courtneyrobertsart

[courtneyrobertsart]

Artist Statement

For my work I mainly use oil paints, but I also use graphite pencils and charcoal. I like the way I can leave and come back to these materials at different times and not be held back by drying times as much as other materials. I enjoy that I can be as free or meticulous as I want, there isn’t really a straight forward way of using either which I find that aspect really interesting. I am very interested in the female form and looking at the shapes and contours of it. I love the way the body looks from a multitude of angles, positions, lighting, and how vastly different it can look just by changing even one of those aspects. Aside from the female form, I also enjoy painting animals due to the personalities that they bring to the image, especially as I generally like to have bright backgrounds to give them more liveliness. I want my work to express who I am as a person and I don’t think that means ever settling on a certain style, way of working, or subject. I am forever changing and as will my work in the same way, or at least that is what I would like to express and portray

[courtneyrobertsart]

Statement

My time at Plymouth College of Art has seen me through many stages of my work as I do not particularly like to stick to one thing at a time. I like to do the artwork that I enjoy at the time as I do not want to get bored of what I am creating. I enjoy the freedom of being able to change mediums from charcoal to oil paint and to also change my subject to what I am feeling throughout the module. I do not believe in sticking to one idea for a long period of time as I have found that it makes creating feel like a chore and that is not something I want from something I enjoy the most. For my current module I have found inspiration in the female form, looking at the shapes and contours it makes and embracing the beauty within the natural, unedited body. I have focused on oil paints for this module as I felt that it would help demonstrate my idea the best. I wanted to create bright and cheerful pieces that embraced and celebrated the female form rather than something dark that could potentially take away from that aspect of my work. I concentrated on using the basic shapes that the shadows and highlights made to simplify the body to show the most important areas in my own opinion.  

It was when I was writing my dissertation that I had the idea for this module as I was researching how the male gaze influences how artists portray the female form. It made me realise how instilled into society the male gaze really is and how hard it is to escape the ideals that it comes paired with. Two artists that really inspired me were Jenny Saville and Carolee Schneemann for their sheer determination to break the boundaries and change the norms that we are so used to. I looked into how other female artists were trying to change the rules and taking their bodies back for themselves and I felt empowered to try and do this myself. It was not until I started painting myself that I realised how hard it was to paint the most natural version of myself without conforming to the beauty standards we currently live in today. I had to push forward and paint the markings on my body and the parts I do not like and I feel more comfortable every time I do another painting. It is something that will take a long time to fully embrace but in time could become the norm. 

At first I did not particularly know where I was going with this module, and as I have done with previous modules I started to over think my ideas. That is when I realised that I needed to strip it back and focus on what I wanted to create and take my work back to the fundamental ideas. When I realised this was the best way to move forward I felt that my work seemed to flow a lot better than usual and I was able to create interesting pieces of work. 

When it came to thinking about resolving my work and what I wanted to hang for the summer show I felt that it was important to incorporate the key aspects of my work and the things I thought worked the best throughout my development work. I knew that I wanted to go big but my largest piece to date was A2 and it felt too small to make any impact and that is something I would like to achieve through my work. In the end I decided to go with two A1 wooden boards bolted together to make one long board that I would paint a full length body onto, neck down. I used the colour palette I felt worked the best throughout this module as I wanted to encapsulate the ideas throughout this concluding module. 

Overall, I feel that I have achieved what I set out to at the start of this module which I am very pleased with. Thinking back to my previous modules throughout the three years at university, I believe that this one has been my most successful, and I think that comes down to having a real passion for what I am painting, which has not always come naturally to me. To me, my ideas really show through my paintings and I believe they can speak for themselves. Any person can have their own interpretation of what they mean and that is something I quite like about these pieces I have created. I genuinely feel that the work I have handed in is to the best of my ability and is truly resolved. I am happy to be finishing Painting, Drawing and Printmaking feeling excited by my practice and wanting to create more work afterwards looking deeper into how the female form is perceived and trying to take away the normalized beauty standards that are currently in place from my own mind and work. I am enthusiastic about my future as an artist and am looking forward to sharing my work through different platforms such as Instagram and my website to attempt to create an engaging audience that appreciates my work which will help inspire me to keep creating.

[courtneyrobertsart]

Hurricane Satellites and Thermal Imaging

‘Color in these images is an indicator of the temperature at the very top of the clouds. The colors are a little counter-intuitive, since we typically associate red with hot and blue with cold. If you look at the key on top of this Sept. 5 image of Dorian below, you can see that blue is warmest; red is cooler, black is coldest.’

