A2 fine art essay

Nafi John

A2 Fine Art Essay

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Nafi John

A2 Fine Art Essay

Space Utilized An investigation into the visual use and significance of space in Art How exactly do we use the space around us? Do we actually acknowledge our surroundings as we move through it? Or does the space just hold on to our movements like residue? These are just a few of the questions that I hope to answer in this essay. Activating space is like bringing attention to an inanimate object. Most people do not recognise this and for this reason I found this concept captivating. Whether it is boxed and artificial or open and natural, through this project it is clear that our perception of a space changes as bodies move through it. There is a relationship between these three components that seems to signify a unity.

In my Unit 3 coursework I have explored this ideal through the forms of both improvised and synchronised movement, mainly presenting them using the medium of film and animation. This project has helped me realise the full potential of ‘space’ as an important component rather than just the background of a piece, in relation to movement.

Though different in their form all of the artists I am looking at represent the ‘memory of action’ through a variety of differing forms. Choreographer and director, Bruno Augusto is a perfect example of this ideal, as he demonstrates well how a dancer’s movement is affected by those moving around (staging) and the relationship the performers have with their performance space. Using the technique of improvised movement, Augusto often plays with the amount of dancer’s performing as well as the size and aesthetics of the space in order to control the way in which the performance is interpreted by the audience. In addition to this Augusto is very particular in the way he edits his pieces. Considering the fact that his performances are viewed through the form of film as opposed to live, means that he is free to manipulate and alter his space.

This use of visual manipulation is comparable with the work of renowned Artist Kara Walker, who is the second artist I will be looking in to. Though both contemporary artists, Walker and Augusto differ greatly in their contextualised nature however this ideal of connecting the performance and the space poses as a strong link between the two. Where Augusto’s work reflects more on how the dancer’s move, Walker’s focus heavily lies on remembrance as most of her work confronts some serious historical social issues. Her work takes two kinds of forms, all of which focus around the technique of using silhouettes to present situations that otherwise would be deemed as too provocative; these are animation and large wall sized pieces. For the purpose of this essay I will be focusing on the latter, as it best relates to the concept of the significance of how space is used.

Contrastingly my third and final artist Gary Hume diverges from Walker and Augusto, in regards to both his style and technique. His work tends to lean more towards themes and ideas than issues e.g studying surfaces. As he explores the visual effects of various artistic techniques such as painting on alternative canvas or overlapping drawing, he is always able to match the themes with styles that compliment them well. Despite being the only artist who works in a traditional 2D form, Hume is also the most experimental of the three as his use of medium varies quite drastically; as the perceptions of what contemporary art is has evolved, so has his art. In regards to using space, looking in to Hume’s work has enabled me better to understand how differently space is interpreted in a still two dimensional frame compared to real life and moving image. Unlike Walker and Augusto, Hume must use the composition and paints texture in order to build up any impression of real space and movement. Hume is unique to me, as he is the only artist that I have not been introduced to within the context of my project; therefore I look forward to seeing what I can learn from his work.

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Nafi John

A2 Fine Art Essay

Kara Walker (born 1969) is an African-American artist who is mostly recognised for her use of large silhouette pieces, through which she is conveys serious, yet controversial, issues centring gender, race and black history. Being exhibited in galleries and museums internationally Walker has been able to showcase her personal views to a very board audience. Despite being a contemporary Artist, Walker keeps the methods for her wall installations physical and hand-based; to produce her famous silhouettes Walker first hand draws all of her character outlines on to large sheets of black paper. Following this she cuts her figures by hand using a carving knife, reverses the characters and attaches them to her chosen canvas (Be that – wood, paper, canvas or the wall of a gallery) Though her choice of medium is fairly simplistic, the way in which she presents her pieces forms some extremely raw and powerful works. Walker's work intentionally aims to make viewers remember the past however tragic it may be. Displaying all characters in a crisp, opaque silhouette form against plain backgrounds her pieces often depict these vague characters acting out sexually provocative or farcically violent actions, developing a series of deeply disturbing scenes. There is an ambiguity to her work that almost euphemises the severity of her subject matters, without completely hindering her message. The reason I have chosen to look at Walker is because she is a perfect example of how the negative spacing in pieces can be utilised, to benefit the overall outcome.

Camptown Ladies.

1998.

Cut paper and adhesive on wall.

Overall size 9 x 67 feet.

‘Campton Ladies’ (Shown above) is one of Walker’s most notable pieces of this form. Here she explores many social themes of history that are still valid in today’s society including - stereotypes of both black people and women, foul treatment of white people towards blacks and linking historical racial tensions to race relations today. Significantly Walker is able to represent all of this through a memory narrative, transporting observers to a time of slavery without the use of colour, background, or any kind of tones or shade. Due to the lack of these details, Walker makes the outlines of her characters sharp and specific. Her silhouettes are exceptionally detailed, ensuring that viewers can differentiate between the black and white characters.

