The three examples given show how oil paint can be used in different ways to convey a multitude of moods, feelings, textures, light and tone. In all three the palette is muted and the colours nearly monotone. Philip Guston’s, “The Coat, 1977” has exaggerated forms which have been simplified into basic shapes. minimal tonal effects have been utilised. Vincent Van Gogh’s “A pair of shoes, 1886” is all about the richness of the paint and the thickness with which it has been applied to the canvas. The clever use of tonal contrasts conveys a bleakness in the painting. In Lisa Milroy’s “Shoes, 1985” the paint shines. On first glance the pairs of shoes could be confused as opened mussels. The wetness of the insides of the mussels amplified in the shine of the shoes.
In all three the paint has been laid down quickly but different techniques used. In Guston the paint has been applied thinly and mixed on the canvas. Mixing the paint on the canvas is also apparent in the Van Gogh painting. However in this painting the paint has been laid down generously in thick brush strokes. In the Milroy painting the paint has a sheen, carefully applied and the tonal highlights have been emphasised.
As part of the feedback from Assignment Two and the work completed for Part Two I received a list of suggested artists to view and research. These suggestions were based on the the conversation and ideas that had been discussed during the feedback session. Although this is quite a long blog I have deliberately kept the text brief.
The following are my notes and thoughts:
Vincent Hawkins, 1959 – , painter / draftsman working in acrylic on canvas, cardboard and paper. Influences cited as Picasso, Paul Nash and his work has been compared to that of Matisse and Klee. The expressive nature of his abstract paintings contain an energy that remind me of Jackson Pollock’s floor paintings. The palette is similar but there is more structure to the composition.
Vincent Hawkins, Untitled IV, 2016, Water based woodblock medium on paper, 55x75cm
John Bunker – colourful flower inspired collages, paintings with blossom. I enjoyed the blossomed tree paintings but hose with human nymph like images I found a bit twee.
John Bunker, Cherry Blossoms B, Acrylic, 24x24inches
John Bunker, Quadrant branch blossom memory, acrylic on canvas, 48x36inches
Alison Watt, paintings of white fabric, very large paintings where the tonal quality and subtle adjustments seems to envelope the observer and comfort them.
Alison Watt at work
Alison Watt, Fabric study
Alexis Harding, layered paintings that have a skin to them, lumpy large canvases where often the paint seeps beyond the limitations of the canvas or support.
Alexis Harding, Untitled
Angela De La Cruz, her paintings seems to exist in a place that is somewhere between painting and sculpture. There is an exploration of the nature of paint itself in her work.
Angela De La Cruz, Ready to wear (Red)
Simon Callery, his work is somewhere between painting, combines and sculpture. The works have a sculptural quality to them. I find these works difficult to read.
Simon Callery, Another Something
Peter Doig, 1959 – , I had looked at Peter Doig’s work previously. This time as suggested I concentrated on his landscape paintings. Those that I found resonated with me were those that had a European, perhaps Scottish, feel to them. I was less captivated by the Caribbean influenced paintings. I will consider whether to base my critical review on Peter Doig’s landscape paintings. The other artist suggested to me is George Shaw whose work I feel is perhaps closer to my own. Returning to Peter Doig one of the key aspects of his landscape paintings is the inclusion of a human element. An example of this is his painting ‘Echo Lake’. This painting, see below, has a narrative to it. The lakeside setting appears to be on the outskirts of a town. The lights from the town can be seen behind the dark trees. The scene is lit by the headlights of the police car and the reflective quality of the water. This highlight the tress to the right of the painting. These trees fade into the night sky. There is a symmetry to the composition, the telegraph pole on the left, the trees on the right, the police car just offset from the centre of the painting. The white shore line about a third of the way up and the reflections in the lake all work together to give the painting a cohesiveness. The storytelling narrative comes from the policeman, presumably, who is calling, shouting out to the observer across the lake. What is he shouting? Is he shouting at us? What is happening in / on the lake? These questions remain unanswered but give the painting a drama.
Peter Doig, Echo Lake, 1998, Oil on canvas, 230x360cm
Elizabeth Magill, 1959 -, I have downloaded a number of Elizabeth’s paintings as these really resonate with me. The capturing of the delicacy of trees and the timid light that surrounds them is something that I have tried to capture in my work. Two examples are reproduced below.
ElizabethMagill, Betula Pendula, & Dendriform 10, both oil on canvas, 168x198cm & 214×277 respectively
Hurvin Anderson 1965 – , depictions of Caribbean landscapes often verging on abstraction. Student of Peter Doig.
Hurvin Anderson, Bridge Study, 2013
Hurvin Anderson, Cloning, 2016
Mamma Andersson 1962 – , influenced by the Swedish landscape which she grew up in her paintings are inspired by filmic imagery, theatre sets and period interiors. Her landscapes are melancholic and dreamlike.
