What is Illustration?

Different types / kinds / genres of illustration

• Graphics
• Fine art
• Commercial Advertising, branding, propaganda
• 3D / 2D
• Comic books / graphic artists 
• Street art / graffiti – text based art
• Blueprints –  different way of communication 
• Maps 
• Video illustration / animation 
• Illustration characters that are developed into gaming 

Genres 

• Horror 
• Comedic 
• Romance 
• Thrilling 
• Heroism 

Different media used in the production and reproduction of illustration 

• Graphite 
• Charcoal / Chalk 
• Watercolour 
• Ink
• Ceramics 
• Collage 
• Photography 
• Textiles / Fabrics / Embroidery 
• Online Editing – Adobe Illustrator / Photoshop
• Using your body
• Printmaking 

Other Art & Design disciplines related to illustration 

• Fine Art – Sculpture / Oil Painting 
• Painting – Watercolour 
• Interior Design – Textiles / Materials 
• Automobile Design 
• Conceptual Art
• Woodcutting 
• Jewellery Design 
• Books 
• Animation / Game Design 
• Printmaking 
• Commercial – Advertising / Branding 

 

Define illustration as a practice 

Illustration has often been considered to cross boundaries between fine art and drawing. There isn’t a specific medium that defines illustration and therefore the term has grown through new media and technology used. The term illustration has now been enabled to share a platform with fine art, where illustrators may draw their influences from graffiti, fashion, computer games and even animation. Illustration is used as a form of communicating expressions and ideas through colour, imagery and visual media. Practising ideas through a more physical form, illustration can act as a representation of a series of things. 

 

Image v Object : Collecting and Archiving Comic Books

A comic book is a publication, usually shown as a magazine, that presents sequential panels which depict individual scenes, consisting of comic art. These panels often represent a brief narrative with short dialog contained in word balloons. Comics originated in 18th century Japan, but became popular in the United Kingdom and the United States during the 1930’s. The term comic book has been formulated from American comic books being a collection of comic strips of a humorous tone, however this soon changed to stories consisting of all genres. 

Initially, children were the target audience for comic books, because they were perceived as children’s entertainment. However comics started gaining an increasing recognition as an art form and there was a growing pop culture presence of comic book conventions, which lead to them being embraced by many adults. Collectors are often lifelong enthusiasts of the stories, usually focusing on particular heroes and they may attempt to accumulate the entire run of a title. 

It was only after the depression that the popularity of newspaper cartoons expanded into a major industry. Captain marvel proved to be one of the most popular superhero comics of the golden age, regularly outselling the adventures of Superman during the 1940’s. Due to the comic books being cheap and portable, the sales increased dramatically during WW2. They displayed inspirational and patriotic stories, with themes such as good and evil, involving heroism. This reflected the events and values of current situations with Captain America being particularly popular, whose character was based on aiding the country’s war effort. He was even pictured battling Adolf Hitler on the cover of the first issue. Although the superhero comics were most in demand during the 1940’s, horror, crime, science fiction and western themed comics were also gaining interest. 

Some may have wondered why comic books are still selling well recently. One reason for the increase in popularity might rely on films. After the comic books were in high demand, there was plenty money to be made from creating superhero films. The films consisted of complex plots, deep-cut characters with colourful costumes and they were made easily accessible. Viewers and fans would start to “read” superhero films, and naturally would go back to reading the comics they were based on. The film business made comics seem more alluring, and new technology made it easier to read and obsess about them. Twitter or Tumblr are sites where fans can talk about comics, and websites like Comixology makes reading comics online incredibly simple. 

Another controversy about comics is whether or not readers prefer digital copies to paper comics. Digital comic books are arguably more convenient, accessible, eco-friendly and buyers don’t have to be concerned about handling their copies with as much care. Readers could also argue that the quality of reading is improved due to the backlight and adjustable font, and selling digital copies cuts down the number of comics in circulation, which means the paper copies become more valuable in time. Nonetheless, the prices hardly vary, giving buyers more enjoyment out of browsing a comic book store, knowing this will also benefit the local independent stores. I also believe that collectors will always have the opinion that hard copies are more satisfying, due to the feel of the material, whether or not the comic book has been printed on glossy paper or newspaper, and having the work in your hands also makes viewers appreciate the art more than they would on a screen. 

