I have chosen the The Great War as my theme for my first assignment. I chose twenty images from the internet that I felt expressed the pathos and futility of the “war to end all wars” as well as for their graphic style and pattern. I’ve also tried to get a balance between men, women and machines that will convey a whole story when I’ve completed them all.
I prepared my supports for these paintings using black and white acrylic, mixing some greys as I went along. I have found that diluted acrylic paint absorbs into the paper quite quickly through the dried surface once I’d started on actual painting and, through a little control, it is possible to get very subtle greys just from diluting white alone. I know it was suggested to use images with colour to suggest tone but, because of my subject matter, this has proved difficult and the tones I’ve achieved work quite well. Painting in light over dark is a test that I’ve enjoyed throughout the exercises. Working on paintings that are just 6″x6″ is no less demanding than painting larger formats and some, like the bombed ruins landscape were completed in no time while the simpler looking crosses took an age and still I would like to improve on it.
Once all twenty were completed, I tried editing them and viewing them in a variety of ways. I think they work well all in a line but I don’t have a wall long enough, I also liked them as five sets of four but that was impossible to photograph. I ended up with them as a rectangle five paintings by four and the order doesn’t make a huge amount of difference but my final display was more cross like and quite pleasing. I just hope I’ve managed to capture enough atmosphere.
Working with these images over the last few weeks has left me feeling a little low but has reminded me how thankful I am to be of my time and saved from the sacrifices my grandparents generation had to make.
Painting 1 : Understanding Painting Media 