Whilst doing research for this current module I stumbled across hurricane satellite images which show different gradients of colour which are vastly different. I found them really interesting to look at and are similar to thermal imaging /  thermography.

Thermal imaging is an impressive and compact method of identifying, measuring and visualizing heat patterns, particularly in environments where there's a lack of visible light.

I’ve always been drawn to this type of thing, the way it shows the different heat patterns in different areas from people to the environment. I like the simplified view of how things look and it relates to my work as I want to make simplified versions of the human body. The colours that are used are so bright and exciting which is what I’m trying to incorporate in my own work to make bold and eye-catching paintings. Even though I’m not looking into heat patterns I still think that it is very relatable to my work. 

https://www.nesdis.noaa.gov/content/guide-understanding-satellite-images-hurricanes

https://www.pyrosales.com.au/blog/thermal-imaging/thermal-imaging-where-is-it-used

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How does the male gaze affect painting the female nude

‘The male gaze is instilled into women by society, the idea of it is shown in everyday life so they naturally think about how they are being seen and how they present themselves especially in the eyes of a man. The male gaze heavily weighs in on how art is created, it dictates how women are perceived within all types of art and that also transfers into the artists themselves. However,  painting has evolved in regards to the male gaze, modern women today are taking control of their own bodies, female artists want to show that there is more to the female nude than just showing their bodies for the male spectator. Some female artists have paved the way for the next generation of artists to continue what they started and as a result hopefully get rid of the male gaze as we know it, aiming for a more inclusive society, in the art world and in society.’

- Research from my dissertation 

Even though artists throughout time have made it easier and more accepted to portray the female form it can still be frowned upon, and even when trying to paint the female form with no influence of the male gaze it is still instilled into society. 

Throughout my own work I have tried to portray myself as I see myself which can be hard at times. I want to look the best as I possibly can so trying to take that away is difficult. As I subconsciously try to hide stretchmarks, fat and trying to ignore the way that clothing leaves a mark on my skin afterwards, it can be easy to do this in a painting whereas I wanted to turn it on its head and show the truth and the real me to try and not conform to the ideals of society. I want to embrace more realistic body standards rather than trying to show off an idealized version of myself and I think I have shown that throughout the paintings I have made throughout this module. 

[courtneyrobertsart]

Resolved piece

168cm x 59cm

I was so happy when I was finally able to hang my work. I asked for help from the technician and we decided the best way to hang it was to use mirror plates so the boards would be secure to the wall. At first we were only going to use two on the top board and just have the boards screwed together but I thought it was best to be safe and have the mirror plates on the bottom board too just in case and to make sure that the whole piece was flush to the wall. We weren’t sure whether to not screw the boards together but again I thought it was better to be safe and the boards would be fitted together as perfect as could be when the nut and bolt held them together. 

One obstacle I had to face was the fact my painting was still wet due to it being oil paint so when hanging it we had to make sure that we didn’t smudge it which was quite hard as there is oil paint down the side where the arms go into it. We managed to do this without smudging it thankfully. 

I had to repaint my wall to make it look nicer and neater to really allow my piece to stand out and I’m glad that I did this as it wouldn't have looked as good had I not painted it. I also decided to paint the mirror plates white so they didn’t stand out as much next to the painting which again I’m happy I decided to do as I think without it they would’ve stood out too much. 

Once my painting was up I needed to finish it. This included making sure the legs matched up, they were slightly off but due to the paint still being wet I was able to sort it out to match the lines up properly. I also went around the edges of the board and painted it green which I’m really glad I did as I think it really finished the piece off. It didn’t look really nice before I painted it green as there were different marks from where I had moved the board throughout painting it. 

Overall, I really enjoyed the experience of painting this piece, and I really feel that it is at the best of my ability and it incorporates all of my ideas within it. 

[courtneyrobertsart]

Resolved work - close ups

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Resolved piece - finished

I had a problem with the green background as I ran out of green paint when I was 3/4 of the way done so I had to get another green and couldn’t manage to create the same green as before. Rather than keep trying I decided to just change the shade of green and I actually preferred this one, it is a lot brighter than the one I had previously and it really brings the painting together more so it worked out in the end which I’m really happy with. 

I’m proud of how these pieces have turned out and I really don’t think I’d change anything about them. I think it really incorporates my idea of body positivity and embracing the female form throughout it. I genuinely think it is to the highest standard I could possibly do.

