years ago. She was a truly lovely and kind lady, always making me feel welcome whenever I visited her.  She had worked hard throughout her life and liked the best of everything; her house was always immaculate but also full of fun and laughter as she'd hold dinner parties and family gatherings on a regular basis. The tea set is being kept in a glass cabinet in the dining room and whenever I look at it, it often reminds me of all the great memories I have of Betty. Therefore, when it came to drawing it, I wanted it to be portrayed in soft, delicate tones in an attempt to re-capture some of those lovely past memories which are reminiscent of her gentleness, kindness as well as good taste!

As there were numerous pieces that belonged to the tea set, I confined myself with just a few items. Initially, I played with different arrangements while at the same time taking photographs as I was going along.  Having decided on some of the compositions that I thought would work best, I referred back to my photos and  proceeded in setting those up again. I did small, rough sketches in my sketchbook to get an idea as to what they would like on paper.

Reference photos of compositions that I thought may be interesting.

The one at the bottom is the one I decided to go with in the end as it seemed to 'flow'

better than the rest.

Below you can see my preliminary sketches of the various compositions before deciding on the best one.

 

I selected a few mediums that I thought would be most appropriate for my drawing, in terms of capturing mood and feelings; pencils, (various grades), willow charcoal, (so I could build up deeper layers of shading), water soluble pencils, ink, a sepia soft pastel and also some oil pastels. Hopefully they would be enough to help me decide!

I used A3 mixed media paper, 220 gsm, divided in two and drew the teapot side by side to help me make comparisons of my chosen mediums. My first try on the  left was with water soluble pencils enhanced with a bit of watercolour, (ivory black and paynes grey) and some of the details in ink pen.  The tones on the right were made with watercolour, charcoal and ink pen to accentuate some of the shading details, (working with media other than pencils, charcoal and graphite is a fairly new experience for me).

I then tried water soluble ink, (bottom left), and I really liked some of the effects of the ink as it got watered down. However, I am not very confident with using ink yet so that I knew that it was not going to be my preferred medium as it would be too high a risk to take!

The oil pastel colours, (bottom right), provided an interesting texture, the reason I chose those colours was because I thought they would work together and give the tea set an 'old' yet 'vibrant' feel. I tried blending the colours using a cotton bud dipped in a paint solvent as the crayon layers were too thick in places. The darker lines were made using a soft, water soluble pencil.

In all of experimental drawings I enjoyed mixing my mediums and could see how they could enhance what I was trying to sketch as each offered a different element and feel to my selected object.

I think my two favourite sketches of the teapot are the ones that incorporate in colour as they make

the teapot come to life!

So... back to my chosen composition now and time to start drawing!!

I decided to go against my initial inclination of using colour to draw the tea set. That's possibly due to my lack of experience of using other mediums and I guess I wanted to play it safe! I decided my drawing was going to be in black and white and so I  was going to use various grade pencils, charcoal and a soft colouring crayon to achieve my full range of tonal values,  (I totally adore black and white photos and drawings; I consider images in monochrome very atmospheric, laden with nostalgia and a hint of curiosity).

My light source was natural light from a window to my right. I placed a white card behind the tea set to block the busy background of my kitchen area; I wanted my complete focus to be the tea set itself. Because my objects, foreground as well as background were all pale, I edited the photo I had taken to black and white so that some of  shadows would become more obvious. Drawing my white items on white paper would be a challenge and the only thing that would make them 'pop out' would be tonal gradations to suggest depth and perspective.

In my mind's eye, I knew that I wanted the tea set to look 'clean', with 'crisp' white contrasts and to have subtle changes of tonal variations. I wanted to achieve an overall 'neat' effect, a bit like Betty's immaculate household. Furthermore, I wanted to evoke a feeling of nostalgia therefore my shading would have to be soft and not too dark to successfully encapsulate those happy and wonderful memories.

I drew my objects freehand on A2 cartridge paper 220 gsm. Once I had laid down the first couple of layers of shading I knew I had to be careful as I didn't want to overpower my drawing with very deep, dark shades that would detract from the softness I wanted to achieve. Having reached a satisfactory stage where all the items had been drawn on paper, I tried to incorporate a bit of frotage to see if by adding texture my drawing would be enhanced. I used a soft mesh material and charcoal to take a rubbing but hardly anything came  through as the paper was too thick and heavy. I then decided to use the willow charcoal to darken my whole background and although the tea set stood out a bit more visually due to the contrast between light and dark, it just didn't look or feel right to me.

