Visual Evaluation

 In evaluation, I am very happy with my final piece. I feel that I have managed to incorporate the techniques of the artists I have researched and the concepts behind their work.

I have taken inspiration from Jenny Saville, Magdalena Berny, Anna Gilhesphy and Dee Jackson for the photography and drawing of the child. I have taken inspiration from various historical eras, including the Renaissance period and Sassoferrato for the emphasis on symbolism and the Christian origins of mother and child.

And I have explored the controversy's over the portrayal of children in society and the concept of using the mother as a symbol instead of her being physically present.

The Gallery Visits which I have researched have been beneficial in to allowing me to appreciate the cultural and religious aspect of mother and child and the usage of a variety of different techniques has allowed me explore the form of the mother and child in a different way each time.

If I could improve this drawing, I would have painted it on a complete sheet of paper. Since this is 4 A1 sheets stuck together, as I had an economical issue of not being able to obtain a sheet large enough for my drawing. I have had the issue of the paper risings due to the water colour causing the paper to warp. However, this is only really noticeable when you look closely at the drawing.

The main concept behind my work in this project is to allow the researcher to appreciate the beauty of the child, to appreciate the subjects historical origins and to appreciate the fact that each and every culture and society has its own depictions of how a child should be portrayed. A mother and child is one of the most important concepts in this world. Without them, there would be no man kind. I hope that my picture depicts the beauty of this concept.

Final piece - 15 Hour A2-level art exam

During the art exam I set up a time-lapse. This video shows me drawing my final piece during each of the 3 days. On the first day (5 Hours) I completed the pencil outline. On the second day (5 Hours) I completed the water colour and on the final day (5 Hours) I completed the fabric in blue ink and chalk and worked into the child using soft pastel.

 This is my final piece. It is a drawing of my nephew, Dylan who I have focused my attention on throughout this project. Notice how the mother is absent in the drawing. However as previously discussed, the ultramarine fabric is acting as the mother in symbolic form since this is a colour so often associated with the Virgin Mary.

Design Ideas

 Now I am reaching the end of my project, I have produced an A2 book which contains a refinement of the ideas I have researched in my portfolio of work. These ideas have helped me to decide what to produce for my final piece.

I have decided upon which surface to draw. I have completed many practices on sugar paper which range from drawings to paintings. I therefore feel confidence that this is the surface on which I want to draw my final piece. I have decided to use an off-white colour instead of plain white because judging from my experience in this project, this is the colour gives the most emphasis and impact on the drawings/paintings. It serves to create an impact by bringing foreword the pigment in the paint.

After taking multiple photographs of my nephew and sister, I have decided upon which photograph to draw for my final piece. I have taken inspiration from a variety of artists in order to choose the most appropriate one that gives a true representation of my research. I have chosen to draw from the image below because it includes everything that I am looking for. I have researched the origins of mother and child and the meaning behind the symbolism of colour. I have taken inspiration from the Renaissance period and more specifically the artist Sassoferrato. I was attracted to the vibrant ultramarine cloth in his paintings of the Madonna and child and I subsequently researched its symbolic meaning. This led me to look at the concept of using the mother as a symbol instead of drawing her physically present. I was inspired by Arquer Buigas to do so and so I came up with the concept of using the ultramarine fabric to act a symbol of the physically absent mother. In this photograph, the fabric can be seen surrounding the child and protecting it. These are properties which every mother has and so is a perfect representation of the mother and child's and reflects my development. I also took inspiration from a variety of 21st century artists including Jenny Saville, Anna Gilhesphy and Dee Jackson who choose to paint and draw children in their natural state of emotions. In this photograph, I have captured a moment in time, I will draw the photograph exactly as it appears and I will not change anything in my drawing to make the baby appear unnatural. This concept was further highlighted when I researched various artist such as Caravaggio when practicing my drawings of children's feet. There is a lack of paintings of feet in the artistic world, especially children's feet. I have analysed the possible reasoning behind this and I have also explained the importance of including them in any drawing of a child. This photograph also includes the foot of the child, in its natural position with the curled toes and wrinkled soles. This therefore ties the concepts behind part of my reasoning for analysing these artists in such depth. I have also taken into account the position of the light which artists such as Arquer Buigas place a large amount of emphasis on. The light bathes the child's face from the right which gives the child a holy presence. This links back to the historical origins of using a mellow yellow light to depict holiness and blessing.  

I have practiced drawing the face on the child in this book, where I have taken inspiration of the pencil lines from Mary Cassatt and the looseness of my drawing from Jenny Saville and guy Denning. I have focused on the tenderness of the child and its symbolic mother which has been inspired by artists such as Cassatt and various historical paintings.

I have then gone on to decide which medium to paint the child in. I have analysed the benefits and drawbacks of using either acrylic or watercolour. As mentioned previously I have found it hard to paint in acrylic. Although it does give a very realistic effect and adds a good texture to the paper, it is however time-consuming to mix the colours and wait for the paint to dry in order to layer the different skin tones. Because I am under a time limit of 15 hours, I feel that I may not finish in time if I am spending too long perfecting the skin tone. Therefore I have decided to paint the child in water colour. I have taken inspiration from Dee Jackson for this technique which provided a greater degree of flexibility when blending colours and spreading the paint. I find the layering technique to be more effective, especially when using the watercolour on paper as it dries very quickly. The only draw back of using is, it that it does tend to make the paper soggy which in turn can cause the paper to warp. However, this will add a greater texture to the drawing.

It should also be noted that I plan to use the technique of working into the painting using coloured pencil which has been inspired by Anna Gilhesphy. I find that by working into a painting, using soft pencil crayons, I am able to emphasise particular features such as the eyes and mouth. This is something that is hard to achieve when using paint alone, especially if you want to create areas of direct contrast between light and take. I will find it easier to use the technique of chiaroscuro, which the artist Arquer Buigas places great emphasis on, if I am able to use pencil crayon as well. Resultantly, the child wil lbe painted In a mixed medium of water colour and pencil crayon.  

As previously analysed, I am choosing to represent the mother as a symbol within the fold of the ultramarine fabric which surrounds the lower body of the child. This will be painted in a vibrant ultramarine blue which has taken inspiration from paintings in the renaissance era. I have chosen to paint the fabric using ultramarine blue ink and ultramarine chalk. I have taken inspiration from Guy Denning with his usage of chalk in many of his drawings but I have also taken inspiration fro Leonardo Da Vinci who was an artist who I placed great emphasis on in my Unit 3 coursework when drawing drapery. I have used Da Vinci as inspiration for achieving a realistic representation of fabric.

By Including each of these mediums, my final piece will be a mixed media design. I will marry together water colour and soft pastel which will contrast with the brilliant ultramarine blue which will be completed in chalk and ink. I have produced a small scale design idea of my final piece to show development of the mediums I am choosing to use. This can be seen in the image above. I am please with the blending of the watercolour and the contrast between the blue fabric and the pale skin tones. I feel that this is a perfect representation of mother and child which incorporate inspiration taken from the various artists and gallery visits I have researched.

Throughout my portfolio, I have kept a record of my design ideas for every page I have created in response to an artist. I hope that this shows my thought processes and my development into creating a thoughtful response and research page for each artist I have analysed in depth. I have taken great care to ensure that I incorporate each of their techniques and I hope that this book will help to show my journey through my portfolio.