emily's project #4 statement of intent
I decided to keep this piece pretty simple. As sometimes boring and predictable as it is, I have been missing the more classical style of art that I was trained to do in high school. I tried to create an arrangement of objects that included all of the basic elements of a good still life: different shapes, textures, and colors, and a somewhat interesting composition. I focused on the relationships between the objects in the composition in terms of their shapes and weights relative to each other. What I mean by that is, I looked closely at the areas where the different objects intersected or cast shadows on one another. Because none of the objects in the piece were particularly complex in themselves, I figured that in order to make the drawing look coherent I should focus my energy on those intersections and edges rather than the actual objects themselves.
For the self-portrait aspect, I tried to select objects that were more symbolic than anything else, so that I could keep the focus of the still life on composition rather than on subject matter. I chose chopsticks, a glass bowl that friend Kristen made me, books, and tropical fruit. These objects don’t symbolize anything more than basically common and familiar objects in my life.
I used crayons for this piece, which was a challenge. I had fun playing with the different layering effects that I could get by blending different colors using varying pressures. I had a hard time creating really bold colors, though, because I tended to draw very lightly so that I could go back and add layers of color. In the end, I went back and made the darkest parts of the piece contrast with the rest by pushing hard on my crayons. I chose a deep red for the background of the piece to compliment all of the green in the book, papaya, and bowl. I think it makes things pop out more.
Emily then cheated on her crayon drawing with a Sharpie marker. A trashy one at that.