University Campus Suffolk

Images of the final pieces selected for my end of year show.

YAY!

And it’s UP!

I finally finished the hanging on Friday.

All for one!

Who to include in the cluster of portraits in theory seemed a difficult task. In reality it wasn’t. The strong portraits stayed strong and the weak ones in their own right were transformed when placed in a group context, a kind of socialism of artworks.

Which is partly the point. We are all in this together, can we similarly solve problems facing society with collaboration and collective effort?

Having established that most of the portraits worked with each other – they propped each other up and helped each other out – the only problem to face was an enjoyable one of choosing their arrangement and choosing which worked best alongside each other.

Having tried many arrangements it turned into a question of dynamics and design, which design created the best flow and the most visually attractive look. It really was just playing, creating and having fun.

I was pleased with the interaction, how these portraits had a dialogue with each other, and was pleased with the emotional reaction they drew when looking at them all together. The feeling was a strange one when looking at so many portraits as one and where so many of the faces were looking directly back. Hopefully they will elicit a similar reaction in the viewer.

Day 1 Almost There!

Final stages of the large portraits. The main areas to address are the detail around the eyes and to add more life and texture to the flatter areas of tone in order to create volume in the portrait. Finally there are key areas already plotted out for the cardboard to be torn away to reveal the under layers of the board.

Day 2 I Did It!!

All the final stages were navigated successfully and I was satisfied with the overall look of the painting. I regard it as a success and i definitely tackled the second large work with much more confidence. Particularly pleasing were the torn areas. From a distance the torn areas contribute another tone and closer up they reveal texture and provide a sculptural quality.

The work of Vhils was very much in my mind when conceiving these works, the concept of portraying ordinary people as iconic and monumental is very important to me and to this artist. I am sure I have quoted Vhils before, but I don’t mind repeating and emphasising his words.

“The majority of portraits I’ve created in this Scratching the Surface series have been based on anonymous, unknown people – people not even I know. I value the idea of turning ordinary people into icons, to contrast this with the need people seem to have of creating icons in the first place. Instead of creating icons out of people who have changed history or are celebrities of some sort, like what Warhol was doing with Mao Zedong, Marilyn and others, I take an ordinary person and try and make other people think about themselves reflected in this person, who is also struggling to get by in this day and age. There is an untapped source of wealth in the individual, the unknown everyday heroes we all are in the massive struggle of life.”

http://laist.com/2011/11/10/interview_with_vhils.php

Things are Getting Better!!

Feeling a lot more positive about these works. After adding another couple of layers of paint I can see them begin to develop. It looks like with plenty of work these paintings will have the epic look I have been after. They seem to be developing much in the same way as the other smaller scale works that I have been used to, logically I don’t know why I wasn’t expecting them to. The real difference is the sheer amount of work, the larger areas I am having to cover, and the logistics of mixing the tones I need in greater quantities. Obviously this means an increased workload and increased fatigue but the results are outweighing any drawbacks. The final stages are yet to come but if they continue to develop in this way they will be successful.