The two comics I’m briefly going to compare are called “Whoopee” and “Black Siddha – Return of the Jester”. They have both been printed off at a similar size, Whoopee being slightly smaller than A4 and Black Siddha slightly larger. Whoopee only has half the amount of pages compared to Black Siddha, which totals to 64 pages. The comic book Whoopee has been printed onto newspaper, which is most likely due to the fact the issue came out in August 1981. Black Siddha on the other hand is made up of glossy magazine pager, but unfortunately I wasn’t able to find a date on the issue, as it was probably inserted into a magazine rather than being sold on its own. The stories remind me of a graphic novel, with a vibrant, beautifully detailed style consisting of almost large brushstrokes of paint. The images are captivating and incredibly artistic, making it a pleasure to read and admire by an older target audience. Whoopee appeals to a younger audience, consisting of a large amount of short stories, created using a simplistic style. The content differs between black and white images and colourful ones that are a light and humorous read. 

 

 

 

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Transnational Histories

The History of Visual Media

When looking at the history of art and where it all started, cave paintings are the first known works of art. Over 200 painted cave walls have been found throughout Spain and France, portraying either animals, human bodies, symbols or engravings. Until this day cave paintings are still being interpreted and are not yet fully understood. It is believed that parts of the animal drawings could have been related to hunting magic. Due to hunting being a necessity for survival, the art could have been an experiment to influence the success of the hunt. The non representational symbols and handprints have been deciphered to be rituals. Cave art could also have been used to document the tribe’s rituals and beliefs, where the imagery would have represented a narrative. The cave paintings vary from simple monochromatic line drawings to complex three dimensional images and are in a variety of colours.

Most important / influential artists 

Van Gogh, Picasso, Da Vinci, Claude Monet, Salvador Dali, Andy Warhol, Marcel Duchamp, Egon Schiele, Roy Lichtenstein

Once each group had mentioned the artists they thought to be the most influential, the similarities between them was that they were all male, European and expressive artists. Women have been able to make a mark in art history, however they haven’t had the same amount of access to education, support and public spaces and networking as men. It also used to be a well known occurrence for women to have given themselves male names to be able to get more recognised for their art. 

The ‘Canon’ – that which is best and most important in a field of cultural production.

Who decides what the important examples, creators etc. are? 

Illustration in itself can be used as a tool for understanding history. An example of this is through the work of James Gillray, who was one of the finest caricaturists of the Georgian period. 

“The plumb pudding in danger” is a well known satire that depicts the napoleonic wars. William Pitt, the British prime minister, and Napoleon are sat opposite each other at a table, carving up the globe between them, in an attempt to try and claim the largest piece. There’s an obvious portrayal of the chase for international dominance shown between the British and French governments, but Gillray also represents the characters as repulsive by overemphasising William Pitt’s slim figure and Napoleon’s rather larger nose. These comical depictions would be easily recognised and appeal to a large target audience. 

How do we tell this story / history? 

Our concept of what important art and history is, is informed through museums, education, social media and curators/gatekeepers. The initial role of museums is to collect and preserve objects and materials that are considered of cultural and historical importance, research further into them and then display them to the public as educational information. However, history is often considered to be written by the victorious, as we will only be told the history by males who are in power, because they are in the position to form and tell it. 

 

No Google 

During this CTS session we explored valid and reliable ways of researching by using the UAL library search called ‘Articles Plus’ and discussed why it can be problematic to research using only Google. 

We explored a wide range of websites, while split into groups. My group focused on the website Mintel Academic. This is a statistical database that consists of a collection of market reports and economic data. It’s easy to access and navigate, and the reports are packed with analysis, incisive commentary and robust data. The website is extremely up to date with everything that’s newly on the markets and therefore is a useful way to research. 

The other website that I found of great interest is called Bridgeman Education. This website is an archive of digital images sourced from the world’s leading museums, galleries and private collections. It covers arts, humanities, social sciences and more. The main reason it grabbed my attention was because it covers such a large range of visual communication including photographic reproductions of paintings, sculpture, textiles, as well as photography and documentaries. These are all high resolution images and are accessible for users all over the world. 

