#the stripes were intresting to draw

[the-pantry-of-art]

Made my most beautyful & handsome, jackass son!

I loooovvveee him 🩷🩷🩷

[ducknotinarow]

| muse interaction @forthehonorandtheglory

Leo's breathing was soft, Usagi could feel how thier breath made strands of fur move when they the breathed out against his shoulder. Neither of them were asleep but neither of them were ready to be awake either. Happily tangled up with each other. Usagi taking in how nicely they just fit in against the other. How perfectly Leo could rest thier head against his neck. Softly letting fringers lazily drag across the back of Leo's shell he was drawing out random shapes on it. Usagi wasn't positive on the time but new it was early enough for Leo's family to not be up and about just yet. Meaning they could squeeze out even second they had right now together probably why neither of them were asleep themselfs nor moving to get the day started.

As soon as either of them did, Usagi would be heading back to the Hidden City to get ready to leave for a job he took. It was going to be about near four weeks alone. Meaning four weeks away from Leo, so they just wanted to enjoy every second they had together. It be so easy to slip back in to sleep like this. Leo happily snuggled in against Usagi's fur to keep warm. Well Usagi was able to enjoy how much cooler Leo was. The rabbit was the first one to start speaking though, he needed to wake up a little at least. So he wouldn't risk drifting off to sleep again.

"You know this was a good idea untill relieazing this makes leaveing you harder." Usagi confesses a little shifting a little now, taking Leo away from the crook of his neck so he could look at them now, smiling at Leo's tried expression, as he set his hand on thier cheek. Letting his thumb stroke over the red stripe there. "You better not have suggested I stay over for that fact." Usagi says it but his tone is soft despite it. Leaning in a lottle to nuzzle in against the turtles face before he turns to nuzzle his against them. Placing his sent over the turtle as he snuck in a kiss here there to any space on thier face he could.

"I'm going to miss you so much well I'm away so gotta make sure everyone knows your taken well I'm gone." He stops as he rests his forhead to Leo's own. Happily getting lost into his boyfriend's deep dark eyes. "But can't excatly say no to this job. You know unless you want me to go back to working with Big Mama instead?" He's joking completely when he suggests it, but hey she did pay well. But now well he had to pick up work here and there working as a bodygruad or getting hired to be one or odd jobs even here and there. But this was the longest he was going to be away from the turtle. "I do kind of miss the money, maybe I will oh but then well have to be against each other uh? We can just have a forbidden romance it'll be very romantic. I promise you I'm kidding." He adds on just in case. "Though honestly it's generally just getting hard to say good by to you even if it's just for a few hours. I look forward to a time where instead of goodbye were only saying good night. When I get to see you last everyday and first every morning." Usagi gose on to express smiling softly.

"Even if it means putting up with your dumb antics more." There's a lot of soft undone to his jab at them right now. "Sounds nice though don't you think? When were always together maybe?" He was kind of just probing seeing if Leo was even intrested in the idea of marriage. He didn't wanna push of course no never. "I guess there's a lot to consider with the idea but... I just know I see a future with you and I want to be with you forever. There's no one else I've ever seen that with till you." He gose to confess blushing a little when dose smiling a little nervous when it comes out it's fine though Leo was allowed to see all the sides of him after all. "Just the idea of waking up to you everyday tangled up like so? Getting to spoil you all the time getting to just be with you often calling you my husband." He gose on to list the parts that sound nice it was just some soft pillow talk after all.

"Fuck it. Do you just wanna get married?"

Usagi's blush deepened a little as he couldn't help the smile that came over his face now. " Dārin, I would marry you in a heart beat." Softly nuzzling in against Leo's face. Just enjoying thier lottle private moment when slowly it hit him what Leo just said. "Wait seriously?! You serious mean you want to get married?"

Soon Usagi pulled out from the tangle mess he and Leo were at a moment so he could better face them. "I mean I've thought about the idea a few times. Like once or twice." That was a lie he thought about far mkre than he would admit. "Just ya know we never talked about it before so I wasn't sure if you even wanted to get married which I wouldn't mind either so long as in the end I'm always yours. Wait!" Shugglong off the bed now fixing him self up as he went about throwing his ears back into the usual top knot. "I need to speak to you father." Usagi was litteraly in his on conversation giving Leo no chance to answer or interject before he was yp on his feet heading out of Leo's room, apparently to go about getting Splinters blessing on the matter. Soon poking his head back into viwe of the turtle.

