Look, Think, Draw - Observational Drawing

I really enjoyed our day of observational drawing, to be out again working on a task and getting pen to paper. It was refreshing to be around so may inspired and creative people all indulging in the act of image making together, all responding to the same environment in different ways. It was inspiring to see so many different techniques and drawing styles and interesting to see what each person deemed was important enough to be documented.

I started by drawing this tree and without even realising immediately stuck to what i knew, that is fine-liner shading and detail. It wasn't until Jamie came over and prompted to try something quicker and looser that I became aware of my fixed approach.

To loosen up I adopted a few other pens, namely posca pens, a pro marker and a small chisel tipped Artline marker. Although they were less refined than the fine liner, the bullet tips of the posca and pro marker still allowed me to stay quite tight in my image making, the heavier weight of line restricting some detail but it was still comfortable and took me a while to break free from accuracy.

I was mostly happy with these architectural studies, even with the slightly distorted perspectives. I did start to loosen, not worrying too much about perfection and allowing myself to just get marks down at a quicker pace. The way the buildings almost trail off without being fully finished denotes them as studies and not finished pieces, an idea I neglected with the aforementioned tree.

Despite them being the least accurate and technically successful, the most exciting images I created were the ones using the Artline chisel tip marker. The shape of the tip means you have little control over line weight and form, meaning there is an element of letting go naturally, as it would be impossible to translate realistically the subject onto the page. The small studies of people on the upper right page were all executed within a matter of seconds, many when the subjects were walking past, meaning I was unable to sit and get caught up on the results, instead it was a practice in getting an image down as quickly as possible and more suggest than depict accurately what was in front of me. These were also the most rewarding and fun images, as they were fast and organic in creation.



 As a follow on, I went into the centre the day after and carried on exploring observational drawing with this chisel tip marker. Again, these drawings are not accurate or true depictions, but instead they are an authentic translation of what I was observing. They have more character and life than a refined fine liner study, the lines have movement and energy, not rigidity and structure.

I hope to explore this idea of limiting the control I have over what marks I am making further, creating organic and free drawings with energy and character.

Final Outcomes - Make a Mask of Yourself

These are the final outcomes for the brief. However, I think some of the previous illustrations were more successful as my paper sketches felt more refined. The expressions on my other drawings look more effective, as the features appear more expressive. Still I was pleased with how well my final drawings photographed, due to the fact they had context and a cohesive setting.

 Despite the context and setting tying in the idea behind the mask, I think that it is still difficult to work out what the actual mask is, because the detail lines get lost into the grey background; a heavier weight of line would have worked better. It may also have been interesting to try an oversized mask, a larger scale exaggerating the expressions.

Testing & Development - Make a Mask of Yourself

From these drawings of different facial expressions, I scaled them up,considering what size they were most effective.As much as I like the A2 drawings, I felt that my final mask didn't need to be such a large scale; the only features needing to be covered and drawn are the main expressions.

I drew two mock ups combining the facial expression illustrations with a record and thought they were successful, keeping the scale small, and started on my construction.

I attempted to paint the background colour of the records, but the paint didn't cover well so I simply used posca pens instead, using a grey for the background colour, allowing the black of my detail to show on top. For the centre of the records I chose a yellow for the happy expression, representing the friendly and bright side of my character. The blue represents the other, namely a more anxious and self-doubting side. 

Initial Ideas - Make a Mask of Yourself

To start my response for this brief, I began exploring identity and how that relates to a person and the concept of 'yourself'; things such as self-image, appearance, hobbies and experiences, among others. 

I started by taking 'yourself' literally, sketching out a self-portrait and attempting to incorporate my physical appearance with the idea of my hobbies being my identity. However these turned out a bit soulless, with no real meaning. To take it further I considered what else besides appearance makes up identity and why someone would wear a mask, that is to conceal one's identity. To flip that I considered what if a mask was to expose someone's identity, or a part of it that people rarely see. Tying this into the initial sketch of the record, I came up with the idea of a mask made of two sides, one which shows a part of me everyone sees, and the other a part usually kept hidden.