 

Exhibition

Mikhail Karikis – No Ordinary Protest

Using the book “Iron Woman” as a starting point, Karikis worked with a group of seven year olds, to reflect on the environmental themes it raises through a protest against the poison and pollution caused in the world by the older generation. The film explores the children’s thought processes, where they discuss the issues and potential solutions of the damage inflicted by humans onto the earth and other species. They do this in a form of protest through noise, where they play with metallic objects, sing and clap after being asked how they think sound may affect the material world, the physical body and our emotions. 

The focus is on sound as the primary means of expression. Initially, we see the children listen, with their eyes closed, to the world and their own inner sounds. They have discussions about the environment and the reckless attitude of adults toward it. This causes them to take action against the environmental crisis through the only way possible to them, noise. Noise is further reflected through a cymatic landscape, where a metal plate was covered with powder. While the children were producing sound the plate and powder would vibrate, creating a movement of sound. This could be viewed as a metaphor, because while being filmed the powder looked like a mountain and through the force of the young generation they had the power to move the mountain.  

When walking into the exhibition room the entire area is blacked out and the viewer is immediately confronted with noise, sparking an interest in the situation and presentation. The seats that are provided are colourful cubes, which one might associate with the younger generation. This creates a closer sense of connection to the children in the film by placing the viewer in a position more relatable to them. The sound is somewhat overwhelming and uncomfortable as there is a large amount of noise being introduced at once. Even more so during the abstracted visual elements, where the viewer may not exactly be aware of what they’re looking at, sound acts as a substitute that the audience places most of their focus on, whether they might be aware of it or not. It projects an uneasy feeling and a sense of responsibility rises as the viewer continues to watch the critical thinking from seven year olds. If children this age are able to come up with solutions, why haven’t we? The realistic responses from the children also makes us question what transformative power noise has, and how much of a difference we would be able to make if we actually tried. 

The exhibition was created and displayed in a very thought provoking way. In my opinion, the reason it came across so effective was through the use of children. They were involved in a real debate and hearing them discuss environmental themes makes the viewer question their own opinion and reasons as to why they may not have thought of these issues or more importantly why they haven’t taken any action against such. 

 

How to be an Explorer of the World – Keri Smith

How to be an Explorer of the World by Keri Smith has inspired me to rediscover my surroundings by observing sounds, smells, places, people and patterns that I might not have even taken into consideration during my daily routines. You start noticing and experiencing things in ways you haven’t before through using available sources as methods or tools of creation. Keri Smith invites the reader to take part in tasks by collecting objects and analysing surroundings, which will lead to developing creative habits and perspectives.

I started off with Exploration 1 “Right where you are sitting”, which asks you to write a list of 10 things  about where you are sitting that you hadn’t noticed when you sat down. The aim was to use your senses and do it without much thought. This was my list: 

1. Noise of the train and conversations of people I’m surrounded by

2. Location (fields I’m travelling past)

3. Darkness in the tunnel

4. People and their stories 

5. Film poster on the wall 

6. Vibration of the moving train 

7. Amount of suitcases and bags 

8. Advertisements throughout the carriage 

9. Vehicles – ways of transportation 

10. Patterns on the seats 

“Everything has a value, provided it appears at the right place at the right time. It’s a matter of recognising that value, that quality, and then to transform it into something that can be used. If you come across something valuable and tuck it away in your metaphorical suitcase there’s sure to come a moment when you can make use of it.” Jurgen Bey

My aim is to complete all of the explorations, because I am convinced it will help me grow as an artist. These are some of the main explorations that really grabbed my attention: 

The book could be seen as a potential guide into the right direction if or when stuck in an artistic dilemma or even just fun tasks to develop a creative perspective. 

 

 

Considerations on curating Public Exhibitions

During a part of our CTS session we were asked to curate our own exhibition based on a collection of items from the UAL archives. The main things we had to consider were: 

• Idea and overall theme. Does it have a purpose?
• Floor plan and layout of the exhibition
• Artworks used for the exhibition. (Not everything provided has to be on display.)
• Consider audience and interaction
• Lighting and sound

Each group was given a box full of items from the archive. My group’s box contained final pieces from students who had graduated and were asked to create a small project or written piece on a chosen subject. Some of the items included a photo album, a video clip, a flyer, a sketchbook, and a couple of essays. 

