Overall Comments
Firstly well done on completing the course Joanna, and you have sent a well – ordered set of works this time. You have taken on board my comments and have made an effort to work outside of your comfort zone, which is just beginning to have an impact and I hope that you will take this forwards on your artistic journey.
You have good basic drawing skills but have struggled to loosen up throughout the course, this is confidence and also understanding the subject of drawing per se, and so you have much more research to do in this area. The power and language of the mark needs to be understood at a deeper level and I hope that you will feel encouraged to pursue this further.
I re-iterate from previous feedback: Re-working is part of artistic practice and you shouldn’t feel discouraged, you have a lot to offer but need to make this push forwards. Have confidence and explore the subject matter to it’s fullest. The handbook is only the starting point.
Aim to make more than one version of something, this will help you to extend your possibilities. Please don’t write across the top of your images, comment on the back of them only.
Feedback on assignment
There are some very well observed (though small, which is fine) studies and some variable outcomes, but you you have tried to extend your mediums and ideas – this is enabling you to become more fluent in your decision making process, but there is work to do- which is natural at this stage.
- Think about what the immediacy of the mark can bring to a drawing
- Think about how the act of observing is translated into the mark and how we can affect this through time, physicality, situation and so on.
- Try to contextualize the work that you are making through close examination of the work of other artists, write about this experience in your learning log.
The artichoke drawings
On first impression they feel restrained – but when I lay the studies side by side across the floor I can begin to unpack them intellectually in a different way. So, it is apparent to me that you have tried hard to test out techniques, you have tried to push yourself further and take on board previous comments.
The colour palette is ‘high’ almost technicolour in places but as an exploration I can see why you have chosen to do this. The form of the artichoke is so particular and the view that you have chosen to work from becomes almost abstracted as you work through the various techniques and methods that you are applying.
I know that you have suggested one piece as the ‘finished’ piece for assessment, but when they are seen together (see below) and then placed in a four they feel stronger, more deliberate and livelier. This highlights to me that you now need to consider how you would show the work at assessment, it is critical that you think about this and in the ensuing time prepare for the event.
My advice would be to show these as a four making decisions as to the way up, order and so on, and then, now that you are so familiar with the form (and if you can) push yourself to make a monochrome ‘four’. This would really propel you forwards, allowing you to investigate the subject matter showing your knowledge of it through your work. In the second four allow the form to become even more abstracted- see what happens to it- you have begun to push at these possibilities, so let yourself go there fully. Remember that you must indicate how you wish the work to be viewed (in this scenario) to the assessors.
The intention of the work (above) is to stay with a fixed view so that this familiarization with the form allows you to develop techniques and methods to describe/articulate it to the outside world. As a single work we lose the intention of the process and so the potential strength – in this situation- so it becomes far stronger if we embrace all and are more inclusive in the final delivery.
When making a second four, ask yourself some practical questions- what would happen if I blocked in this portion in black ink- what would happen if I transposed the negative and positive spaces? And so on… to see what you can achieve. You could make four black ink tonal drawings aiming towards an abstracted form as one idea amongst many. In this way you would have two works for assessment each made up of four exploratory images.
In essence, from what you have already achieved you can now forge ahead and prepare for the assessment, think carefully about my comments and how you can go forwards with them in mind.
- Think about the intention of the work, what you are trying to do- set out to keep this firmly in mind and making so that the works are as resolved as they might me.
- Think about how drawings are shown, their size, format, number in relation to each other, a single, a pair, a triptych and so on.
- Research what a series of drawings might be in terms of contemporary art practice, include this research in your learning log.
Sketchbooks Demonstration of technical and Visual Skills, Demonstration of Creativity
I have seen sample pages from your sketchbooks on your blogsite, but please make sure that your sketchbooks are easily (physically) accessible for the OCA assessors. The blog doesn’t take the place of the actual sketchbooks.
Learning Logs/Critical essays
Your reflective writing is clear but a bit perfunctory; I have endeavored to point towards other artists and would like to see your writing reflect the fact that you have been researching them. In Assignment 3 feedback I gave you some guidelines to help you write about what you are seeing, so perhaps review your tutor reports and look at the suggested artists- also the course book for the research points… it feels like I am missing a whole section on your blog for the research?
I re-iterate: In your first assignment I wrote: In order to reflect on your own work, it is necessary to reflect on the work of other artists contemporary and historical. You would really benefit from viewing the works of other artists Write about what you are seeing and interpreting, When you can see that an artists’ work represents what you are experiencing in your making, write about why that is happening, what has the artist done and how have they done it, how can it inform your own study?
Get into greater depths begin using a critical language.
The OCA website has good information on the learning log and its benefits.
- Try to contextualize the work that you are making through close examination of the work of other artists, write about this experience in your learning log. (I re-iterate)
Suggested reading/viewing
Please revisit the tutor reports for this course and reflect on the suggestied artists and think about their relevance for your work- make notes from your further research.
Please borrow from a library The Primacy of Drawing by Deanne Petherbridge.
If you can obtain this book, try to read it. Berger, J (1972) Ways of Seeing, Penguin Berger, it unpacks what it is to look and perceive. I re-iterate try looking on-line in places such as the Tate archive to see more drawing or for contemporary work: http://www.drawingroom.org.uk/ and also http://www.axisweb.org
www.balticmill.com/links for contemporary works.
Pointers for the assessment
At the present time, you are very light on research for this course. Please ensure that you complete all the research points and consider all the suggested further research of past reports and indicate where and how you have considered them.
Apply the comments from this feedback and previous reports and re-work any suggestions.
Read the selection criteria in your course handbook carefully and edit the work carefully. Label and mark all the work on the back, any comments can also be made on the back.
Please note that I will be unavailable to feedback after the 21st March – 16th April- so please keep to your deadline.
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