The one thing that I was worried about was if the lines would match up for the legs but I won’t know that fully until I screw them together so I am hoping that it works out. 

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Painting my resolved piece - legs

The second piece was a lot more straight forward as there wasn’t as many lines to do and it was a lot more blocky than the other. This piece isn’t as strong on its own whereas the first could be a stand alone piece, however that isn’t something I am worried about as it’s apart of a bigger piece and when they are next to each other it makes it worthwhile. 

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Painting my resolved piece - upper body

As I already had the different shapes already mapped out I was able to just start painting, amusingly it was like a paint my numbers following the key. 

My key was 

Lightest - light orange 

Light - orange 

Medium - light blue 

Dark - blue

Darkest - dark blue 

Then my other colours for their specific areas which were a range of pinks, whites and then eventually green. 

I followed the reference image to see where the different colours would go on my drawing which was really straight forward. It was quite hard making sure the colours didn’t go into each other and was fiddly when it came to adding the white stretch marks as the paint surrounding them was wet and I came to the same issue when it came to adding the red lines for the imprints. The necklace I originally thought would work well in white but after I painted the underwear and the upper body I felt that it didn’t work, so after thinking about it for a while I thought pink might work really well so I painted over the white. I think it works much better now that I’ve changed it as it ties in with the pink underwear more now so it helps balance the piece. Trying to get it done in time for the hand in was my biggest worry as I’m quite a slow painter but the first half came together quite well and easily and the second half hasn’t got as many lines to be wary of so it should come together easier than this so I’m hopeful. I’m really pleased with this half and happy with the outcome, I hope that the background pulls it altogether and helps it stand out even more. 

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Deciding on my colour palette

I wasn’t 100% on what colours I wanted to use for my final piece and spent quite a while talking about it with my flatmates but in the end I felt that it would be good to go with blue and orange as my main colours as it’s a colour palette I’m comfortable with and I know that it has worked on my other pieces really well. I also like the brightness of these colours and that’s something I wanted to show throughout my work rather than using dull or dark colours. When I was thinking about the other colours I wanted to incorporate in my work I knew I wanted to use white for my stretch marks to make them stand out and for the clothing imprints I wanted to use red as they are generally dark on the body, and I felt that the red would help them stand out too. When it came to the underwear I wasn’t sure what colour would work with the colours I currently had. After a lot of thought I decided to go with pink as it was close to red and it felt like the right move. In the image I am wearing a necklace which I originally thought would look best in white but decided in the end it would look better in pink as it would help tie in with the pink underwear. For the background I felt that a bright green would work really well as it had in my other pieces.

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Drawing my resolved piece

I wasn’t sure how I was going to execute this piece but I felt that the best way was to take my reference picture and print it out on a large scale - the same size I would be drawing it onto the board. I wanted to do this to firstly check that the image would fit onto the board and secondly to map out where all of the different shapes for the shadows and highlights would go. I felt that doing this it would make it easier to paint overall as I would be able to check back to the blown up image to see where this different colours would go without having to write all over my piece which would potentially show through the paint. I’m glad that I did this as it was really hard to get the drawing perfect to paint onto and I feel that without the blown up image I would’ve struggled more, and I didn’t want to spend too much time worrying about this as it is very close to the hand in and I wanted it to be finished before that. 

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Working out how to fit my boards together

I asked our technician if he would be able to help me fit the boards together and he helped me drill holes through the bottom of one and the top of the other and we decided to get a nut and bolt to hold them together securely. As the boards are quite flimsy, especially since they have been drilled into now we thought it would be best to take them apart and paint on them first then put them together when I have finished and tighten them up to display the finished work. I realised it would also be a lot easier to transport from different places too. It was very straight forward and has made me excited to start on this piece.  

[courtneyrobertsart]

Tom Wesselmann

‘Thomas K. Wesselmann was an American artist associated with the Pop Art movement who worked in painting, collage and sculpture. He rejected abstract expressionism in favor of the classical representations of the nude, still life, and landscape. He is perhaps best known for his Great American Nude series with their fat forms and intense colors.’

‘Often isolating segments of the body—red lips with a cigarette, a single nipple, or a stylish shoe—his artworks aim was to seize a viewer’s attention. “The prime mission of my art, in the beginning, and continuing still, is to make figurative art as exciting as abstract art,”  he once said of his work.’