 

 

 

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Once we were given the gallery floor plan, we had an idea of how much space we had to display all of the work. We started by selecting items which we thought would work well together in the display and would also look interesting and appeal to a wide range of audience. 

After having chosen the main items to go on display, we had to work out where in the room to locate them and how the display would look overall. We had to consider the artwork not getting damaged but making it viewable and accessible to the audience at the same time. Locating all of the items for the exhibition proved to be slightly challenging at first, because everyone had a different idea of where to place things. We solved this problem by walking through the space in our mind and thinking about a logical flow between the artworks. 

I think we managed to make a good use out of the space we were provided with and were able to display a number of works in a creative way. One of the sketchbooks was shown on a stand so that viewers would be able to flick through it carefully. We decided to share the video clip in a sectioned off corner of the exhibition, so that it wouldn’t disturb any of the other pieces and visitors could join and leave the film as they liked, without distracting anyone watching. The flyer was placed spread out in a glass display, so that viewers would be able to walk around it as it was double sided. The second sketchbook also unfolded into one large piece of work, which we decided to display in the same way as the flyer. Lights would be facing down from the ceiling from all four corners of the glass cabinet. In addition, we also selected two essays to be framed onto a wall, because there was several essays or pieces of writing in our archive box and it was interesting to see how different students interpreted and worked on the brief given in their own ways. 

The overall theme and purpose of our exhibition was almost like a showcase of new talent. We were displaying works of students who had recently graduated and made a project/final piece on a chosen subject. Most of the students decided to focus on themselves, almost like an autobiography. As a result of this, we decided give our exhibition the title “Their Time”, because it focuses on everyones Individual experiences. 

 

Panel transitions in comics

During this CTS session we explored panel transitions in comics, based on examples from Scott McClouds book “Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art.” He describes six types of panel-to-panel transitions, which give the reader a basic understanding of the narrative. 

• Moment to Moment Transitions

In this transition we only see a very slight change occur. The first panel will take place moments before the second. You can’t necessarily tell the amount of time in between, but usually the panels are only seconds apart. An example would be a basic movement taking place such as eyes changing from being open to being shut.

 

 

 

• Action to Action Transitions

Here the panels move from one action to the next, where a subject is continuing through a specific activity. Examples would include a car driving in the first panel and it crashing in the second, or a football player getting ready to kick the ball and going through with the action in the next panel.

• Subject to Subject Transitions

Within a subject-to-subject transition, the panels move from one subject or person to another. They are related moments happening in the same scene, but the panels focus on different subjects. This can occur if there is a conversation going on and the focus shifts from one person to another. 

• Scene to Scene Transitions

Time is very relevant in these transitions, because they are usually separated significantly in time. There could be a change in location, where the panels are not in the same scene. Text is used to make this more evident. A different place or time could be added to make the reader aware of this change. 

 

 

 

• Aspect to Aspect Transitions

Again, these panels will be part of the same scene or in the same location, but they show different aspects that are occurring within this moment. Key details can be revealed in these transitions, a different environment could be introduced or the characters focus could simply wonder. 

• Non-Sequitur Transitions

Here the panels transition from one image to the next with no specific connection. They could link in with one another, but there’s not a direct or clear association like a repetition of a character. They are not used very often, apart from in surreal abstract or gag comics. The reason behind this is because the reader will automatically try and associate a meaning between the two panels even though there wasn’t one intended, and they could therefore be misinterpreted as an Aspect to Aspect transition. 

 

Before we started analysing panel transitions we were put into groups of 6. Everyone had an empty story board and started it off by sketching a quick scene in 2 minutes into the first panel. From there, we would rotate the story boards around the group and everyone would participate in adding one panel to the story. Once we had discussed the different panel transitions, we were able to apply them to our own little storyboard. 

Panel 1 – 2 | Aspect to Aspect Transition

These two panels share the same moment, but the reader discovers that the person viewing an exhibition really likes one of the paintings, instead of just browsing around the room. 

