Feedback – Tea and Doodles

(My thoughts in green)

Overall Comments

Many thanks for sending me your third assignment. I have read through your blog which is well documented and thorough in its descriptions of your progress through the Chapter.

There is quite a difference between seeing the work on your blog and seeing it in real life and that has to do with scale , lighting , colour balance and recognising the material used. However as you have also sent the actual work it makes life easier.

This confirms my thoughts on Assignment 2, that online submission is not the ideal method. I will make a concerted effort to make sure I get the assignments posted.

The drawing of a tree and its roots for example really stands out and the use of a blue biro to create the effects works really well. Similarly the cloud studies on black paper .You may have been inspired by Tacita Dean’s black and white drawings of mountains. They were on display in London recently but just in case you didn’t see them I’ve illustrated one here.

The name is familiar and I wonder if I came across her name and work subconsciously. I love this contrast and think I will want to use more contrasting media from here on.

Tacita Dean

Where your pencil drawings are concerned they do not stand out as much as your ink drawings. The boldness of the hatching, and you can see that in your copy of the John Virtue drawing, is in contrast with the lightness of touch of your pencil drawing. This may have something to do with blending pencil marks with your finger, the effects of which look more like a smudge. I couldn’t quite out my finger on what was not ‘right’. Willow charcoal on the other hand gives a beautiful effect when spread with the finger. Using a range of pencils from HB to 6B is a possibility and gives you more of an opportunity for mark making and a variation of tone from light to dark. I oversimplified by using only one grade of pencil and varying the pressure. Your Cornish pencil landscape suffers from this lack of dynamic range. Agree. I am happy with the concept and composition but its execution has fallen short. Water-soluble pencils are also useful. I see you do use other pencils but next time you are in an art shop try out the different range and types of pencils from graphite to charcoal and coloured and see what you think will suit you . Graphite sticks are next on my list. I think I will use my coloured pencils more. I have a wonderful set but I still have the mindset that they are for children.

The other material you are using which you handle well is the pen and ink and watercolour that can be seen for example your sketch of Freshwater West where the whole range of tones from dark to light are used and where the tonal range of the colours is also exploited to good effect.

Great! This is one of my favourite media and would like to work and develop this a bit more. Maybe work on my simplification.

Feedback on assignment

Demonstration of technical and Visual Skills, Quality of Outcome, Demonstration of Creativity

For your final assignment landscape,the first attempt is the better picture. It has not only a better composition but also colour and tone and has more pictorial interest. The sketches used as preliminary designs are informative and there are quite a number of them with some a delight in themselves. The compositional decision of having the two sets of palm trees on either side works well. The glass barrier is a good compositional device as is the use of the wavy lines that emphasis the perspective. David Hockney for example had to invent ways of depicting modern materials such as glass, sprinklers and swimming pools and he did it by using a graphic shorthand of his own devising in his Los Angeles pictures. Further research on this needed. Further work on this picture might be worth doing on the sand to give it more substance and possibly the colour and tone of the sky which could be darker at the top getting lighter to the horizon . Ah-hah…Of course. This also helps with the Arial perspective. Otherwise the browns and ochre’s and violets used and the shadows cast are quite evocative.

Sketchbooks

Demonstration of technical and Visual Skills, Demonstration of Creativity

Your sketchbook is a delight in the combined use of written and visual information. I like very much the drawing of lobster pots , the Cornish sea and rocks and especially ‘Callen at Wave crest” an intense use of blue biro and dramatic composition. The colour blue reminds me of an artist called Lisa Brice who was recently on at the Tate Britain who has used the colour blue among other things to demonstrate the use of the product ‘Ricketts Blue powder’ that was associated with skin lightener in the Caribbean. More information can be found here Wowsers! Almost a negative photographic feel.

https://www.tate.org.uk/tate-etc/issue-43-summer-2018/lisa-brice-art-now-interview-aicha-mehrez

Lisa Brice

Research

Context, reflective thinking, critical thinking, analysis

Your research is good but It is worth thinking about the Ron Lawson picture you have illustrated beside the Hopper picture. The former has a graphic quality that is designed to ring certain bells through its flat and attractive colour range. It is knowingly commercial in its appeal and through these devices attracts attention at first sight. There is nothing wrong with creating a commercial product of course but the Edward Hopper is in a different league altogether and it would not make a good fridge magnet although I do have another one on my fridge. There is a deeper psychological level to a Hopper painting that marks him out as one of the great painters of the 20th century . He is not using easy colours or attractive brushmarks and design to make his statement and that is an important difference. Being able to recognise this difference will become more important as you progress. I completely agree with this, again, in hindsight. I analysed ‘Nighthawks’ in my Creative Arts module and yes, he was in a league of his own. I feel a little guilty to have ‘commercialised’ Hopper in this comparison. However, the scientist in me comes to the fore and questions WHY he is in a league of his own. I feel Lawson’s techniques and colour contrast are beautiful and yet Hopper is classed as such a vital painter with comparatively dull colours. This is the point I feel my tutor is making. He is not using EASY colours or attractive techniques in his statement. Need to remind myself about Hopper’s statements. Relevant to the time in which he worked.

As I am unable to take a History of Art module now, this research needs to come in my own time.

