REFLECTION FROM EXPERIMENTAL VISUAL INSPIRATION

Materials used: Cling film-Cartridge paper

Mediums used: Watercolour as background- Emulsion on top of the cling film-watercolour mixed with turps on top of the dried emulsion

For this experiment I really wanted to understand ways of making texture by layering but still able to add a mixture of wet mediums via colour to still grab an effect of the colours similar to planets and out  of space, I wanted to find a technique that would be suitable to be added as apart of a surrealist collage. I started by simply re creating and taking inspiration by the research of colours incorporated within the galaxy themed background and I noticed that the main colours are tonal blues, purples with tones of pink, green and ashy yellow hints. I began to pick colours from a watercolour palette that would be similar to the visual inspiration I have grasped an insight into, I mixed the colours with a wet brush so the real smudging effect would occur whilst dabbing the two separate colours towards one another, embedding a smooth surface that represents the colours combining.

I then creatively had the idea to create texture on top of the watercolour to see if the colour from underneath would still be visible, I put one layer of cling film on top and added emulsion because I realised that it was crisp the cling film whilst making it more dense and solid. After drying I really loved how the heat melted parts of the cling film so the colour was still able to show up, however, I didn't like the contrast with lots of colour as a background in comparison to a plain cream coloured background. So I decided to use turps and oil pastels as I realised that if you add turps to it the colour will spread. Overall I love this experiment but to improve I think I would add another layer of cling film to see a rippling effect of hidden colour from each layer.

UPDATE 17/11/2017

I improved from my target and actually decided to layer the cling film with added emulsion as a composition but instead of using coil pastels with turps I decided to experiment with different coloured ink. I love how that when I mixed the blue and red tones together they gave of a green colour which I am very fond of, When drying I noticed that the ink actually started to turn an off bright coloured yellow in particular areas. I really like this as it makes the composition seem like it has decayed overtime whilst defining the layers of textured Clingfilm. To further this experiment I think I will begin adding different materials on top such as a printed photograph of me in black and white onto an acetate sheet.

Materials used: cling film-Cartridge paper- photo paper

Mediums used: PVA- watercolour.

For this experiment I wanted to experiment with the melting of cling film in more depth by adding colour underneath of it to re create the effect of a galaxy themed background with a 3D added feel, Firstly I started with a photocopied image of me as a child, I specifically chose this image as it symbolises the vintage blur of the photo bring taken with an old disposable camera, influencing and representing the image as being taken in the past from my childhood.

I then wanted to change the meaning of adding colour to the background to re create the composition as being set in a setting of out of space, I wanted a contrast of seeing the feelings the viewer would get if the background theme were to be reversed by layering the texture solidly on top of te original image, taking way the meaning of the image being vintage and hyping it as being modernised and exaggerated by the use of colour involved.

I didn't want to just melt cling film nto the composition as I thought that there would be no meaning behind it so I decided that I would use an involvement of colour, but to do this I would have to mix it with another medium or else the colour would not show up on a photographed paper, And for those reasons I believed that PVA would be an ideal materials as it is thick and would mix colour via mixing the glue with a brush, creating shapes such as swirls.

I added glue ontop of the middle of the image as I wanted to break away the controlled segments of the background having to be the top 1/3 of the page, I mainly picked a dark purple shade from the watercolour palette as I still wanted to portray and to make the viewer want to link it to the colours that youy would see in a surreal photograph of out of space. As I added the first layer of cling film I noticed that as I was melting it, it was beginning to split and creating a reason for the PVA underneath to seep through, this is not what I was aiming for. I added another layer to not only strengthen the wall of plastic from breaking apart, but the edges of the it began to shrink which I really liked as it created a new shape with a thick texture where I imagined it to look as though I had purposely created a circular planet.

Although the PVA did not set sufficiently i believe that this could really make a strong composition where the layers portray surrealist aspects, to further this with the technique of melting clingfilm i think that I should actually create objects onto the image (eg. the moon or a swimming pool) that instead of printing a photograph i could use other materials. On the other hand, I could actually experiment with using this technique with PVA and watercolour mixture as an actual background for a composition, layering over the background of a photograph.