 

Panel 2 – 3 | Moment to Moment Transition

We observe that because the person liked the painting so much, they decided to capture a picture of it. At first I was unsure whether this would be an Action to Action transition, because taking a photograph is an action. However liking a picture and taking a photo of such isn’t part of the same action so I decided it is a Moment to Moment transition. 

 

Panel 3 – 4 | Moment to Moment Transition

Again, these panels are occurring moments after one another in the same location. He is approached and gets told off for taking a picture of the painting.

 

Panel 4 – 5 | Scene to Scene Transition

A large amount of time separates these two panels. The location changes and the panels are not part of the same scene. As a consequence for the subject having taken a picture of the painting, he drastically ends in jail. 

 

Panel 5 – 6 | Moment to Moment Transition

Lastly, he moves from the bars of his prison cell onto his bed and is contemplating a solution for his problem.

 

 

 

Another important factor when creating or analysing comics is time and meaning. The narrative implicates time and meaning and connects many things. Composition and layout are vital aspects in terms of grabbing the readers attention. It could be likely for the reader to leave the comic unread if this hasn’t been done correctly. 
Grid formatting started off with white gutters (borders) surrounding each panel, where the reader is expected to read from left to right. Artists have since considered it challenging to go against this ideal method of grid formatting and instead would produce layouts and compositions that went against this traditional formatting. Even though they may look impressive, some layouts could leave the reader feeling confused about which order to read the panels from (see image attached).

The final exercise involved us working in the same group of 6 on a short storyboard. This time, instead of producing the images individually, we worked on the story as a team and also had to consider layout and composition when presenting the story as a whole. Our narrative consisted of “Mario the Moustache” applying, taking part in and eventually winning a moustache competition. 

Working out the composition and layout as a team proved to be slightly more challenging, as everyone had individual ideas. We started off with the first three panels in a traditional layout, but wanted to add more of a spark to the reading. We agreed on the final panel of Mario the Moustache being larger and in the bottom right hand corner. Due to this, we arranged the remaining two panels as long panels. These two panels included the catwalk and competition winners, which worked well as a long panels. They give the reader a more cinematic feel to the comic and the length also constructs a slight misconception of extended time, which worked well for our story, because it was only made up of 6 panels. At first, I wasn’t quite convinced that this layout was suitable, but once we added text boxes the layout had more of a flow to the reading. 

 

Stereotypes and Identity Politics

Stereotypes

As stated in the Cambridge English Dictionary, a stereotype is a “set idea that people have about what someone or something is like”. Racial stereotypes are instinctive and generalised views of people of a particular racial group. Judgements are made in regards to distinguishable characteristics such as race, gender or age. 

Stereotypes neglect people’s humanity, uniqueness and singular personalities which can have harmful consequences such as influence the way people get treated and other behaviours in society. They are mainly formed by the media and family opinions. Often it’s the case that people tend not to have numerous opportunities where they come across diverse races and therefore it’s more straightforward to judge these groups in various settings on TV. An example of a usual African American Stereotype considers them to be unintelligent, lazy and a criminal. (“How Do Americans View One Another? The Persistence of Racial/Ethnic Stereotypes”, 1998). This perception has been created by TV portrayals where common black roles include drug dealers, murderers, underprivileged children or prostitutes. 

The University of Notre Dame Counselling Centre held a survey (2000), where they claimed that “Racial stereotypes are often negative.” They found that Blacks, Asians, and Hispanics are generally thought of as poor, lazy, more violence prone and less intelligent in comparison to Whites. “When perceptions of different races are distorted and stereotypical, it is demeaning, devaluing, limiting and hurtful to others” (University Counselling Centre, 2000).

Different ways to deal with racial stereotypes include:

• Education, this is a powerful and important approach that can give a factual portrayal of diverse races
• Everyone should have a considerate obligation to overlook the media’s representations and refrain from spreading racial stereotypes
• Personal experiences also have a great impact so it would be useful to step outside of the regular everyday and travel across the globe

 

Intersectionality

Intersectionality consists of social categorisations mainly including race, class gender, but also immigration status, faith, sexuality and ability. They combine our multiple identities and each one of them is associated to another. It is important to note that different types of discrimination crosses and intensifies discrimination. An intersectional approach will be able to perceive these various combinations. Using this approach we are able to accept and appreciate this diversity. It strengthens unity throughout communities. 

