Georgia- Final Project

My goals an intentions in this artwork was to make it look real and to make it look like the picture I was given. I felt like if it didn't look like the picture, then I didn't work hard enough on it or I didn't do a good job. I accomplished those things by figuring out the size of the dog, and by using oil paints. At first, I was going to use acrylic, but then I realized oil paints will make the picture look more realistic. My painting is about color shadows and reflected light. The most difficult challenge I had to face was figuring out the size of the dog. I was making him too big at first so you could not see the background. I met that challenge by size, view and placement. I studied the picture and realized how big the dog was, and how small the canvas was. I took a moment and blocked out the shape of the dog and went on from there. My painting really works in the woods and in the dog. They both have so much detail and work put into them. Some things that I have learned that I can bring into my next painting is paint mixing, size, view, and placement, and that the farther away something is the smaller you have to make it. My mentor in this project is Alex Katz. I had done another painting a little while ago and I was told it was like an Alex Katz painting. Alex Katz makes things look realistic, but she doesn't use much detail. Her artwork is flat. I realized that I didn't want all of my paintings to look flat, and that I wanted to show detail. She helped me realize what kind of painting I wanted this to be. Another mentor that I have admired since the beginning is Janet Fish. Janet is all about reflections, color and detail and that is what I love about her work. If I had a do-over in this I would have probably fixed the sky and trees a little better. What I feel is best about my work is that it looks like a dog is looking off into the woods and that is exactly what I wanted. I wanted this painting to look real.  

Masquerade

      My goals and intentions in this artwork was to try and find colors that would work out for a mask and trying to make it look mysterious and cool. I accomplished those things by combining the right colors, by cutting out more of my mask, and adding the black on top. My painting is about mark making. The most difficult challenge I had to face was putting black ink on all of my prints in the end. I met that challenge by putting enough ink on my cut and lining it up right. If I didn't do that the whole painting would be off. My painting really works in my background colors, because the color combinations make it look like everything trying to combine to be one. I have learned all about print making and how to align things right. I can bring that to my next piece of artwork because lining everything up right is important. If I had a do-over I would have made for prints out of different colors, because I liked combining all the colors and making a new edition of prints. I feel whats best about my work is that I made all of the colors work together. I combined colors like pink, yellow, and white to give an orange look. I then would combine yellow, green, blue and white to make either a green-blue or a lime green.

Merge Into the Darkness

My goals and intentions in this artwork was to make it look like me and to make it look realistic. I accomplished them by following the picture and seeing what I needed to fix and do. This piece of artwork was about dramatic shadows and light coming in. The most difficult challenge that I had to face was getting the detail of my face and trying to figure out where everything went. I met that challenge by measuring it and figuring it all out. My artwork really works in my collar and my shirt because of the detail and shading. I have learned that you shouldn't lay it flat you should look at it from an angle. The mentor that helped me was Edward Hopper because he does a really nice job on shadows and he doesn't use color in all of his paintings. If I had a do-over I would have done a better job on placing my head a different way and I would have started by putting it at an angle so that I could look at it with a better view. I feel whats best about my artwork is how it looks like me and how I got the detail and shadows of my shirt. 

Where I Spend my Time

On my bed....

On the soccer field...

In my home....

In my kitchen....

Carving Out the Light

 My goals and intentions in this were to make it look like pumpkins and really get the shadowing and light. I accomplished that by figuring out where it needed more light and where it needed to be dark. This piece of artwork is about dramatic shadows. The most difficult thing that I had to do on this was getting the pumpkin in the top to look like it was behind the other pumpkins, rather than in between them or touching them. I met that challenge by making it more black around the edges and where it meets the pumpkin. My painting really works in the bottom, left pumpkin because the shadowing and the stem just add something extra to it. I have learned in this piece that adding a shadow effect can give a painting or sketch a much deeper meaning. I learned from Edward Hopper because he has some really dark paintings and he can really work out a lot of those shadows. If I had a do-over I would have probably picked a different position in which I could have done this. What I feel is best about my work is that I didn't give up on it and I figured things out how to get the shapes, shadows and light. 

Sweet Yet Sour

 My goals and intentions on this project were to make it look realistic, and to really work with the reflections. I accomplished these things by doing step by step processes and being patient with my artwork. My painting is about reflected light because the light was shining over it, and I was trying to paint all of the colors coming off of one another. The most difficult challenge for me was getting the shape and detail of the pot. I met that challenge by taking pictures and I closed in on the color of the inside. My painting really works in the shadows and reflections. I have learned more about mixing paint and getting the exact color and I think that can really work on all the paintings that you do. I learned how to do this from Janet Fish, and I learned that it is okay to use a lot of color. I also learned from Edward Hopper because he liked to use shadows and colors. It I had a do-over I would probably do a different view, or placement and I would make it more of an interesting, up close painting. I felt that I really got down how to do reflections, and how to make things look realistic.

Obsession

I have many obsessions, like a lot! There is one big one though that I keep going back to and working hard at. It is lacrosse. It is my obsession because I never stop working at it or thinking about it.

My other obsession is my dog because she is so cute and she is crazy. She is my favorite thing in the whole wide world and she brightens my day up so much.