I  used a kneaded eraser to remove any unwanted marks and excess charcoal and I carried on blending my background with the eraser that seemed to add a slight texture. I finished with a couple of more layers of shading to the left of the tea set using a soft black pastel. With a small paintbrush  dipped lightly in water soluble oil colour, I darkened the small dark decorative patterns and with a fine tipped pen I outlined all the details around them.

Stage 1. Not sure if this was visually exciting enough! Maybe a bit too  flat, pale and lacking depth.

Stage 2. Having played with frotage and deciding to go darker. However, not creating the light, soft
image I wanted to portray.

Final drawing, hopefully the right balance between light and dark!

Reflections:

By looking at my final drawing I think it lost some of its softness and vibrancy and felt a bit 'overworked'. In hindsight, I should have experimented more with my options for the background shading before committing to it on my final drawing. Or perhaps used a pale coloured paper! Sometimes it's hard to know when to stop working a picture and it's easy to get carried away by adding more and more mediums and eventually lose the right balance.

Drawing freehand also meant that my teapot was more elongated than the one in the photo and some of the decorative details were also a bit wrong. Perhaps I should have chosen to draw my picture in landscape! However, although the proportions were slightly 'out', I enjoyed the challenge,   quirkiness and 'looseness' of freehand drawing!

I am pleased with how I managed to place my composition fairly centrally on the paper, something I seemed to be getting wrong during the earlier exercises. (I am more used to carefully planning where my drawings sit on paper and often use grids to enlarge my work). 

Overall, I think the composition is pleasing as it tends to 'flow', drawing the eye to the teapot and then going round clockwise. In terms of shading I used hatching, contour shading, smudging and some cross hatching, but that's not clearly visible as I used a very fine pencil and the overall effect is more 'smudged' than defined with lines. Where appropriate, I used a darker pencil, pastel or charcoal to define some of the darker areas by going over them a few times and alternating the pressure that I used.

While the use of an actual tea set by people is not as common as it used to be, I would like to think that the viewer may feel a bit nostalgic but also wonder about who this tea set belonged to. I hope that I have managed to capture the right mood and portray the tea set in a way that reflects looking into and reminisce about the past.

I found it quite challenging taking clear photos of my assignment and I don't think my photos represent my drawings very accurately. This may be due to the fact that the work for my assignment wasn't dark enough, ( I noticed that some of my photos from previous exercises came out better as they were a lot darker in value). I tried to follow hints and tips from the web including  OCA's advice as to how to photograph art but I couldn't get the result. So I guess I need a bit more practice in this area!

Assessment criteria

Demonstration of technical and visual skills-materials, techniques, observational skills, visual awareness, design and compositional skills.

During the assignment, I was aware that I had to follow a brief and amalgamate some of the techniques and methods I had learned so far.

I drew my composition free-hand and managed to position my drawing fairly centrally to the paper, something I need to exercise more, as I often rely on the use of rulers, grids and pre-measuring spaces, gaps etc... So, I would like to draw more free-hand from now on and 'loosen up' my style!

I believe, I included most of the finer details, all be it some of them slightly out of shape and proportion! When I showed my drawing to other family members they immediately recognised the tea set and gave me positive feedback.

I think that my chosen composition works as there is a balance of positive and negative space and the viewers eye is guided in a circular motion.

Quality of outcome-content, application of knowledge, presentation of work in a coherent manner, discernment, conceptualisation of thoughts, communication of ideas.

I do not know if I am completely happy with the end result. Having to follow a certain brief has meant that every time I'd go back to my drawing and question myself as to whether or not I was fulfilling the right criteria and kept changing things! This could also be attributed to the fact that after visiting some other student's work on their blogs, my view of what was expected of me kept being swayed.

I incorporated some of the shading/light techniques that I learnt within this part of the course such as: hatching, contour shading and light/reflections. I deliberately left out the printed detail of my tablecloth as I wanted to focus on the tea set itself.

