Pastels and Degas (Module 5, Chapter 10)

 I've finally reached the end of Module 5. This module has been a long time in completion, covering the period from losing my father, last year, to the unsettled periods during various degrees of lockdown throughout 2020. However I've finally found time to finish this module just as we are re-entering a new level of pandemic restrictions. I'm determined to move more swiftly on with the next module, if this is possible.

Pastels

In previous modules I got to grips with oil pastels, and during 2019 used them frequently whilst attending a local art / drawing class. This chapter provided an opportunity to try out chalk pastels. In the past I have considered this kind of pastel 'dirty' working tools that don't suit my style. I'm not sure I have dispelled this feeling, as I still think they are dirty dusty things, but I did feel by the end of the chapter that I had found something about them I quite enjoyed.

So here is my box of pastels, cadged from my fathers studio:

I gathered together a range of papers to work with:

I definitely found black and brown paper the most rewarding backgrounds to work on.

Starting off trying some simple techniques as described in the notes:

I then started to try out different pieces of work with these techniques. Starting with squares of colour, blended around the edges:

I made another of these in shades of blue as a base for working with oil pastels. Not a particularly successful piece of work. However, I did accidentally find out the difference between cheap and expensive materials. I had bought some cheap pentel pastels which were hard to make a mark with, but my trusty Caran D'ache glided over the surface: I used fixative on the base before layering oils:

Another squared background with circles, all in blended and mixed chalk pastels:

Squares and ovals using a mix of blending and diagonal lines:

I did a little reading, of course, to see if I could find other techniques and one struck my fancy, using pastels as watercolours. So here are a pair of spider chrysanthemums, painted, blended, and using strokes plus additional acrylic ink:

Back to course notes and I used the side of paper to make fading lines, this was not really a technique for me:

Creating some circles with additional mark making:

Whilst I was looking into Degas' techniques I read about using fixative to layer and keep colour defined. I'll go into my learning attempts in the next part of my notes, but belonging in this section is my final piece. A spider chrysanthemum layered on a blue squared background. I think a total of 3 layers were needed:

Degas and Pastels

As I mentioned above, before starting work on this activity I did a bit of a search on how Degas worked. I was fortunate to find an article that discussed his layering technique, starting from a base of charcoal drawing. So that one would start at the base, seal this base and work multiple layers sealing each with fixative so that the individual strokes and colours wouldn't end up as a mush. I found this technique very useful and also very enjoyable. Alas though, I got so involved I took few working photographs.

Firstly though I tried out the layering technique, it was clear to me that stippling and frothing were especially clear when the previous layer had been fixed.

I looked at two works by Degas. Ballerinas in blue and ballerinas in green.

Ballerinas in Blue:

One:

Two:

Three:

Ballerinas in green

I found that the blue ballerinas were a bit pale in the background and moved onto brown paper for these:

One:

Detail of tutu

Detail of standing ballerina:

I hope these are enough samples!

Claire Gordon

30/12/2020

Making the Book

 Although the subject of the first chapter was to make a book to contain work, it was apparent to me, fairly early on, that none of the books I made would be big enough to contain my work. So alongside working on the modules I was also making a large enough book to hold all the work produced in this module. This post is simply a quick run through that process.

Making individual pages with pockets on both sides for containing work. Also a pocket page in glassine paper for holding templates and small items of work:

I bound the edges in wide masking tape, and used some of the images produced for one of the chapters to decorate the pages:

Adding coursework into the pockets:

Front and back covers

Possibly I enjoyed the Keith Haring figures above all, so I made a front and a back cover using the templates I made for that particular chapter:

Back cover: on black paper, using acrylic white ink (for calligraphy and figures) and a spot of gilding in the centre:

Front cover: using a simple sixties floral motif in Neocolour ii with figures in vermillion acrylic (a glaze was added to these before the book was bound:

Once made, the covers were mounted on card with edges and side for binding covered with masking tape

Binding the book

To support the binding, and allow the book to open flat, I made thin strips of mount card to be bound in between each layer:

Having decided on a sewn binding, I marked up the pages accordingly and secured mountcard strips to page with bulldog clips:

Sewing the pages together along with the mountcard was a nightmare for my figures but I got there in the end:

