In-Progress Reflection

Currently, I have printed several black and white, and one blue and red relief prints of Muhammad Ali. My carving was very successful. I think that the graphic image that I created conveys the gesture and feeling of triumph and victory which I desired. The prints are coming out nicely. I think I should focus on lessening my use of ink as some of the prints are over saturated. I am hoping to go in a direction of more color, possibly in a sort of Andy Warhol Pop art direction. Replication is a great method to create this. Also, I might add some sort of verbal representation of my image. Other than that, my prints are coming out as I expected, and are completely fulfilling my intentions. I was pleasantly surprised by the lines that printed along with my image. I believe that they added to the gesture that I created. I am very happy with the outcome of the project so far.

Final Post

Throughout the painting process I became quite familiar with the practices of Hans Hofmann. I used what I learned to create an accurate representation of his work in my own style. Stylistically I was able to use color, composition, shape and texture to produce an image containing depth, style and intrigue. This intrigue comes to play through my use of a tri colored background. The borders of this background create a sort of path throughout the image leading from block to block. By covering these lines with multiple colors of rectangles, I vary the contrast of colors, and give the viewer something to look at through the objects in the foreground, further adding to the depth of my painting.
When I first began, I placed emphasis on my color choice and how that would provide depth and contrast, however I found that the overlapping of boxes is more important to create motion. By varying the actions of the boxes I found ways to make them twist as a result of the actions of others. I felt comfortable choosing colors that interact well, however I believe that I could have been more careful lining up the edges of my rectangles, as some of them are slightly crooked. I believe that my color mixing expressed my style because I was able to control the streaking and toning of the colors. I really like how some of the boxes have different color variations as I believe it makes a more intriguing composition.
From this project I have learned that I express through vibrant colors. I am able to create good texture and perceive the effects of an aspect of my painting before adding that aspect. I think that this is important because it helps me establish a goal in my head and gives me the ability to successfully reach that goal. While there are some cosmetic flaws to the painting, I believe I was very successful in emulating Hans Hofmann, and I am very content with how my final product turned out.

          This is my painting so far. I still need to fill much of the empty space. I plan on shifting towards using more warm colors because Hofmann tended to stay within one color range. I also think that the crooked green rectangle at the bottom should be straightened out. I believe that I am headed in the right direction. With more color the painting will look more filled out and completed. I think that my final product will be a good emulation of the work of Hans Hofmann. I am very happy with my work so far.

Hans Hofmann Final

     After much research and experimentation on and around the works of Hans Hofmann, I have finally established my final intentions for this project. I plan on using a large canvas, which I have made, and creating a work similar to that of Hans Hofmann. I plan on using acrylic paint for my composition. Most of my experimentation was on a small scale, however I am excited to see what my composition will look like in larger form. My main focus is on the expression of color and color interaction. Because of this, it is important that I choose my color compositions wisely and take time to think about the placement of certain colors next to each other. One of Hofmann's main concerns was creating a sense of depth and space using only the contrast of color. My main goal is to accomplish this task in my painting.
     In my experiments I tended to create a solid background using only one color, however, I think it will be more interesting experimenting with a multicolored, streaked background, which is more similar to the work of Mr. Hofmann. I believe that this will add yet another element of depth and contrast to my composition. These color's must also be chosen carefully. I think that I will use Art Medium to thin the paint and create a more translucent wash for my background. The shape of my color blocks is also important. To keep them rectangular and straight I will employ the use of tape. Using pastels to experiment limited the amount of texture that I was able to capture, but paint will allow me to create a nice textured work. I hope to succeed with my intentions and create a composition that is both pleasing and intriguing.

My Works

Hans Hofmann

My artist is Hans Hofmann, a german abstract expressionist painter who lived during the early to mid 1900's. His paintings during the 40's and 50's were compositions of rectangles of color. He was mainly studying how to use complementing and contrasting colors in order to create a 2D painting that looked somewhat three dimensional. He did this by making some colors pop while some sank into the background, creating depth. He created the Push and Pull theory, in which he used colors to interact with each other instead of one overwhelming another. Hofmann was both an artist and a teacher. He found it really difficult to separate teaching and painting, because when he was painting he made decisions based on instinct and feeling, but when he was teaching he had to focus on every single line and technical aspect of a painting. He was, however, a very successful teacher. He was very successful in his work, and created some timeless artwork.

Color to Life

First of all, I tried to imitate the texture and mark making of the original artist, paying close attention to the pointed dots throughout the trees. The colors were also a bit murky, as they were mixed to create a smorgasbord of different colors throughout the branches of the trees. I attempted to match all of the colors of the sky and ground to those in the original, but it was somewhat difficult to get the precise color. my artist's style was somewhat abstract and general, so I kept that in mind when painting the people at the edge of the lake, being sure to avoid using too much detail, but accurately capturing the form.
During this project, I learned that the mark making of an artist can be very emotional, and can communicate how the artist was feeling when he/she made the painting. I also learned that painting is a tedious process that requires a lot of patience in order to create the final product that you imagine and desire.
I think that my painting is mostly unified except for the detail of the trees. As the artist, I know that I spent much longer on the leaves than the rest of the painting, but I do not think that it would be too obvious to the observer. I think that there is unification in the uneven mixture of color throughout the painting (for example the sky is streaked with light and dark shades of blue).

I do not feel very comfortable as a painter. I do not feel that I can control the medium as well as a pencil for example. However, I feel that the greater range of color that paint provides makes it more fun to create a piece of art. My painting forced me to use small, tedious strokes for much of my painting, which made it less enjoyable for me. I believe that I would have enjoyed it more if I were able to create a more freeing piece of art. I would like to explore the use of paint in a more abstract setting. I think the product would be very cool. Paint limits my ability to create very strict and linear forms. I always find that the edges of objects in my paintings are a bit faded or rough, and therefore it is hard to paint exactly what I want.

I think that I was able to explore line somewhat thoroughly in this unit. Buildings were a somewhat easy subject to use contour lines, but I think that I was able to get really good angles using the lines. I think I did a good job with the silhouettes, however I could have made a better contrast with the tree. I believe the negative space is well conveyed in my drawings. I found the drawings of the buildings most comfortable and enjoyable. I thought that it was interesting to experiment with the perspective created by the different angles of the buildings. I think I was able to add my own sense of expression using texture and the rubbings that I added to my buildings. Also with the juxtaposition of the tree I was able to be creative. I think my strengths are my use of line. I think I could improve upon my creative use of the components in my drawings. I also could've added more layers of complexity to my drawing. I was expressive with my textures and my shaping of the buildings.