Firstly I would like to thank A-N for featuring my blog on their Twitter and Facebook pages, I am absolutely over the moon to think there are people to whom my writing is of some interest.
Back to business now, so I have been considering the future of my work/ practice and how I spend my time creatively speaking, I have asked myself questions as I consider myself a devotee of abstract art but have always dabbled in figuration on the off chance that I might at some point in the future decide to use figurative motifs within in my drawings, however I have decided this is akin to holding an umbrella above my head whilst the sun is out in the middle of summer. Pointless really unless I decided to pour a super focus onto really developing my skills in this area with a view to using them on a new project – as I have no such plans I feel this can only be detrimental to my current practice. On top of this I seem to remember Jake and Dino Chapman retiring to their studio for a year or more to learn to carve whilst doing nothing else so as to master what they needed to achieve, so what I am saying is anything is achievable with focused hard work – but in this area I think for me I would need to see an end goal to commit to a very different direction, especially when I find so much to explore in what I am already doing (I’m not for second comparing myself to these illustrious guys but perhaps you see my point).
Part of trying to fit any kind of practice around a full time day job requires some thought, in my case this comes in the form of carrying a tiny notebook that was bought for me as a present to record ideas, thoughts and possible solutions to current problems I might be having with a drawing, even helping with things like how to move forward with very rough and basic sketches recording colour ideas and drawings that will be scaled down and repeated in what I consider more developed and polished work.
Here’s an image giving a glimpse into how I go about my day, this little book is used if I’m stationary in traffic, lunch breaks, whilst eating dinner, or any other number of different points during the day, it allows me to capture small ideas that would – with the best will in the world normally quietly vanish whilst going about my day to day business (which hopefully one day will be making art). I feel this is extremely enriching to my work and helps me to add depth and meaning to what I am trying to do. Incidentally it is so small because it is easy to conceal whilst I’m not strictly meant to be thinking of such things…it is a tool for artistic cay burglary. I scrawl notes and things of any interest that could be used later.
Thank you as always for taking the time to read my meandering thoughts.
For those of you that have been reading my blog you will know I have been working on a drawing for some time now, happily I feel I have reached a point where I feel the drawing is really starting to build and it is beginning to show signs of substance (in my opinion only). It must be a psychosomatic thing but I now feel the drawing is flowing from me with ease and with little conscious effort, my focus has not dulled and is only strengthened by the creative energy I am now able to glean from the thought that I am coming ever closer to my goal and the vision that once seemed so far away. For me this is the sweet spot in my drawing process where I consider the intensity, life and vitality to begin to present itself and with that my doubts and worries quietly recede.
It may of been obvious through reading the paragraph above but I am currently riding the crest of the “successful session of effortless drawing” wave after an invisible day at work, coupled with the all-powerful sweet spot, tonight’s experience has been the visual equivalent of a post exercise high.
I would love to hear what you think of this drawing and as usual all comments – good and bad are welcome.
I consider my drawings to be fairly extreme (the irony of “fairly extreme” has not passed me by), the execution, aesthetic and the attention to detail all reflects my persona, thoughts and behaviour in a way, my drawings are in essence a self-portrait of sorts – each drawing with its own take on a slice of cerebral accuracy that takes a subconscious look at its creator – me. (whom it also appears to be a pretentious buffoon…that can be art though I guess and certain strands of the masses brand all artists “pretentious buffoons” so I may as well indulge in this fallacy a little with my blossoming love of writing). This of course is not true, the art world as with any other strand of society has it’s good and bad, some down to earth people who feel no need to exaggerate their difference but are happy to quietly do their thing and some flouncy people who are the complete opposite – unfortunately our flouncers are the people a lot of the non arty areas of society think we all are. This is not the case. Being involved in art (albeit on a tiny scale) is one of the greatest and most rewarding gifts I could ever wish to have. Thank you as always for taking the time to read my somewhat random musings.
So, we are now looking at approximately the half way point in this drawing, i. Part it has been excruciatingly painful to try and stay with it as opposed to walking away, I am hoping the colours will “pop” against one another – especially when the darker areas are completed. I’d love to hear any thoughts or opinions on this drawing – good or bad, all are welcome.
instagram: stu01621
twitter: @stu01621
saatchiart: stuart belton
artfinder: stuart belton
I do what I do and sometimes think about the ramifications of working alone so much with little or no validation from the outside – or larger world…then I think fuck it – I do what I do because I love it and if people do not like it – well that’s for them to worry about – not me.
