Reflections on Crit and Tutorial

There are two main questions which I have decided to focus on moving forward:

1. Aesthetics and the intuitive.

I identify the intuitive mark to carry a positive value in terms of aesthetics… why?

During the crit and my tutorial with Mark there were suggestions on how I might produce work which is intuitive and even ugly. I could paint blind, use unfamiliar mediums, define a process of chance tools or colours which undo my usual ways of working. However I have realised that here is something important to me which relates to the aesthetic of the mark. I had selected pieces of work to bring to the crit which I felt combined the intuitive with the aesthetic. Not all intuitive marks are beautiful; they are gestural, show movement etc but specifically with paint the materiality of the pigment and colour carry something intrinsic which is importantly delivered by the artist alone.

To explore this further I need to think about what it is that comes into play when selecting pieces to bring to crit. What is it that I identify which selects or rules out these which I allow others to view and comment on? Are there questions of balance, proportions, and colour? Think also about this selection methods when photographing my work, how I frame the work in terms of the pictorial frame and why. It is useful to devise a means of removing conscious thought to my practice however I feel that I need to ask myself why I am doing a particular experiment. What is the purpose of this experimentation? What questions am I asking/answering? It would be useful for me to devise studio investigations with a question in mind.

To do this I will research the intuitive: (philosophical) Henry Burkson. Felix Guattari. Think about the associated and opposing terms, the pre-planned, the unconscious the deliberate and how they relate to my enquiry. With a better understanding of the term intuitive and its connotations I can set up studio experiments to explore my ideas specifically. It may be useful to look at other models such as that of the Surrealists to think about how I may frame this.

2. What do I define as a mark?

In both crit and tutorial there were comments about the interesting line and marks making which I had produced in various ways. The mark is carried in paint, charcoal, pen, graphite and ink (print) each having a different quality to them.

I want to explore what can a mark be? Research Tim Ingolds book on lines. Think about how I would define my own mark making and how does this alter when using paint, charcoal, print etc? Look at the practice of artists such as Franz Kline, Helen Frankenthaler and some of the lesser known Abstract Expressionists, how do they work and discuss their work?

In my work there is an interesting tension in the graphic mark of the drawing in relation to the painterly mark and colour and how they operate together. This appears to be present in both the collaborative process of mark making and the line which I produce blind myself. Exploring this further in the studio alongside my research will help me to clarify and understand my line of enquiry.

Note on colour:

There is something present in mark making which changes when using colour which I need to think about also. Colour is a conscious thought. It is intrinsic to painting. It is dependent on the artist in some way and can be read through many layers. Culturally, historically as well as aesthetically.