"Think of gifts you want me to get you well im away and I'll get you everything you ask for!." Was all he told them before dissapring once again.

[buggytron]

Not a request justbsome interesting info, did you know that humans have stripes and are bioluminesent. Both traits are too weak for our human eyes to pick up on, but what if the bugformers could see these patterns? I think it would make courting more intresting. You?

QlkswojsoajzapkzpkzapkzpakapkPKOakAlmAlm

This knowledge feels powerful and ancient like we are secretly eldritch beings trapped in bodies of flesh and our essence is trying to escape.

Anyways...

Yes I feel bugformers would be enamoured with how humans glow and their secret patterns. Spots stripes and lines. It's all beautiful. When you explain you can't see your markings and don't understand what their talking about their fascinated.

I feel they could stop seeing your patterns and glow if they wanted. If you didn't like talking about it or just wanted them to stop mentioning it since human culture isn't so forward than they'd stop. If the colors annoyed them they could just adjust their vision to stop seeing it but most of the bugformers are absolutely enourmored.

Brainstorm, Preceptor, and WheelJack take an interest because SCINECE. They have different reasons for wanting to know why you glow but their curiois if this glow can change colors or patterns. They might poke you and ask serveral questions or try and make you feel different emotions to test their theories. Be prepared.

Nautica is half way. She's nerding out over the possible scientific possibilities but she takes one look at you and her gay brain goes p r e t t y. She would love to just gently trace your markings while asking you questions. If you can't answer them she'll ask for you too tell her a story instead as she cuddles you close studying you. She won't mention them if you ask her not too.

Drift thinks it's beyond pretty. Te colors are tranquil to him and just so beautiful and different. He can't put your markings into words but he loves them and will trace the patterns against your skin if you let him. He often compares you to Primus and tries his best to explain how amazing you look. If it makes you uncomfortable he has a hard time keeping from talking about it but he'll do his best.

Rodimus loves to paint his own body with berry juice and crushed up plant parts. He has a thing for showing off so he loves the artistic side of your skin. Your a canvas and you don't even know it. Sideswipe and Sunstreaker would love to paint or otherwise model with you. They want you too see what they see and hope you feel as beautiful as you look.

Megatron is curious about your glowing. He compares your glowing marks to the night stars and assures you that you look majestic. If it makes you uncomfortable he won't mention it again. He's very understanding and does his best to try and understand how you feel.

Rung finds your patterns fascinating. He explains to you how bugs sight is different and that it's just something they can see. He assures you that no one thinks your ugly and bugs are staring because it's new to them not because your gross.

Whirl for the most part ignores it. He doesn't really know what to do or say about it. Sometimes he'll be an ass and call you spotty, stripey, or glowly but otherwise he doesn't really bring it up. He doesn't do well with teasing anyone about looks. It makes him feel uncomfortable since he's deformed himself.

Ratchet, Ambulon, Pharma, First Aid, and Velocity all take a medical intrest to it. They want to know what inside you biologically causes such markings and if they can change shape or color.

Bumblebee and Smokescreen like feeling your skin. It's soft and colored??? Amazing!!! They like stimming against your skin and tracing your patterns. They constantly tell you how awesome they think you are and love to nuzzle your smooth skin.

Prowl is indifferent towards it. He notes that humans have this trait but otherwise tries to ignore it. He can't ignore how beautiful ot is.

Jazz thinks it's groovy. He doesn't care about looks but he has too admit your patterns are gorgoues. He often tells you how pretty you are but if that makes you uncomfortable he has other ways of saying he appreciates you.

Arcee tries to ignore your patterns but they are very distracting. She often switches her vision to keep herself from staring as she finds it rude. It doesn't always work but she tries.

Elita is attracted to pretty things and tends to hoarde them. I mean look at her pod and tell her she doenst have good taste. So when she sees you and your pretty patterns she wangs to have you. But it's more than your patterns that draw her into you.

Optimus finds them quit pleasing. He's not very vocal about that but if your ever alone he might pay your patterns attention and give you some compliments.

