Thursday 20 June 2013

Inside My Sketchbook

This sketchbook was for my project "Vanity" which started out with Dante's "Inferno" and the Seven Deadly Sins. I later moved to making a puppet representing vanity which acts as a parasite on the sinner, creating a negative influence. The design was to reflect the nature of the sin, and vanity focused on the warped perspective of perceived beauty. This project is quite old and if I were to revisit I would like to rework the puppet design as well as focus on other 'sins'. However I thought it might be interesting to revisit old sketchbooks and reveal a bit of the process of my design. These are some inspirational images the first from Dali's imaginings of Dante's work and the second focusing on the colour palette of medieval paintings particularly Bosch's work (Garden of Earthly Delights).

-these are quite old so the image sources are unknown. 

To view the finished project, "Vanity", go here..

Wednesday 19 June 2013

Picasso at Work


Picasso is a legendary figure in the art world. His work still groundbreaking and inspiring. This video is a stop motion film of him painting, works which he later destroyed. This is a tantalising glimpse into his breathtaking art in motion. Since the work was destroyed this is a perfect moment in time, suspended through the medium of film where we can view the genius of Picasso and watch him in action.


watch full video

Because these paintings were destroyed upon completion the full Mystery of Picasso was declared a national treasure by the French government. 

see original article

Sunday 9 June 2013

Artists That Inspire: Samantha French

With temperatures rising I am starting to feel the itch to head to the sea.. Well any sort of pool of water will do. It's that time of year to go swimming, sailing, kayaking, and other water activities. My favourite memories are of that first plunge after a hard days work in my grandparent's pond. The cool murky water enveloping me, and finding silent peaceful state. I find that feeling of peace and contentment floating in water, as long as someone isn't cannonballing nearby! The painter Samantha French recreates those feeling for me in her painting of swimmers underwater. She says,

"My current body of work is focused on swimmers underwater and above. Using vague yet consuming memories from my childhood summers spent immersed in the tepid lakes of northern Minnesota, I attempt to recreate the quiet tranquillity of water and nature; of days spent sinking and floating, still and peaceful.  These paintings are a link to my home and continual search for the feeling of the sun on my face and warm summer days at the lake.  They are my escape, a subtle reprieve from the day-to-day.  At the same time, I am drawn to an idealistic time before my own, where swim caps and wool swimsuits were commonplace. This combination of memory, observation and photography (old and new) has allowed me to preserve the transitory qualities of water and remembrance."


                                             Samantha French in her Brooklyn Studio


"Surface Break"
"Breathing at the surface I"
"Twist; let go"
"Twilight"

I find these pieces very peaceful, like the gentle rocking motion you get when you float on the surface of the ocean. These works and others can be found on Samantha French's site here.