Mamma Andersson, Cuckoo Hill, 2019, Oil on linen, 90x118cm
Per Kirkeby 1938 – 2018, Danish, part of Danish experimental art school “eks-skolen” working primarily as a painter, sculptor, writer and lithographic artist. His works was informed by geology and nature. The two examples below are abstracted paintings which explore the colours and solidity of harsh landscapes.
Per Kirkeby, Fram, 1982, oil on canvas, 118x200cm
Per Kirkeby, Rublick III, 1987, oil on canvas, 200x200cm
Calvadonga Valdes , Spanish artist using the landscapes of Spain, England, Italy and Swedish Lapland to create surreal paintings, often group of paintings on a theme. Two examples are a series called “Homeland” where the reflection of trees are observed in small pools of water and puddles. The second series “Vascular” uses the heart and vascular system as a vehicle to organise the paintings. Examples of both of these series are replicated below.
Covadonga Valdes, Homeland II, paintings from Homeland series
I started my blog on Exercise 1.4 with a few words regarding the Rauschenberg exhibition that I had attended at Tate Modern in 2017.
Exhibition Guide
Prior to this exhibition I had confronted Abstract art, installations, and avant-garde sculpture but had not confronted Combines. The exhibition covered all of Rauschenberg’s career and only a part, room 3, included the Combines. This room along with ‘Material Abstraction’ were the two largest rooms. The Combines were different. They seemed to be about painting but had other aspects to them which at the time I didn’t come to terms with. I couldn’t make sense of them. As I recall the one that made most sense was ‘Bed’ which was completed in 1955 at the beginning of his Combine period.
Bed, 1955
It was obvious what it was but why was it contained with a frame with paint. It was a painting that utilised oil paint and pencil on pillow, quilt and sheet. It now makes more sense having worked on my own Combine and also having read more about Combines. The bed itself is an ordinary object. It is usually confronted as horizontal. Here it is presented to the viewer vertically within a frame. this was the intention to endow ordinary objects with a new significance. This topic is explored further in the article ‘On Rauschenberg – Art Theory 1900-2000’ which is similar in content with the Exhibition guide. The guide walks through Rauschenberg’s artistic life in a chronological order and explains his development. The many collaborations, the challenge to conceptions and continual experimentation with the art form.
Returning to the Combine’s they started to make more sense after reading Leo Steinberg’s lecture piece on ‘Other Criteria – The Flatbed picture plane’ in which he explains how the picture plane
“was moved from the Renaissance picture plane, which are experienced in the normal erect posture, to the work of Rauschenberg whose work challenged and overcame this so that the pictures no longer simulate vertical fields but opaque flatbed horizontals. They no more depend on head to toe correspondence with human posture than a newspaper does.“
Having read these pieces and reflected upon them I returned to Link 21 and looked to explore a couple more Combines. I selected two which are reproduced below along with my comments.
Collection, 1954/55
Rauschenberg’s Combine painting ‘Collection’ looks on first glance to be just what its title suggests, a collection of coloured shapes on which paint and been very loosely applied and allowed to run and mix. It is only when it is viewed close up that it starts to reveal a greater collection of materials and information.
On closer examination the support appears to be made up of three wood panels. However the painting is described as being on canvas. Is this a play with the idea of the triptych or another use of the title word ‘Connection’? To the frame of the paintings further wooden pieces have been added along the top. These pieces of wood have paint and fabric attached to them. Were they found like this or have they been added by the artist? The painting is made up of pieces of fabric and cloth, torn pieces of newspapers, magazines and comics which have been randomly adhered to the support. Hardly any of these have been placed in a position to be read naturally, often they are upside down or at various haphazard angles. Paint of many different colours and texture has been loosely applied by daubing, dripping and painting. Much of this paint has been allowed to run and to be absorbed into the fabric. The paint partly obscures the paper, some of it is translucent allowing the viewer to look behind. The whole painting looks faded. To me it is a collection of ideas, materials and, paints.
Magician, 1959
Oil, fabric, wood, printed paper, printed reproductions and metal on canvas with fabric pouch and string.
I find this painting very difficult to read. The techniques involved are similar to that used for ‘Collection’ but to me it is more refined. I guess that this is mainly due to it being painted 4/5 years later. The paint is more restrained, more refined and the whole composition is more coherent. However although I can observe this attributes I struggle to make an association between the painting and its title. Is there meant to be one? I note that there is another painting titled ‘Magician II’ which was painted two year later in 1961. Is this a companion piece or perhaps a follow on piece. There appears to be little connection between the two. I will return to these paintings and I hope over time some more of their secrets will reveal themselves.
Lastly I found it pertinent given the global crisis currently being endured that the strapline at the top of the Rauschenberg website is
“Artists always have been the first to rally around any national or international problem, acting as a conscience.”