I often struggle with words, (writing has never been one of my strengths), and over the years I have come to realize that I am a  visual learner. However, I would like to think that I have managed to represent my ideas and thoughts in a clear, coherent manner and where appropriate I have included photos to help substantiate my points.

Demonstration of creativity-imagination, experimentation, invention, development of a personal voice.

I love using a camera, (mobile phone one or DSLR) to take photos while playing with compositions, be it of objects, landscapes or portraits. I like to go over each one of my photos and evaluate the visual impact or mood that comes through them. I then crop them and create new photographs by enlarging them and shifting the focus. I toyed with the idea of using this method for my tea set as seen in the example of my first compositional photograph and pay more attention to the tea pot itself but in the end decided against it.

As I knew it would take me some time to complete my drawing, I started drawing from life and then used my reference photograph. One can only monopolize the dining table for limited periods of time and when it starts to get dark as early as it does nowadays, it's challenging maintaining the same light source continuously!

In terms of experimentation, I feel that I used a good range of materials for my preliminary drawings to compare their various effects on paper and how each would affect the mood of my drawing. I am more used to drawing with limited materials such as pencils, graphite and charcoal, so putting ideas to practice while utilizing new materials was a new challenge for me. I know that this will become easier the more I practice!

I guess the development of an artist's personal voice not only arises through the use of chosen mediums but also by the way compositions are put together, choice of colour schemes and items/locations/subjects chosen. It's hard for me to pinpoint my style/personal voice presently as I am only just beginning to learn about a whole range of new techniques and artists.

Up to this point, when it comes to drawing my passion has been creating portraits of family and friends as well as pets, using monochromatic schemes. It will be interesting to see how I develop my style over the course of the next few months and how I incorporate new ideas and methods in my drawings.

When I had nearly finished my assignment, I drew the same tea set composition on heavier paper using mixed media. The final product looked a bit more like a collage  but the randomness of colours and shapes was quite pleasing, (I have included a photo of it on my blog pages). I just had to see what it would like if I had chosen colour!!

Context reflection-research, critical thinking (learning log and at, second and third level, critical views and essays.

Before starting my drawing I did a bit of research on still life artists on the internet. I came across the works of Giorgio Morandi and I really liked his compositions which were simple yet effective in capturing the audience. I particularly liked his arrangements and placement of objects; I felt curious as to what was hidden in the back before focusing on the objects in the front while simultaneously following their varying heights and outlines! I do wonder whether his chosen items were just every day objects or they meant something to him!

When comparing Morandi's monochromatic works to those of Redon, Morandin's shading is done mostly by hatching/cross hatching and his tone is subtle. When it comes to paintings again Morandi's use of colours and tone are muted and pale in comparison. The overall atmosphere created: soft and calm, a bit like what I wanted  my drawing's feel to be.

Having looked at the works of Max Ernst  I have come to realize how frotage can create stunning effects and texture that would otherwise be very laborious to draw single handed. Although I did experiment with the concept I didn't use my imagination enough in incorporating this technique effectively in my drawing, mainly due to my lack of confidence and experience not to add the time constraints!

While researching Odilon Redon, I couldn't help but fall in love with his work, his brilliant use of contrast between light and dark not only in his noirs but also in his coloured paintings. This use of contrast not only serves to give a three dimensional effect to the drawing but also allows the viewer to get a glimpse of the artist's mood and some of the feelings he is trying to get across. The overall effect: enigmatic and mysterious. As Odilon Redon stated: "The artist yields often to the stimuli of materials that will transmit his spirit.".

While drawing Betty's tea set, I carefully considered the type of mood I wanted to create and tried to match it to the mediums I had access to. I went from light to darker then lighter in an attempt to see what best suited the mood I was trying to capture and recreate. I don't think going really dark with my background or shadows would have suited my drawing, as I would associate those values with feelings other than the ones I wanted to portray.

I hope that my drawing of Betty's tea set reflects some of the influences and processes I followed from this part of the course and that my blog contains all the necessary information to help support my course work!

!! Research Point!! Odilon Redon

Odilon Redon (1840-1916)

A little bit about his life...

Odilon Redon was a keen artist from a very young age. He studied art formally at the age of fifteen but because of his father's influence he moved over to architecture. After his failure in studying the latter subject, he took up painting, sculpture, etching and lithography.

