Final exam piece

A2 Project Evaluation

The theme and exam question that I have been studying and researching, is multiple images. When first researching multiple images for the first time, I was hit with a vast amount of ideas and images that could lead on to something big. My initial ideas when I first started the project were about painting movement and noticing the different between each photo and how it has changed. Throughout the project, I moved on from painting portraits to experimenting more with different medias such as wood, sewing onto a photograph, patterns and photo montaging. The mood that I have tried to portray to the viewer is a sense of getting a closer look into my personal life and the years that have passed. Like a timeline of my life, from being born to the present year. 

At the beginning of the exam preparation, i wanted to look at how people change over a period of time through the use of a details portrait painting on canvas or a board. I created a small scale wood painting which was based on the artist work, Jonathan Yeo. After i created this, i decided that i wanted to move on from painting and not focus on this specific media for the whole exam. Following on from this, i gathered several personal, old family photos to use which my work. This was a major turning point within my exam preparation as i was now focusing on family, personal life and the emotion that was portrayed within that time period. Sticking to the theme of multiple images, i layered these photos onto of each other changing the opacity level so each photo was seen if the viewer looked hard enough. This  gave a new meaning to the photos as they now look ghostly and disturbed. Although, it did show the relationship and close bond that my family has together and this was a theme which i was interested in and wanted to move forward with. These photographs compared with the artist Richard Billingham are the same showing the truth and who an every day family functions which there arguments and the love within the household. 

Not leaving the painting behind in the past, i wanted to incorporate it within my project. This then leaded on to creating a mix media board piece which i used a verity of different media from coffee, string, paint and arts a craft prices. I though that this was a successful piece and i wanted to incorporate the photography and the painting together but didn't want to overshadow the photograph and its message with too much paint. 

Leading on from this idea with the paint and photographs, i wanted to add more media into the piece to get the audience thinking and have an insight into my personal life. I found an artist, Maurizio Aneri which uses thread the created technical patterns over the face of his subject within vintage photos to create a mask showing or hiding the emotion of that person. This really inspired me and i wanted to take this ideas and incorporate it with the paint and the photographs. I then created several mix media photographs that included photography, thread and paint. I thought that this worked really well and the way i sewing shown the emotion that i wanted to portray. I then added text and colour symbolism within my work to create a new point within my work. This was inspired by the artist David Fullerton. 

Within my final piece, I have created three different photographs, with a different story, different meaning which the audience can see for them selves through the use of visual images, text and the sewing methods. This represents a timeline of my personal life which has changed over the years. The colours that i have used all symbolise a feel or emotion that was taken place within that place and time. I used the colours to make the outline of the subject bold and more edgy and contrast with the sewing part of the photograph. 

Photograph number one was of myself and my brother at a young age. I have used blue, yellow, red and black within this piece. This is because it symbolises the place were this photo was taken and our lives at this point. At a young age we liked to play with tractors and our rooms were tractor themed. This influenced us as children and became a part of our lives which then became part of the picture. The text on the background is a short sentence and text saying 'I used to like tractors' and 'Brothers'. This is describing the picture and the content within and shows that this is how i was writing at a young age which was simply created by using my left hand. The stitching on the face, which is near the eye and around the eye symbolises that we will always look out for one another no matter what. The techniques that i used were simple weaving and a series of thread over laying to create a shape around the eye. I developed these ideas by researching artists such as Maurizio Anzeri which had a major influence on my art work with the stitching techniques. I feel that if i could do this photograph again, i would add more vibrant colours in like adding more yellow in so it does not look so dark and disturbing. The stitching at the start of the exam preparation was not going too well as i tried using the sewing machine but decided that if i did the 

sticking manually, i would be able to create more detail and make it 

look professional.

Photograph number two was of myself on my first day of school. This was a major turning point within my life which i wanted to capture within my sting techniques that i used. I used plane colours and over layered the red on the jumper to enforce that the jumper and the logo was the important part of the photograph. The black thread on the face represents a mask covering the fear that i have of school and the people within. I feel that this was a success as black is a full, depressing colour were as yellow would portray to the audience that i was happy about going to school and not afraid. The text, moving on from the last photograph i have grown up and starting to learn how to write so i wanted to portray this to the audience. 

I used a child like writing frame and chosen the sentence 'First day of school'.  Again, the main influence for this was Maurizio Anzeri which in one of his photographs used a black vale to hide the woman emotions that she was trying to hide by covering it and hiding under something black and depressing.  