Although of course we distain monetary values in art, (unless we are on the receiving end) check out this article about the most expensive Hopper sold at auction.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-46205604

Learning Logs or Blogs/Critical essays

Context, reflective thinking, critical thinking, analysis

If you are unable to see exhibitions where you are, the Internet can supply you with all the information you need for your leaning log.

Suggested reading/viewing

Context

At present in London there is an exhibition of Egon Schiele and Gustav Klimt drawings, The BBC has put out a good film on Schiele which you can probably get on I Player.

Its called Igon Schiele: Dangerous Desires

I had downloaded this before this assessment came through! It was intriguing and inspirational. Putting the distressed or pornographic feel of some of his work aside, I have always enjoyed the flow through his drawings, and wanted to emulate his relaxed line.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b0brzkrh/egon-schiele-dangerous-desires

Pointers for the next assignment

● Reflect on this feedback in your learning log.

Well done, I look forward to your next assignment.

Feedback for assignment 1 received:
My comments are in purple, my tutor’s remain in black.

Overall Comments

Many thanks for sending me your first assignment. Your portfolio was sent down from Barnsley to me and it is best to send it directly to me using the sticky labels provided.

I need to get hold of up to date stickers then as my tutor was changed after I started the course.

I have read through your online blog and it gives me a good idea of how you are doing with the course, It is also a useful place to put sketches and exercises that don’t have to be sent as the final assignment.

Mark making is traditionally the place to start and it is useful if you can take some of that experimental attitude into the more traditional means of working.

The charcoal drawings are a good place to start but please remember to fix them as they rub off easily against each other and on handling and start to fade.

Fixative can be bought in any art shop or else the cheaper method is to use Hair spray, which has the same effect. The non-perfumed version is preferred.

I have a love-hate relationship with fixative, hairspray and charcoal. It never seems to ‘fix’ with me!

Project 2 exercise 2 where the use of the charcoal reveals the grain of the paper is very effective. The drawing of the two objects done large in close up is good as it shows the use of all the tones but it has a worn look and the drawing needs to be sprayed and reworked to bring it back to life. Similarly Project 2 exercice2 (iii) has a to grey overall look to it and needs to be reinforced with a dark tone a mid tone, light and highlight the latter of which you can get with a putty rubber. However I do like the composition the angle of which is direct and imaginative.

Insert photos for ref

Again project 2 exercise 4 needs to be fixed. The drawing is good especially the cup but as an arrangement it is a bit lacking.

The white chalk on black paper is a nice idea but there is a lack of a mid tone probably because it was difficult to achieve and in this case you might find that if you try to fix it the drawing will disappear because of the way that the fixative reacts with the whited chalk. Try it and see.

You seems to be most at home with the pen and I like your freedom of use with your ink drawing on the mauve coloured paper.

Assignment 1 Assessment potential

You may want to get credit for your hard work and achievements with the OCA by formally submitting your work for assessment at the end of the module. More and more people are taking the idea of lifelong learning seriously by submitting their work for assessment but it is entirely up to you. We are just as keen to support you whether you study for pleasure or to gain qualifications. Please consider whether you want to put your work forward for assessment and let me know your decision when you submit Assignment 2. I can then give you feedback on how well your work meets the assessment requirements.

Feedback on assignment

Demonstration of technical and Visual Skills, Quality of Outcome, Demonstration of Creativity

The objects in the final assignment have been chosen in order to exploit memories and associations. There is some exploratory work in the sketchbook showing compositional changes and ideas and it is a good idea to try out about four different arrangements before deciding on the final one. Then its good to experiment with different media to find the one you are most comfortable with. I like your use of ball point pen – a favourite among artists because you cant rub it out and it stops you from getting precious. It is also a surprisingly intense medium and I think your drawing of the Gerbera and the Vase stand out really well.

This is my new favourite medium and I think I enjoy it for that fact, I can’t get precious about my work. It is quite liberating.

The use of mixed media is interesting, if you can bring it off ,especially mixing colour with black and white. I think I would have done the vase in colour as well as the cloth thereby leaving the Buddha in splendid isolation in the centre of the picture. The watch is particularly well drawn, not an easy thing to do.

This was a new thing for me, I wanted to see how pointillism works. It’s more than just placing dots to create light and shadow, it involves layering again and again to build up a depth. I am particularly pleased with the watch.

Sketchbooks

Demonstration of technical and Visual Skills, Demonstration of Creativity

The sketchbook is filling up nicely with a variety of approaches. Discovering the use of ball point pen is a particularly good page and you use it with confidence drawing the ellipses and the shading to good effect.

Research

Context, reflective thinking, critical thinking, analysis

It is important part of the course to be able to write about and form opinions of other artists work and I see you have looked at the work of Odilon Redon. Another artists to include in your research is Seurat and especially with his conté drawings on rough paper which gives an impressionistic appearance,

I need to look more at artists as I did in my A-level course. This was useful.

Seurat

Another artists worth looking at is Morandi and his etchings which exploit cross hatching to achieve tone.

Morandi

Learning Logs or Blogs/Critical essays

Context, reflective thinking, critical thinking, analysis

The leaning log is developing well. There are headlines that are so grey that they are almost disappearing which you might like to alter.

To check.

I would try and get into the habit of writing more about the artists and the exhibitions you have seen.

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Assignment 3 – tutor feedback

Assignment 1 Tutor Feedback