Getaway has an eye for anything exotic or strange. One look at you and he's all over it. Your soft smooth pretty patterned obviously you were made to draw in mates. His wings always flutter when he's around you and he flirts very frequently. Be prepared for a grabby bug with mating on his mind.

[meowthefluffy]

Here’s an illustration for an au I’m thinking of making kinda? I hade a lot of fun drawing it so I might draw some more.

the general idea is:

• Virgil is an up and coming magic user and he needs to capture a magical creature and bring it home to earn his stripes as whatever magical class he is

• most people have to catch like a jackalope or something but V’s family is really famous so he can’t really do that

• V’s older brother caught a dragon so Virgil feel the need to one up his brother to prove his worth

• V decides to capture a nymph as his creature and sets off

• unfortunately no one has seen a nymph in centuries since most of them were hunted down for potions and stuff

•Roman is Virgil’s 100% not a nymph sidekick/travel companion/love intrest

• Roman has lived alone most of his life and nymphs Don’ call themselves nymphs so he has no clue he’s the thing Virgil is looking for

• and VIRGIL has no clue Ro is the thing he’s been looking for because all other nymphs died so long ago all the texts about them are super inaccurate

• hi-jinx insue!

[meihouwangslittlecumslut]

Hey anyone wanna recreate the terrible warrior cats roleplay I made when I was like, ten

It all centered around a clan called "dankclan" and they lived in a place called the "dank forest". They hunted memes and "dank" animals, also whenever we said what prey we caught, we would accompany it with a gif of that animal

The enemy clans were actually Ugandan knuckles and sanic, and dankclan would regularly fight them over the "dank stones"

So here's one of my characters:

Name: ramear

Species: cat

Gender: female

Love intrest: hawkfrost

Physical description: ramear is a mint-green cat with glossy black claws, black eyes and inner ears, she has gold whiskers and a gold stripe on her otherwise desaturated purple striped flank, she has a blue and pink collar, a black, blue and pink tail, shimmering blue wings, and a grey tuft of fur on her head with ram horns coming out of it

Here's my drawing of her:

As you can tell, the roleplay was a shitshow from start to finish

That's why I want to recreate it

[crystalitar]

All of the OC asks!! >:3c

a la GASP!

1. What was the first Oc you ever created?

That would be Zipp! This is a recent drawing of him! He’s a small dragon the size of a cat! He was originally gonna be a pet of the chars of my friends. Talking comic relief.

2.What was the latest Oc (newest one created)

One i’m still working on and created less then 12 hours ago! I’m not satisfied with the chest and cape design.She is a vigilante assasin.  Tough her motives and actions can sometimes contrast this.. But can’t find that out bc she doesn’t talk. Her main suit and head is pitch black, as such she mainly operates during the night.

3. Which oc is ur fav out of all?

Crystalitar! Well she is kinda my pokesona, but she has her own story! Set in the PMD universe, she ended up as a pokemon due to an incident by her brother. Her most used design is a spin-off Chibi appearance

4. How many Ocs do you have in total?? (including any made up species)

Pffffftttttttttt, you ask of me to count them? INCLUDING MY OWN SPECIES? that would also include fakemons i created and, that’s.. a lot.. uhm… i once counted fakemons that could count towards my own fakedex and those were already 100 ones. And those are only the ones i deemed good enough.If i count chars that have no fandom origin (but do fakemon bc they can be used as other species as well) i think i could maybe have near.. 300? If including Oc’s of shows etc maybe 400? Probably more. I’m might maybe once ever try to actually count the 1k papers i have here :v

5. Which Oc has the most intresting backstory?

Hmmm, most would be summarized by basic “experiment/just a kid/result of a death/ghost issue”, but most interesting imo is Shandyr.