 Photograph number 3 used the same principle as the previous two picture of the symbolism of the colours and the text used in the background of the photograph. I chose this picture to work on because this was a major event within my life which i shared with my closest friends. The vast array of colours that i used to outline the subject and the multicoloured thread at the top right hand corner of the photograph. The wide range of colours suggest excitement as we had just completed our sky dive. The words which i have chosen to use are a mixture of excitement and truth at the present year. 'What do i do now', 'Friends', 'Excitement', '………'. All these words have a meaning and how i am feeling, we are all friends, we were exited and now we don't know what to do with our lives which leaves questions in our mind of a worried future. These sentences and words are printed onto paper as this is now the current year and technology is advanced.

I am really pleased with the outcome of my final piece because of the sewing techniques that i have used and they are in great detail. Secondly I am pleased with the message that the pictures portray different emotions of that moment in time when the photograph was taken. On reflection i would add more stitching to the photographs but on the over hand it may have over powered the photo which i didn't want to do. The strengths within my final piece would be the stitching because of how detailed it is and the patterns that i have used. Overall, i am extremely pleased with my final piece and i am happy with the outcome.

Practice experiments for the exam

Experiment 1: I have created a mix media photograph using the stitching method with thread, coloured paint with symbolises this moment within my child hood and text. This photo was taken when i was at or around about the age of 4. Gathering information from my mum who said i used to enjoy playing with tractors and my room was based around the colours of a tractor, yellow green and my favourite colour blue. I have used this colour paint to capture this moment in time and symbolise the tractors through the photo. The way the sewing is coming from my face/eye and connected to my brother, who i am holding, this is showing that i will always look out for him and always keep an eye on him. This shows the connection that we have together. To capture my age and intelligence within this photo, i decided to add text, like David Fullerton did, i am adding random words which look like a 4 year old has written it. I achieved this affect by using my left hand. I feel that this experiment has been a major success with showing symbolism and a insight within my personal life through the use of paint, thread and text. 

Experiment 2: Within this experiment, it was the same idea as experiment 1. The same symbolism etc but i wanted to see what it would be like if the text was printed. The outcome was that i liked the printed tested stitched onto the photograph but i thought that it didn't go with the feel and the time the photo was taken. I think that the printed text would look better with a present picture so this shows how times have changed and technologies at the same time. For this reason i have decided to use my left hand (child like handwriting) for the first picture, the way i was learnt to write in the second using lined and the third as printed text stitched onto the photograph. 

Intital exam ideas

For my exam, I am going to be sticking to the theme of multiple images and subjects that are personal to me. The final piece will be a trip-tic of three photos, like a time line, one from when I was newly born/couple of years old, second when I was around 10 years old and the final one to be current. The sewing will tell a story including the colours used and text on the photo. All three of the photos will have a meaning whether its the time and the place it was taken or the feelings behind the picture. Incorporated into the pictures will me a mix of painting and sewing the flows between all the subject within the picture.

David Fullerton

David Fullerton is a visual artist and illustrator who captures emotion through the use of pencil drawings and words place onto the piece. He uses the simple method of creating a pencil/paint drawing, cutting this image out and then placing it onto a card or a board. With the use of words, he creates a story which the viewers can read a then understand the personality of the subject. Fullertons work is a scrap book type theme with random words telling a story.

Inspired by David Fullertons work, i am going to create my own scrap book/collage page that looks familiar to his work but add my own personal photographs and words that are personal to me. Below is the Fullerton experiment that i have created which i think works well because of the fact it is personal to me and it blends in with my previous work. I like the dated look and feel that i get from this piece but i feel that it can look a little boring and unprofessional but that is how the art is meant to look like. I like the idea of the work and the look but for my final piece, in the exam, i will not carry on looking at David Fullertons work but i will take the text feature from his work and incorporate it into my own.

Large scale sewing experiment 2

Learning from my previous large scale experiment, I have created another sewing picture that captures the bond my family have. Using thred, weaving some bits together to make the faces blend together and be joined. There was no symbolism that were portrayed throughout he use of colours in this picture as it was a experiment. When it comes to the exam, i will be using the use of symbolism through colours used etc.

Large scale sewing experiment

Following on from my previous, small scale sewing experiments, I wanted to go larger and make the sewing more detailed and meaningful. I have printed out my vintage, family photos in large, A2 size and mounted onto thick paper. I feel that this experiment has been successful but I didn't get the look I was hoping for with no thred showing the connection and close bond myself and my family have. I feel I could of created a various amount of sewing techniques but I only did lines throughout the whole picture. For my next sewing experiment, I am going to create a more detailed and not so much line sewing being more creative and connection to stitching with eachother. 