Having served in the army in 1890 during the Franco-Prussian war, he then turned his attention to working with charcoal and lithography and called his visionary works 'noirs'. After that period he started using pastels and oils and took an interest in Hinduism and Buddhism, hence the presence of Buddha in some of his works.

Redon used oiled charcoal extensively as it was easier to be worked into the paper than ordinary charcoal as it turns to powder. Over time as the oil gets absorbed by the paper it exhibits an overall brown tone. Charcoal can be identified in his noirs by its warmer, black, brown tone.

He didn't start using colour till he was in his 50s. In his earlier pastels he applied colour over charcoal underdrawings, combining pastel, guache and pastes made form crushed pastel mixed with water and applied with a brush. Occasionally he would take a noir produced years earlier and rework it, obscuring much of the noir beneath the pastel.

In preparation for his drawing....... Redon would prepare the paper with an overall base of powdered charcoal. As he built his compositions with layers of media, he intermittently fixed the surface and again subtracted media from it. Before the spray could dry he reworked the damp charcoal surface with his fingers and removed charcoal, or indeed his fingernail to create texture.....

In 1900 he was commissioned by Baron Domecy to create 17 panels for the dining room of the Chateu de Domecy sur le vault. He moved on from ornamental to abstracts and the colours that he used mostly were yellow, grey, brown and light blue. In 1903, he was awarded the Legion of Honour.

During Odilon Redon's early years, his works were described as ' a synthesis of nightmares and dreams'. His paintings incorporated dark, fantastical figures from his imagination, exploring his own internal feelings and psyche.

He wanted to place 'the logic of the visible at the service of the invisible'. His charcoal sketches delved in deep into the terrors of fever ridden dreams. Redon describes his works as ambiguous and undefinable. 'My drawings are to inspire and not to be defined. They place us, as does music, in the ambiguous realm of the undetermined'.

source: www.odilon-redon.org/biography.html

Project 2 - Exercise 4 Shadows and reflected light

Exercise 4 - Shadows and reflected light

As a warm up, I sketched a ceramic salt pot and a small metallic pan. I used charcoal to sketch the image freehand. It was fairly tricky depicting the materials the items were made of. With a kneaded eraser I lifted some shaded areas to create the impression of reflected light.
When it came to metal pan, I used less pressure to create the lighter tones and reflections. Although my composition is fairly central to the paper, I am not sure it works as I may have drawn the objects too small. Or it may be the lack of foreground and background shadows and  too much negative space?

A3 warm up, using charcoal and putty

Second try at playing with shadows and reflected light

This time I tried an arrangement of two metallic objects, much larger in size, hoping that they would better fill the surface of the A3 paper.

My selected objects

Having sketched their outlines with charcoal, I was pleased with the space now occupied on the paper. I refined some of the lines, (the rim of the bowl was slightly out of shape) and added extra details, (the window of the kettle and lines around the lid). I then added more and more layers of shadowing by placing the charcoal on its side and adding more pressure. When I felt the shadowing was adequate, I used the charcoal tip to define some of the darker, finer lines The putty was useful in lifting some of the charcoal marks and lightening areas that I had made too dark.

Originally I was going to add the faint shadow of the kettle handle on the background but then decided against it as there is no shadow being projected on the background by the metallic bowl. Instead, I just concentrated on the shadows cast on the table.

I had to fix my sketch when I got to that point and add more layers of charcoal to achieve darker values where needed.

Once I finished my sketch, I thought it looked better from the distance than close up!! I am fairly pleased with the end result and also remembered not to 'box in' my shadows, instead I just sketched them freely in.

A3 composition with a focus on shadows and reflected light

Project 2 - Exercise 3 Creating shadow using lines and marks

 Exercise 3-Creating shadow using lines and marks.

Single object

I chose a small cardboard box and used four different drawing tools to help me create shadows using lines and marks; a pencil, a biro pen, a felt tip pen with a fine nib and a wider tip alcohol marker. I used a lamp to help create a prominent shadow. 

pencil (top) and biro (bottom)

fine felt tip (top) and broad marker (bottom)

Reflections on using my chosen mediums :

Pencil

I really enjoyed using the pencil as it's what I am mostly used to, (it was hard to resist the temptation of smudging it though!). A pencil is quite versatile in as much that by altering the pressure while drawing one can achieve an array of values, depending on its softness.

