Tutor Feedback Part 4

You have submitted a digital portfolio that explains your response to collagraph well. You are working well with very short deadlines to complete by 9/1/2021.

Collagraph can be very surprising at what can 'happen' by simply gluing, sticking objects and surfaces on a piece of mountboard. It sounds simple, but it can lead to incredibly sophisticated prints or disasters!

It's a quick process to make a plate and can lead to expressive results.

Collagraphs was a fun section of the course to undertake. I enjoyed finding objects to glue down to my test card and the results that came about were fascinating to me. Even the simple print from this plate was interesting and effective.

Mark making is something I am very interested in, along with textures and the results that came from my experiments were exciting. 

Using my iPad to create expressive abstract landscapes was another enjoyable planning process. I chose to do these partly out of a desire to see if it worked and also I felt like I would give me more of an idea of how I wanted my final collagraph print to look. The sketches were quite striking and are something I would like to make more of in the future. My final print was successful to an extent but there were areas where the elements on the plate were raised too much and so there were white areas where I would have preferred colour.

Sketchbook work for assignment 4 was mainly the iPad sketches, I didn't really understand how to plan these collagraphs as I was simply using a more intuitive approach to choosing materials and making marks in the different pastes.

Artists to look at:

Shelley Burgoyne -

Burgoyne's collagraphs are very detailed and in some ways delicate. I appreciate her use of detail and the interesting patterns that have formed from her plates. The layers shown in sequence give a good example of how collagraph can be developed in a more sophisticated way. Burgoyne's work is interesting to see from a collagraph perspective but are not the kind of style I am aiming for.

Shelleyburgoyne.co.uk. 2022. [online] Available at: <https://www.shelleyburgoyne.co.uk/portfolio.html> [Accessed 29 January 2022].

Sandra Blow -

'Space and Matter' by Sandra Blow is a beautiful example of her abstract paintings created from discarded materials, paint and charcoal. This piece in particular really caught my eye because of it's natural, earthy quality. The movement and energy in this artwork reminds me of crashing waves onto rock faces on a stormy, dark day. Discovering that Blows was one of the pioneers of the British abstract movement is exciting and very inspiring. Blows use of materials create texture within the painting and adding to the dramatic atmosphere. Layering is something I enjoy with  my own work and looking at Blows work is an encouragement to explore nature and abstraction further.

Tate. 2022. Sandra Blow 1925–2006 | Tate. [online] Available at: <https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/sandra-blow-770> [Accessed 29 January 2022].

Tate. 2022. ‘Space and Matter’, Sandra Blow, 1959 | Tate. [online] Available at: <https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/blow-space-and-matter-t00355> [Accessed 29 January 2022].

Prunella Clough - 

Clough is a complete contrast to Blows, with more fine details, linework and intricate detail. These works make me feel more on edge and uncomfortable, gritty and like an itch I can't scratch. These works feel cold and sterile. Very opposite to the art I usually enjoy.

Tate. 2022. Prunella Clough 1919–1999 | Tate. [online] Available at: <https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/prunella-clough-921> [Accessed 29 January 2022].

Response to feedback is now all in place and I am updating some of my log to include what I have learnt about how to write more academically.