Scaling & Framing

Today i was told to take photos of my partner which best represented the attributes that i liked about them.Out of twelve shots i had to select the best three, which are below.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I felt that Esther had a shy and quirky character which can be seen in the first picture because of her pose.It was a candid picture so i thought it was more genuine.

In the second picture Esther has a friendly expression so a close up shot with minimal distractions in the background, would be apt in showing the details in her facial expression.Also the angle of the picture is eye level, to maintain the friendly nature of the picture.

In the third picture i was trying to capture esthers confident and mysterious side.I decided to photograph her silhouette leaving out details of her emotion and facial features. A low angle made her look more powerful and confident.i felt that with the sky and the greenery in the background it contrasted well with the black silhouette making it stand out more.

One of the challenges i faced was the lack of experience using a DSLR camera.I was taught how to manually focus on an object and adjusting the iso to the appropriate level(around 1600).Since i sort of know the basics of using a camera, practising would be much easier.

An interesing object & 3D sketch model

An interesting object- Clipper lighter

In this post ill combine what ive learnt/documented from the past two lessons Firstly i will talk about my interesting object, this clipper lighter.

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Originally, i thought it was interesting because i liked the contrast in the colours and material,orange/silver and metal/silicone respectively.Also because it was symmetrical from most angles.However, after the lesson i realized i was not observant enough it showed me a new way to look at a products design.The images below shows what ive learnt so far,

Legend: Dominant (D )subdomninant(SD) subordinate(SO)

The orange part is the largest part taking up nearly 75% of the product is known as dominant,while the silver area is about 25% making it the subdominant and lastly the clipper logo makes up about <10% of the product making it the subordinate feature.The metal part is roughly 1/4 of the total size,which means it does not follow the rule of thirds. However i still find my lighter very aesthetically pleasing.Lines of symmetry exists in all angles except for the side view. I also noticed from the side view is that if the part that juts out was another colour it could be considered a SD feature as well.From the top view a negative void is seen as labeled in the picture above.When viewed from the bottom theres no SD only a D and SO as there are only two visible features.

3D sketch model analysis

In the following exercise, i drew the word “void”,so i had to somehow express that by using 3 boxes also known as a 3D sketch,keeping in mind that all three boxes should be visible regardless of the angle its viewed at.I used foam to replace the boxes that i didnt have as some were too big to be the subdominant part or some were too small to be considered subordinate.i had to use the foam cutter to size my boxes accordingly. The method to nice clean cuts is to push the foam against the metal frame supporting it with a gentle but firm pressure at a steady pace. Wedging,cradling and piercing were some techniques i learnt and applied to improve the arrangement of the boxes which also helped me visualize my own and my classmates’ 3D sketches in many other ways. The results are below.

I tried to express void by making the negative voids in both sketches  as large as possible and also to find a way to incorporate it in all angles.The sketch on the left illustrates more of a cluster of contrasting volumes whereas the one on the right displays more similar shapes.In certain angles you can see the contrast between the sizes of the negative voids depicted by the green and red markings in the diagram below.I also decided to mark out the voids from all angles of both the 3d sketches so they can be viewed as a whole.The dominant,subdominant and subordinate features of both the 3D sketches are apparent and all three boxes for each sketch are visible from every angle.

This is what I’ve got so far and have documented(as much of the process as i could).I feel that even though my 3D sketch models demonstrates the word “void” ,some further improvements can  be made.For example ,since i already attempted to show the rule of thirds in my sketch, try incorporating maybe “mirror” to give it an interesting touch.

Artist research-Sol Lewitt and Agnes Martin

Sol Lewitts wall painting-“scribbles”

Background on artist

Sol Lewitt is an American minimalist artist whose working years were from the   1960’s to early 2000’s. His art comprised of lines,basic shapes and simplified colours. Lewitt’s 2D and 3D work ranges from outdoor installations, wall drawings to sculptures.

Practice & style

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Sol LeWitt – Scribbles

Sol’s wall paintings were mainly executed in graphite directly on to the surfaces of large walls. His series of ‘scribble’ wall drawings, so termed because they required the draftsmen (he usually had assistants to put his art together for him as he felt that each person had a different perspective/understanding on drawing lines) to fill in areas of the wall by scribbling with graphite. The scribbling was done at six different densities to create an illusion of a gradient and depth, which gives his 2D work a 3D tone. Although the scribbling looks rather random and chaotic,they were drawn according to an exacting set of guidelines,to give the final outcome a consistent, well put together look when viewed from afar.

Take aways

I found it interesting how there is a “system to the madness” type feel to his work. When viewed from up close, the details are very apparent- the messy, almost random curvilinear lines. When viewed from afar, you are able to see the big picture,the gradient effect, which looks orderly and simple, Both of which evoke completely different emotions in me.This gave me exposure on the various ways I can express different emotions through mark making in a piece of art.

Cai Guo-Qiangs gunpowder drawings

Background on artist

Cai guo-Qiang was born in China that was formerly a calligrapher and traditional painter.He was exposed to western literature and traditional Chinese art forms as he spent worked at a bookstore. He grew up in a setting where explosions were common, Therefore, he used gunpowder as his medium to create art.

Practice&style

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http://www.artandsciencejournal.com/post/38981362625/cai-guo-qiang-gunpowder-drawings-wan-hu-was-a

Cai Guo-Qiang: Gunpowder Drawings

http://www.artandsciencejournal.com/post/38981362625/cai-guo-qiang-gunpowder-drawings-wan-hu-was-a

Cai initially began working with gunpowder drawings to foster spontaneity and confront the suppressive, controlled artistic tradition in China. While living in Japan, Cai explored the properties of gunpowder in his drawings, which eventually led to his experimentation with explosives on a massive scale and the development of his signature “explosion events”. When he ignites his work,it gives the feeling of tension and release-due to the amount of planning and labour it took to produce his art, and it makes his work like a “performance” per se.

Takeaways

Cai has incorporated western and Asian elements in his artwork,which gives his art an interesting touch because you would not typically expect an artist to use gunpowder as a medium to be used in traditional Chinese art. When i think of gunpowder i immediately think “destruction”, but his works have shown the opposite.By using gunpowder, he created works of art. This gave me more insight on how i can incorporate various cultures and mediums to make my own work more exciting.