Journal Day 113

This project has taken me a while to get into. From a suggestion of my tutor's I started with birds; mainly tropical birds. I headed to Paradise Park in Hayle and snapped some photos of the birds from which I have based a few simple drawings and have found shapes with which to work with. I tried to start drawing at the Park, and found that I could draw, mainly better with colour, but that it wasn't what I was after. I tried various things, working with line mainly. A week in, with not much work I hit a wall. I started thinking and thought that perhaps it was the birds- maybe the birds wasn't for me? However I picked up my sketchbook, rifled through and had some ideas of how to develop and continue drawing. I decided to carry on, and am really pleased I did. I learnt that by taking some time and perspective, and that going back on what I had already done I could develop and re-think my project. Doing research into other work that has similar features and characteristics to what I want my work to be has really helped. Jane suggested not looking into other work too much, and in many ways I agree, although I have found it helpful in terms of coming up with new ideas for patterns, backgrounds and layouts.

I have started to think more in depth of what it is that draws me to pieces that I have found and discovered a few patterns and links. In order to identify them I am going to include the mood board pieces again, with captions.

So, starting from top left, down and around linking back up.
1. Messy, bold colours that merge together.
2. Geometric shapes (triangles) that form the shape of an item and are filled with detail/pattern.
3. Stripes of colour create a pattern.
4. (skipping a few to the print of the forest) Geometric shapes that form the background of a piece with a theme of colours.
5. (Again skipping a few) Shapes in shapes (dots in squares) that form a pattern and act as a detail.

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1. Over-lay of shapes to form a shape.
2. Over-lay of shapes to form a pattern.
3. Colours combined to form a background.
4. Block colour shapes over-layed to create the pattern. Symmetrical and opposite over-lays.
5. Over-lay of triangles creates lots of new colours.
6. Chevron stripes as a possibility for detail inside a shape.
7. Overlay of bear (and people) creates both new shapes and new colours.
8. Over-lay of wine glass shapes to form a pattern.
9. Stripes and colours combined in a pattern to create the detail on the inside of a shape.
10. (back to the beginning) Basic shapes taken from what looks to be birds, repeated, mirrored and in various colours.

1.Two bolder colours, but with 4 colours and 4 over-lays of the same shapes makes a pattern stand out.
2. (bottom left) Bird pattern laid over another pattern, laid over a colour.
3. Colour and line over-laid to create a new pattern.
5. Block colour shapes over-laid but with no transparency.
6. (Pear) Simple shape with multiple colours and details inside
7. (repeat bird pattern) Simple bird shape made into a pattern with mirroring and varying colours.

From this I can see that there are the following ideas and preferences emerging that I would like to explore within my own work, as a base from which to take my drawings.

• The idea of pattern inside a shape appeals to me as a way of offering up detail in what could become work full of just colour.
• The use of shape and colour to form  a pattern or even another shape.
• Block shapes 
• Linear drawing and patterns (perhaps best saved/used for the background?)
• Bright bold colours with a simple pallette that always seems to involve blue and yellow plus 3 more colours. (usually green, pink or red and a neutral tone. 
• Over-lay of the block shapes, with some transparency to create new colours and shapes. (This is what most excites me- see the bear image, the person smoking image and the orange black and white bird image.)
• Simplicity within patterns- stripes, chevrons and dots. (Something that was the basis of the pattern in my previous project.)

Abiento x