Abstract expressionism was developed in the 1940’s and 50’s by artists such as Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko and Willem de Kooning. Based mainly in New York, the aim was to not only make the art abstract, but to give the feel of emotion and expression so was characterised by bold mark making and gestural brushstrokes.... Continue Reading →
Personal Development – Project 3: Towards abstraction
Exercise 1: Abstraction from study of natural forms I started this exercise by finding a couple of photographs of the Magnolia tree at the front of our house. I was particularly drawn to the patterns made by the trunk and branches of the tree. Drawing is my first love and I have been getting antsy,... Continue Reading →
Personal Development – Project 2: Adding other materials
Exercise 1: Preparing a textured ground For this exercise I want to see if I can incorporate these techniques into my personal style of painting. I began by doing a couple of experiments in my sketchbook. I cut up some string and mixed it with gesso, stuck some dried daffodil flower heads and some... Continue Reading →
Part 5, Research 1: Application of Paint
Claude Monet 1840 - 1926 A French Impressionist painter, Monet uses broken colour and rapid brushstrokes. He is famous for his ‘series’ paintings where he painted the same subject in a number of different aspects and seasons, for example, Haystacks, Houses of Parliament and Water Lilies being but a few. He was able to capture... Continue Reading →
Sgraffito
Sgraffito is a technique of applying two layers of medium and then scratching off the top layer to reveal the paint underneath. Before even beginning my research I was instantly taken back to infant school where we coloured a piece of card in coloured wax crayon then went over the colour with black. Once covered,... Continue Reading →
Personal Development – Project 1: Different ways of applying paint
I begin this part by reflecting on my progress so far. As I have gone through this course I have put away the paintings that I would like to consider putting forward for formal assessment. The first thing that I immediately noticed was that they are all, without exception, oil paintings. I enjoy using watercolours... Continue Reading →
Jan's OCA Painting 1 Blog 