Biro pen

It was quite liberating having not to worry about correcting things! It was great fun to just keep going and going and going, not worrying about any 'stray' lines! A good range of values can be achieved with the biro when cross hatching. I would like to try this using different coloured biros on different supports to see the sort of visual effects that can be achieved.

Felt tip pen with fine nib

This was fun as the tip of the pen meant I could draw very fine lines. Similarly to the biro, once I had drawn a line out of place I just had to keep going! When drawing spots with this pen it took a long time, so maybe not suitable when covering large areas with this shading technique! The fineness of the lines and marks made the cardboard box appear' more delicate'. The felt tip didn't offer the convenience of creating lighter marks but instead that effect would have to be achieved by drawing parallel or hatched lines distanced further and further apart.

Permanent alcohol marker with broad tip

The marker was definitely a lot better and quicker to use than the fine tip felt pen.  Although, I really liked the rich, dark tones of this medium, I didn't find it suitable for drawing faint lines.


Some afterthoughts:
I would love to try this shading technique with other mediums such as watercolours or acrylics on different supports as they I think they'd be easier and more interesting to create!

Looking back at my drawings, I realised that I drew the outlines of the box's shadows and then filled them in. Also, I kept forgetting not to apply pressure on the sides that were meant to be lighter in tone.

So .....  I had a few more tries (photos below).

more attempts of line shadowing using

biro (top), different shades of grey

pro-markers(middle) and ink (bottom)

line shadowing using charcoal

more attempts of single objects with different mediums

Groups of objects

While using the pencil in my first group attempt, I tried to remember to use less pressure when drawing the lighter sides of the objects and to avoid outlining the shadows.

Having tried the pencil and charcoal it is evident that the charcoal helps create a  'looser', feel especially when working quickly with it. I really love the richness and darkness of the charcoal, how it makes objects appear closer to the viewer and more three dimensional. The pencil drawing makes the objects appear further away. 

pencil shading

Charcoal shading

And a few more shading exercises on a sphere!!!

A3 Canson, Bristol Board 180 gsm

A3 Medium surface cartridge paper 220 gsm

Project 2 - Exercise 2, Observing Shadow using blocks of tone

Exercise 2 Observing shadow using blocks of tone

For this exercise I chose two very simple objects: an ornamental jug and a small clay flower pot; they were arranged on my dining table near a window with natural light. Although both of them had painted florals as decorations on them, I chose not to include them as I only wanted to focus on the contrast between light and dark. Similarly, I omitted the pattern of my tablecloth and the background that was rather busy as I felt they would detract from the outcome I wanted to achieve.

I started by drawing the outlines of the objects first. I added their mid-tones followed by the darker ones, ensuring that the lightest areas were left untouched. I smudged some of the areas very lightly and added a bit more detail with the tip of the conte stick by increasing pressure, ie: to highlight the handle of the jug and the darkest values of the cast shadows.

I slowly started to add some shading around the objects, (table top and background) using the wide side of the conte stick. I think I applied the shading in 3 or 4 layers and did it gradually as I wanted to achieve the right balance. In my opinion the whole picture came to life when the reflections of the objects were added on the tablecloth along with the curved lines on the bottom right that added more perspective and visual interest.

A2 sketch with black conte on smooth cartridge paper-220gsm

I repeated the same technique using two different objects: a pestle and mortar and a small clay pot. I used willow charcoal on mixed media paper.  When smudging the charcoal with my finger, some of it would lift some on my finger and therefore I kept having to add more and more layers to create some of the darker values.

I know that if charcoal drawings are sprayed with fixative and then reworked, new layers of charcoal can be added to increase the darker values but it then becomes harder to remove or lift any previous markings; I decided to keep reworking my image without 'fixing' it.

A2 sketch using willow charcoal stick on mixed media paper-250 gsm

For a lighter overall effect I used charcoal and pencil together and removed some of the charcoal with a putty, (picture below).

