The study of light and dark was a major unit in my studies of Fine Art at GCSE level. It involved studying existing art that aligned with the theme, breaking down how the materials were used and analysing the tones of the imagery to uncover what messages were being conveyed. All of this information would eventually inform my creative choices in developing a strong final piece within this theme. Below are extracts from my art book demonstrating the creative process.
Research began by studying artists and copying from their work to experiment with techniques that could achieve strong contrasting aesthetics. A primary figure was Paul Jackson, his work would strongly influence mine as I enjoyed the imagery of depicting both the internal and external elements of something. It presented ideas of seeing creatures or people in layers, seeing what is visible and what is hidden creating an almost mystical tone.
I then began to focus on the imagery of skulls and "the layer beneath" as I found the deathly imagery to be haunting and in turn dark.
I experimented with both crosshatching pen and dark paints to build the shadowy looks. Then reinforced by the tea stained pages, it created an aged appearance aligning with the themes of death and decay. This range of tones and colour palette went on to be what I favoured.
Through researching another artist: ROA I discovered that the use of white pen highlights was something I enjoyed employing in my work.
The bright tones beautifully contrasted with the deep dark undertones.
The final artist I researched had a great influence. HELMo's use of double exposures and the combination of man and animal created a narrative of inner animalistic qualities which I also wanted to reflect in my final piece. So I experimented with double exposures which led me to forming the subject I used as a reference for my final piece.
This led to the last few steps of experimentation in finalising my creative choices. I felt the use of skull imagery was important to me as it created the foreboding and sinister atmosphere I wanted to achieve. The themes of death would then be contrasted by the tiger with its bright orange fur, full of life. It also reflected the ideas of the natural world being intertwined, the connections between man and beast, that I had become fond of through my studies.
Depicted below is my final piece and the photoshopped image I used as a reference. This is one of my favourite pieces of work I have produced as its colours and tones are reflective of myself and what I like in art.
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