#7
I have looked at a number of artists over the last few months, focusing on those that create the more intricate environments or are influenced by folklore, etc.
I have looked at:
Ryoko Aoki: http://www.moma.org/collection/artist.php?artist_id=28546
Who creates intricate drawings on paper using pens and pencil. The detail put into the work gives the impression of the skeleton of the flower, as she very much works with outlines rather than the bigger picture.
The combination of drawings to create a larger image is particularly effective, in my opinion, as it shows growth in these minimalistic pictures.
Sandra Cinto: http://www.phillipscollection.org/exhibitions/2012-06-19-intersections-sandra-cinto.aspx
She creates large scale works that span the lengths of rooms – creating deep atmospheres of the sea and sky that envelop the viewer.
She uses very fine details in the lines of her work, creating waves and stars intricately, almost appearing to create a life-size environment for the viewer to enter, and it is this factor of pulling the viewer into the work that I want to adopt in my own practice.
Yun Fei Ji: http://www.jamescohan.com/artists/yun-fei-ji/
Creates traditional-looking paintings and drawings based around morals and moral problems.
I think that this kind of focus to the work is interesting as it gives an almost hidden meaning to pictures that are usually considered beautiful pieces of art – making them almost gruesome.
Simone Shubuck: http://www.kantorgallery.com/exhibitions/simone-shubuck/
She collages images together, creating the impression of a complex environment, concentrating on the use of flowers and nature.
She also depicts monsters and unnatural creatures within her work, giving it a more mysterious and almost frightening factor.
In my own opinion, her work is not unlike the Hindu imagery of their Gods – it is very detailed and beautiful, but gives way to the unknown.
Picasso: http://www.art.co.uk/gallery/id–a16-b196099/posters.htm
Picasso looked at the slightly more grotesque side of mythology – looking at the image of the minotaur, and then, as he did with much of his work, distorted its features, placing the body in awkward positions, producing an even more horrifying image.
David Hockney: http://www.royalacademy.org.uk/ra-publications-86/six-fairy-tales-from-the-brothers-grimm-illustrated-by-david-hockney-1295/
Hockney created a series of etchings, illustrating six of the Brothers Grimm fairy tales, including some that are not so well known, creating images out of the dark shapes and figures, and making some quite dark imagery to go alongside the stories.
I think it would be productive for me to read more of the tales myself, in more detail, finding the pieces that would work well in creating the nightmarish environments I want to depict.