Block shadowing with pencil and charcoal on smooth cartridge paper 220gsm-A2 size

My conclusions about using black conte stick and willow charcoal:

• The black conte stick creates more vibrant tones whereas the willow charcoal comes across as 'softer'.
• Charcoal is easier to remove with a putty, unless the drawing has been fixed with spray, in which case it becomes harder to lift any unwanted marks.
• Drawings with conte can be smudged but overall it is a lot harder to remove markings with putty once on paper.
• The conte stick seems to last longer and easier to draw broad marks with since it's 'harder' and more compressed than charcoal.
• I found it tricky drawing long, straight or elliptical lines on A2 paper using both charcoal and conte.
• I would like to sketch a picture combining both mediums; charcoal for the lighter tones and conte for the darker values.

Project 2 - Exercise 1 Group objects

Exercise 1- Group objects

Initially I wanted to warm up to this exercise as I am not used to drawing group objects. Therefore, I started with a group of six objects, (pictured below) on A4 paper, using a 3B pencil. I played around with the composition and decided on placing the kilner jar in the middle as it was the tallest item and it would 'balance' the composition.

I drew a faint cross in the middle of my sketchbook page (dividing it into four parts) and used that as a grid reference to help me position my objects on paper. I started off with the tall jar as it was fairly central and then worked my was 'outwards'. Working with pencil  was relatively easy as any mistakes could be easily rectified. However, I did not manage to fully include the box on the bottom left hand corner!! I also realised I had forgotten to include an item with a less regular form, such as a cloth of plastic bag!

First attempt - photo reference

 First attempt sketch A4 cartridge paper with 3B pencil

I wanted to give this exercise another go; this time I added a soft cloth to my items and rearranged my composition. I decided to use  A2 mixed media paper and used a black conte stick. When I  finished I noticed that the white paper appeared to be very 'harsh' as a background, (maybe if I had used a soft pastel it would have been better?). While drawing on this  scale (A2) I found it quite tricky to draw continuous straight lines with the conte stick and once again I didn't manage to fully include the whole of the box at the bottom of the arrangement. Another thing that I found quite challenging was drawing the coffee tin which looks a bit out of shape and proportion. Although I had now added the sketched labels I am not sure they have enhanced it in any way.

I had another go at an old brown paper bag which I cut down to A2 size. As the bag had lots of creases it was quite challenging to draw in straight lines! Again, I was faced with the same challenges: of including all my items on the paper and on drawing the coffee tin properly!!  However, the brown paper did look a lot better as a background than the white paper.

Having sketched on the brown paper, I returned to the one made on the white paper. I added more shading by smudging the lines to see if it would improve the outcome! I am not sure I liked it in the end but it was worth trying and seeing the difference it made to the original drawing! 

Second attempt - photo reference

Second attempt sketch A2 mixed media paper with black conte stick

A2 brown paper with black conte stick

A2 Mixed media paper with black conte stick, shadows and smudging added

Time to try a new composition with a few more items. Only this time I used a different colour conte stick on a rose-grey pastel paper with 'tooth' which  holds onto powdery media such as charcoal and conte sticks. I managed to complete this sketch a bit quicker than the previous ones and was not so hesitant when drawing straight lines. Once I had drawn the lines of the basic shapes, I went over them with the broad side of the conte stick, (dragged it along the lines) which disguised any wobbliness in my original lines.

I decided that instead of adding the details of the labels, I would just draw their shadows and add a few faint letters to suggest the fact that they are labels. As I added a bit more shading the lines of my objects faded into the background as everything was a similar tonal value, so I went over them once more with the point of the conte stick to make them stand out. In the end, I smudged all lines with my finger to help 'soften' them.

While I am pleased with the choice of conte stick colour and paper, I am still a bit unhappy about not managing to fully include the plastic container at the bottom of my sketch; I had to slightly shorten it to make it fit in. Also, I think that the gap between the book and the milk carton is not right. Furthermore, I think that my final sketch would need either cropping (as the space on the top is too big) or re-sketching so the group of items are more centrally placed on the paper and the outlines of the objects a bit 'softer'.

I believe this is an area I definitely need more practice in!! I would like to re-sketch this still life perhaps from a photo using the grid method and see if a more 'accurate' drawing will be better or not!

Third attempt - photo reference

Third attempt - A2 pastel paper with sepia conte stick

Cropped image