Materials used: Clingfilm- Newspaper- own photographs on printing paper- cartridge paper-string

Mediums used: PVA- Ink- watercolour- oil pastels

For this experiment i wanted to start to add different materials into one collage so I would be able to see if a scenario or story could be created behind a plain composition, I wanted to just experiment with adding little experiments onto one page to see if it would create story or if it would create a confusing piece. I used the technique of melting cling film as it is a very successful way to exaggerate texture, as I said in the analysis above i want to try creating an object from the melting of cling    film as it is easily able to form into a shape. I firstly created a washed background of mixing white PVA with a light blur watercolour, again, i did this because i want to create a thick texture with added colour into it, i did continuous one stroke from a brush so the blue would be pushed to the edge of each mark, and so that when it dried texture will be created. I did not like how the mixture of tonal blues from the watercolour palette and due to the way I  added the colour into the PVA I noticed that the colours did not mix so I needed to hide this. I used an off white/cream coloured oil pastel as a dry mediums onotp to grab the viewers attention to acknowledging the shadowing effect of the dried glue. I really love how this technique has picked up the little marks made from the brush strokes, this is a new technique I really want  to take further.

I wanted to go with the theme of the beach whilst adding aspects of being out of space so I decided to add ink to the PVA that is underneath the cling film, the ink is called 'Indian ink' and is very pigmented hence the reason why there are no other colours involved. I added this colour specifically as it symbolises the motion of being out of space, in particular, I wanted to create the black hole aspect as though it is peeping out of the composition. In favour of this I really love how the cling film moulded into a shape of an abnormal circle as it relates to the black hole being similar, I then decided to attach a single long white piece of string as apart of the layering technique as I wanted to define a connection between the supposedly 'black hole' as being a danger. As you see 'caution tape' on a crime scene to notify people not to enter the premises I wanted to re create the same kind of effect but by using string to tell the viewer that it is dangerous to enter the black hole.

As you can see at the top right hand corner there appears to be a moulded height of 3D mountain, I have portrayed this as another planet but using materials such layered newspaper, I have done this as the material is thick and is easily bendable in able for me to tug, move and fold it. I wanted to really explore with the use of texture by seeing if shadowing of colour will give such an effect.

I have then washed the textured ball with PVA and then dried it as I knew the colour underneath would show if the PVA sets as a clear finish. Overall I really like this experiment regarding the cling film effect with ink as I know that especially black ink, it is very over powering on a piece and can bring attention to making the concept of the image much more rural. To do next, I want to experiment with layering different materials on top and underneath of the cling film to see if it gives a closer resemblance to the out of space theme.

Materials used: Foil- Own image on cartridge paper-Cling film melted

Mediums used: PVA-Watercolour

Overall I was mainly experimenting with  adding a photographic image to the abstract composition to see if it changes the focus, Overall I do not like how I have placed the image in the middle of the experiment because it takes away the portrayal of patterning colour into a thick yet moveable medium, which in this case is PVA.

I added the medium 'watercolour' because I wanted to experiment to see if the PVA would keep its very thick yet clear texture, When adding the watercolour the thick paste of PVA did in fact water down which I found was very different as you were able to see more of the cartridge paper as the background, creating and allowing brightness into the composition. Also, when adding cling film on the top the PVA created a very expressionist mark (The circular shapes). I chose to use such a cold and dark colour because I wanted to create a very unrealistic approach and link towards the sky, adding to the concept of the imagery of me being falling asleep in the sky.

If I were to change anything I wouldn't have painted over the silver foil which was stuck underneath the photo because I feel it looks very abnormal with the colour I chose to use to mix with the PVA, Moreover, I used the foil under the photo to experiment with the depth of texture and exploring with different ways to make the image appear 3D, I feel like using foil in this way is more focused on distorting a photo rather than creating shadow, in my opinion it didn't create shadow.