This is the final blog, rather long, following my investigation into the suggested artists from Formative feedback from Part One. The suggested artists show a wide variety of different styles and techniques. I have selected two or three paintings from each of them and have commented on the paintings and why I was drawn to them.
1. Patrick Caulfield
In these paintings the subjects have been reduced to a simple shape. The emphasis has moved to the colour, form and perspective. I choose the three paintings as they seem to follow each other in there scale of ambition. The first depicts a simple sweet bowl placed on a table. The viewpoint is from slightly above the rim of the bowl so that we see the sweets and the perspective of the table. The second painting, Pottery, again reduces the objects into simple geometric shapes with plain colours. However the scope of the perspective has increased. The composition drags the eye from the pots at the bottom which are seen from just above to those in the middle which are seen square on to those at the top which are seen from slightly below. The use of negative spaces between some of the pots and plates heightens the solidity of them and suggests shadows. The third painting expands upon the theme of the changing perspective but in this example, a much more complex scene, is reduced into its many lines of perspective. there is a playfulness in the way the fish-tank is set against a landscape painting. Other than the painting, which in itself uses both aerial and linear perspective, the only other colour is the orange of the fish themselves.
Sweet Bowl 1967 Patrick Caulfield 1936-2005
Pottery 1969 Patrick Caulfield 1936-2005
After Lunch 1975 Patrick Caulfield 1936-2005
2. Ben Nicholson
In these two paintings the subjects are depicted into flattened shapes the second has close ties to early cubism whereas the first has a much grander scope. It is a view through a window over the roof tops to a harbour and landscape in the distance. Similar to the Still Life in the second painting the objects on the tray on the windowsill are flattened and the rooftop and buildings kept to simple shapes. However the boats in the harbour retain more form. The use of aerial perspective also gives the painting a cohesive feel.
1943-45 (St Ives, Cornwall) 1943-5 Ben Nicholson OM 1894-1982
1945 (still life) 1945 Ben Nicholson OM 1894-1982
3. Henri Matisse
The scope of these two paintings is similar. Both are looking out on the world from within a room. The emphasis is on shape although the objects retain some form and tone, particularly in the first painting. The cohesiveness of the compositions is retained by the use of the window and doorway to frame the view and draw the eye. The predominant colours are used in the titles of both paintings.
Henri Matisse, The Blue Window, 1912
Henri Matisse, Red Interior Still Life on a table, 1947
4. Gillian Carnegie
In these two paintings the subjects are reduced to simplified forms. The palette is monochrome which focuses attention on form. The use of shadows in both paintings is what makes them compelling and reveals the form of the subjects and creates the sense of perspective.
Coney 2004 Gillian Carnegie born 1971
Untitled 4 2004 Gillian Carnegie born 1971
5. Hannah Maybank
Initially when looking at the paintings of Hannah Maybank I was distracted by the flower motives that populated most of her work. Once I had got past this distraction I started to observe the settings and the use of tone and texture. In the first painting the leaves and flowers seem to emerge from the background. The lighter tones emphasise the middle tones and focus the eye. In the second paintings it is the deteriorating, peeling paint that creates the image of the flowerheads. It is as if a faded wallpaper is returning to nature. In both paintings the title references ghosts. In the first suggested emergence, the second a fading away.
Hannah Maybank, I begin a Ghost
Hannah Maybank, I am Ghost
6. Rebecca Scott
These paintings on first view look traditional in scope and content and have an illustrative feel. This is particularly true of the first painting which is all about light and shadows and has an impressionistic feel to it. The second utilises a similar technique. It is the composition A Still Life set against the backdrop of African skies and the unusual collection of objects on the table which adds interest. The third painting is a standard Still life which has partly defaced by the addition of white lines and drips. It suggest that the Still life is being viewed through a window on which graffiti has been daubed.
Rebecca Scott, Damson Afternoon, 2006
Rebecca Scott, Still Life under African skies, 2007
Rebecca Scott, Plastic spoons and bowls
Summary
An diverse range of artists in which their paintings tackle some of the many different approaches to Still Life. I have tried to look beyond my initial responses look to uncover something more in each painting.
Third research topic from Formative feedback from Part One. I note the connection with this suggestion and Part Two of the course which starts to look at the relationship between sculpture and painting. This development has close links with cubist ideas. The representation of many views and facets of an object seen from different viewpoints. The paintings that I selected for inclusion in this blog are ones that look at and depict the objects from different perspectives often flattening them and eliminating their tonal qualities. Their shapes being more important. The first painting, ‘Still Life with lemons, retains some tonal qualities particularly on the glass however the lemons are flattened. In the second painting the objects are all flattened. In the third painting it is the surroundings which are flattened and split into different viewpoints, the table, tablecloth, walls and door. The vase and flowers are conveyed in a far more traditional, European perspective manner.