 

During our CTS session we were put into groups and asked to sketch out a stereotypical rapper and grandma. This was an amusing way to make us consider general stereotypes that we are surrounded by. After discussing stereotypes and the consequences we drew another sketch of each but as an opposite, therefore an unstereotypical representation. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These were our general stereotypes that we related to rappers and grandmas before starting to sketch:

Rapper:

• associated to violence, jail
• overly explicit
• black
• only talks about sex, money and drugs
• smokes weed
• gold teeth, piercings, tattoos, baggy clothes, chains

Grandma:

• overfeeds grandchildren
• loves reading
• gardens
• knitting
• allocated her own armchair to sit in
• enjoys baking
• wears glasses, pearls and has curly short hair

 

Dissecting the Visual

Conducting Pictorial Autopsies

Why do we analyse art?

• to gain a deeper understanding
• helps inform our own practice
• can reveal interesting and relevant reflections of the world we live in

 

The following bulletpoints are necessary to consider when analysing any artwork:

Style

• Realistic
• Abstract / Representational
• Expressive
• Non-objective
• Conceptual (the idea is often more important than the visual impact)

What are the formal elements?

• Line – actual or implied, contour, psychological
• Shape – geometric and/or organic
• Value – how has light to dark contrast been applied
• Light – which areas have most light
• Colour – eg. primary, secondary, complementary, warm/cool. Are there any meanings or suggestions imposed by the choice of colour
• Texture – actual, simulated or subverted
• Space – 2D/3D (shallow, deep, overlapping, perspective) Realistic, linear or exaggerated
• Time – time implied, stopped time, time of reference
• Motion – blurred, kinetic, implied

Principles of design

• Movement / directional forces – where is the eye being led?
• Focal points – what is the focus? What do you notice first/second/third?
• Positive / negative areas – what is in the foreground, middle ground, background
• Economy / repetition – are there any repeating patterns? Why?
• Proportions (scale) – are the elements correct to scale?
• Balance – is the composition balanced?

Facts

• Title – (Does it validate your ideas? / Is it vague and meant to be left to interpretation? / Does knowing the title give you a biased experience? Could this be purposefully misleading?)
• Artist
• Dimensions
• Location
• Medium
• Subject

Subject Matter

• interactions or narratives between elements
• Symbolic meaning
• Use of icon / iconography eg. heart = love
• Themes?
• References to historical timeframes / events?
• Ideology?

Personal Thoughts

• What attributes does the work have? Why?
• Do you get a meaning from the work?
• In order to gain a deeper meaning, do you need to research further? Do you want to know more?
• Do you recognise symbolism? Do you need/want to apply a more educated response in order to engage with it?
• Is the work for a limited audience or is it accessible? Is it inviting? How do you feel about this?
• What are your personal reflections on the work

Further Research

• Further research may illuminate / challenge or extend your thoughts and it can also lead you to new evidence and ideas worthy of excavation
• Artist research / artist influences and contemporaries / work that has been influenced by, comments on, acknowledges or re-appropriated the original / critical theory
• Goals of research (exploration / description / interpretation)

 

My analysis of “Christina’s World” by Andrew Wyeth

The painting we analysed in week 10’s CTS lesson portrays a girl laying in a field, who is gazing up towards what I assume is a house and farm. The style is naturalistic and depicts realism. Textural mark making can be seen in the grass, it is subtle and blends in with each other well. Each blade of grass is meticulously painted, specifically focusing in detail on the individual blades. There are tracks that have been created by a tractor and run along the field up to the horizon. The landscape looks very desolate and is painted in earthy colours. It looks muted and fairly gloomy as there is no direct sunlight. The way the girl has been painted implies her to have a thin body through the bone structure and creases on the dress.

The main focus of the piece is the girl who is laying in the foreground. We are drawn to look at her first, possibly because of the pastel pink dress she is wearing that stands out drastically compared to the dull colours in the background. Not being able to see her face makes the viewer focus on the details of the body and dress. She looks youthful, as she is extremely thin, but there are a few streaks of grey hair to be noticed. This could be due to stress, but the girl could also be much older than initially assumed. Her hands look dirty and she is wearing fairly plain shoes. 