In spite of this I feel that there is a sense of unity within her works, as although the context illustrates the opposite, the fact that all of the characters are presented using black material gives an impression of uniformity. Generally black is a very dominating colour with excessive use of the colour often absorbing the rest of the image, however in this cause it is almost as Walker is attempting change this ideal. As the black as

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Nafi John

A2 Fine Art Essay

a mass is separated from each other, the white becomes the dominant colour, it fills all of the negative space seemingly emphasizing Walkers racial agenda.

‘Auntie Walker’s Wall Sampler for Civilians’ (Shown to the right) are more recent examples of Walker’s work. In contrast with ‘Campton Ladies’ (1998) this piece shares a similar feel stylistically, however Walker has made some changes in the past decade.

As with all of her work, the composition of this piece has been constructed very carefully with the white silhouettes on top of the black background. This piece has less of a narrative feel, with the individual silhouettes representing separate stories/situations. Collectively they unify Auntie Walker's Wall to illustrate a powerful reflection on Sampler for Civilians slavery and racism in America. Though 2013 vague in identity all of the silhouettes Cut paper and adhesive mimic both humorous yet harrowing on wall. actions, which create very strong and bold resonating pictures. Arguably it is Walker’s use of space and presentation of work that allows her to convey her themes well. It is possible that the large amount of negative space she leaves resembles the fact that racial issues can present themselves in different forms, while the unusually great size of her canvas’ (wall sized pieces) represent the immensity of the issues in reality.

The shockingly aggressive and provocative nature of Walker’s work has stirred as much controversy as it has been well-received. Due to her visual presentation of these controversial themes, Walker’s work is/has often been criticised and in 1997, a group of acclaimed African-American artists criticized her for portraying what they considered to be stereotypical representations of black people. Dissimilarly, a 2007 TIME magazine article praised Walker of the same reasons, stating that "[Walker] raucously engages both the broad sweep of the big picture and the eloquence of the telling detail. She plays with stereotypes, turning them upside down, spread-eagle and inside out. She revels in cruelty and laughter. Platitudes sicken her. She is brave. Her silhouettes throw themselves against the wall and don't blink." These divergent impressions of Walker’s work support the idea that Walker purposely intents to encourage her viewers discuss the issues she makes apparent.

To contrast Walker with another avant-garde style artist, there is no better comparison than English painter, Printmaker and sculptor Gary Hume. Born in 1962 Hume first appeared as one of the major figures of the London-based group YBA (Young British Artists) in the late 1980s. Notorious for their free and experimental use of materials, techniques and unique shock tactics the YBA was an amazing foundation for Hume. Among the group are some of the UK’s most celebrated contemporary artists including the likes are Damien Hirst, Tracey Emin and Sarah Lucas.

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Nafi John

A2 Fine Art Essay The reason I have chosen to look at Gary Hume, along with his unique artistic background, is because of his extensive experience in the field of painting and representative illustrations. With this background I feel that he really presents a distinctive outlook on the concept of ‘space’.

Mostly recognised for his exploitation of the simplified form, Hume’s journey into his set motifs are fascinating. Usually with one ideal in mind Hume uses dull colour, simple print like shapes and singular lines to depict his concept in both a melancholy yet strangely beautiful way. ‘Water Painting’ (Shown to the Left) is one of the multiple large-scale pieces Hume produced for the British Pavilion at the Venice Biennale in the late 1990’s. Here, much like Walker, he has used a simple technique, by only using water paints in one colour. The key feature within this piece seems to be the simple overlapping drawings of a young lady in the nude. His process of overlapping line drawings works effectively as the white Water Painting lines break up the neighbouring areas of flat colour. This piece 1999 is significant in regards to artist’s use of ‘space’, where majority of the area is blank space thereby the distinction Household paint on aluminium panel between the background and the image becomes blurred.

3050 x 2440 x 21 mm Similarly to Walker’s style, Hume’s model is very vague in identity, he leaves us enough detail to gather the gender and rough age of the model however the rest is very subjective.

In this piece, (above) Hume explores modern styles and perceptions, more specifically highlighting what we now recognise and associate with it and how it is affecting our outlook on the world around us. Within this simple piece Hume covers multiple areas of femininity. Like main contemporary artists; Hume seems to revel in the minimal and the abstract creating unrealistic pieces and exploring representative and symbolic imagery. The atmosphere of this piece depends on how it is contextually interpreted by viewers. In one aspect it could be perceived as presenting innocence and vulnerability as the young lady bares all, from several angles, essentially exposing her. This view is completely justified as there is a sense of transparency with the use of so much flat space, which could be inferred as a means of allowing viewers to see the a person l in their entirety (a striking contradiction to the simplified form of the piece) While on the other hand this could be seen as a presentation of sexuality and self-awareness as the model’s nudity is purposefully made the central focus because she does not shy away from the viewer but confidently presents herself. Overall I would say that there are soft tones of warmth and life within both interpretations.

