Plaster Process

To make the plaster, the first thing we did was figure out how much plaster versus water to put into our molding box.  After calculating the 1:1.5 ratio of water to plaster, we slowly mixed the plaster with water by stirring the plaster into the tub of water.  After finishing mixing, we sprayed the non-stick spray to our box and poured the plaster into the box.  After reaching our desired point of plaster in the box, we put the box to the side and now must wait until the plaster dries.

Degree of Exploration (Stretch and Explore)

1. My drawings capture the gesture of the figure pretty well.  In this figure, I wanted to focus on creating a gesture without any part of the core of the body and primarily focusing on the legs and arms of the body.  In doing so, I will be able to create a figure that has protruding, curvy elements instead of bland, straight elements.  I think my drawings portray this idea very well.

2. I explored the simplifying and abstracting processes for the gestures a lot while creating my gesture because by not including very much of the core/abdomen in the figure, I will be able to use this abstract idea to create a structure with only the legs, arms and head.  This creates a more simplified version of the human body and also creates a more abstract figure that can be understood in a multitude of ways.

3. Over the course of the project, I have realized that in designing my figure, I have to be more realistic and expect that throughout the project, everything that could go wrong will indeed go wrong.  By having this mindset, I am always ready for the worst and can always have a plan B if need be.  At first, I wanted to create a structure that was so complex it would be impossible to create it with the time given.  By engaging and persisting, I think I have found a gesture that is possible to create under the given time frame and will look great as well.

4. In terms of my box, I chose a quart box to use for the plaster.  I wanted to use this box because by using a long and skinny box, I am better preparing myself to chip away from the plaster to create a long and slender figure.  Using a long/skinny box is more efficient for my project because then I have to spend less time chipping away the excess plaster and more time focusing on the details of the abstract piece.

Gesture Drawings and Process

Charcoal Contour Drawings

Value Drawing and Photography

Final Blog Post: Create a final "Value" post including an image of your completed drawing and at least one example of your photographic prints. a. Refer to your interim Blog post, consider the Habits of "stretch and explore" and "engage and persist" (See home course page or pdf download). -How has your persistence and engagement in these habits pushed you to further resolve the questions, tools, methods, etc as discussed in your previous post?By engaging and persisting, I was able to grasp a better sense of value of the objects I was drawing and photographing. One key way I was able to do this was by using shading and thickness of my lines to create a greater sense of value, distance, and lighting for my drawing.  For the photography, I focused on choosing a photo that featured multiple shades of black, grey, and white.

-How have these habits pushed you to further develop your artistic practice in general as well as your understanding of value (employing shadow and light to represent 3-D form)? These habits have allowed me to have a more direct approach to the piece I am working on and have enabled me to know exactly what I have to do to make the piece have a greater sense of value by focusing on line quality, contrasting shades, and distance between the objects.  These habits have also allowed me to employ shading and lighting to create a more 'real' piece of art that makes it more 3-D instead of 2-D.

b. Compare and Contrast your work in the darkroom and your work on the drawing. -Which medium felt more comfortable? Why? I felt more comfortable while drawing my objects because in that medium, I felt a greater connection with my piece than I did in the Dark Room.  I felt like I was adding my own sense of character to the drawing, not just drawing a random collection of shoes.  Because of this, I felt more comfortable and inspired while drawing.  While in the Dark Room, for some reason I felt like I was just doing the same process over and over again.  Not that that wasn't fun and interesting, it's just I felt like I wasn't able to add my own sense of expression and opinion into the photography. -Which medium allowed you more opportunity for "expression"? How? I think the value drawing allowed for more opportunity for expression because a person could take the same collection of objects and draw it in many different ways depending on their use of lines, shading, and lighting.  By allowing someone to implement their own use of feeling and opinion into a piece of art, it enables them to establish a stronger connection to the work of art. -How might you better improve your experience and/or results with each of the mediums in the future?  I could improve my experience and work by cutting out the steps that caused me to go back a step and focusing on always making improvements in the piece I am working on day after day.  I felt like in some areas, I made mistakes that made me have to erase or restart what I had done to make the drawing or photo have a greater sense of lighting and value.  By focusing on always making positive steps in my art, I will have a better experience and therefore a better result of my art in the future.

Value Photography

How did you develop craft with this assignment? 
I developed my craft with this assignment by learning how to choose and express a photo that featured multiple areas of blacks, whites, and greys.  By featuring all 3 of these shades, a greater sense of value was expressed and allowed the viewer to see which areas of the photo were more keen to the eye and which areas were more shady or not pronunciated.


What tools, methods and materials were essential to your process so far in the project? 
The essential materials I used was the digital and manual camera, developer, fixer,etc. and the pieces used to create the photos.  By creating a piece that expressed emotion and value, the photos were more than just a shot of some random materials, it expressed a feeling and emotion of the value of the objects.


What problems have emerged in the creation of this project?
Some of the problems I experienced was learning how to ensure the photo was in full aspect with the manual camera and making sure everything was in focus before I took the picture. 


How did you solve these problems (or how are you in the process of solving these problems)?
I solved these problems by learning how to adjust the position of the camera and changed the focus to make sure I was capturing the whole picture instead of just one or two parts of it.

Value Drawing

How did you develop craft with this assignment? 

I developed craft with this assignment by learning how to express the value of the object(s) I was drawing.  By learning to understand how to express distance, amount of light, and other aspects, I developed a higher and more interesting piece of art.

What tools, methods and materials were essential to your process so far in the project? 

Along with the normal 2B and 6B pencils and block eraser, a strong light was essential in making the shadows and sense of value more apparent to the human eye.  By examining the same piece in the same position every day, it allowed to us to have a picture in our mind of the piece and almost allowed me to draw the object without even having to see it in full detail.

What problems have emerged in the creation of this project?

One of the problems I experienced was the fact that other classes/groups removed the tape markings on the table that indicated where the object was to be positioned.  This made our group have to re-mark the object and changed my point of view a little bit.  Another potential problem was how to express the 3-D aspect of the object and showing areas where the object was closer to you or farther from you.

How did you solve these problems (or how are you in the process of solving these problems)?

I solved these problems by pronunciating my lines more where the object was closer to the eye, and making the lines less pronunciated where the object was in the distance.  In doing so, a more real life, 3-D object was created.