2019
I opted for a written feedback.
Overall Comments
I understand the overall feel that the project has more potential and will in the next few days attempt to add to the the drawing with more drawings that explore possible meanings and parallels with regards to migration, our human conflicted relationship with nature and our own displacement and fragmentation due to issues around and within our own concept of living. I am seeking to not just represent what I saw – but show my own interpretation with regards to how my thought was influenced and the landscape I find myself in, as well as how I see this ‘displacement and fragmention’ playing out in my world.
Assignment Five
I corrected my reference of Wikipedia as my tutor indicated, as well as sorted my uploaded images from my iPad to avoid the glare and pixilation on the photos.
It is clear the I was overwhelmed by ideas and images of these thousands of sea gulls around, and I love the area for its history and liveliness. My tutor makes it even clearer when he writes: ” This is highly relevant and gives you good first hand research threads that you could explore further – could be really useful that this theme of migration and movement connects this art fair work, your bird reflections and even your rhino project…” I know this touches the heart of what I am trying to attempt and has been occupying my creative thought whilst doing the drawing of the gulls.
I did look again at my writing about the art fair – and added more of my own experience and learning from that. The data is still intriguing me – I need to go back to my thinking and be creative about my observations and how to further develop this ideas of the gulls migrating. My tutor comments on my reflections during my drawing process – I should have made more studies – rather a series. I am planning to add this to my body of work before I hand in my work for assessment. This is a wonderful challenge as in a way the one work was really an easy and safe choice within the rich material I have gathered
This body of work was a different challenge due to the incorporation of writing about my own art statement with regards to the work presented. It was in a way a safe choice of material and I felt I had the confidence to use it, and enjoy the process of drawing something I liked. I felt engaged in the process as I loved the place where I was working and the subject was almost an obsession to me, being concerned with nature and our human footprint. My tutors advice during the course was to be experimental and bring my fresh approach into my work. I do think I should have made more studies and started working on that.
I decided to go with the flight patterns of migration – the visual routes of birds migrating and the very complex underlying connections within the data of these flight patterns all over the world . Unfortunately the UAE data is not easily available – I saw lovely data maps of the Americas. A few years ago I listened to a Ted Talk by Manuel Lima, who was presenting data in the most beautiful visual style. He referred to the work of artists, and I decide to visit their work again.
I have always thought of my work with the rhino drawings and my blog (contemplatingrhino.com) as something of an education, awareness and the difficult part was how to use evidence in art. Data could be a great tool to change perspectives as well as minds. Art can take the interpretation even further – beyond ideas and concepts. During my Visual Culture studies the last few weeks, I became aware of Deleuze’s ideas on creativity and difference – I am feeling as though a light has come on for me.
- My tutor has been nudging/pushing me (during the whole part of this drawing course- see his feedback for all assignments) towards experimentation, exploration – have I come to some understanding?
- I feel I am sensing this idea of not just presenting a drawing of what I saw/ appearances, I should think of the ‘beyondness’, away from identities and explore the multiple possibilities within these experiences of drawing.
I added 3 more works to the body of work for the assignment and did extra studies on Velour tracing paper – these are still not working out as I would like – it is clear to me this project has not come to an end.