Each piece hurts me, it’s intricacies and all the labour intensive processes that this type of art demands, I think perhaps I could cut this corner, or that one – no one will see or notice – but I will, I will know it’s there – or not as the case maybe, central to my work right now is being honest and conscious that I am respecting the craft that I am partaking in.
There are other things I would like to try out but I know I am not done with what I am doing, there is still a lot to explore, more challenges to attempt. I feel there is a lot left until I reach my limits and want to keep going until I reach those limits and have exhausted all possibilities. I know for a fact that this is probably a decision that I will regret when I am a third of the way into a big drawing but it is something I feel I need to do, I guess it will make or break my work at which point I will begin to explore other avenues of interest.
Anyway here is a picture of my latest drawing. What do you think? I am experimenting with colour to try to maximise the popping I can get from the colour, this should really become apparent when I complete the work in the negative spaces.
instagram: stu01621
twitter: @stu01621
artfinder: stuart belton
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So here we have a progress shot of my latest drawing, I have been working on this sporadically, typically in short bursts for quite sometime. I thought I’d share a little about my working methods and some of the prizes and pitfalls I encounter along the way. My work (technique wise), for sometime has centred around the very small, the micro, maybe a microcosm of sorts, and I have to maintain extreme concentration to allow myself to work so intricately. I am always looking and exploring new ways of making more exhaustive and detailed drawings whilst ensuring my drawings genuinely follow on from what I consider my art to be about. I always use a magnifying glass to help squeeze colour into tight spaces and further control line quality. It has started to become a dormant obsession which is brought instantly to life as soon as I sit down and put pen to paper. I describe it as dormant because it is always there but only truly activates once the ink begins to flow on the paper.
Due to the exacting parameters I have chosen to work within often the first half an hour or so are the most painful of each sitting. Nerves and a steady hand – are two essentials whilst working on such a small scale, if I find I cannot settle or my hand doesn’t stop to shake I cannot continue if the drawing is at an advanced stage as I would be risking a slip which inevitably would detract from the finished work. I do not wish to have this kind of serendipity present itself within my work at this stage of my life. This doesn’t happen often but it is a very real danger, if I can push through this initial period I tend to settle into a focussed state – but it is always a constant effort to remain seated and working. The thing that always pulls me through is an approximate idea of what I am looking for and watching periodically as it emerges (slowly) before my very eyes. This I find extremely rewarding and especially after taking a break and coming back to look at my work once my eyes have freshened. I always try to leave the table without looking at what I have done to intensify this reward to myself and so as not to form any opinion with a stale eye. I like to work in my dining room which is always very well lit during the day with windows to my left and to my front, I like routine where this is concerned as I know that I am comfortable sitting in this position and can produce (what I would consider) the bet results I am capable of producing, I do sometimes sit in front of the TV with a sketchbook but it is always just doodling as opposed to any finished work. As a left hander I always cover my drawings with a sheet of paper where my arm is extending across the drawing to avoid and unwanted effects coming by way of an arm or hand rubbing against the drawing’s surface – could just be a greasy mark but also guards against anything else falling accidentally onto the surface. I consider this good studio practice and like to maintain a studio discipline which also includes absolutely no liquids or food on the same table on which I am drawing upon, if I want to drink I will leave the table and always wash and thoroughly dry my hands after eating. I put a lot of value into these drawings and want to treat them with a respect that should be afforded to an object of artwork. A respect I show to every piece of artwork I encounter. A respect that everyone should show. I would like to know more about the chemistry of inks reacting with papers, lightfast inks how to maximise the staying power and life of my colours, I am careful and work conscientiously (to the best of my ability) to ensure I am offering a quality object. I make periodic updates mostly to Instagram which details progress of my current work (@stu01621). thank you for taking the time to read my blog. Please feel free to contact me: [email protected] https://www.artfinder.com/stuart-belton twitter: @stu01621 https://www.saatchiart.com/blbwickaolcom