Buckle up for a Copy-paste:

Shandyr is the child of a Painted alligator (PA for short) male, named Kryndor, and a PA Imp “female”. Therefore Shandyr still looks mostly like all other Painted Alligators, altough his paintings are simplier then the other children.Because one of his parents was not a PA he doesn’t have a specific affinity yet. His “mother” had an affinity with PSI and could manipulate males with her charm and cunning. She also was able to change color and this has been inherited by Shandyr. Because Kryndor was tricked into believing that the Imp was a real PA, he feels heavily ashamed and looks to his son with regret. He does care for his son but in another way. Kryndor is part of a high looked upon religious part of PA tribe, so he has a pride to keep, and a son wich scarred the sacred religion is not good. Kryndor’s brother Hiniko, wich is a priest, helps cover up that Shandyr is an Imp child.But because Shandyr is partially an Imp, he loves to prank, and step around the rules. He doesn’t mean harm, he still is a PA, but he got the tendency to abuse the reputation of kind hearted Painted Alligator, to prank and trick others. Because his father looks down upon this and can’t see a future for him without it the incident coming to light, Kryndor decides to send Shandyr away. Shandyr overheard the discussion and furious at the tought that his dad does not love him, he packs his stuff and leaves before he can be send away.His mother is still a mystery. The Imp dissappeared after the birth of Shandyr and has not been seen since by the PA clan.Shandyr hides his true feelings for family, and instead keeps the false image of gentle alligator, tough that image is always quickly ruined by his pranks. Because he doesn’t want to admit he is an imp, he becoms angry easily at anyone who doubts that he is a PA. In dare circumstances he can show the family charm, wich he found in his bag after leaving his clan. Shandyr’s emotions also influence his ability to become invisible or change colors. He trains alot, but he is only able to go stealthy if he is focused on a certain task. Any anger or sadness will reveal his stripes and dots.He can sharpen and harden his spikes at will.

6. what is the most random oc you own?

Random? As in weird origin or personality? Hmmmmm. That would actually be Scrack. He’s an unique monster in his universe, some think he’s a mutation. He barely blinks and most of the time acts as an unruly big dog that can just accidentaly bite your arm off. Without counting his fins, he’s as tall as a grown-up man. He doesn’t act angry, just reckless and playfull in a very dangerous way. He can sometimes be caught just staring at something or someone, and perform actions that are very clever, so people are confused about it’s actual intelligence.

His fins on his back make it so he hears way better as well. He is an agile climber as well as a good marathon runner. Hi’s eyes on his arms are unnerving. He uses them to peek around corners or places where he climbs.

(I also got Stiffet who is a shared OC with 2 other people. Created by blindly each drawing a part of her body)

7. Did you ever create your own animal species?

Pretty obvious so far that you know i do! But as far as species i went into detail, would be my Demon Oxen. Created originally as an Open Species for Undertale, i’m still capable to make them work in other universes if i want.

Copy Pasted Description:

Species : Demox Ox- Physical magic users. They don’t have projectiles normally, but a magical “punch” can be created that flies a short distance, tough this is an advanged spell.Normally they add extra magic to their horns when headbutting, or make a bigger horn aura around it for more surface coverage. Transfering magic to their claws and hoofs they can stomp and punch with extra power.- The thick fur protects them against cold climates, and therefor also dont prefer to be in the heath for too long. (They can manage if there is water where they can swim).- They walk mostly on two legs, but if they need to pull something or intimidate opponents and get ready to charge , they will stand on all 4 paws.- Can look pretty good in the dark, tough there must always be a source of light, like the moon or stars.- For females it’s tradition to wear black metal “chains” on their front paws.- Males have mostly 4 horns pointing downwards ( rare if more), and the females have 2 horns that point upwards.- Species mostly live between the snowy area and waterfall. (Bit more to the south i imagined)

8. do you ever hurt your Ocs?

cough I don’t chain them up or make them results of painfull experiments, what are you talking about? some certainly didn’t die in a fire or drowned or fell on sharp stones. Some certainly did not lose half their face and an arm in an explosions or get emotionally traumatized because their parents got murdered Cough

What?

9. what ocs fear is the most interesting to you???

That would be NPC. He’s a digital creature that lives in a certain artificially created house. They can’t escape the “house” but have acces to the whole internet and such. Sometimes even being able to interact with the “humans”. His fear is the thought that he might not be real, just created as a means to be entertainment and he might not have a free will, even though he performs acts and more from a selfish mindset and other things. Who knows, maybe he was pre-programmed and it just the result of artificial freedom and a puppet of an unknown higher being that is just toying around with their imagenation. Fabricating world rules and “personality” upon him.

Meta™

10. Are there any ocs that you never introduced yet? And who are those ocs???

Many, and mainly because i want to keep some projects and ideas as a safe fallback to use in future projects. Ranging from Horror games characters to plushie designs. Some are cartoon serie idea’s i’ve made for application for schools and others are specific original game characters.

