Aliyya
rose
task 1 : Comparative Study
Each artist has their own intention for their artwork their intention may be based around how an audience views it, how they view it or the impact their art has on different demographics. The three artists I looked at were, Robert Ryman, Heather Hansen and Jose Parla.
Robert Ryman creates white based art works, he see that "the real purpose of a painting is to give pleasure" he believes that a individual does not need to know the story or the history behind the art to indulge in it. He states that art "should be about what its about" and not view the art any deeper than what you can see. His full intent of his art work is to showcase a 'true' and 'pure' form of art that doesn't have any deep meaning or context behind his work. Jose Parlas work is developed around language and the culture and the differences between languages. Jose art is based around graffiti and the concept of 'tags' and marking objects. Heather Hansen creates art with her body while dancing. she uses this concept in order to create a permanent marking of her dance. since dance is another form of expression and art she combines this with art to create a
unique and diverse art form. Ryman believes that art is just like any other art form which shares the thought that the belief that their art form is for pleasure and entertainment. He didnt want his art to be understood by knowing the history or the story 'behind' the painting but for the painting to be what it is and explain itself.
Robert Ryman
Robert Ryman was first inspired to start painting by the music he listened to in his youth. He was deeply intrigued with jazz music and would drive around at night hunting down radio stations from New York that played jazz music unlike the radio stations in Texas, where he grew up, that only played country music. Music had a great effect on his work "you played on a structure and you learned your instrument and then you played within the structure well, that seemed like a logical thing to begin painting that way" Robert stated when comparing his passion for music and exchanging it for painting. Ryman creates pieces based around the shade of white, he says that the shade white allows people to see things other colours do not provide.
Jose Parla
Jose Parla was born in Miami,Florida in the early 70's, from a young age was interested in graffiti art on the walls of Miami, the graffiti 'scene' was changing as growing up the introduction of Hip Hop and rap started to influence the art and different aspects of Miami. Parla plays with the idea of 'tags' and his belief that graffiti is a language within itself. Jose wanted his art to be able to translate and network with different cultures and languages. When Parla first started to do his work his canvas were city walls that he would paint on at night. His art was incredibly controversial as graffiti was considered destructive and rebellious
Untitled # 1004 - Robert Ryman
Nuevo Rumbo - Jose Parla
This art work was created between 1960 and 1961, it is oil paint and gesso on a steel canvas. He used short brush strokes with a wide brush to build up multiple layers of the white paint to create a unique texture.
As stated before Ryman's pieces do not demonstrate a story or have a significant meaning behind the work, they are instead 'about what it is about'.
There is a clear vast difference between these two art works. this art pieces revolves around the pureness of white. He uses the colour to allow the audience to see the build of texture and other aspects he wants the spectators to focus on the build up and the texture the piece provides.
EXPERIMENTATION
Before starting with our own pieces we experimented with the artists we researched, Robert Ryman, Jose Parla and Heather Hansen.
The first art work we experimented with was
Robert Ryman. Our task was to make and 'white on white' work that we found visually appealing. I first tried experimenting with different shades and forms of white. I first started with Mod rock, as I wanted to see the texture and the shapes I could create with the material. I used a white piece of cloth to apply the mod rock to. I enjoyed the effect it created as it was a combination of different textures that created an unfamiliar complexity.
I also experimented with the white paste, the paste is used to hold a 3D form on top of the canvas and to showcase the 'strokes' used. I enjoyed using this paste due to the brightness of the shade.
Once experimenting with the different techniques and materials we needed to create a final piece that we found 'aesthetically pleasing'. I used the combination of the two technique I experimented with to create a work that I appreciated and found beautiful. Just like Robert Ryman's work my piece does not have any meaning or context behind it, my work is what it is. Although the only 'colour' used is white, the different shades and textures are still incredibly visible. There is an evident contrast, the diagonal line was created using the white paste, the evident use of texture was used to showcase a contrast between the more geometrical shapes of the mod rock and the organic shape of the paste and the acrylic paint.
This art work was created with ink and acrylic paint in 2015, this art work was in a series created by Parla called 'Roots'. The translation of the title is 'New Way'. Parla likes to bring in themes that involve his home country of Cuba.
He uses different colours to represent different aspects and themes. The use of the colour blue represents Cuban history it refers to the colonization of Cuba to the Cuban revolution. The calligraphy and the symbols used in the art work have deep meaning that refers back to major historical events of Cuba.
There is a incredibly prominent different between each piece of work. The first difference would be the very obvious divergence would be the aesthetic. Rymans work is eminently pure and 'virgin'. He uses one colour, white, while using several different shades of white to create a contrast as well as this some of the colours used are much less opaque than others as he "fades" these colours out to also create a obvious contrast . Parla uses a vast range of colours, in 'Nuevo Rumbo' he uses a mix of blues, whites , greens and yellows. Ryman uses much larger strokes compared to Parala's work as well as uses a looser technique. Parla uses a mix of different sized strokes, the background consists of larger and messier strokes while the text consists of thine strokes due to the calligraphy style.
Other than the obvious differences in the aesthetic and visuals of the works there are dominant differences in the context of each of the works. Robert Rymans art work does not have an intense meaning or history behind the piece. His work is just a representation of what it is and the work has only been created for the pleasing of the viewer and the enjoyment for the audience. Jose Parla's work on the other hand has an important context and historical background behind the work. His work is not only about a country's history but about his own personal beliefs.
Jose Parla Experimentation
For this experimentation my canvas was a A3, red piece of paper. I used a combination of different coloured inks and randomly spread them out among the paper, I also used a wet paint brush in order to disperse the ink over my canvas. Once the canvas was dry I turned it over and found that I much rather preferred the other side to the original side. This was due to the ink blending into one another much smoother as well as it was less busy than the original side which I greatly favored.
Once I finished with the background I started to experiment with the calligraphy aspect of the work. I initially started by using white paint, I despised the outcome of this as the words were large, messy and streaky. I then used a white pastel, this came out much nicer, brighter and clearer. I continued to use this and started to build up the text. I then moved on and used a piece chalk, this also created a similar affect as the pastel but the text was more petite.
The quotes and words I used were:
- "Light of my life, fire of my loins, my sin, my soul, Lolita"
- Lolita
- Nymphet
I decided to use these phrases due to the deep context behind the words as well as it suits the red theme.
Heather Hansen
For this art work I collaborated with my colleague Janka Van Der Merwe. This work was inspired by abstract artist Heather Hansen. Hansen uses her body, in a way as if she was dancing, to create pieces of work that showcases the movement of her body and to create a ‘permanent’ mark of her dance.
This work was created directly after an personal event, which involved heartbreak. I decided to convey these emotions within this work by using a blue to represent sadness and a red to represent anger. The coloured components of the work were drawn by myself. The mix of blended and sharp lines showcases the mix of emotions and feelings as well as creating a contrast between the black drawn on top of the coloured lines.
The black part of the piece was drawn by Janka, it is a representation of the healing process. The blended aspect of the black Is a representation of this as it demonstrates ‘blurring’ the destressing memory.
Heather Hansen only ever uses one colour per work, most of the time she uses dark and neutral coloured charcoal. The use of charcoal provides her with the ability to differentiate between faded, blended lines and dark, bold lines.
I took this from Hansen but altered it by using multiple different colours on one work piece.