Experimentation - Designing Backgrounds

So far, a lot of my project has been focused on objects like toys and decorations, but I wanted to still be able to incorporate my found objects from beach combing. I figured I could do this by including them in the backgrounds of my cards, so I experimented with creating patterns based on motifs that appear on my pieces of broken pottery, with a combination of organic and geometric shapes. I used a variety of colours so I had more options for each object's background, allowing me to choose a colour way that suits that particular thing best. I also wanted to use slightly garish colours to emphasise my themes of kitsch and nostalgia, which I don't personally associate with 'sophisticated' or contemporary colour choices like monochrome.

For the first few samples I used my alcohol markers because I like the flatness and intensity, especially on the newsprint because of the distinctive way it absorbs the ink -

I think this one is my least favourite because I couldn't find any of my drawings that would look good layered on top of it, the colours didn't seem to compliment any of them. The yellow is also a bit too alarming even though I wanted vivid colour.

Next I made some little lino cuts that I used to create repeat patterns, with alcohol marker again for the backgrounds. The patterns have a more structure to them than the pen ones because of the squareness of the edges and the way I have done some of them in a stripey grid-like pattern rather than randomly. I used newsprint again and it gives a matt/satin finish to the prints which I find very satisfying, and there is a slight graininess too that reminds me of old photographs.

I really like this one because of the variation in the ink - the lighter areas look quite golden while the darker ones feel earthy and organic, and it works nicely with the pink behind it. I think the incidental marks surrounding the motifs also give a sense of candidness, like a makers' mark.

Finally, I made some with watercolour backgrounds and wet watercolour pencil on top. I don't find these so effective because they look blotchy and clumsy - they also lack the graphic style of the previous ones. I think the watercolour paper is a too visibly textured and would look too present and distracting when an image is layered on top.



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

29.1.21 - Objects in the Bath and Shower

Image
One of the first things that came to mind when I got the re-arrangement brief was to do something with my collection of beanies. Because they are so colourful, I decided they should go against a plain background, so I cleaned the bath out and started filling it with the animals.  The first set of photos shows the animals in a random arrangement where I photographed them from different angles... For these close up images I placed the camera in the bath with the animals and blindly took the photographs, not knowing what the results would be. The flash came on for these pictures which makes the in-focus areas appear very sharp with a clear representation of the animals' surface textures. They also remind me of claw machines in arcades, which gives the images a nostalgic feel - all of these beanies were manufactured in the 1990's and early 2000's. This is the thing that opens and closes the plughole in the bath, and it created some strange reflections of the beanies which look
Read more

'Shades of Green' exhibition at St Mary's Church

Image
'Shades of Green' is a Nottingham city artists studio group exhibition, with various works about the longing to be in green spaces during lockdown and the artists reactions to isolation. My favourite was Karl Wilby's 3D piece with the whales and flowers. I think it's really clever how they seem to be floating in the air and are feeding from the flowers like humming birds, it's also really interesting to see whales represented in such a small scale, it's quite surreal and endearing. I like the contrast between the reflective coppery metal flowers and the matt turquoise whales which suggest the colour of oxidised copper, showing a transition from new to old - shiny to rusty - maybe also alluding to the endangerment of the species. There seems to be quite a strong connection between this piece and our fabricated nature project because of how naturalistic the whales are, when in fact they have been made through 3D printing which is as artificial as it gets. The meta
Read more

Mike Kelley Style Photoshoot

Image
  Mike Kelley's 'Ahh... Youth' piece inspired me to make my own version using old teddies from home, including some from my parent's childhood and some from my own - plus a recently acquired 90's troll doll from a car boot sale. I set up the studio lighting in a way that would reduce shadows behind the objects and used a white background like Kelley's image, which gives a professional atmosphere that  elevates them from being worn-out old creatures to something special and celebrity-like. I used a tripod so that they are all to scale with each other, and I like the empty space around them, it's like they have room to breathe and think. I also had to adjust the ISO, white balance and shutter speed on the camera to suit the light and conditions of the space, then I used manual focus to get the sharpness that allows you to see all the details and textures. After uploading the photos to the computer, I cropped them on photoshop and classified them into two separ
Read more