Nel Ten Wolde
"During my foot trips I can’t take a lot of materials and make use of a camera to take photos, I originally used it as sketch material, but with the Collages I use them as the main material. The photos can be a combination of two photos I put together with photoshop before I use them.My work reflects my journey and my evolution in looking and communicating with landscape.The elements that particularly speak to me in the landscape are the light, the colours, the changes during one day or during the seasons of the year, the vastness of the space, the great variety of natural forms and shapes in the landscape, big and small.In my investigation of nature for my collages I aim to combine the use of photo fragments as the basis of a composition, working together with drawing to create a harmonious unity."
- Nina Ten Wolde
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| Source (2015) Collage & mixed media on paper |
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| Flow (2015) Collage & mixed media on paper |
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| Cardo Muerto II (2012) Collage & mixed media on paper |
Jacques Gourmelen
Jacques Gourmelen took this photo on April 6, 1972 in Saint-Brieuc (France). It depicts Guy Burmieux, (the rioter) and the riot policeman, Jean-Yvon Antignac. The two had grown up and gone to highschool together. Guy himself is quoted as calling them “inseparable.”
“I was part of the core of rebellious workers…We spent the night there, drinking coffee upon coffee. In the morning, the atmosphere was electric. After the police officers, the anti-riot police, it was the officers of the [Compagnies Républicaines de Sécurité 13] which emerged suddenly. There I found Jean-Yvon!”
- Guy Burmieux
Jacques Gourmelen describes the encounter:
“Burniaux had recognized his old friend and classmate...I saw him go toward his friend and grab him by the collar. He wept with rage and told him, ‘Go ahead and hit me while you’re at it!’ The other one didn’t move a muscle.”
I really love this photograph as Gourmelen has taken the photograph in a way that allows us to see the expression on guy's face which is one of raw emotion. The fact that we have the story behind this photograph further increases its importance as it shows two childhood friends ending up in completely different circumstances being brought together because of a riot. I think it's important to know that when Guy tells Jean to hit him, Jean 'doesn't move a muscle'. This is because it shows how friendship and humanity comes above duty and occupations.
Marcelo Monreal
This is my favourite out of all Marcelo's artworks due to the fact that I love the contrast between the flowers and the man's facial expression in the image as, to me, it shows anger and frustration. Whereas, the flowers represent beauty and tranquillity. This is an aspect of the image that I can import into my own personal theme (the 1960s/70s) as, during that time, there was a huge contrast between anger, war and hate with love, peace and unity.
Marc Riboud
| La jeune fille a la fleur - lower Child 1967 |
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| France 1967 |
Again,this image is similar to the first one as it shows a man placing flowers in the soldiers' guns to promote peace and non-violence.More photographs of Jan Kasmir:
Eugenia Loli
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| "Quarrymen" |
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| "Corset" |
Although this collage looks quite simple, I think it strongly links with my personal theme and also promotes a very important issue (the use of nuclear weapons) which was particularly significant during the 1960s and early 70s. I interpret it as the flowers representing the peace movement trying to constrict and strangle the use of nuclear weapons so it can't spread and damage more peoples' lives.
| "Maker" |
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| "Bloomed Joyride" |
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| "Untitled, as in, no words" |
Eugenia, in a lot of her collages, promotes important issues like the one on the left. This is an aspect of her work that I want to import in my own work as I think it makes a piece of artwork more interesting and important, not just visually pleasant.
I love how a lot of Eugenia's collages are a play on words such as this one,"Storm in a cup". I think it just makes the collage a lot more interesting and entertaining which draws more attention in from the viewer.
Comparison between Loli, Riboud and Monreal
| Flower Child - Marc Riboud |
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| "Untitled" - Marcelo Monreal |
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| "The Quarrymen" - Eugenia Loli |
Eugenia's and Monreal's pieces of artwork are similar in the sense that they were both created near the same time and they both use computer graphic design. An interesting, recurring feature in the three pieces is that although they are all very different in a number of ways, flowers are apparent in all of them. I interpret the use of flowers in all theme as an expression or a symbol for peace. For instance, to me, Monreal's is a visual representation of inner peace whereas the flower in Riboud's photograph embodies the need for world-wide eace and non-violence that so many people fought for during the 1960s70s. Finally, "quarrymen" captures how music in the 1960s (and how it still is today) was used to express peace and promote beliefs in a non-aggressive way. Another similarity is that Riboud is a photograph and Monreal also uses photography, not only in this particular piece of artwork but in the majority of them.
Robert Rauschenberg
Robert Rauschenberg
"There is no reason not to consider the world as one gigantic painting"
-
Robert Rauschenberg
In 1925, on October 22nd, the artist Robert Rauschenberg was born in Port Arthur, Texas. Rauschenberg was famous for his large participation in the pop art movement.
An
aspect of Rauschenberg's childhood which could have played an
important role in
his personal direction concerning art is that his mother Dora, a
devout Christian, used scraps of fabric to create the family's
clothes. This could have later influenced his later work with
collage and assemblages and also the fact that he used
flattened cardboard boxes perhaps chosen because it's cheap
which could have stemmed from his mother's frugality.
During
the 1960's, when Rauschenberg was in his middle years, politics was a
huge aspect that dominated the American society. The 1960s
witnessed the first landing on the moon, the Vietnam war, the
peace movement, the racial conflict and the assassination of
John F Kennedy. These political and social issues all had a massive
impact on the way Rauschenberg created his collages, one could
argue the assassination of JFK being the most important as
Rauschenberg was quite close with the Kennedys and was very
saddened to hear of his death. This could have played a key role
in the direction he went in his collage works.
