Personal Investigation.

My Personal Investigation

Work from May 2019.

 I began my Personal Investigation by noting down everything I might possibly want to study for my theme. It was very nerve-wracking for me; choosing a final decision.

This mind map I made helped me note relevant concepts down and start to form a basis of where I wanted my path to lead. I covered techniques that I enjoy using such as charcoal and pencil and also established that portraiture is a style I feel I can express my artstic ability in the most.
A few artists that I noted down were Dena Coope, Anja Hobson and Diego Fazio which I feel I can use different mediums for each artist.

I have decided that I'd like to continue to study the human form as it is a theme that I am so deeply infatuated with ; I love the process of creating a portrait and the therapeutic feeling of the reveal of the face.

I started to look around me, at family members , peers and even strangers.

Here are some portraits I have created , referring to secondary sources from photographs I have taken.

Here is an A1 drawing of Amy Winehouse I did, taking the reference from secondary sources. I used charcoal, fine liner and pencil (HB,4B and 6B) for this piece. I really liked the outcome of this as I think it captures lots of detail. There is a range of intensity of light and dark which I think makes the monotone shades pop. 

Here is a drawing I did of my sister using pencil (HB, 4B and 6B) and fine liner. I choose to draw my sister as I think that she has a really nice fashion statement, doll like aesthetic. 

In context to portraiture I feel that I captured the likeness of the subject well but could improve by capturing the skin tone better on the arms. 

I also drew a sketch of my boyfriend from still life, capturing the essence of line– giving myself a 10-minute guideline. I felt lots of benefits from sketches like these as I knew that I could understand proportions better. For this sketch I used a HB and 4B pencil. 

I then continued with small, still life sketches to capture the essence of character and proportion.

Materials: Pastel, Fine liner, Pencil and Charcoal. I benefited from this process as I could quicken my skill.

I pushed myself out of my comfort zone and attended a still life drawing session. It was a really bizarre experience but as I got into it, I became totally relaxed and therapeutic, able to focus on the subject and carve out their lines on the paper.

I think that in relation to portraiture, my understanding on the human form has developed rapidly due to this session.

Work from June 2019.

I started to look at 3 artists that I would use as inspiration for my personal investigation I used Pinterest and looked at portrait artists and found 3 artists that instantly captured my attention.

Paul Wright.

Paul Wright: ‘Dealbreaker’

(REFERENCE: http://www.paul-wright.com/)

"Artist Statement

I have spent the last 15 years developing a painterly language through which I seek to capture a vitality beyond the establishment of a mere ‘likeness’ to the subject. Whilst I appreciate the importance of the subject being recognisable, they are glimpsed rather than exposed, their inner selves hinted at but ultimately inscrutable.

Though I often work on a large, potentially imposing scale, the work remains immediate through fluency of brush mark and a rich palette. The spaces the subjects inhabit are often indeterminate, providing an atmosphere that allows for ambiguity of psychological state. The subjects retain their integrity and yet a sense of intimacy is evoked"

Paul Wright was born 06/07/1973 in Leicester, UK.

I was instantly attracted to Wrights work as I appreciated the expressionistic style he uses, the way he captures the likeness of the subject without spilling out too much detail. Although the style of being expressive isn't a style I am used to , I wanted to push myself to entwine Wright's style into my own work.

My Artist Board on Paul Wright.

Paul Wright artist analysis:

Paul Wright was born 06/07/1973 in Leicester, England.

Some interesting things happened in the UK in 1973, for example: ‘Two

 Pakistanis were shot dead by police in London after being spotted carrying 

pistols – which turned out to be fake’. Although, the actions promote violence,

 in relation to black culture, this displays the difference in discipline towards 

different cultures. Perhaps some people are treated differently only because 

of their skin colour. If this were a white man, would he have been killed? Or 

simply given a chance to change? On another tone, the UK has changed 

miraculously in 5 decades, when we compare to 2019- we are much more 

respectful of people different to us. This wouldn’t happen in 2019, but maybe

 worse- some people are emotionally damaging and use someone’s race to 

make him or her feel different and wrong.