As we can’t see her face, our gaze shifts towards the houses and landscape further afield. Her body could be used as a movement to drive our view around the picture, as she herself is longing towards the houses, we follow her gaze. The composition of the painting is not very traditional, as the right house is placed at the border of the piece. This doesn’t leave a frame of horizon like usual, there is not golden section and overall it looks fairly imbalanced. We are unable to see the whole perspective, due to not being able to see her full field of vision. As an observer, we start questioning who she is, why she is on the ground and what she may be searching for in the distance. 

The painting is called “Christina’s World” and was painted by Andrew Wyeth in 1948. It measures 1.21 x 0.82 meters, it was created using egg tempera on a gessoed panel and is currently located at the Museum of Modern Art. Having found out the title, we could now assume that this painting is Christina’s whole world, all that she has and possibly will experience. It could represent her view and surroundings that she lives in. Wyeth’s muse in this painting is a lady whose family farm he lived on for a while. Neurologists thought Anna Christina Olson had polio, but now people believe that she suffered from Charcot-Marie Tooth disease. This causes weakness in her legs and feet and meant she was handicapped from the waist down, so she often moved about crawling.

Wyeth’s father had been killed at a railway crossing three years prior to the painting. From this stage his work underwent significant changes, such as the palette becoming more moderate and muted, conveying his inner grief. Although Andrew Wyeth is primarily classed as a realist painter, he thought of himself as an abstractionist, “my people, my objects breathe in a different way: there’s another core – an excitement that’s definitely abstract.” (Life Magazine article in 1965). Talking about ‘Christina’s World’ specifically, Wyeth claimed he intended to “do justice to her extraordinary conquest of a life which most people would consider hopeless”. The painting almost looks like it is stopped within a movement and in fact Wyeth captured her during a mid-crawl up the field.

 

Review of an Illustrated Publication

Chosen article:

Transforming research into an illustrated abstract

My chosen review of an illustrated publication is based on an article that explores how research can be turned into illustration to be able to appeal to a wider audience. The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) Library brought together an illustrator and authors of research articles, that were funded to be published open access, to create illustrated pieces that can be accessed by a larger range of people. 

Karen Rubins, who is a comic creator and illustrator, created comic strips that have been illustrated from two research articles which the library funded for open access publication. She transformed Alpha Shah’s work, which centres around ethnographic research and participant observation, as can be seen below. 

Karen also translated Steve Gibbons, Olmo Silva and Felix Weinhardt’s open-access article into a cartoon abstract which explores the effect of neighbourhood transience on teenage performance in school.

As Karen didn’t have a background in either topic, she developed her knowledge and understanding by spending more time with the authors to be able to translate the appropriate message into a comic strip. Both illustrations were printed onto posters and banners around the university, with the aim to be seen by academics, students and staff. Furthermore, they were shared on social media by the authors and their colleagues, receiving exceptional feedback online.

This method of creating work may not be suitable for all topics, and a mix of different researchers or artists could have had a less effective result. The article that was written on ethnography was successful, due to it initially being written in a style towards a general audience. Many research articles, however, are extremely technical and therefore wouldn’t be understood by everyone unless readers had experience in the subject. 

Turning research articles into illustrations does however make academic work more accessible to a non-technical audience. Viewers are more likely to be drawn to the artwork and therefore take an interest in the messages and information that is being shown. Karen Rubins was able to create an effective narrative from both articles, reimagining the work visually, so that readers could easily follow the storyline. Due to the articles being depicted through comic strips, they were able to portray complex concepts, helping the reader understand the information easily and quickly. Readers also may remember the information more vividly, due to visually remembering the story that accompanied the information.

 

 

Past examples of students work

The first session of CTS after returning back from half term mainly involved looking at past examples of students work. Below I’ve included images of students work on the visual essay and blog posts they included in their physical hand in.

 

 

Once we were in our smaller groups we were then asked to review one work specifically, noting down the pros and cons of the design and work. The piece I looked at was from a girl named Francesca Spinks. Again, I’ve included images of her work below.

