Assignment 1. Feedback from Corinna Till dated 26th August 2018
My Reflections
I feel the feedback was positive and constructive, giving me the encouragement to reflect on my work.
Tutor feedback comments.
‘From the first exercise onwards it is clear you approach your work with a wide and inventive selection of tools and materials. You let materials play a role and surprise you with unpredictable results which are partly in and out of your control. You comment on being watched by your daughter during the expressive line making exercise and her responses to seeing you involved this an intense activity. You took your experiments further by videoing yourself drawing, thereby making it possible for other people to watch you in the act of drawing.’
I enjoyed making some quick films of myself drawings shells and jug, which helped me to construct my work and see it in a different way. With drawing I am always trying to find a new ways to move the material over the paper, whether using a piece of charcoal, pastel or a stick and ink. It does not worry me, if people watch me draw, in fact I find it quite exciting and I love to see and feel people’s reactions to it. For me it’s part of the drawing experience.
My use of ink with stick/twig and Reed Pen is a method I have practised for years and is my favourite medium. I like the way the stick judders and makes and unpredictable lines, the way the ink splatters and blobs on the surface is very satisfying too. I am very influenced by the drawings of Van Gogh and find his mark making very beautiful and energetic. How did that man make so many marks with such simple art tools? I don’t think he was a ‘mad’ artist, just a very experimental one.
Equally I love the work of Cy Twombly, his very expressive and enormous paintings fill me with such emotion and energy. That’s why I had a go at creating a red mark making picture using a scourer. I wanted to experience his movements, but mine was on a small scale.
Tutor feedback comments
Project 2 – basic shapes and fundamental form
Ex.1 Groups of objects
‘You chose two groups of objects, one based on cylinders (ink pots) and one on rectangular
forms (including dice). As this exercise was encouraging a certain accuracy in the
representation of relationships between objects, it could have helped to use pencil (or
something else easily rubbed out) in order to set out the objects while making adjustments
towards the final shapes and positions of the objects. I enjoy the ink depicting itself, running
out of the ink bottle at the front. The dice look inviting. The objects could have been more
accurately placed in space, and in relation to each other, and I agree with your comments
that there could be more indication of the ground and background in these two images.’
I agree with my tutor that I need to re-draw this exercise, and use soft pencil and rubber to draw with.
Assignment 1- Tutor feedback comments
‘In your India ink and chop stick drawing, I enjoy how the table top has become like a body of
water. You say, ‘like calm water in a pool’. To me it feels more choppy, more like the sea. I
note your enjoyment of how the watery qualities of the medium, working ‘wet in wet’, have
produced a watery image. Although you didn’t set out to create this effect exactly, you did
knowingly set up the conditions in which it could happen, were open to being surprised by
the materials, and it worked.
It is very useful to be able to see the two images of shells you have submitted together and
to read your reflections on how they compare. Following your reflections on the first image,
in your second image, heavier paper has prevented cockling. There is a sense of brighter
light and being able to see the shells better. You have used watercolours to create mid
tones. In comparison to the first ink image, you refer to your watercolour and pen image, as
a more ‘formal still life on a work bench’. It does have less fluidity than the first image.
However, it offers a richer experience of the surface qualities of the shells, their colour, detail
and texture. In the first image some of the marks on the shells are not quite accurate enough
to allow us to appreciate some of the qualities of the shells. In the second image the big
shell, top left, seems particularly successful in the way colour and line combine to create the
shell’s surface. In the other two main big shells the black pen line exists as somewhat of a
layer over the washes of colour beneath. It is worth asking why these lines are in black pen,
when they could alternatively have been made using one, or more, of the colours that make
up the shell.
Both images have strengths and areas that could be developed. If you are interested in
reworking this piece you could try combining the successful qualities of each image. I see
you have already taken strides forward working with shells and other objects in the next
section, so it may not be necessary to your progress to rework this particular still life, as you
can take your reflections and feedback forward to what you are working on now.’
Assignment 1. Reflection
I did submit two drawings, as I felt conflicted with the results of my first picture. However both drawings had different results, which made me even more puzzled.
My first drawing, which was mainly created with black India ink and stick was of shells on a bench, it has a moodier feel with a choppy moving background. I agree that I should of used heavier paper to prevent cockling. My second picture, drawn in black pen and watercolour washes, is a lot more open and lighter, and as I described a more ‘formal drawing’. My conflicts came from deciding how to interpret the brief, and how to describe my skills and creativity in my work. I am a fairly good watercolour artist and wanted to show that, hence the second picture, but on reflection I have decided that I prefer the first one I drew, and must have courage in my art decisions.
As a result I did an exercise from ‘Experimental Drawing’ by Robert Kaupelis, Nonstop-50 Drawings in Four Hours, page 119. In which I drew 50 shells in a variety of mediums. I did this exercise to see how far I could push myself with drawing, and a way of using the shell focus in further work, which I did for Part 2.
I am not sure if I will re-draw this exercise again, as I don’t really know a way forward with it just yet.
Sketchbooks
I enjoy keeping sketchbooks as I feel they are a way of ‘drawing out’ my thoughts and ideas, plus keeping a record of artist research too.
Research
I take part in a lot of research, I enjoy visiting many London exhibitions and those locally too. I am member of the Tate, and can get to their exhibitions easily. I also research online and read books. For me it is important to look at other artists work and their practise, it helps me to inform my own art and feed my interest in working artists materials and influences.
Learning Log
Keeping a learning log (blog) is a new experience for me. So even though I feel quite confident at setting it up, I am still learning about it. I have used Vimeo to show my videos too, which has been fun and I am sure I will use again.
My tutor gave me a suggested reading list;
Suggested reading/viewing
Raoul Dufy, for the way he draws and paints into blocks of colour.
Winifred Nicholson, for her still lives which often include landscape.
Ellen Altfest, for her intense observation of surfaces. There are some videos about her work
at the bottom of her page on the White Cube gallery website [http://whitecube.com/artists/
artist/ellen_altfest].
Nicholas Party, for his colourful and simplified still lives.
Luchita Hurtado, for her still lives in relation to her body, and interior and exterior spaces.
William Kentridge, for his use of drawing in animation [https://www.sfmoma.org/williamkentridge-transformation-with-animation/].
I have researched these artists and recorded my findings in my sketchbook. I found Nicholas Party very interesting, as he draws with pastel, a medium I have only just started to use. Also his work is of still life objects, which is useful information for Part 2.
Raoul Dufy, Winifred Nicholson and Nicholas Party explore colour and I found this very interesting, as I think using colour can be difficult in the context of drawing media. However I am keen to try colour experiments.
For me to do
I agree with my tutor;
Strengths
Very good knowledge of and facility with a
wide range of materials and techniques along
with openness and willingness to experiment.
I do have a wide range of materials here at home, plus a good source of books and internet to work from. I love to experiment with art mediums and want to do more.
Areas for Development
You could benefit from redoing project 2,
exercise 1, (groups of objects) working with a
medium that can be easily rubbed out and
accurately adjusted, really taking your time
until you are happy with your drawing.
I will redo this exercise.
I will also review my work using the assessment criteria in the course notes.
Ann Marie Varnam Drawing 1 Blog 
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