Statement of Intent

What interests/drives you?

Since the usual topic I choose for my work is expressionism, for my ART246 project, I wanted to attempt to explore abstract expressionism. For a starting point, I want to experiment with different variables, and see how it affects the paintings/drawings. After that, I have a few ideas on how to progress this topic. I had the idea of using the same techniques of Pollock; however, I would pull the lines together and guide the marks to create an image of sorts. Messy is really putting me out of my comfort zone, hence why I dove straight into abstract expressionism, to get myself used to the process of it. Then, perhaps when I’m more comfortable with it, I can start painting objects I prefer, but in the abstract expressionism style. At home, instead of doing large paintings like I do in the studio, I design tattoos, they are very neat and precise, which I think is how I prefer to work, however I do still enjoy painting therefore, I would like to try and combine these so my art at home and at the studio can assist each other, rather than giving me even more work to do. Another process I could explore would be designing the abstract paintings I have made in the style I would use to create a tattoo design.

What materials do you think might best serve your investigations? What media/areas do you intend to explore?

For my practice working methods, I would like to explore with drawing, using tools to create various marks and see what effects they have. I also wanted to try painting to non-traditional surfaces as part of my abstract expressionism section. I have visited several charity shops and collected various items including several different shaped pots and several records. I really enjoyed lino printing last year, so I would like to fit it in for this project. I like lino prints would work well for the tattoo designs, I’ll just have to be even more precise than I would be when drawing them. I also need to try to be less concerned with something not working, even though something might fail, I should try it anyway to see what actually happens and learn from it.

How will you measure your success?

To achieve my personal project, I think I need to develop my painting skills, not in a sense to make them more accurate and precise, but I need to let go a bit for this project and care less about where the paint goes on the paper. Last year I found my blog a very useful tool in keeping track of everything so I plan to keep this up for this project. I also need to take more advantage of the resources that are available to me, such as the library and galleries in the area.