Also, in March, two IRA bombers killed one person and injured 250 others; 

the UK in 1973 is so full of hate for people they thought were different to 

them. The IRA practice hate and racism too.

Paul Wright was born into a world that was racist, cruel and dangerous –

 sadly, we haven’t evolved much as a society and racism will always exist if 

we do not view others as our equals.

This may have affected Wrights work without being aware of it, most of his 

paintings are of white subjects – maybe because some in society value them 

more and it is the “conventional normal”.

As well as this, Wright was born during/before the mining strike crisis, he was

 plummeted into a world that was going to suffer, especially for the working

 class. Looking at his work now, he often creates work that is abstract and 

unclear of intentions- could this relate to the politics of the 1970’s/80’s? A

 world of confusion; the people in power hiding the truth.

Wright studied at Falmouth College of Art – obtaining a Bachelor of Fine Arts

 in Illustration in 1995. He had a promising career within illustrating but 

followed his heart to oil painting.

Wright is influenced by traditional art but it is visual this style is individual and completely different to any other artist. His technique is very fluent with expressionism and he uses large brushes to make the brush strokes a foundation for his portraits. The faces lack detail yet the likeness of the subject is still hinted at. He uses oil paint on linen mostly and works in a large size, creating a feeling of intimacy despite the lack of detail.

Wrights main concept behind his work is to hint at the personalities of the subjects he draws and not focus so much on the reality or the likeness of them. I can see as a viewer how the influence of illustrating has took a toll on him, as his art is very graphical and almost similar to a cartoon. Moreover, Wright aspires to disguise the subjects external aspects and hint at the internal – a hint at personality.

Arinze Stanley.

'Machine Man' - Arinze Stanley. 2019. 30 X 30.

-Instagram reference.


(REFERENCE: https://www.arinzestanley.com/artist)

"Arinze Stanley Egbengwu (b. 1993) in Lagos, Nigeria and graduated from Imo state University with a B.Eng in Agricultural engineering.

Starting at an early age of 6, Arinze had always been enthusiastic about drawing realistic portraits on paper. Being exposed to his family's paper conversion buisness, Arinze grew to love paper and pencils as his toys at a very tender age. Over the years He gradually taught himself how to master both Pencils and Paper in harmony as a medium to express himself through what he calls his three P's namely Patience, Practice and Persistence. These have guided him throughout his journey as an artist.

Working in a genre of art known as Hyper-realism and integrated with his personal experiences in Nigeria, Arinze drives at creating art that triggers a degree of  emotional connection between his viewers and his artworks. Also gearing his works towards social and political activism, he hopes to use his art to speak for those who cant speak out for themselves.

I adored Stanley's work and the rich authenticity that seeped through his work because of his hyper realistic style. I was very keen to start pieces directly inspired by his message and style."

My artist board on Arinze Stanley.

Here are some sections of my board, I created these pastiches reinforcing Stanleys style of an authentic, monotone piece. I really enjoyed working with charcoal, fineliner and white chalk to create a flawless finish of dark skin.

Arinze Stanley artist analysis:

Artist Analysis - ellie.docx

Arinze Stanley was born in 1993 in Lagos, Nigeria and graduated from Imo state University with a B.Eng in Agricultural engineering. Politically, in Nigeria in the 1990’s, the Social Democratic Party was introduced – an attempt to return to civilian rule and to fight for freedom and democracy of Nigeria. Relating to Stanley’s motives, this fight for freedom is so important for his journey as an artist. The drive for change had just been introduced, this may have pivoted Stanley growing up with the intention and strive for making a political impact.

‘INSOMNIA I’ – 2017.

27” X 42”

Graphite, charcoal.

After discussions I had directly with Stanley, I found that he bases his work around the people he knows and lives around in Nigeria. Also, he stated that he uses his work to “speak about cultural, socio-political problems in my society”. He added that he had a troublesome past with military men assaulting him growing up, the cloud of injustice is ever present within Nigeria and Stanley’s work.