One i will show (because already uploaded it to deviantart and here before) is the Gravekeeper. He’s the main character of a world im developing for a cartoon idea. :3

———–

Thanks for asking about my OC’s!

[saevrusarch]

❝  .  [ invite ]  your muse inviting mine to sit on their lap .   →  @lstratstanding​

SOCIALISING  HAD  NEVER  BEEN  HIS  FAVOURITE  ━━━━  to  stroke  the  ego  of  men  so  far  beneath  him  made  him  sick  to  his  stomach,  yet  money  was  always  necessary.  One  cannot  bring  about  a  revolution  without  money.  And  Severus  had  always  been  what  Raoul  needed  him  to  be    ;    a  weapon,  a  spy  ━━  a  lover,  so  he  walked  around  the  room,  gently  talking  to  criminals  and  politicians  as  if  both  titles  were  not,  more  often  than  not,  connected.  Despite  his  more  discrete  attire,  Severus  knew  he  was  causing  rather  the  impression  on  their  patrons  ━━━━  black  the  dominant  colour  in  the  clothes  he  wore,  from  his  undershirt  to  the  long  coat  and  pants,  only  the  faded  golden  stripes  on  the  latter  two  drawing  attention  to  him  under  the  lights.  His  long  hair  half  tied  into  a  bun  by  two  daggers.  Always  armed  in  someway  ━━  a  doe  with  wolf  teeth.

Abandoning  his  flute  of  champagne  still  full  of  the  bubbly  liquid,  Severus  made  his  way  back  to  his  master.  Tired  of  pretending  to  be  intrested  in  what  those  men  and  women  spoke  about  ━━  having  to  engage  in  such  boring  topics  always  put  a  damper  on  his  mood.  Eyes  like  the  night  sky  void  of  stars  found  his  king,  surrounded  by  rats  and  roaches;  all  of  them  trying  to  appeal  to  the  God  that  was  Raoul  Silva  and  yet  so  few  ever  had  what  it  took  to  gain  the  man's  attention.  Severus  was  one  of  the  lucky  few  ━━━━  the  luckiest  of  them  all,  for  he  shared  with  Raoul  an  intimacy  most  wouldn't  ever  dream  of.  As  he  was  about  to  sit  himself  down  next  to  the  man  of  his  dreams,  that  familiar  voice  reached  his  ears.

━━━━━━━━━━━  JOIN  ME,  CARIÑO....

The  subtle  request  was  immediately  understood,  and  with  a  faint  flush  to  his  cheeks,  Severus  gracefully  sat  on  Raoul's  lap.  Arms  loosely  lacing  themselves  around  the  man's  neck,  eyes  avoid  the  looks  they  were  probably  getting.  ❛  Did  you  miss  me,  mon  coeur?    ❜  The  doe  asked,  trying  to  stop  the  mischievous  smirk  taking  hold  of  his  face  by  biting  his  lip.  

[hollyhawthorne]

INVESTIC CAPE TOWN ART FAIR 2019 QUESTIONS

1. Find each gallery booths for the three galleries that we visited on Thursday 14 Feb. What do you notice about each of these booths that are similar and different to the actual gallery (do you recognize the gallerists, the style of work/ artists and ways the work is hanging, a “vibe” etc.).

-  At BLANC GALLERY in Woodstock, we saw a solo show by Bronwyn Katz, which consisted only of three-dimensional works. The works were few and took up two spacious rooms. At the fair, Blanc exhibited a number of artists’ three-dimensional and two-dimensional works, obviously resulting in a more condensed and claustraphobic style of curation. I recognized that the same gallerist had been looking after the works at both events.

- Woodstock’s GOODMAN GALLERY hosted a solo show by Nolan Oswald Dennis. There were both two and three-dimensional works there, with some expanding straight onto the surface of the walls. A few of these walls had been painted grey. All of the works were presented along the perimeter of the room, with no sculptural works moving out into the middle of the space. At the fair, however, there were sculptural works for people to navigate their way around. None of the walls there were grey, but there were some yellow stripes on the floor that existed prior to the fair. There was a seperate room for the photography and video work of Tabita Rezaire, which was quite a tight squeeze, adding to the theme of confrontation that I felt her work explored.

