Creative Kickstart Week 2 |
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I had another prompt planned for today but then I came across the image below: it's a reconstruction of Francis Bacon's studio. How does seeing this make you feel? What were your immediate thoughts? How would you describe this scene? What kind of art do you think this artist makes? |
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As someone who finds minimalism very appealing, this picture immediately STRESSED ME OUT, then it intrigued me (how does one work or walk around in there?), then it made me feel better about the messes I've made and how I shouldn't judge someone else's method and the way they work! After seeing this image, I felt like related topics kept popping up: the “messy middle” (within our creations and our lives), the idea that social media mostly shows perfectly styled images in neat little boxes, and how the process and journey usually look more like this than a straight clean line from A to B. So I thought we could explore these things a little bit more and see how it inspires our creativity and art! Messy, chaotic, haphazard, unrestrained…here's some inspiration to help us begin! |
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What ideas can we tease out of this week's prompt, “messy”? |
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- Take a look at a “messy” image--like Francis' studio (here are more), a real life corner of your desk, a junk drawer, or a palette of old dried paint. Try to un-focus your gaze so that instead of individual objects and parts, it looks more like blended shapes and colors. Recreate this abstract image in your sketchbook. Leave it as is or add more scribbles and markings.
- Or use one of those disorderly scenes (or create one) as your subject for a still life drawing (something different than the usual bowl of fruit or vase of flowers!)
- Make a collage that conveys the idea of chaos and order. Consider the way you position, arrange, and glue down the pieces. Add paint, marker, or other elements on top of the collage to turn it in to a mixed media piece and to further express chaos/order.
- Mari Samuelsen: Vivaldi 'Four seasons' - Presto from summer I love how music can sound frenzied and chaotic but the musicians/orchestra are very much in control and organized!
- Explore graffiti art. Try spray paint if you're able to or emulate this look/style/feel with other tools.
- Try spill art. Spill coffee, tea, or colored water onto your paper. Let it dry and begin drawing over the spill. Try to find different things in the shapes or start outlining/drawing abstract lines/doodling. Here are some examples.
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- Using this concept from earlier, what would a timeline of your creative journey or life look like? Begin by drawing a line that represents the beginning to present day (it can change from straight to curvy to loopy etc.) Add the different major events that occurred. Use color to express emotions you felt or to describe a location. Feel free to write in dates and notes on what you remember. You can also try doodling, sketching, collaging, or using different mediums (maybe yarn or string to represent the line?)
- Create a page with reckless abandon! Smear and throw that paint on there (literally!), be free in your movements, create without thinking too much. Take your tools and mediums and go for it! If you'd like some inspiration, see the next point below.
- Here's how artist Gizem Akdağ creates a painting. Are there any techniques you want to try after watching her?
- Draw a square on your page. On the inside use one medium, a certain type of stroke, or technique. Outside the box, use another. This can be an observation on social media (where the inside of the square represents perfection and outside represents imperfect/real) or consider other opposing ideas to express: controlled/frenzied, perfect/imperfect, organized/chaotic, etc.
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add a page protector between your sketchbook pages ( here's a pic) if you're going to be using a lot of paint or getting messy! I use a larger piece of cardstock or cardboard to slip under the sketchbook page. This will protect the other pages from getting paint or another medium on it. It also allows you to paint off the edges of the paper. |
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“Messy” usually carries a negative connotation but I think it's something we can take a closer look at and find ways to appreciate! I can't wait to see what you do with it. Have a great weekend and talk to you on Tuesday! |
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