Surface Studio: Winter 2017: Alex: Project 1

At the beginning of this assignment, I didn't understand what we had to do. I was looking for images that I found ascetically pleasing instead of looking for images that could be broken down into smaller components. It was very helpful being able to see the projects from the previous year. I had a better idea of the kinds of source images I should be looking for. After seeing the other projects, I picked out a few new source images. The new images worked much better for making my compositions. I tend to produce more symmetrical works, so I made 30 4x4 compositions and picked out the best 12. Having more compositions to choose from helped me end up with a final project that I was pleased with. I used untexturized bristol board and a Farber-Castel paint brush pen to color in the black. Personally, I didn't like how the pen colored. The brush lines were visible, and I would have chosen a different pen in hindsight. I really liked the way the final piece turned out, and I had a lot of fun making it. I only wish we had the time to hear from everyone, I'm curious about their ideas and thought processes behind their projects. Some of the things I need to improve on are keeping my paper clean and not waiting until the last few days to put it together. Overall though, I enjoyed this assignment. This is something I would try again in the future. I'm currently taking a watercolor 1 class, and it might be fun to combine the abstract shapes with watercolors instead of pen.

I used the finch's beak, eye, and cheek patch as one of my images.

Sketches with notes.

I like how the sunflower image melds with the boarder. It creates structure that counterbalances the busyness of the image's center.

Out of my 12 compositions, this one was the favorite of the class. There is some sort of flow to it that keeps the viewer engaged. Personally, I would redraw the circles if I had more time.