- STEVENSON GALLERY in Woodstock is currently presenting Simphiwe Ndzube’s work, most of which is sculptural, or two dimensional with attatched objects jutting out of the frames. The walls were painted in light pink and blue, there were also handprints of smeared paint, reminding one of the human behind the final product. None of this evidence of labour was included in the curation of the fair. Here; Kemang,Botha, Cohen and Grose exhibited a variety of works.

2. Over the course of the day, decide on THREE works you absolutely love and THREE you most dislike or find frustrating. Make note of these with full details, and why you like/dislike them.

WORKS THAT I LIKED

- B. Wurts, Untitled, 2001, acrylic paint, paper

I really enjoyed Wurts’ comic or diary-like language that was created through the use of quick scribbles of random phrases and chaotic drawings, as well as the interesting variety of tone and line. The artist used scrap papers, reminiscent of post-it notes, arranged in layers that were itching to be paged through. This created an interesting paradox, where one needs to touch the work in order to see all of the drawings, but is not allowed to, given the formal gallery setting. I love the themes of horror paired with humour, as well as child-like drawings used within the professional realm of a gallery.

- Pino Deodato, Untitled

These were the only details of the work, written lightly on the wall in pencil. The sculptures appeared to be made from clay, though. This work was quite strange. While I didn’t immedietely love the look of it, I loved the strange and eerie feeling which I got from it, as well as the evidence of the human hand and its imperfection. By this, i mean that there were visable finger marks on the sculptures. The figures reminded me of childrens’ dolls, which was creepy but also quite mundane at the same time, due to the subdude colour pallette and absense of any wild brush strokes or obvious symbols of horror. I quite enjoyed the scale of the work, because as the viewer, you had to go really close to it and get involved in order to see the details.

- Ed Young, balloon performance and installation piece

I thought that Young was really clever with this piece. By having his assistant hand out balloons, people were bound to take photos with them. Even I posed for an instagram picture with mine. Those balloons followed viewers around into every corner of the fair, making their way into almost all of the press photos. Later, when I thought about how redundant these ‘balloon selfies’ were, i realised that people were literally posing underneath labels such as ‘scumbag’ and ‘moron’, highlighting how people will literally do anything to be trendy. I’m not sure if this was intensional, but I thought that that the use of humour was inspirational to my own practice.

WORKS THAT I DISLIKED

- Mr, While Walking, 2017, Acrylic and silkscreen print on canvas.

This work frustrated me. I assumed that it was a nod to pop culture, and more specifically to the sub-cultures that exist around anime. This work looked to me like a poster than any kid would have in his/her bedroom, giving a nod to mass-production. I felt like this was a really  tired and overdone theme... however whilst I was typing this i realized that this print was the only one of its kind that was made, which is quite interesting...

- Ley Mboromwe, Mokonzi aza mutema made, 2019, acrylic on canvas

Borrowing ideas and drawing inspiration from other artists is inevitable. However, there is a fine line between influence and blatant copying, and this piece is literally a knovk-off Basquiat. The only explaination that I can think of is perhaps a reimagining of Basquiat in an African context? This peice just confused me.

- DD Trans, Untitled

Whilst I liked the idea of the brightly coloured balloon ties being juxtaposed to the oldstyle painting, I found it to be quite random and was left wondering if there was any contextual meaning behind it? I just feel like the placement of the balloons could have been more considerred.

3. What are the predominant mediums and processes that dominate the majority of works at the fair this year?

I noticed a lot of painting, as well as the use of found objects. I enjoyed the fact that I saw a lot more “quick, spontaneous, loose” work in comparrsion to last year. But im not sure if thats just because I was looking out for those qualities...

4. What are the most obvious differences between the way different booths are curated?  Look at spacing/ size/ hanging/ booth furniture and so on.

Some booths are more interactive (viewer can walk between sculptures/installations), while some are curated very traditionally, with uniform framing. Some booths were very spacious, placing emphasis on the chosen works, while more claustraphobic booths displayed lots of works. Some booths had little office type spaces where gallerists could sit and discuss the art with buyers/veiwers.

