Secondary Research
Definition of surroundings – ‘The things and conditions around a person or thing.’
Definition of distortion – ‘the action of distorting or the state of being distorted.’
Secondary research – visuals
For my project I am focusing on using the two words ‘distortion’ and ‘surroundings’ I feel I have potential to generate numerous ideas even linking the both together. As an initial starter I have began to look at art work related to distortion where a series of images caught my eye.
This images are all based on images of individuals where techniques have been overlaid. This images have been made to create a distorted look which you recognise straight away. These images to me appear really powerful in particular the colourful distorted painting. It has been overlaid and transformed into an abstract piece, appearing exciting to the viewer. Colour is something which excites me therefore I will be looking further into colour theory whilst enduring this project.
Although I admire how the images have been transformed to appear as they’re being distorted, I am thinking of taking my project down a building route instead people. I feel this fits i with my ‘surroundings’ subject matter and opens potential routes. As of yet, I am unsure weather to focus on a certain place or just every day surroundings.
As a general starting point, I will be re using images of buildings which I will begin to physically distort them myself using collage, paint, layers…
Primary Research – observations
One thing which I am passionate about is the forest fires spreading in Australia, this is an ongoing upsetting event. Whilst watching the news about the events in Australia, I found an article by BBC news which outlines the serious events.
Secondary Research – Article
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-australia-50951043
These images show the horror which has been occurring due to the forest fires in Australia. These images show homes and habitats which have been, still being, destroyed. This could be used as an interpretation of the word ‘distortion’ where I can focus on the real events of homes and habitats being distorted. This is a topic I am unsure how I would go about it however I will be looking further into this subject as I further get involved with my work.
Although this subject matter is something I am passionate about, I decided to not follow through with this idea. After consideration I thought this subject matter would be harder to do due to the surroundings where I live. Instead I feel I would conduct a much stronger project if I were to follow an opposing route. However, this may be something which I could try and involve in parts of my project if needed, therefore I will still be overlooking my research in case I find a way to intemperate it into my art work.
Secondary Research – Nikola Olic article
Whilst thinking of ways to engage with this project I began looking at artists who work includes photography. This is because in my recent works the ones where I have combined photography with mixed media have worked the best. I feel with the topic of buildings this would be the best way to approach the project by taking my own photographs of sections of buildings etc. During my research I found an artist – Nikola Olic – whos architectural photogtaphy really stood out to me. Instantly I could see how she had found interesting shapes textures within buildings and evolved them into beautiful photographs.
“Olic, is a Serbian photographer who focuses on architectural photography and abstract structural quotes that reimagine their subjects in playful dimensionless and disorienting ways.” This statement appealed to me the most especially how she mentions creating her work in ‘disorientating ways’ which is something I will certainly be looking how she does this due to one of my focuses on my project is ‘distortion’ therefore I feel this artist would be a good start to gain inspiration from.
Overlooking Olic’s photographs I can straight away noticed the excitement and detail within her work. The way she has arranged the camera to capture the buildings in an abstract manor appeals to me the most especially because of the abstract on edge feeling I get. It is unrecognisable what exactly Olic is photographing which brings mystery to her images. I like the way she has thought into orientation and has thought into camera angles / positioning. Olic has clearly thought into formal elements such as line, shape and space whilst creating her photos. She has used the shapes from the buildings to create abstract like photos while thinking about the positioning of the photograph, it makes me wonder if she thought about the space of the buildings on the photographs and cropping the photographs to focus on a particular space within the building. With the buildings being made out of repeated patterns they appear to have a distorted texture which is something I would like to try myself to link to my subject matter. From Olic’s work I will be creating a series photographs in a similar style which I can further progress.
Research – observations
In response to Nikola olic I captured a series of photographs, focusing on the textures of the buildings. During my day in Leeds I located and captured photos of buildings which were in my surroundings. Whilst walking through the city centre I recognised the unique design of many buildings which fascinated me. I like how the buildings are made up of repeated patterns like the ones which were similar to Nikola Olic’s work, overall creating a unique design. One thing which interests me with most of these buildings is that when I take a small section of each image I can notice the detail and consideration which has been put into creating the design of the buildings. These images also make me think about deconstructing the buildings by taking each section and beginning to pull the building apart, this is just another way you can see how the building has been created.
With this image in particular I like how there is as warped reflection of the building showing through the mirrors. I like how usually the building is in a straight solid form however due to the reflection if gives it a distorted appearance. Now I have a series of my own photographs this gives me the opportunity to start thinking into how I can develop these into my own styled work. In previous works I have found combining photography and mixed media has worked well. Seen as I have applied for a graphic design course I am aspiring to begin thinking about how I can create art work in a digital form which will benefit me ready for university.
Tina Louise Hunderup artist research – Secondary
Tina is a danish architect and visual artist who works in a cross field between architecture and fine art. She focuses of the formal elements such as using layers. Her work is inspired by ‘temporary architectural constructions, and abandoned industrial buildings in decay.’
The reason I began looking into Tina’s work was because of her use of layers, line and tone. Her artwork reminds me of the style which I enjoy working in which is collage. I feel layers help to add depth into my work making it appear more interesting. One thing I would like to try is a digital collage which these images remind me of. Her work looks like architectural drawings which have been over layered with shapes and textures. The bold shapes stand out in contrast to the drawing creating a visually interesting piece. I feel it also has a theme of deconstruction especially due to how the shapes could reflect pieces of the buildings coming apart. One thing which does interest me is the use of text which she has layered into her design, thinking into graphic design text is used to communicate with an audience which is something I will be experimenting with. With the middle image I feel the splashes of luminous colours impact the design. Colour is an interest with me therefore if I can find a way to interperate different colours into my art work this could work well.
