UWM Illustration Gouache
Having it All but Not Having Enough
Size: 10 in x 15 in (each)
Medium: Gouache on Illustration Board
Completion: January 2020
Exhibition Text:
In having it all but not enough demonstrates the opposites of full vs. empty. I was inspired by George Seurat's A Sunday on La Grande Jatte. Being full is shown as being able to have nothing stop you and to reach your goals. In this case, it is running, being able to run is shown as full and happy. Being empty is shown when you are trapped and can't do anything about it. Me, not running displays emptiness and sadness.
Size: 10 in x 15 in (each)
Medium: Gouache on Illustration Board
Completion: January 2020
Exhibition Text:
In having it all but not enough demonstrates the opposites of full vs. empty. I was inspired by George Seurat's A Sunday on La Grande Jatte. Being full is shown as being able to have nothing stop you and to reach your goals. In this case, it is running, being able to run is shown as full and happy. Being empty is shown when you are trapped and can't do anything about it. Me, not running displays emptiness and sadness.
Planning
Inspiration
Planning Sketches
For this first sketch, I wanted to take my colored pencil sketch but in the second painting, it would just be me. Katie mentioned if another person was in the empty painting, it wouldn't show the emotion of feeling empty. I kept the majority of my reference picture since it was taken in late November and there weren't leaves on the trees. I don't plan on using this sketch because it feels bare and it wouldn't bring a lot of attention. I chose to draw in stick figures to outline how I wanted the piece to look, because I knew I wanted to use the graphite transfer method.
For my second sketch, I used my planning sketch from the illustration because it was a similar idea that Katie from UWM mentioned. I thought it would be cool to make it look like a cross country course, and it would be set in a park (in most cases). I thought that this sketch would show where I've felt the most empty, but then I reflected that I'm usually not sad at the cross country meet, most of the time, I'm happy because I'm still a part of the team. During a meet, I'm usually occupied with timing the races and getting mile splits. Meets weren't the main thing that I missed, it was running everyday. This thought helped me realize that this wasn't a sketch I wanted to continue with my illustration. I chose to draw in stick figures to outline how I wanted the piece to look, because I knew I wanted to use the graphite transfer method.
My last sketch consists of a few trees, the sky, lake Michigan, and the same reference picture I used in my colored pencil sketch and in my gouache. This one reminds me more of our practices, specifically our long runs. I still had to show up to practice and I felt that it was a waste of time because I didn't have anything to do. I missed running and when I saw people running, I felt jealous and I had the urge to run because I was physically unable to. I plan to use this sketch because it incorporates the things I liked about Seurat's piece A Sunday A la Grande Jatte. I also chose this sketch because it has an equal mix of everything. I chose to draw in stick figures to outline how I wanted the piece to look, because I knew I wanted to use the graphite transfer method.
Process
Experimentation
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My experimentation for the gouache process started with experimenting the gouache paint. I had never used gouache paint ever in my life, so this was a new experience for me. I opened all the colors and made swatches. The light brown and brown turned out really watery, and I didn't know how to solve the problem. However, during painting the tree, I mixed it with the red brown and white to make it a bit thicker and cover the illustration board. Another thing I experimented was pointillism. Originally, I was going to do pointillism for the gouache illustration. In the picture with just the light blue, I used light blue and white to test out pointillism. I didn't like it as much and it took a lot of time, this was when I realized that I'd rather keep the different objects such as trees, lake and clouds in my painting and switch to Monet's style of impressionism. In the picture of the painting, I painted the eyes and all the facial qualities, but in my opinion, I wasn't proud of it and wanted to paint a blank face. In my final piece above, it is obvious that I painted over their faces. I liked their faces being blank a lot more because as a runner, we don't really have emotion and I felt that the faces took the attention away from the opposites I was trying to express.
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Process
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Reflection
Overall, I really liked how my piece turned out. I wasn't sure how the gouache would look and during my experimentation, I was very unsure how my piece would turn out. After I started working on the trees, the gouache turned out really well. I was disappointed that I didn't like the pointillism, but I think it was better that I chose to do a more Monet inspired piece for my illustration. After I considered Katie's ideas after the critique to put forth into my illustration, I chose to create my piece how George Seurat created his trees and sky. Monet's piece created movement that helped make my piece more powerful to myself and to any runner that has experienced injuries and highs such as a personal record.
Compare and Contrast
Similarities:
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ACT Responses
1.). Clearly explain and describe how you are able to identify the cause-effect relationships between your inspiration and it’s effect upon you artwork.
Me and my friend running are the main idea of the piece and this is shown through both of us running in the first picture but showing the opposite with me not running and not having her in the picture.
2.)What is the overall approach (point of view) the author (from your research) has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
The overall approach for my inspiration is "A Sunday on A La Grande Jatte" by George Seurat and "Woman with a Parasol - Madame Monet and Her Son" by Claude Monet.
3.) What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, cultures, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
The main generalization I made was through being full vs. empty and how that can affect a person and how they feel.
4.) What was the central idea or them around your inspirational research?
The central idea around my inspirational research was a person being happy or full and being able to run and the same person feeling empty and sad when life goes wrong and there's nothing you can do besides wait.
5.) What kind of inferences (conclusions reached on the basis of evidence and reasoning) did you make while reading your research?
Some inferences I've made while reading my research was that George Seurat is very famous for this piece because of the line work through small dots and Monet was well known for his landscapes.
Me and my friend running are the main idea of the piece and this is shown through both of us running in the first picture but showing the opposite with me not running and not having her in the picture.
2.)What is the overall approach (point of view) the author (from your research) has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
The overall approach for my inspiration is "A Sunday on A La Grande Jatte" by George Seurat and "Woman with a Parasol - Madame Monet and Her Son" by Claude Monet.
3.) What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, cultures, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
The main generalization I made was through being full vs. empty and how that can affect a person and how they feel.
4.) What was the central idea or them around your inspirational research?
The central idea around my inspirational research was a person being happy or full and being able to run and the same person feeling empty and sad when life goes wrong and there's nothing you can do besides wait.
5.) What kind of inferences (conclusions reached on the basis of evidence and reasoning) did you make while reading your research?
Some inferences I've made while reading my research was that George Seurat is very famous for this piece because of the line work through small dots and Monet was well known for his landscapes.
Bibliography
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Neo-Impressionism.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 28 Jan. 2019, https://www.britannica.com/art/Neo-Impressionism.
“Woman with a Parasol - Madame Monet and Her Son.” Art Object Page, www.nga.gov/collection/art-object-page.61379.html.
“Woman with a Parasol - Madame Monet and Her Son.” Art Object Page, www.nga.gov/collection/art-object-page.61379.html.