This is mostly due to the positioning of the model; it is noticeable that in one of the overlaying drawings the model is playfully looking directly at the viewer. This sort of interaction adds a quimscal quality to the piece, as the viewer’s try to uncover the girl within the image, as if she wants to stay hidden. The space adds to this element by remaining flat and dim, without any shading or tones observers will struggle to determine any physical sense of depth.

At this point Hume had developed an interest in a very board set of themes, including nude portraiture, the portrait and the garden. Moving into the 21st century, Hume’s interests began to evolve and he started to venture into different territory.

The painting ‘American Tan XI’ (Shown below) is own of several pieces Hume produced for his ‘American Tan’ body of work in 2007. Using the narrative image of the cheerleader, Hume began to explore some 5

Nafi John

A2 Fine Art Essay

fascinating aspects of American Culture. In this piece, similarly to that in ‘Water Paintings’, we see Hume’s continue to use the concept of flat areas of colour and lines, though his outcome is evidently very different.

Here Hume adopts the use of distinctive backgrounds by having a completely uninterrupted area of textured black space. This essentially allows the viewers to better understand and internalise the image, as the abstract nature of the piece does leave an immense sense of ambiguity. The softness of the colours evokes both youthful and sensual tones. There are strong underlying themes of innocence and sexuality throughout his paintings and sculpture for this collection that feels chilling. I think this is due to Hume’s choice of materials, which add a harsh, sharpness in regards to the shapes.

American Tan XI (Charcoal) 2006-07 183.3 x 128.1 cm

Gloss paint, charcoal and chalk on canvas

To juxtapose Walker and Hume in both technique and style, I have decided to look at a more physical, performance based artist, Bruno Augusto.

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Nafi John

A2 Fine Art Essay

Augusto is an Angolain born choreographer who is unique for his portrayal of movement, relationship and movement through the meduim of performance. Augusto is probabaly the lesser known artist of the three, however this does not lessen the complete relvance and beauty of his work. Due to his meduim (which

For The Lack of Less Choreography and Music: Bruno Augusto Costumes: Mandarin Wu Performers: Bruno Augusto, Hollis Bartlett, Jon DeMone, Drew Heflin, Charles Java includes both interpretive and chroegrpahed works) he is about to capture the space is a way that Walker and Hume similply can not. Some of his earliest work for Companhia de Dança Contemporânea de Luanda has sent him touring from across the globe from Africa to Europe.

The reason I have chosen to do a more in-depth analysis of Bruno Augusto is, along with the great contrast he offers, the extraordinary way in which he presents his performance. His exploration of staging is so interesting to watch. The backdrop and setting though relatively plain, is so heavily covered by the performers, that is seems to become part of the performance also (despite the fact that it does not actually change) Like Hume, Augusto works more to a theme or concept that shapes the tone of the piece. The form, in which Augusto visually communicates viewers through his style and visual representation, pulls the audience to the stage as a whole.

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Nafi John

A2 Fine Art Essay

In Augusto’s piece ‘For the Lack of Less’ he is able to develop a striking sense of fluidity with his performers through his use of travelling, consequently engaging the audience with the space surrounding the movement itself. Here the dynamics of the group and individual movement develops an impression of internal chaos, as the dancers often diverge from each other, adopting separate movements or taking on distinct levels. This builds an impression of improvisation, until the dancers unite again, to perform their movements as one. In addition to this device, Augusto also uses a lot of canon, dividing movements and sharing them between pairs or individuals. This feature includes the action of repetition, continuing a single motion until the point where the movement changes. A feature such as this, has very strong links to the concept of the space capturing the movement of a person, though it is the repetition that seems to solidify the movement. This notion becomes arguable as from a standard perceptive it is the continuation of the movement from the surrounding dancers that forms the residue in which the movement is remembered. Either way the relationship between the performers that connects them, forms a natural rhythm that helps the audience internalise and essentially remember the movement of the dancers. Although I could not find any commentary from Augusto to provide contextual insight, I still feel that unaccompanied this piece is very effective and well composed.

Conclusively, Walker, Hume and Augusto though different in their forms and representations, all share a similar desire to harness the significance of space. They all aim towards emphasising their own agendas whether that is the serious social issues of Walker’s work or the more contemporary, simplified concepts of Hume’s pieces. Each and every one of these Artists create their work with the purpose of communicating these issues, concepts and ideals, in a memorable fashion, though their outcomes differ. To conclude, I think that the visual representation of activating space, though very dependent on the intentions of the artist, is also extremely subjective as the way in which a person interprets a space can differ. Two observers can ultimately view the same space differently despite have the same perspective.

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Nafi John

A2 Fine Art Essay

Biography http://whitecube.com/artists/gary_hume/ http://www.companye.org/Company/augusto.html http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2013/may/18/gary-hume-tate-britain-interview http://www.biography.com/people/kara-walker-37225#career-success http://www.artnet.com/artists/gary-hume/ http://contemporaryart2010.blogspot.co.uk/2010/01/february-3_3253.html http://learn.walkerart.org/karawalker/Main/TechniquesAndMedia http://www.sarahcouncildance.com/choreography.html https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5ZZDQtlzLY

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