After gaining a small tutorial on my current drawing project work it was suggested that I continue to develop my ideas looking at crowds playing around with composition, density and also depth focusing in on the shadows and silhouette ideas that were starting to come through in my ideas. I also researched into the work of L.S Lowry as suggested by a peer and looking at his work, has helped me to think more about my ideas and generating motion through static figures
In response to my small tutorial and contextual research I wanted to experiment with composition and how I draw the figures but continuing to not give the people an identity making them remain anonymous like the figures in Lowry's paintings. I began by looking at extreme silhouettes; drawing the shapes of the people and environment combined and also taking away the background to see how it changed the feel of the arrangement.
(Untitled, graphite, A5)
(Untitled, graphite, A4)
Contrasting my ideas I think that the ones consisting of just the people are a lot more interesting and visually appealing because the idea is more abstract experimenting with shape and movement that brings the figures to life. Like Lowry I also
Continuing on from this idea of silhouetted figures I then decided to play around with creating stronger elements of movement through the use of continuous line drawings to show more gestural marks. To do this I used both simple graphite pencil but I also used ink introducing a technique that I found to be quite effective.
(Untitled, graphite, continuous line, A3)
(Untitled, ink wet on wet, A4)
The technique that I found to be interesting for my concept was the ink wet on wet (as seen above). To do this I simply wet the page using water only and I then add ink to the wet sections moving it around until it is all covered. Doing this quite quickly to make sure the page is still wet, I then use the end of a paint brush and draw the figures into the wet ink. Once dry the lines I produced are left behind generating a sketchy appearance that shows movement without the need to use a pencil. I find the outcome of this technique very eye catching and textural even though it is a flat image.
Requesting another small tutorial some contextual references were suggested; Michal Rovner, Humphrey Spender mass observation and Lotti Reinger's shadow puppets.
I will take a look at these and research into them in relation to my project.