Stanley’s parents owned (and still own) a paper company, he spent most of his time growing up doodling and drawing portraits - due to boredom and a drive of passion. He stated that he “gets very sad when it doesn’t look like them”. This may have been a pivotal moment in his life that led him to the particular style he works in: Hyperrealism.

Hyperrealism is a style of art that looks extremely realistic in detail. Stanley’s work often gets compared to photographs as the level of intensity of detail is so strong. He explained to me that his process is to work on each aspect at a time until complete – that way he can get the piece finished as perfectly and quick as possible. However- he did state that his work takes a long time to complete.  Stanley works in a monochromatic palette using several mediums that can bring lots of pigment and intensity to his work. He uses charcoal, graphite, pencil and paint on paper in extremely large scale- making his work so much more impressive.

‘The Machine Man' - 2019.

24” X 42”

This piece is a monochromatic portrait of a black male. Stanley used charcoal on paper to create this piece. The subject is positioned central in the rule of thirds with a white background contrasting his dark skin. His skin reflects bright, white highlights which suggests his skin is moist from the black oil that drips down his face and neck. His skin is smooth textured, yet the variations of tone cause a sense of chaos and deceive the skin to be layered and uneven. He has a vein on his forehead that’s very prominent and captures lots of tone.

Form: This piece is 2D and is large in size (). It’s positioned in a statement-making way with the subject slightly tilted in an angle towards the viewer. The rule of thirds is central creating an ominous, voided feeling.

Line:  Stanley uses line in a free-flowing, realistic way – as the subject is human, the lines aren’t controlled in a robotic form as it isn’t natural. Non– linear lines are prominent on the face which resemble holes or creases in the face – for example, the eye crease and the frown line between the eyebrows. The lines create the effect of deeper, darker intensity which suggest an uneven aspect to the face. Line is used authentically in this piece, it is controlled in a natural way and there aren’t any subtle hints at pencil lines left behind- furthermore, they are blended into a smooth skin texture.

Tone: Stanley uses a wide range of tone in this piece – the most obvious place for tone is on the left-hand cheek of the portrait. The contrast of light against dark makes the highlights pop against the grainy, dark tone. Stanley uses tone as a foundation base to this piece- blending; adding and erasing tone to capture the style of hyperrealism. As this piece is monochromatic and features no pigment of colour, the dependency of tone is crucial for this piece to strive in detail.

Texture: Stanley uses charcoal to add a grainy texture to the subject’s skin- the appearance of pores and imperfections on the cheek create a rough, bumpy texture. He also uses a tombow mono zero eraser to decrease the intensity of the dark tones – giving a variation of uneven skin texture. The black oil that drips across the subject’s face adds a wet texture to the skin – this is apparent through the use of highlight that reflect off of the dark.

The artwork is composed to be central and ominous towards the viewer, alike to the ‘Mona Lisa’ - the subjects eyes give the effect that they are following you wherever you go. This might hint towards the undertone of the message that Stanley preaches of not being able to escape reality as it will always find you.

This piece was created to signify the dangerous use of oil in this society but also, alike to most of his work he uses his subjects to tell their own personal struggles, stories and experiences through the character of their face. Culture is a huge undertone to his work and the African descent is an ever- present theme.

‘The Machine Man’ by Arinze Stanley was crucial for my personal investigation as it enlightened me to the style of hyperrealism but also pushed me to uncover backgrounds with my subjects. To uncover truth and be authentic with not only my style but my meaning and motives too. The significance of the theme ‘black culture’ was inspired by Stanley as I appreciated how the mediums could contribute to create the effect of rich, dark skin that most people are too afraid to conquer. I was also inspired to use charcoal and monotone mediums as it is timeless and creates a piece full of variations of tone and dark and light shades which I am always attracted to.

 Carl Beazley.

'Let your head down' Carl Beasley.

(REFERENCE: https://www.carlbeazley.com/wheres-your-head)

"In 2012, with no university degree or connections in art, Carl began painting in the corner of his kitchen as a hobby. The following year, he converted his garage into a makeshift studio so he could paint on a larger scale and soon started experimenting with distortion in portraiture.