Front cover 

Open pages lying flat

Back cover

Claire Gordon

17/12/2020

Crowds 2 (M5 Chpt 9)

Generally I aim to produce one or two pieces of work in a chapter that are satisfying to produce or noteworthy for the future. Sometimes a chapter can inspire many such works, but this chapter got off to a slow un-rewarding start. It may have been using templates again, I think the third time in this module, combined with monoprinting which remains an elusive art to me despite my regular working with linocuts (cue bewildered emoji face). However in the final analysis I produced two pieces of work I was more or less happy with - not for want of trying. One of them because it was an enjoyable challenge of alternating colour and the other because I felt it was a start of something with monoprinting that could be developed further.

Stencils and templates

Initially I struggled to find images for the first group of activities, and I think this set me off on a connundrum at the very start of work. Finding some figures a little too complex, others too simple. It was also quite hard to find full length body images on line. I considered aztec warriors, dancers even samurai warriors before finally decided on commuters for a straightforward not overly complex set of shapes to work with. I was beset by doubts about my choice of figures from the start, and now can't recall why I didn't go for more extravagant figures.

Creating stencils and templates

Three walking commuters and two commuters standing in the rain

I started off working on book pages drawing around templates:

Secondly making a completely uninspired piece using wax crayon and watercolour wash - although I had more success with this as I perked up with the exercise:

Can you remember the Old Grey Whistle Test?

Blue acrylic background with white acrylic ink splatter and white pen:

Going back to module 1 and using coloured papers for this next piece. Colourwash sealed with cling film and them using the stencils, with acrylic:

I enjoyed working on this this piece and found myself perking up creatively at this point. It generally only takes one rewarding piece  to get things flowing.

I have a large number of linocut boards and I turned now to use these as a base for making rubbings:

An indigo textile base turned many times to make a complex base with the templates laid on the surface, painted over with watercolour:

A flower base:

In module 3 we looked at scraffito and I made a long scraffito city piece which I subsequently used as a subject for a collograph plate. So here are the commuters walking to work against the backdrop of a fantasy city. Graphite stick used to rub the base:

A sign of the times. By unusual coincidence, last October I made some virus and bacteria prints. Here are, what look like, three rappers, on a background of viruses:

Almost ready to move on to monoprinting, I had one final idea. One of my figures was a young girl waiting at a bus stop in the rain. I thought it would be good to do her with flowers on the inside, black all around to show that whilst the weather might be awful, she might have happy thoughts on the inside. My first idea was not going to work so I decided to go completely over the top and have a pattern that was grey and blue on the outside and colourful on the inside of the template shape. I used a fabulously complex fabric from the 60s as inspiration:

The first go.....

Re-thinking my ideas, and working on a black base with coloured pencils:

Moving on to MONOPRINTING

How embarrassing. When I studied monoprinting with Louise Stebbings, I must confess I found it hard to really understand what it was all about. In the most basic sense, why create one thing when you can make multiple copies of the same thing. So in many respects it was a good thing to re-visit monoprinting again. I tried three techniques:

Drawing on an inked plate:

This was not a success for me. I found it hard to achieve any accuracy:

The tools:

The plate

The results. In order, Russian dancers, chinese terracotta warriors, two fashionable ladies from the 60s and Gloriana again:

Next up I tried drawing over a photograph. Inking the plate, taking off the excess ink and then working over the plate: In order: three dancing ladies, a punk boy band (with grading ink colour) and finally some nerds dressed as storm troopers at a comicon convention. I used lightweight paper as suggested, some light weight mulberry paper, hosho paper and some beautiful very lightweight, almost lacy Khadi paper (which was my favourite, and which incidentally is very robust)

the khadi paper is the creamy stuff

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Finally I made some monoprinted bases and worked over the top of these. I chose various things to base print with, such as, pine needles, lace and fabric. A couple of the monoprinted bases worked very well:

First up, the commuters walking against lace. Using templates to block out the figures:

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Secondly, and I liked this one in particular, dancers against a stripy base:

Finally the one to take forwards and easily the best of the lot (as far as I'm concerned. Some eighteenth century silouhettes on a pink base of scrim monoprinting. This last piece was printed on the khadi paper, which being very creamy gave the print an additionally warm hue:

Claire Gordon

07/11/2020