Found myself really getting into this, probably to the detriment of the Charity and Typography briefs. I think it was the fact that I had a free reign to explore my own ideas. In this instance it meant that I could use my own life experiences to create images. Once I'd started, this appeared to provide quite a rich vein of ideas. I would like to continue but have to give time to the other briefs.
The images displayed here have been scanned into Photoshop and adjusted, mainly using the noise reduction facility. I think this gives them a smoother more 'integrated' appearance.
I found that trying to use spontaneous painting as a starting point didn't really work for me. The results tended to be too crude for my liking. My prefered way of working evolved as one where I would begin to collect component parts of an idea, say photographs, patterned wallpaper, coloured paper etc, and then play around with arrangements until a pleasing one emerged. I found this to be more flexible than a method that began with paint. I would sometimes build the composition around specific and pertinent words or phrases identified and isolated on the page. Some have a loose grid organisation to them.
Painting had its place later in the process.I also discovered the importance of persevering, and the role of layers in this process. Early in the process it was tempting to give up on some of the images but in persevering and applying further layers it became apparent that designs could be turned around and made more successful. They also became more sophisticated as a result of this process.
One particular process that gave pleasing results was the layering of tissue and handmade papers onto which images had been printed. To achieve this I had to find ways in which to pass tissue paper through a printer. Generally, I glued it to a standard piece of A4 paper around the edges and then separated it again after it had passed through the printer.
Overall, I'm quite pleased with the results here. They have a coherence and consistency of style about them that I like. I would like to develop this to include a wider range of devices and techniques and to create some images that have a greater simplicity to them.
I found that trying to use spontaneous painting as a starting point didn't really work for me. The results tended to be too crude for my liking. My prefered way of working evolved as one where I would begin to collect component parts of an idea, say photographs, patterned wallpaper, coloured paper etc, and then play around with arrangements until a pleasing one emerged. I found this to be more flexible than a method that began with paint. I would sometimes build the composition around specific and pertinent words or phrases identified and isolated on the page. Some have a loose grid organisation to them.
Painting had its place later in the process.I also discovered the importance of persevering, and the role of layers in this process. Early in the process it was tempting to give up on some of the images but in persevering and applying further layers it became apparent that designs could be turned around and made more successful. They also became more sophisticated as a result of this process.
One particular process that gave pleasing results was the layering of tissue and handmade papers onto which images had been printed. To achieve this I had to find ways in which to pass tissue paper through a printer. Generally, I glued it to a standard piece of A4 paper around the edges and then separated it again after it had passed through the printer.
Overall, I'm quite pleased with the results here. They have a coherence and consistency of style about them that I like. I would like to develop this to include a wider range of devices and techniques and to create some images that have a greater simplicity to them.
