Crowd

I try to stay away from painting more than one person as my perfectionist side would step in and I would end up spending months on one piece, not due to the level of difficulty; simply the fact that I’d hate painting it. So I decided to challenge myself, not only was I to paint a crowd I was to also paint it in oil. I focused on elements that I found easier to paint and for some reason I find it easier to paint hair, which most actually find harder to paint. From my study I found that I don’t need to paint a perfect portrait have the characteristics of the subject I’m painting, from the hair alone most of my uni friends were able to spot the characters with ease.

Triptych

I finished my piece keeping in mind the idea of a triptych; having done some research on Francis Bacon I noted the spiritual importance of a triptych and how first examples are found in churches. I’m still on the journey of discovering my own interpretation of faith, but to kick-start my research I’m hoping to engage with the public, asking questions of their beliefs in the supernatural. So far I’ve had a brief encounter with Mormons; it’ll be interesting to find out just what they believe in. I’m not sure whether it’s just another branch from modern-day Christianity.

Eureka 2

So a few posts ago I did the whole experiment with the PVA glue and paint. I decided to give it a go and actually paint what I see and for a first attempt I’m quite happy with the result, and the fact that I finished in less than 5 hours is freaking me out. May be finally on to a winner; now it’s just the case of tweaking my FMP proposal :D. Ah art how you choose to evolve. Painted this at home, couldn’t be bothered to paint in uni as I had all the materials at home and now that I’ve FINALLY got my easel and camera; NOTHING CAN STOP ME!!! So expect a lot more this 2 months.

Joseph Kony

It’s a topic I feel very passionate about. It also demonstrates the power persuasion can have on people. It’s sad to know that people like Kony exist; what’s even more sickening is the fact that he claims to do what he does in the pursuit of christianity. As a christian myself it’s interesting to see how far the truth could be bent, causing mass propaganda. This portrait reinforces my argument for my final major project at whether faith is relevant in the 21st century, it definitely shows the cons as idiots like Kony put their own twist to faith creating something completely evil; and it’s so scary as looking at his image I didn’t really get the sense of an evil war lord. It’s the story that follows the portrait that showcases his wickedness. To test this out I’m going to set the image somewhere in my university asking for 1 word responses to what the public experience looking at his face. Though to be honest I’d be more than happy if they ripped it off the wall.

This was my first proper attempt at using oils all through the painting and I must say I won’t be using acrylics anytime soon.

Painting Royalty

On one of my random painting moods I decided to paint a royal, I didn’t want to paint the obvious so I decided to paint Prince Philip. The guy is so funny and incredibly ignorant at times, but hey even the royals have their moments of humor.

I never add much detail on a study but I liked this portrait so much I’m considering painting another on a larger scale with more wrinkles, LOVE PAINTING WRINKLES…….. death to smooth skin so boring.

BUBBLES

I had a day of painting whatever entered my mind at any particular moment. I was also challenged by my tutor to paint on a large-scale as I always limit myself to A0. So I painted on a scale of 210cm x 170cm. The ribbon was probably my subconscious wanting to paint fabric however yet again THE BUBBLES ARE BACK. This time they have managed to produce a sense of space in my painting that I’ve never experienced before. And my work rate is beginning to scare me, this painting only took a day to finish.

Grandma

I felt liked painting a topic and for some reason death came instantly. Last year had to be the worst year for my family, we lost 5 members in a single year, all of whom I was really close to. I took into consideration the family members who have suffered the most from their loss and my grandma came into the centre of my thoughts. Not only has she lost her husband but in the same year she lost a son and a sister. My mother made a trip to support her during the memorial, she took lots of pictures and in every single picture she had this low sinking facial expression. She looked like she had a lot of emotions going at once. I feel that my FMP (final major project) will consist a lot of portraits of her and somehow the bubbles managed to slip into this painting too.

Chitenge

Well I thought I would have a go at producing something completely different from the frame of work I was doing last year. I took inspiration from my trip to Amsterdam. Looking at Rembrandt’s painting of printed fabric, I wondered how he was able to achieve such an effect. I noted that he must have painted in layers. Chitenge material is an african material that showcases an array of prints and colours. I painted the fabric in three stages. I don’t try to have the subject of identity in my work but it always shows, so fighting it won’t help, I simply embrace it.

Jacket

This was my final piece for our foundation exhibition in the Herbert Read Gallery. It wraps up my final thought for my 2011 art work; and my old way of thinking in general. I hope to produce more work, not for the sake of producing work , but actually having my work reflect my thoughts and emotions. So my work will be extremely random. Our theme for this exhibition was ‘Books.’ Our thought process was to not think of a conventional book but what a book represents; my representation was not based on a story but the repetition found in books. The constant flicking of the page as well as the information you gain. I also find that some information on certain pages carry more importance for the book as a whole than other pages. The final piece showcases studies of my jacket painted on cardboard.

Back to work

Well it’s been a while since I’ve updated my blog. I go through periods of not doing anything and then suddenly producing masses of work. I will add more material as I go along hopefully on a daily base but I’m not promising anything. This was a project I had long set myself to do. I was commissioned to paint my friend’s baby; it started off well until I got the image he wanted me to paint, it was then I realised how much I hate too much shadow in my work, especially if the shadow is not subtle. I gave it my best shot and the end result wasn’t too bad. It’s funny because I tend to put back work I don’t want to do, this piece is evident to that as it took me 3 months to finish, not due to the length I take to paint but the fact that I hated painting it. As soon as I was done with the face I was surprised at the rate it took me to finish the rest, I guess my fabric studies are finally paying off.