In
the early 50's, Rauschenberg moved to New York and attended the Art
Students League. He became acquainted with Abstract
Expressionist artists who influence his work greatly as well as
younger artists such as Jasper Johns. Rauschenberg and Johns were
two of the artists that created a bridge between Pop art
and Abstract Expressionism.
Rauschenberg
used an array of materials which is one of the reasons why he is so
well known. He used anything and everything in his
work. An example of this is that he would cover a canvas
with house paint, or ink the wheel of a car and run it over
paper. Rauschenberg would collect everyday objects from the
streets of New York as use them in his art.
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Signs
(1970) Collage of screen printed images
from newspaper and magazines on canvas |
The
result of the images present in the collage are screen-printed from
newspaper and magazines means that they were recognisable during
the 1960s. This makes the collage more relevant in the society,
making it not only visually interesting but also socially
important. The fact that John F Kennedy was the icon for change
could be why he has such a prevalent role in this collage as it
promotes the signs of change and progression, hence the
title 'Signs'.
During
the formation of this collage, Rauschenberg was 45. For me, it is a
summary of 1960s, encapsulating the monumental events that
occurred during the decade and also the people that largely
influenced how the 1960s unfolded and progressed. The fact that
the most prominent image is the astronaut create both negative
and positive interpretations concerning the meaning behind it.
For example it could simply show the most important aspect of
the 1960s or it could be larger than the other images because
Rauschenberg is trying to portray how the senate magnified the
space programme to turn the public's attention away from all the
negative aspects such as the Vietnam war, the on-going
social conflict, the segregation of Afro-Caribbean minorities
and the assassination of John F Kennedy which are all present
in Signs.
The image of Janis Joplin is also a key feature in the collage
as she represents the peace movement that emerged during the 60s
following the Vietnam war. This revolutionary movement used music to
promote non-violence and peace. She also reflects the social
change that was arising during this time but also the loss of
young talent in the music industry and she died of an overdose a
month before he created this collage. Psychedelic drugs were huge in
the 1960s and this was intensified due to the fact that
they manifested into the popular music and social movement that
was occurring during this decade.
The
form of this particular collage is 2d and the original size is
35.2x26.7in (89.4x67.8cm), making it big enough to see all the
relevant features of the collage, even the smaller ones which I
think is important as you need all of the collage to understand
Rauschenberg's thoughts of the 1960s and how it should be
portrayed. Rauschenberg uses tone to highlight particular points
of the collage, such a the spaceman. The viewer's attention is
directed towards the spaceman as it has a much lighter tone
compared to the other images. Colour is also an important factor
in the composition of Signs as
Rauschenberg uses is to separate the different images. For
instance, Janis Joplin is tinted in red which causes the image
of her being separated from the others making it stand out
more. Rauschenberg decided not to import texture into this
collage. This could be due to the fact that it could cause the
message to be lost which, I think, is the most important part of this
collage. Also, you could say that he was trying to suggest that
there is no way you can try to hide the issues that were going
on during this time by layering them with fancy and pretty words or
other things but you can't escape the fact that it is still going on
so its better to be plain about it.
The
collage is very thoughtfully composed owing to the fact the bigger
images are at the bottom, creating a solid foundation which, if
one wanted to explore this further, Rauschenberg could be doing
this to contradict the political aspect of 1960s
America. Furthermore,
the composition of the collage is good because the placement of the
images encourages
the viewer to follow a particular path through the piece. This is
owing to the fact that Rauschenberg uses the hands of the
people in the image to direct the viewers' eye. Also, the guns
held by the soldiers cause you to travel to Janis Joplin who's hair
points towards John J Kennedy.
After
researching Rauschenberg's Signs, I
have found collages that provoke thought towards important
events and issues that are around at that particular time are the
most eye-catching and interesting. This research has changed the
direction I want to go into my own work owing to the fact that
it has made me want to use my artwork to promote a difficult or
relevant issue as I think it would make the project not only more
interesting but also important as it has a function other than
just to be visually pleasing
Artists who have used similar subject matter
John Lennon (left) and Sing My Guitar (right) are both oil paintings by the artist Leonid Aftremov. I love how vibrant, dynamic an intense his paintings are and how they all follow a similar style so one can easily be associated with his name. The paintings are also similar to the pictures I have previously taken in my post name Pictures which also depict a person playing a guitar. I think this style of using a pallet knife helps lift the painting off the page and create texture which ultimately makes the piece of art more visually arresting which is why I want to import this element into my own project.These pictures can also be linked with the theme of faded and memories due to the distortion of the figures and how music is often associated with past times and reminiscing over them through playing a musical instrument.
I really like this idea of using a black pen to create patterns and drawings on an actual guitar. I think the one on the left is most effective due to the fact that the guitar i make out of wood and the image drawn is of a tree, creating a link between the origins of the guitar and the drawing. You could also link this to the theme of time as a tree is often associated with life and time. It also reflects the theme of traces as it shows a trace of what the guitar once was, a tree.
I think this painting by, Spanish artist, Pablo Picasso strongly reflects the theme of memory as it depicts an old man who I personally think is looking quite sombre in his position and facial expression and I imagine he is reminiscing over hs long life. I think the blue tint to the painting intensifies the solemn feel to it and reflects the emotions the main is feeling.
Never heard of this Guy, but I like him. Thank you!
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