5. How do the various booths differ in terms of signage, text, labeling/ titles: note the different ways.

Some artists have the imperical data for their work displayed tradditionally on printed labels, while some data has been drawn onto the walls. Some have no titles at all. Some artists included descriptions/analysis with the work, while some did not.

6. What is the general layout of the fair? Why do you think it is laid out this way?

The walkways between the booths was made wider this year. This is undoubtably because in 2018 the pathways were very tight, making one gallery space indistinguishable from the next. Besides this, the layout of the fair is still maze-like, with no particular path mapped out for viewers. This encourages the viewer to gravitate towards and away from certain works according to their intrests, forging their own path through the room. The divisions which were clear though, were that the commercial galleries dominated the central spaces, whilst smaller local galleries fell to the sides. Very old modern art galleries exhibited on the far left side of the room, probably the least viewed area.

7. What is the lighting like at the fair? Describe.

Not good. The bright white lights were quite clinical and also caused glares to appear across most of the works. 

8. What do you notice about the way people dress at an art fair? Look carefully at how the people working in the booths present themselves ,as well as other people at the fair and make observational notes.

There were lots of kids in school uniforms. Other than that, amoungst the adults, the fashion that I saw was quite strange. Other than a few posh art buyers, dressed in designer, people appeared to be dressed very casually. This was quite a let down, as last year we saw many flamboyant and expressive outfits.

9. Who or what are the various “markets” at this fair? What are the different types of “products” being sold and promoted here? Who is the fair aimed at?

The art fair is aimed at buyers, a very specific target market consisting of wealthy art collectors. It also caters to the public who are interested in art.. You had to pay for a ticket which means their target market is people who have money to spend on entertainment. (middle to upper class). Products aimed at the general public include books, food, drinks and psoters, whilst the aim of the fair is to sell art to the rich.

10. Find a work that you think exemplifies the spectacle of wealth. Note why you think so.

For me, the most obvious example was Athi-Patra Ruga’s The ever promised erection I. This is simply due to the materiality - or rather how it appears. The piece seems to ooze of expense, dripping in gold and jewels. Also, the symol of a bust signifies royalty or significant importance.

11. Find a work that feels like it doesn’t “fit” in this art fair context. Note why you think so.

12. How easy is it to ask about prices? Take turns with your fellow CA students to enquire about the cost of works at various galleries and take note of prices across the fair, as well as the way gallerists may treat you or react to you asking for these details. Do it at least TWICE yourself  in two different places.

I didn’t find it easy at all to find prices, mostly out of my own fear of talking to fancy gallerists. However, I did speak to one or two friendly faces who were more than happy to discuss the prices and process of buying pieces.

 13. What do you notice about sponsorship and branding at the fair? What brands are visible and who is the clientele / target market of these brands? Why would they choose a fair to push their product?

The whole fair is obviously sponsored by Investic,  whose branding is visable on all of the art fair parafenalia. Another big brand was moet champagne, which is appealing to a target market of wealthy people, like art buyers. Fairs are great for advertising because a large volume of people come through every day that the work is up.

14. Why do you think this fair takes place at the Cape Town International Convention Centre? What other commercial events take place here? (look up examples)

The venue is large enough to fit in lots of booths and many people. The venue is also in central Cape Town, so quite accessible. Other events here include gift fairs, jazz festivals, comic con, business conferences etc.

15.What are the oldest artworks you can find at the fair? (made the furthest back in time)

The whole section dedicated to the “greats” in South African art history. E.g. William Kentridge, Irma Stern.

 16. Who are the youngest artists you can see represented at the fair? 

Smith Gallery exhibited a number of works by freshly graduated Michaela’s students such as Michaela Younge and Talia Ramkilawan.

 17. How do the SOLO booths differ from the other booths?

Naturally, there would be more cohesion in the look and curation of the booth of a solo artist. There is more of a focus on that particular artist. Shared booths are trickier to curate I think, in regards to allowing a good flow of work.

 18. Who are the big names that keep popping up this year? Note why you think this is so.

I heard a lot of buzz around Roger Ballen appearing at the fair. I think this was because he’s such an oddball and his work fascinates people. The fact that his name popped up a lot for me could, however, be because I follow his work quite closely and actively look for news on him.

19.What kind of trends in subject matter do you notice this year? What kind of trends in materials do you notice this year? Note why you think this is so.