Tina’s style of work is interesting as she combines skills such as photography, digital drawing, painting and sculpturing and overall creates a visual blend of dynamical forms.
Using inspiration from Tina’s work as well as Olic’s photography I will be responding to this using my own photographs.
Primary Research – Discussions
After having a discussion with a peer, they showed me how I can strip the colour from a photograph by using word, which transforms the image to appear like a pencil drawing. This will make my work similar to Tina’s work where I can they begin to involve layers and text.
Research Review
When receiving the brief for the project, alongside my two focusing words – ‘surroundings and ‘distortion’ I knew research would be the biggest source for my inspiration. When first thinking about surroundings and distortion my main concern was the distortion side of the project. This is when I began researching artwork involving distortion where I came across visuals of portraits which had been distorted by using multiple medias such as collage, paint and effects. This initial research was just to explore existing artwork which already included the topic I was following. To me this is an important stage while enduring a project as It’s important to see how others have interpreted a certain word before thinking about what I am going to do. Although I knew portraits weren’t a topic I would be interested with, by looking at visuals this helped to see how different artists used medias to create a distorted appearance.
Primary research is a constant source which I am ongoing using especially observations and discussions. Throughout daily life you are constantly observing, when I observe something which I find interesting I take this as an opportunity to write this down as I could find use for this. The same approach goes for discussions. It is important to speak to a range of different people as everyone’s knowledge is different and opinions are varied which has impacted my project. I have learnt how to manipulate photographs using word which is something I was not familiar with before. To evolve my primary research methods, I feel I need to start thinking more about individuals’ opinions and being more confident with my ideas and feeling more open to adapt them. This could be done by using surveys or conducting focus groups which is something I will be pushing myself to do in order to take advantage of the primary research sources.
In terms of Secondary research, the only really supporting source I have found to be useful at this stage is articles. I do need to start looking at wider research methods such as books which is something I haven’t really focused on as my research has mainly been on the computer. During my research I found two artists which have been my main inspirations in this project. One being Tina Louise Hunderup and the other being Nikola Olic who have been my main sources of research. Looking at both these artists it has enabled me to start thinking into how I can combine photography into a digital collage approach. My topic on looking at distorted buildings mainly sprung from Nikola where I found the repeated patterns on the buildings pleasing to look at. Whereas Hunderup started to make me think into how I can develop my photographs and use layers to add more depth. Although I have focused on articles, it has been a successful source of research however, I am aware I could gain different ideas and inspiration if I widened my research sources to books, gallery visits etc.
One thing I need to become more familiar with is regularly planning gallery visits as this is where I can begin to become familiar with well known artists. Noticing historical, contemporary and cultural research is something I need to recognize myself with more.
Primary Research – Discussions
After having discussions with peers, this enabled me to become more familiar with the basics of photoshop which allowed me to start manipulating my photographs and creating experimental designs. Discussions are an important source of research as it helps to gain knowledge through a demonstration from somebody who has done it before.
Secondary Research – Visuals, Pinterest
Screen printing is something which interests me, whilst I was searching through pinterest I came across this design which struck me. Straight away I admired the composition and blend of the three colours over layering each other. This is something which I feel would take time however would look strong once taking time to carry out the procedure. The use of discordant colours on this design contrast with one another well. I like how the prints look faded, I think If I were to create a similar look I would have to spread less ink than usual or if this didn’t work scan my prints into photoshop and fade them. I feel this will be fun to attempt.
Artist research – Eliza Southwood
Looking furthermore into screen prints I found a printmaker and illustrator named Eliza Southwood whos hand designed prints stood out to me. At first look, her screenprints look fairly complicated however looking closely I can see she has taken time to create buildings by layering simple shapes which is something I would like to try myself. Her prints inspire me to create prints by focusing on layers rather than the detail within the template of the print. The use of the blue and grey backgrounds inspire me to begin thinking about backgrounds of my prints rather than using white cartridge paper, I can begin to print over coloured backgrounds to create a more interesting print.
Secondary Research – Books/ Andy Warhol
While reading through a book based on Andy Warhols I came across these stunning silk screen prints. For me the factor I found most striking about these prints is the use of layers being created with collage. In my previous works, collage has been something I have enjoyed experimenting with. I feel collage adds small levels of detail resulting in a more interesting outcome. My next step is to create a series of screen prints which I will overlay on a collaged background. Materials I plan to use include newspaper, magazine, coloured paper, newsprint…
Leeds Night Light Inspiration
For my final piece I am thinking of bringing all my designs together and creating a series of advertisement platforms to engage with an audience. Leeds night light is a real event which occurs each year. I have thought about creating a scenario that I have been chosen to create the advertisements for this event. Therefore I began to look at previous posters which have been used for the events. As I don’t have any photographs from the actual event on the example above I can see that it doesn’t need to actually be photographs of the buildings it could be drawings/ paintings which I can then put into photoshop and experiment with. With the 2019 example I like how the lights as the background appear distorted, this is something which relates to my project therefore it would be a good way to involve distortion into the main purpose of the event. However I am not overall impressed with the poster, I feel the text doesn’t stand out and make me, as an audience, wan’t to read and engage with the poster. The purples, yellows and oranges do blend well together as the purple represents the ‘night time’ feeling where as the yellows and oranges stand strong and light up the darker colour. When doing this in my own design I will emphasise the colour use even further by using a discordant colour scheme of light. Composition of text is important on a poster therefore I will enhance with the layout. In this example I like how the logo has been involved with the poster, creating a logo is something I would like to try which will give me experience with graphic design factors.
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