As always, as we approached week 9, I started to feel the pressure… Pressure is good for me. It gets me to focus on what is most important and on what the best way would be to communicate what I want to say. Needless to say, my studio became a absolute mess and various experiments attempted artwork and work in progress was underway.
All the presentations were great and it was wonderful to see how everyone’s work was evolving and was inspired by the bravery of all to take risks and try new things. It always pushes me to do the same. Each person introducing us to a new world that they are passionate about. Enlarging our perspectives and inspiring us to think differently and learn.
When it was my turn to present I was a bit unsure if I would articulate it well enough to get the essence of my practice across. I had spent too much time focusing on the artwork and not enough on writing. Luckily I would read some of my PPP thoughts and I think the ideas were clear enough. I got some great feedback and a positive response. I am so grateful for that because up until now I have not felt confident enough about my direction. Steve (from the 1.3 cohort) was the first to say that he enjoyed my concept and the bravery of working with natural pigment as it is something he has been aiming to try for a while. He felt that my images were effective in communicating an fleeing/escape to nature.
My internet failed towards the end of receiving feedback but I was able to read the chat afterward:
Hayley mentioned Hilma af Klint. I looked at her work this week and I recall being introduced to her during my previous studies. She wanted to make the invisible, visible. An artist for the future. Very geometric leaving the world with more questions than answers. First painting nature realistically but later entered a fascination with the spiritual. She receives a commission to paint a message to human kind. Sacred geometric language with lost of female. I love the letters and notes as part of her work. A Library of ideas. And the very large scale work she made fascinates me and the fact that she asked that her work should not be shown for a few years after her death. Very interesting. Yes, I will certainly look at her again. I feel challenged to attempt more abstract work even if partial. Thanks for that Hayley.
Hayley also mentioned Ithell Colquhoun and the Fumage technique. I read there that in 1937 Wolfgang Paalen invented fumage. The artist would cause a smokey flame to wave without conscious direction. Created from fire, light and carbon, fumage is an elemental technique that that related artistic creation to the creation of all organic matter. Paalen emphasised its magical nature when he wrote of its ability to help him ‘visualise textures that seemed to escape brushwork, such as rime, phosphorescence of the under brush, the dances of the will-o’-the wisp and the web of light in the heart of a rock-crystal’. Alternative spelling sfumage, appears to have originated from Salvador Dali.
Then Rachel Kneebone was on the chat – thanks again Heyley. Yes I have come across her work and love the porcelain work as well as her drawings. How she merges forms and limbs. Fascinating.
Below are the images that I showed. They are all examples of work in progress:
