Click here to return to Works by Project
Life 118 - Self portrait ala abstract... if you will. ;)
Good Day to all of you with in the sound of my tippity-tappity
keyboard. Today I have a project that may or may not make
much sense. it is going to be based on a rather abstract concept.
this is going to be a self-portrait, but chances are you may be the
only one that understands how it is a self-portrait. so, after you do
your drawing or painting, post it and in your announcing post please
tell us how this represents you - or what part of you is so related to
this piece now that it is a part of you.
what I want to propose as challenge to you for Life 118 is to choose
something and do a drawing or painting of it. it can be anything.
something or someone in your house... you can even just pick any one
of the poses that any of our models have given us here on the FDF.
forget about the idea of doing a self portrait - that is only going to
mess you up. what you need to do is take a week or so and find
something that really does it for you. I mean something you are
either really passionate about or the shape of it really speaks to
you and then start drawing.
now, I am not saying if you like rock climbing that you should do a
rock climbing painting. I don't want this to be an illustration of
what you like... or what you do... but if you are into rock climbing,
what is at the root of that... is the challenge of doing something
that is nearly ultra human? is the feeling of making the summit?
is the adrenaline? I am confident that there is something in some
setting or object that personifies that feeling.
before you and I both get too discouraged let me tell you something
of my experience and what I have learned as I have discussed this
with some other artists. The concept is that every painting that I
do for myself (not commissioned work, but art that I do because I
want to), ends up being some sort of a self portrait. not that it looks
like me. that is hardly ever the case. If I a am doing a painting of a
female or a male or even a piece of fruit, as I am painting I find
myself relating so much to my subject that I can't help but in fuse
some of my thoughts and attitudes into the piece.
I am not as surprised as I used to be when I would look at one of
my finished paintings and think how much of a self-portrait that is.
but it happens and sometimes it is so strong to me that I have to
call it a self portrait.
I have since thought about how this can be. it has long been said
that artists "put so much of themselves" into their work. that is
what makes it so personal and passionate. I don't disagree with that
notion. but how does it turn out that a landscape or a veggie on a
table or a figure painting of another person of the other gender
can end up being so personal that you might feel it has turned into
some sort of a self-portrait? I am not sure I have a perfect answer.
I apologize if this is way too touchie feelie for some of you... but it
is something I have been thinking about for a long time.
let's take our time on this one and really think about it/ not think
about it. the due date for this project will be September 30th 2006.
so, LETS DRAW!!!!
...royce
Click here to return to Works by Project