SPA DAY
FOOTBALL + FEMINISM
4. If you could consider doing something over, explain why you would do this and what you would do next time?
I would work harder on preparing my composition at the start of the piece. The piece evolved naturally, which is great, but due to having limited plans at the start, I ran into road blocks once the piece became simultaneously too muddled and too empty. I would like to avoid this issue with more planning at the start. Elaborate on how this piece links with your other pieces? What is the common thread? The common thread is the notions of masculinity and femininity in society that we are bound to. We subscribe to the cultural norms and go to extremes to defend them, such as in Football and Beauty Practices, despite the fact they are uncomfortable and overdone at times. This piece explores the eccentric and extreme qualities of both football and beauty in an attempt to comment on the ways in which they effect our society. |
Define which techniques you tried and mastered? Struggled?
This piece was done in colored pencil, a medium which I had little prior experience with. After doing research, I learned that I should layer lightest colors first, something which proved incredibly helpful in my endeavors. I also was introduced to the clear-colored-pencil-blender-thingy which I don’t know the name of, but which helped me greatly in achieving even and blended colors throughout the piece. I do feel that my techniques of planning the commission prior could have been better, as it was only planned on a basic level, which created many loose ends in my creation, and has led to me not knowing what to do with the rest of the space. How did you draw inspiration from other artists techniques or aesthetics in your work? In what ways did you derive meaning or gain historical perspectives from their work? Why these artists? I didn’t necessarily draw any inspiration, but I did draw upon other techniques. The guest artist who showed us colored pencils in class was incredibly beneficial to me. I learned a lot about icing colors and shading in order to achieve the appropriate value. I also derived technical skills from videos numerous artists who I watched on YouTube. Describe the evolution of your piece. Decisions made. Compositional elements. I started with the notion of beauty as something that is extreme. As I was sketching I realized that the instructions for facial roller tools look a lot like instructions in football, another intense and rather extreme activity. This led me to explore the parallels between the extremities of both football and beauty, the ultimate masculine compared with the ultimate feminine. I began by sketching bodies and faced, specifically faces mid-max. I then built in the piece using imagery from either extreme beauty practices or from football. After sketching out the outlines of the objects, I began to fill in with color. After filling in with color and making minor edits, I then went in with more color and added a background, something which wasn’t originally planned but was necessary. |