Statement of Intent
The conceptual framework of my art for this year will be based around the observation of people, places, and things that involve a narrative and representing them visually. I would like to focus around the history of objects, the imagination of children, and how I visualize narrative texts. Certain objects have so much history involved in them, and I find it intriguing when a single object is on display that has an apparent history but it is up to the viewer to imagine what that history might be. Children are completely fascinating to me, their whole hearted trust in adults and the limitless extent of their imagination are characteristics that draw me to them. Having read novels since I learned to read in elementary school, I know I visualize written text and I always think it interesting hearing and seeing how people interpret written text differently.
Artists and artistic movements that have drawn my attention into that direction are Anna Gaskell, Ben Heine, and Islamic manuscripts. I discovered Anna Gaskell last year during a photography class and I am still enthralled by her work with little girls and how she not only captures the innocents of childhood but duals her concepts with the controversial topic of how children’s play can be potentially erotic. Ben Heine, whom I also discovered last year, draws into reality that he sees with comical sketches which he then takes a photo of. He creates a different narrative than what he actually sees which alters reality. This change of perspective is something I hope to portray with some of my art this year. Islamic manuscripts, as well as children’s books, are also very influential because of the way they illustrate certain moments in the text. Each manuscript and kids book is visualized based on the point of view of the artist.
I plan on using all these influences to create a body of work through screenprint, and perhaps some photography and painting. I have been taking the screenprinting class through the university for the past few years and I find it a very practical way to illustrate my ideas because I can have both photographic and painterly qualities. If I choose to do a series with photography I would probably use digital over film simply to be able to have the series in colour. If I were to do a series in painting it would be with the use of acrylics and probably some added mediums such as tissue paper, spray paint and other mediums.
Some ideas that I have for this concept are silhouettes of kids playing, photographs of the inside of vintage or antique stores, painting or screenprinting illustrations from lines of novels, and photographing or screenprinting gravestones. The idea of silhouettes of kids playing will not only have that visually but also have a coloured illustration of what I imagine they would be imagining at the time, for example having the silhouette of a boy running with a kite and behind him having a coloured illustration of a fighter plane. I really enjoy having kids as subjects, but I do not want to limit myself to that. I am planning on researching ways to visually portray a narrative through kids books, other artists and art history. I also plan on interviewing kids when they’re playing about what they’re imagining. My goal for this semester is to have at least two full bodies of work accomplished and to develop more substantial ideas of what to create visually.
The conceptual framework of my art for this year will be based around the observation of people, places, and things that involve a narrative and representing them visually. I would like to focus around the history of objects, the imagination of children, and how I visualize narrative texts. Certain objects have so much history involved in them, and I find it intriguing when a single object is on display that has an apparent history but it is up to the viewer to imagine what that history might be. Children are completely fascinating to me, their whole hearted trust in adults and the limitless extent of their imagination are characteristics that draw me to them. Having read novels since I learned to read in elementary school, I know I visualize written text and I always think it interesting hearing and seeing how people interpret written text differently.
Artists and artistic movements that have drawn my attention into that direction are Anna Gaskell, Ben Heine, and Islamic manuscripts. I discovered Anna Gaskell last year during a photography class and I am still enthralled by her work with little girls and how she not only captures the innocents of childhood but duals her concepts with the controversial topic of how children’s play can be potentially erotic. Ben Heine, whom I also discovered last year, draws into reality that he sees with comical sketches which he then takes a photo of. He creates a different narrative than what he actually sees which alters reality. This change of perspective is something I hope to portray with some of my art this year. Islamic manuscripts, as well as children’s books, are also very influential because of the way they illustrate certain moments in the text. Each manuscript and kids book is visualized based on the point of view of the artist.
I plan on using all these influences to create a body of work through screenprint, and perhaps some photography and painting. I have been taking the screenprinting class through the university for the past few years and I find it a very practical way to illustrate my ideas because I can have both photographic and painterly qualities. If I choose to do a series with photography I would probably use digital over film simply to be able to have the series in colour. If I were to do a series in painting it would be with the use of acrylics and probably some added mediums such as tissue paper, spray paint and other mediums.
Some ideas that I have for this concept are silhouettes of kids playing, photographs of the inside of vintage or antique stores, painting or screenprinting illustrations from lines of novels, and photographing or screenprinting gravestones. The idea of silhouettes of kids playing will not only have that visually but also have a coloured illustration of what I imagine they would be imagining at the time, for example having the silhouette of a boy running with a kite and behind him having a coloured illustration of a fighter plane. I really enjoy having kids as subjects, but I do not want to limit myself to that. I am planning on researching ways to visually portray a narrative through kids books, other artists and art history. I also plan on interviewing kids when they’re playing about what they’re imagining. My goal for this semester is to have at least two full bodies of work accomplished and to develop more substantial ideas of what to create visually.