Board painting inspired by Jonathan Yeo

I have created a small, board painting inspired by Jonathan Yeo style of painting technique. I feel that this experiment has been successful capturing the highlights of the skin tone and I think worked on boated has helped me with the outcome. I feel that I could have improved my work by making the skin tone a little lighter and having more skin colours within the panting. Moving on from this, I feel that I am now ready to experiment with my own photography and use different media, moving on from painting but still incorporating it within the piece. 

 

Sewing experiments

Sewing experiment 1: 

Using the sewing machine that was provided at school, I slowly followed around the eye stitching in a circular motion. This was effective but I feel that it was very un tidy and bits of thred were going different places as the sewing machine was hard to control with the detail that I wanted to achieve. I then moved on do doing the stitching manually.

Sewing experiment 2:

I found out that the sewing machine was hard to control and I wasn't able to get the detail I wanted to so I moved on to manually sewing the photographs. This was much easier I could tell that the detail that I wanted to achieve I achieved it within these photographs. Taking inspiration from Mauizio Anzeri I wanted to create a mask effect like he does but I didn't want the whole face to be convere. Secondly I wanted the sewing the connect each person within the photo by blending the thred showing a connection between the people within the photograph. I have gone in to great details with the sewing, weaving the thred to create a layered effect on the face and giving it more detail. Below are the sewing experiments that I created.

Maurizio Anzeri

Maurizio Anzeri makes his portraits by sewing directly onto the vintage photographs. His embroidered patterns cover the figures like costumes but also suggest a psychological factor revealing the persons thoughts and feelings. The combination of the two medias give the effect of different dimensions where history and future a merged into one. The images used are found, vintage photographs from history for example the Round Midnight is an early 20^th century glamour shot that at the time would have been considered provocative for both the girls nudity and ethnicity.

Looking at Anzeri’s photography, sewing work, I like how detailed the sewing is and how every strand of strong is places in a certain way with the string going the same directions changes from one to another. Secondly I like how it looks like a mask over the face hiding their inner thoughts like a protective layer. I also like that the photos are vintage, taking from the past and not edited to make them look old. Like my photos, they are all original, vintage and nothing is present. 

Photo Montage

I have created a photo montage inspired by David Hockney. I have printed out the same picture several times in different sizes to get this technique. I cut out the parts of the [picture that i wanted and then assembled them together using the original photo as a template but making the faces and the bodies look distorted but recognisable to the viewer. I think this experiment has worked well and i am pleased with the final outcome of the photo montage. 

David Hockney

David Hockney is a painter, printmaker, stage designer but the main skill that I am going to focus on is Hockneys photography skills and how they are inspiring my practice. He takes several pictures of the same subject with different angles and close ups then taking photographs and creating a photo montage from the photographs. Looking at Hockneys work, I like that even though its of the same subject but with different angles, you can still make out what the photo is and who it is. Also, the montage is a simple process but he makes it very affective by layer multiple images and creating a new photo from the old. At first, the photographs may be confusing to look at but when you look closer in detail, you can see the subject and the different angles used. I feel that to improve his work or what I think would do to make it better is to soften the edges of the photo, he could make all the lines meet not having bits of photo coming off the page. Although, it does make the photographs unique and creative and this is his style. Being inspired from Hockneys work, I am going to create a personal photo montage with the vintage photography that I have collected.

Board Experiment

Sticking to the theme of mix media, i have created a experiment board which consists of several squares that i have filled in using different media such as paint, string, coffee and different painting methods. I feel that this experiment was successful as i now know that i would like to take mix media work further within the project using paint and other media.

Here i used a paste with tissue to create a textured, 3.D affect on the experiment board.

I used old scraps of wallpaper which i then went over the wallpaper with a oil pastel to get the black layer on top.

Using paint, chalk and coffee to gain this affect on the ice cream section of the picture.

Different types of arts and crafts stuff which gave the picture the texture and tone. 

Richard Billingham

Richard Billingham is a artist and a photographer well known for his body of work called, Ray's A Laugh which is a portrayal of the poverty and the family which he grew up in. He took the photographs with the cheapest film he could find to give the photographs faded colours and bad focus which adds to the authenticity of the series of photos. The photographs start with the portrayal of heavy drinkers and chain smokers but as the series goes on, it emerges and seems that there is something seriously wrong with the mother with her mental needs. The audience get to see the deep, personalities of the family touching the audience and makes the audience feel some deep sorrow towards Richard and how he grew up. 

