Stanley Spencer

Stanley Spencer (1891 - 1959)

Madonna Lillies

1935

I also looked at this piece in the Gallery as it links very closely to my current theme of lillies.

Spencer was a British artist influenced by Giotto and the colourful privitism of Paul Gauguin.

I thought this image was very interesting in comparison to my other image from the gallery. This picture is so realistic and you can easily tell what it is that you are looking at. You can tell that the foreground is painted but it looks as though the background is a picture from the accuracy of the work. Both painters were around at the same time but there is a very different style of work. I like the accuracy that Spencer has used but i prefer the other image, i think that it is more interesting than this. There is more depth and texture to the other piece and i think it allows you to think more about it and where it is, where as this is an obvious painting which is of flowers in front of a house.

Georg Sauter

George Sauter (1866 - 1937)
Study of Flowers
C. 1908
Oil on Canvas.

I chose to look at this piece from the Leeds Art Gallery in more detail as it relates to my current project, 'Bloom'.

I really like his impasto style of painting, which really distorts the image and makes it very abstract. If it weren't for the title the audience wouldn't know what the image was of. As Sauter has used the impasto technique it really gives the piece depth (due to the amount of layers which would have been used), especially as it is relatively small. I think that it look as though it has been painted on/near a pond. The use of complementary colours makes it bolder, yet is not too overpowering. There is quite a dominance of white in the piece, perhaps showing a reflection of light, which is why i think there may be a link to water. I believe that this piece would have been created for purely aesthetic value. It could easily hang in a house and be used as decoration.

Alphonse Mucha

Whilst looking into Art Nouveau, i cam across one of the well known artists, Alphonse Mucha. I have looked at this picture in more detail because of the lilies in the woman's hair, (linking to the earlier post). These lilies are much simpler compared to the other picture which i don't like as much. i think that if they were to be on a large scale it wouldn't be as effective and look a bit boring. However, i think that it will b successful in allowing me to simplify my drawings in the first place, then i can work into them and add more detail.

Art Nouveau

Starting our new project, "Bloom", i knew that i wanted to look into the Art Nouveau movement. I have looked at it before and i think that it reflects my own style of work, as i often like to work with a bold outline with simple yet 'twirly' lines. I think this is a very striking picture and really stands out of the page. I especially like where one of the leaves has curled under on itself. I found this picture which has now become the starting point to my work. I am going to create my own examples of this piece from looking at real lilies.

Jewellery Elective

Whilst i was doing my Jewellery elective, i came across this artist, Linda Hull, who's work is similar to the pieces that i was creating (mine is below). I really like the boldness of her designs, yet they can easily be worn as costume jewellery, (she even commissions her work for the public, so that the pieces can match colours of clothes). I like the randomness of the designs and how each one is totally unique. I especially like the use of beads as it gives another dimension and they work with the colours of the wire that is used. I took inspiration from her work by adding the beads to my piece. I was very pleased with my brooch, especially with the colours i created just by heating it. i enjoyed doing my jewellery elective, as it has shown me some new techniques which i can use again in later work.