Since then his work has been featured by some notable contemporary art magazines from across the globe including Hi-Fructose, Cultural Collective, Beautiful/Decay and Beautiful Bizarre.

I admired how Beazley doesn't follow the "mainstream artist", and that he strives for the  truth. His work asks questions and prompts our inner conscience- I would really like to add this to my work - an underlying tone of Why?

My artist board on Carl Beazley:

My artist analysis on Carl Beazley.

Carl Beazley was born in 1988 in Reading, UK. England in the 1980’s was a time of political conflict. He was born into the world of the yuppies and a society where the rich got richer and the poor got poorer. Beazley enjoyed art at school but said that he wasn’t in the right mind-set to study it further at university. This is another example of how the working class were brandished as ‘unable’ to pursue their dreams. As Beazley was from a working class family, he did not pursue Art until 2012, where he began painting in the corner of his kitchen.

Because Beazley didn’t go to university he states that he learns from ‘trial and error’, he doesn’t believe in a certain technique and is very free flowing with the process of his work.

Beazley is not influenced by another artists ‘work’ but more their ‘attitude’, for example Picasso and Francis Bacon inspire him because they are so open and ‘vunerable’ with what their messages are. He finds it easy to relate to them because they are ‘down to earth’.

He is also influenced by other mediums such as film; this is visual in his work as the aesthetic of his work is very graphical.

Beazley uses mainly oil paint on canvas for his work, which gives an effective raw pigment of vibrancy.

Beazley’s main concept for his work is based on the style of ‘expressionism’ and ‘unpredictability’. He steers clear of being conventional and always hints at the viewer’s inner conscience. Asking them, why? His paintings are socio- hypo realistic yet they are so far away from being real. They are a distortion of reality and are created to be interesting and have so many layers of meanings.

‘Wheres Your Head At?’ – Carl Beazley.(2016)

Oil on canvas. 100 X 100cm.

This painting is visually of a male with 3 heads; the heads are overlapping and create a distortion of reality despite the realistic aspects of the face.

The heads have different emotions expressed, a zoned- out expression, a humorous and a serious.  This adds to the illusion of distortion. The confusion of emotions question the viewer – what is the main emotion expressed through this piece? To which it is unclear – confirming the message of ‘unpredictability’.

Form:

This piece is a 2D painting sizing 100 x 100cm. It is composed to be off balanced in the rule of thirds, making you turn your head and ultimately feel uncomfortable, as you can’t study the piece like any mainstream piece of art.

Line:

Beazley uses tone as a way to break apart the naturalistic forms of the face. The lines that separate the faces are formed in a way to make the subject look man-made. It’s almost as if the heads have been decapitated and then glued to one another, as the jawline and the nose aren’t moulded together into one.

Tone:

Tone is explored naturalistically in this piece; aside from the joints of the heads, the variations of light and dark are very realistic in the piece.

Tone is explored densely in the hair; the dark strokes contrasting the light highlights bring a sense of joining the piece as a whole.

The joints of the 2 larger heads explore tone harshly; the line is a dark, tonal blend that gives the sense of separation.

Colour:

Colour is explored faintly yet realistically. The sweeps of a peachy skin colour are prominent across the whole piece. The variations of similar shades make the faces look hyper realistic. Beazley uses colour densely in the hair with a rich, chocolate brown that cascades across the forehead.

Texture:

Texture is used in a way to make this 2D piece look 3D. Overall, the skin texture is blotchy and the use of colour acts as an old, worn skin texture. The bumps on the forehead have lots of tone that make the texture look as though they are reaching out of the surface.

Beazley explores texture in a way to make the faces look realistic.

Composition:

The piece is composed in a non- linear way, most of the viewers would begin at the left head and follow the piece round, however; there is no direct rule for the viewers’ eye. The piece is composed to make you feel uncomfortable and confused with an off balanced composition.

I would use inspiration from this work to develop my smaller, colour pieces. I admire how the likeness of the subject is their but with no context – I would like to use the effect of why? Why is he subject their? What doe they mean? The use of question asking.

I would like to use colour in such a hyper-realistic way yet the concept is so broad.