I used the compositional rules of positive and negative spaces taken from North American influences in Abstract Expressionism, just as Bateman often does...
The whole composition was based on a scene I happened across in my local urban woodland, Lion Wood LNR. It was very nearly dark and the sun was very low. The light caused a strong silhouette of the oak trees but a shaft of light just cought the birds, shinning through their wings and illuminated them like little jewels.
This is the page from sketchbook at the time...
I worked up the sketches to select the information I wanted to use...
I then made some compositional sketches to design the final painting...
To get the form of the tree, I based it on the branches where I had seen these little birds...
The final result is okay. It has a lot of ideas in it but I don't think my skill at the time matched the ambition. I was pleased with the whole process of learning how to design a finished painting, just as a professional fine-artist might. This is a painting I really want to have another go at completing again. I am sure with a few new techniques, I could make a better job it, now.
I gave the original to my auntie, Lizzie in Reading. I never asked what she did with it!
No comments:
Post a Comment