Looking at the photos in relation to mine, they are very similar in the way child hood memories were captures and the people around Richard when he was growing up. Deep emotions are portrayed within this photo, based around his family as well as my photos are emotionally deep and personal. Although Billingham has created the affect of the photo using cheap film to fade colours and not focus, my photos are original and from when i was younger so the quality of the photos are not at the best quality but adds to the vintage style of the photography. 

Comparing my photographs with Richard Billinghams, i can see the similarity of the effect of the photos and how vintage they look and they subjects within the picture are in a natural pose with nothing looking like it is fake. 

I like how personal the photographs are to the artist and how they show his child hood capturing moments in time where his emotions and family were going through tough times and how they lived their every day lives. Like my photography, it is very personal to me. I also like how he hasn't used the best camera available, he has used a old fashion, film camera that makes the photos look vintage without having to edit the photos in any way. I also like how honest the photography is and how he is not afraid to show how he lived his child hood and how his family acted when together within the same house hold.

Multiple image family photography

Taking the old family pictures that I had previously collected, I decided to layer each photo to create a story within the photograph. Each photo contain a different story and a different relationship to me.

This photograph is showing the relationship that me, my brother and my mum have and how it has evolved over the years. The background image is a older photo of me and my mother with the photo faded is myself, my brother and my mum. Having the older image behind is like having a time line on photos. It shows how times have changed and how new people have came into my life and tells a story of my life. Although you cannot distinctly see the portrait photos clearly, the background and the backgrounds items all relate to the photographs story. Capturing memories and events that have happened in my personal life.

This photograph tells a completely different story, the relationship between myself and my brother, Dion, from a young age. Dion has had a disability from when he was born and living with him has opened my eyes and made me appreciate the world and what I have and who I have in my life. This photograph shows the close relationship that myself and my brother had at young age. 

The layered photos are of a holiday picture and a photograph of when my brother was born. This is showing happy memories and how close all of my brothers were and how we have grown up together, staying close still. Dramatic changes are shown here including hair colour, how we have grown up and the relationship between us two. 

This photograph is of myself, my brother (Ethan), brother (Dion) and my mother. This is showing the close relationship that all four of us have with each other. Although at first the picture is hard to understand  with photos over laying making it difficult to see the photos, but when you look closely at the photograph you begin to reveal the emotions and the different photographs combined. You start to pick out different parts of the photo to piece together the bigger picture of our family.

Overall, I feel that this experiment has worked well combining old photos of my family, laying them on top to create an emotion filled story telling photography piece. Leading on from this photography experiment, I have gathered more ideas and how i could incorparate painting within.

Personal Family Photography

I have collected a verity of old, family pictures to use as primary resources for further work. I have selected these photos as they all have meaning behind them, the people within the photo mean something or have a close relation too and is showing a un staged emotion compared to if I was taking the photo myself. 

Jonathan Yeo

Jonathan Yeo is a British artist specialising in portraiture and collage. He didn't go to art school but took up painting while recovering from Hodkins Disease in his early 20's. Jonathan Yeo is an artist well known for his celebrity subject, from well-known politics, media, the art and even Kevin Spacey in role as Richard III, Grayson Perry as. Claire and Micheal Parkinson.

Looking at Yeo's work, I like the way I some of his paintings; he completed the face in such detail but leaves the rest of the painting with the prepped background. This gives it an un-finished look but because the face is in great detail, it doesn't make you question why. Secondly, I like the fact that he uses the grid method to draw the portrait but he doesn't erase the lines which they are still visible when the painting is complete. All of his painting have a strong meaning behind them even if the message is hidden. I feel that in some of his paintings, Yeo could have drawn and painted the subject off centre to make the piece more interesting and eye catching. Also, the glaze of the subject is more interesting when they are looking not straight at you but at a different angle.

Researching Johnathan Yeo paintings, it has inspired me to create a detailed painting on wooden board of similar to Yeo's painting style. Leading on from this, I would like to create something from mixed media about a subject and people that are personal to myself and make the art work have a meaning to it, instead of being just a painting or mix media work without meaning. Also a series of unusual pieces to unsettle the audience and place the mix media in a certain way to show emotion.