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Project 3

Exercise 3

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For this task, we were asked to experiment using traditional art tools and ‘non-art” media.

I branched out massively on this task, and I’m not even sure if the way in which I created this piece is “correct”, however, I took the use of “non-art” media further than I think was suggested.

First of all, I’d like to say that this particular exercise really defeated me. I felt very down in the dumps through the production of it, and began to really compare myself to others. That being said, I decided to push on and try my best. These techniques and forms of creativity are very new to me and way out of my comfort zone, so I guess all I can do is my best. And that is what this is!

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In classic Jes style, I got caught up in the process and forgot to take any pictures of my progress!

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The Final Outcome

Part of me is really satisfied with the outcome of this piece, however, the other part of me can’t stand it.

I chose a wide range of tools for this piece, including acrylic paint, watercolour paint, oil pastels, tip-ex, wax, lipstick, eyeshadow, eyeliner, highlighter and fine liner. I told you I went a bit out of the box.

This exercise was potentially one of the most challenging I have faced as of yet. I was really hard on myself with it, which isn’t great, but I had an image in my head of what I wanted it to be, and I struggled to stop at anything other than that image.

Eventually, though, I did stop, and as I mentioned above, I feel a number of ways about the outcome. I will say, I do feel happy with the pepper. I think I did really well to capture the shape, texture and tonal range of it, and I’m pretty chuffed with how it came out. The paintbrush was fairly simple to create, as it was only a small aspect of the piece, and I’m fine with how it looks. The same can’t be said for the rest of the picture, but, frustratingly, I can’t put my finger on what exactly is bothering me so much! I tried really hard with the vase, and managed to display it’s many tones with a range of colours and materials, but it still looks very flat. No matter what I did, I wasn’t able to lift it out of the page and bring it to life.

After speaking with other students, I’ve picked up a lot of tips on how to improve my work. One of the most beneficial pieces of feedback I received was regarding the lighting. In this piece there were many lights on in the room that I was in, and I think a more directional light source would have been helpful, as this piece currently feels a bit all over the place.

Depicting a vase or curved object is something I’m determined to practice, as I’m finding it to be a challenge and frustration in many of the exercises so far.

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