This is the second short investigation blog following suggested research from Formative feedback from Part One.
Richard Tuttle has used fabric in many of his paintings. I investigated a series of works that are collectively entitled ‘The Critical Edge’. In these works Richard seems to be exploring both the internal and external edges of a painting. Where does a work start and end? Is it within the painting or at its edges? The fabric is used to create lines using both the fabric and its colour. The works are broken down into a number of regular squares on which fabric is attached. The edges between the squares are observed but are allowed to be slightly overlapped or revealed. Additionally the fabric often extends off the squares in an untidy manner. Two more examples below.
Richard Tuttle
The Critical Edge III, 2015
view 1
No. 61900
Format of original photography: digital
Photographer: Kerry Ryan McFate
This is part of a series of short investigation blogs following suggested artist research from Formative feedback from Part One.
The quote that I noted about Clare’s paintings was ‘Visceral oil paint set against more defined lines to create a tense discourse. Making reference to the body and to abstract expressionism.’
The paintings tend to be large work which I imagine would look far more impressive when viewed at an exhibition. The photograph below gives an example of this. Note the first painting highlighted in this blog is shown on the left of the photograph.
What I like about the paintings is the combination of chance and control. The defined lines suggest structure and rigidity as if we were viewing part of a man made object against a blurred or magnified background.
I was surprised to find out that John cage was also an artist as previously I had only associated him with music. Specifically his famous piece ‘4.33’ pronounced four minutes and thirty three seconds. This piece requires the musicians singular or many to not play their instruments for this length of time and for the audience to listen to the ambient sounds of where ever they are.
The specific art works that it was suggested that I investigate was a series of prints of drawing of stones. Two of these prints are replicated below.
John Cage ‘9 Stones & 10 Stones’
The paintings were created by chance operations of randomly selecting and positioning small stones on a plate, determining their orientation and tracing them with a brush.
The resultant paintings are fragile and delicate. The colours tend towards pastels and are shown starkly against the washed out backgrounds. In some ways they have a similarity to some of the experimental paintings that I worked on during Part One. In particular the piece that made for Assignment One where the colours were washed out and translucent.
The short piece is Gabriel talking about his artwork entitled working tables. He explains the process whereby it is an accumulation of years of collecting using and discarding objects. The piece is the result of the left overs, the unused and he amusingly refers to the left overs of the left overs. This made me think that all workshops, work tables accumulate the detritus of the work being undertaken unless they are regularly tidied. I can remember making inspections of the engineering workshop when I used to work. The workshop contained evidence of what had been recently work on and what was currently being worked. Tools, nuts and bolts, debris and dirty work clothes would be laying in various states. It was a constant task to remind the engineers to clean up and tidy up. In hindsight it was evidence of work completed, a picture of their toil. As Gabriel put it “evidence of a process”.
There are parallels to the selection of objects that I made for Exercise 1. I chose to select musical instruments that I have accumulated over the years but that are not used. They are the leftovers.
The paintings shown above are part of the Sea Paintings by Jessica Warboys. The creation process involves soaking the large canvases in the sea at different locations around the UK. The resultant marks and textures provide a record of both place and time. Jessica manipulates the canvases, sometimes removing part of them to create an overall composition.
I can see a link from my explorations with dripping and splattering paint that I completed in Exercise 1. Jessica has moved past the limitations that I had to allow the movement of the sea to create the work.
My explorative paintings for Exercise 1
Rebecca Horn, a German visual artist born 24/3/1944 creates Installation art along with Film directing and body modification. I was interested by one of the pieces that is at Tate Modern. The work is called ‘Concert for Anarchy’ it is an upside-down piano which occasionally comes to life in a noisy outburst. An excerpt from the display caption states “The instrument was used as prop in Horn’s feature film ‘Buster’s Bedroom, 1990’ Horn has described how ‘having freed itself from the psychiatric clinic (the piano) is now composing its own music. The piano acts like a living thing: it gets upset and slowly regains its composure. this might mirror own experience of being startled by the sculpture.”
Concert for Anarchy 1990 Rebecca Horn born 1944 Purchased with assistance from the Art Fund and the Friends of the Tate Gallery 1999 http://www.tate.org.uk/art/work/T07517
I have not tried anything remotely similar and therefor any comparisons to my explorations are not valid.
Moving onto Akira Kanayama, 1924 – 2006, one of the Japanese Gutai group I can immediately see connections with some of my experimental drawing and paintings that I have completed as part of the exercises in Part One. The first example is the coloured line drawing that I made using the drawing contraption. Below is my work on the left and Kanayama’s on the right.
There is a sense of random marks made in an undisciplined manner to both drawings.
Further examples, see below, show similar mark making. In both examples my explorative work is shown on the left. In both examples my work looks more primitive in its conception and outcome.
Mark Taylor 'Studio Practice' 