Preface: I see my thesis work as a sort of buried treasure. I feel like I'm digging at it from a bunch of different angles. I worked most directly toward it in the Abstract & Interpretation 3 class, the goal being to create the love children of one of my fashion illustrations that had 2 interacting figures done in pastel and a completely abstract image full of layers and scraping and impasto application of acrylic. However what I came to was either, too contrived and on the figurative side or too detached from what I'm really trying to achieve and not figurative enough, or at least the figurative elements were not organized the way I want them to be. I can't exactly see in my head what I want the paintings to look like, it’s like I’m looking through an opaque window at it. I have a sense of what’s there, but I can’t make out the details.
The over all goal for this class is to wipe away that haze, to become more clear about what exactly I’m trying to achieve and make several paintings that inspire if are not included in my final thesis body of
work.
Each week I will complete one painting and each 3-4 weeks I will complete a larger piece that I will work on, informed by the smaller works and using the longer time to build up more complex layers. I will start smaller to help organize my ideas without overwhelming myself, and then progressively the formats will get larger, both the weekly works and the longer term images. Below is a tentative schedule, but changes will be made. This is just a general starting point.
9/2-9/7, week 1: turn in first 9”x12”, begin 24”x 32”
9/8-9/14, week 2: turn in second 9”x12”, continue 24”x 32”
9/15-9/21, week 3: turn in third 9”x12”, finish 24”x 32”
9/22-9/28, week 4: turn in first 12”x16”, begin 26”x35”
9/29-10/5, week 5: turn in second 12”x16”, continue 26”x35”
10/6-10/12, week 6: turn in third 12”x16”, continue 26”x35”
10/13-10/19, week 7: turn in fourth 12”x16”, finish 26”x35”
10/ 20-10/26, week 8: turn in first 18”x24”, begin 30”x40”
10/27-11/2, week 9 turn in second 18”x24”, continue 30”x40”
11/3-11/9, week 10: turn in third 18”x24”, continue 30”x40”
11/10-11/16, week 11: turn in fourth 18”x24” finish 30”x40”
11/17-11/23, week 12: begin two 32”x48”
11/29-12/7, week 13: continue two 32”x48
12/3-12/14, week 14: finish two 32”x48”
12/15-12/18, week 15: finishing up critique, assessing overall progress and what I’ve gained
The things I will be focusing on and thinking about are as follows:
Creating new and surprising combinations of colors, textures, pattern, and media
The idea of “the present”, both my own personal present moment, but also the time in which I live
Work in different locations, i.e. work outside the studio sometimes, weather pending
The principles of design, thinking about them, but not just following them, I love images that push awkward but still somehow work.
Incorporating many materials i.e. fabrics, papers, found objects, acrylic, oil paint, etching inks, oils sticks, glue, various pastels, charcoal, watercolor, colored pencil, water-soluble crayon, dirt, etc. (no flour/food based media, as mice have eaten all of my paper maché and paste paper)
Use different tools, ie hand made brushes, shaped plastic combs, credit cards, styro prints, lino prints, collagraphs, sticks, brushes, palette knives, other kitchen and hardware tools, etc.
Creating a healthy working rhythm that I can take beyond school
Human interaction, both my own with a model, and also creating interaction between figures on a page
Assessing size and format, finding what feels right and then pushing that
Changing the schedule as I learn, Richard has some good ideas already about varying the times, sizes, etc. i.e. 3 in one day and longer preparation work for a smaller final piece
Building a painting from the inside out. Being aware, planning, looking ahead, but still staying present and being daring and intuitive
I want to do the majority of this work on paper, but will use something more structurally supportive when the process calls for it.