I noticed a lot of mixed media works, as well as found objects. In terms of subject matter, I saw a lot of figures, and subject matter relating personally to the background or current situation of the artist. I think this is because artists commonly use art as a means to express themselves.

20. If you could be represented by any of these galleries, whom would you LOVE to show or be represented by?

Smith, because I liked how young emerging artists were all alongside one another.

21. If you could work FOR any of these galleries, whom would you LOVE to work for?  And in what capacity?

Smac Gallery, as a curator. Or anything that allowed me to handle Georgina Gratrix’s paintings!

22.What other questions came up for you while wandering around the fair?

How could one possibly give attention to all of the works here? What would the best route be to walk, because I kept walking in circles.

 23. If you were to start a gallery or art institute, would you (hypothetically) want to show at the fair? And if so, how would your stall look and differ or be similar to what you have seen today? (you can make a sketch below) 

I would possibly show, but I’d love to have a solo booth to create somekind of installation work, seperate from the rest of the booths (almost like a resting spot for viewers).

[hannahprescottart-blog]

Patrick heron

Metavisual Tachiste Abstract: Tachisme was the European equivalent to abstract expressionism in America. The name derives from the French word ‘tache’, meaning a stain or splash (e.g. of paint). The introduction of the term to describe these post-war developments is usually credited to the critic Pierre Guéguen in 1951. However, it was used in 1889 by the critic Félix Fénéon to describe the impressionist technique, and again in 1909 by the artist Maurice Denis referring to the fauve painters. Tachisme is virtually synonymous with art informel. The first of herons "stripe" paintings or his paintings of pure abstract forms and colours were to be shown in March 1957 "metavisual tachiste abstract: painting in England today" it was an exhibition of none figurative painting put on at the Red fern Gallery. In this text it states that usually gallery's look for a group of artists that present a certain if you want to say similar style- but this exhibition was not the case the gallery director 'Rex Nan Kivell' brought together as many "non-figuartive" Artists as he could. During the later years of the 1950's herons work went from striped strips of dripping colour and marks that the author described as "Herons examples of the latter was the accidental drips and marks left by the spontaneous rapidity and certainty" to blocks of colour which I will address later in this text. "By mid-1957, Herons own practice had gone beyond the touch of fluidity of tachism so defined, and he was embarked upon an exploration of atmospheric colour and light using the minimal means of the pure colour "stripe" or juxtapositions of horizontal and vertical blocks of colour and clear thin washed areas of translucence". "The stripe, horizon and square in colour paintings of 1957 and early 1958 are remarkably cool and unemotive: they have no determining intent upon the viewer". During and after the exhibition of Tachism he knew he was moving beyond the boundarys of Tachism towards a style of his own he would then explore in the coming years. "As might have been predicted, the general critical response to Herons 1958 exhibition at the Red fern his seventh and final one man show with the gallery, at which h3 showed the stripe paintings together with a number of more recent works was at once in comprehending and condescending". With herons knew period of paintings he lacked to strick a cord with the viewer, in other words the reviewers and viewers in general found it hard to understand they couldn't draw any emotions to the knew more abstract paintings of blocks of colour marks and dribbles, this led to his final exhibition at the gallery, he had gone past a point of understanding for everyone. Critism came from all angles at his misunderstood paintings: "his customary subtlety, yet they lacked, all the same, that larger more allusive suggestiveness of his mentor, Mr.Rothko, the American painter and lacked moreover 'and individual tag'- Denys Sutton. "We know from his writings that there is nothing fatuous about Mr.Patrick Heron" that his new canvas contain nothing but these bands of colour, seems to me to poise them on the very edge of the absurd: or is it that they should be seen as illustrations of an unwritten article" - Neville Wallis or Russel it is unclear. "Organized like diagrams of the spectrum: colours progress in ordered sequences of vertical or horizontal stripes from one side of the canvas to the other. Luckily the progressions are enchanting, or their diagrammatic quality would be even more pronounced than it is. Their artful proportions and sequences and colour oppositions waiting to be put to a purpose - objects in fact of some beauty but of mainly scientific intrest" - the times I rather like the last critics statement, though it is negative it's honest and has some positive remarks, the other critics just seem down right unfair. (Expand on this matter in dissertation write up) ????