I like the boldness and the block colours within Wesselmann’s work. I like the way he blocks out certain colours and rather than shading / blending colours he uses different block shades to show depth within his work. It is something that I am trying to show within my work in a sort of similar way, a more simplistic way of showing shapes and form than being realistic within the artwork. I love Wesselmann’s use of colour and you can see he wasn’t afraid out using bold exciting colours to create his work. 

http://www.artnet.com/artists/tom-wesselmann/

https://www.theartstory.org/artist/wesselmann-tom/

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Valeria Ganzman

instagram: littlepurpleflowers.art

‘Valeria Ganzman is an artist who currently lives and works in Haifa, Israel. In her work she focuses mainly on figurative painting and botanical illustration. Today Valeria deals with the female body from various perspectives; the wear & tear and its sickness as well as sexuality, mortality and self-exploration.’

‘I create many series of paintings of myself and especially of my body. This endless invasive documentation allows me to evaluate the body in a way that is foreign to me and even serves as therapy — to accept and eventually overcome the betrayal, as it sometimes feels, of my body.’

I feel that I really relate to Ganzman’s work from the obvious connection of using block colours to show the different contours of the body but also in the way she is searching for acceptance of her body within her work. This is something I have been trying to portray in my own work and I hope it comes off as well as Ganzman’s does. I really like her mutes colour palette, using soft, pastel colours to show the body, this is something I might be interested in, in the future, but currently isn’t something I want to do within my own work as I want to make very colourful and bold paintings. 

“I feel that society is not accepting enough of nudity in art. Often when I post works with nudity to Instagram it doesn’t go over well. I try to show the body as is, exposed and vulnerable.”

“In art everything is possible. You can show the body as you want and see it. It allows us to be real and vulnerable.”

I strongly agree with Ganzman’s thoughts and confusion over nudity in art still being a taboo subject even when it has been such a big part of the art world for an extremely long time. Why are people so shocked by something we see all the time. It is something that hopefully and eventually will change over time, and people learn to embrace natural bodies for what they are. 

https://www.valeriaganzman.com/about

https://www.arterealizzata.com/interviews/fqkyqqnmcl2bktsgo81jt784lnjn3u

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Resolved piece?

I didn’t really know what I wanted to do for my resolved piece other than I wanted it to be really big. I was talking to another student who also thought I should go bigger. She told me that she had some A1 boards that she didn’t need and wouldn’t use so I was able to buy them off of her. When looking at the boards I realised that it could be interesting to do a life sized version of the work I have been creating. When I put the boards up against myself I realised that it was taller than me so if I went forward with this idea it would be a larger than life version. I really like the idea of doing this but I’m not sure how I’d execute it. I would need to connect the two boards so they would fit together in a long line but still be able to hand it easily. I’m not 100% how it is going to work but I think the idea could work really well if I do it right. 

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Moving on from my last piece I wanted to use a wider colour palette so I decided to use blue and orange as my main colours and work from there. I have noticed that they are my favourite colours to work with, and I think it’s mainly because I really like those colours individually, and I like the way they work together as ‘complimentary colours’. I don’t think for this particular piece that the shades of the colours I mixed are particularly nice so moving forward I would take this into consideration more. I wanted to look into the imprint that clothing leaves behind a bit more so I did the lines from trousers / jeans. I felt that the best way to make this stand out was to paint it in red and for the other colours I wanted to keep them quite similar, using the colours that I used to mix the main colours, or the colours that are in the piece such as yellow and blue to make the green. I felt that this would be a better way of deciding which colours to pick rather than just a random colour and hoping it would go with the others. I like the way that you can’t completely tell what the subject is as the colours kind of make it merge together. I’m really pleased with this piece but I still think it would look better bigger, I’m not really sure what I want to do next but I think bigger is the way to go.

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I had a small piece of wood and I thought it’d be interesting to see how my work looked on a smaller scale, zooming in on a specific part of the body. I decided on this as I felt that it’d be good to look at the imprint that clothing leaves behind when you take it off. I also was able to incorporate other things that embody the general body positivity idea which include stretch marks and body hair. I felt that this piece really worked towards my idea of embracing my body. I like the colour palette in this piece but only for a smaller bit of wood, I think it would be too much if it was much larger. I prefer the overwhelming-ness of the colours in my other pieces of work as they seem to merge together and make the body less obvious. I like this piece but I don’t think it’s as strong as my others. Moving forward I would like to go bigger as I think showing more of the body would help progress my ideas. I would also use a wider colour palette as I think it works in my favour and helps my work stand out a lot more than with a very small palette.