 

 

She bound the booklet herself, which I found impressive at first, however once flicking through the book I realised that the grain direction was running incorrectly. The panels/fibres in the paper run a certain way and create a direction, this should be running from top to bottom so that it is parallel to the spine. If the grain direction runs horizontally, the book ends up being stiff and difficult to flick through, which affects the outcome of the book. She completed the binding with a ‘Three-hole pamphlet stitch,’ which is a fairly simple and straightforward method of binding, yet still looks impressive. 

I liked the overall layout of her book. The blog posts are separated clearly and precisely with suitable spacing in-between. The design can be followed well and it is uncomplicated and effortless to read. She has also added images and a link to a video for reference. She has started with the blog posts at the beginning of the book and placed the visual essay at the very end.

She has included impressive research throughout her project with a remarkable bibliography towards the end of her booklet. Her visual essay consists of writing stating “CCTV in operation” but the text is actually made up of screenshots and images of where surveillance has taken part in places she’s been herself. In my opinion, the visual essay was quite difficult to view. I think this could have been made easier by changing the colour of the book and also the sizing. I really liked the idea behind the project, but she chose for the book to be printed in yellow, which makes the images very difficult to view. The book is also smaller than A5 and therefore each image is only a centimetre wide. Particularly the images that form the word “operation” are exceptionally challenging to make out. If the book was printed on clearer colour and enlarged then this wouldn’t be an issue. Lastly, I think she should have used a different colour thread, because yellow and red contrast with each other and don’t work well together. 

 

Funny Ha-Ha

“Space argument – do it myself” video

We started off the Funny Ha-Ha session by watching a video on youtube. The ‘Space Argument’ videos are about astronauts who have petty squabbles in space about little mistakes that wouldn’t happen realistically. In this video, in particular, one coworker finished work in space and wanted to be let back into the space shuttle. His other co-worker seems incredibly incapable of helping him and asks questions such as “what button is it?” and then proceeds to make various mistakes and therefore the first coworker just ends up pulling himself in with the cable himself instead. 

The situation is funny because it’s placed in an environment that we associate with sophisticated technology and exceptional individuals and therefore we don’t expect these issues to happen. The astronaut is lazy, incapable of working and they are constantly swearing. This can be relatable to the audience because we recognise these behaviours, responses, and reactions and we are realising that human beings are flawed and fallible which can be humorous. We also laugh at the expense of someone else without having to go through infliction and suffering ourselves and because we know it’s not realistic and no one is actually experiencing any distress we find it amusing. “Most often slapstick comedy centres on a performed incompetence” (Peacock 2014, p. 8). The cartoon version has been created very simplistic without much high tech involved and there’s bad sound throughout the clip which further emphasises their struggles and the humour throughout the video. These issues wouldn’t actually happen in any realistic situation and through the use of incongruity, the animation is a humorous watch.

Humour depends on

• recognition
• shared understandings
• (unspoken) codes

-> humour is social and can be culturally specific

“Laughter and humor are indeed like an invitation, be it an invitation for dinner, or an invitation to start a conversation: it aims at decreasing social distance.” (Coser 1959, p. 172, cited by Kuipers 2009, p. 222)

 

Upon researching myself I stumbled upon Pawel Kuczynski, who combines irony and mockery in his illustrations to depict the worlds political, cultural and social matters. His illustrations can come across as playful and amusing but they actually address serious situations and issues of today’s society.

 

 

 

Seriously Funny: Metaphor & the Visual Pun article

A verbal pun is a funny phrase that hints towards two or more meanings through utilising numerous meanings of words. A visual pun on the other hand proposes that the visual could have multiple meanings, as well as language. Visual puns are used globally and in many cultures and are able to imitate human expression. “Creativity is intelligence having fun,” (Albert Einstein). Through studying and producing art containing puns, students are able to grasp the elements that make a visual pun entertaining by exploring metaphors, symbols and patterns. Visual puns can either be developed from verbal puns or be purely visual.

In ‘Visual puns in design’ Eli Kince writes that there are three different varieties of puns:

• the literal pun – where the pun is necessary to “uphold the primary meaning of the message. (Eg letters that are crawling along the bottom of the composition as if they were people).
• the suggestive pun – the pun is merely suggested so it may take a second look to understand the picture play.
• the comparative pun – relies on “at least two key symbols” to construct the pun. (Eg Milot’s mouse/lion illustration)

There are also purely visual puns that don’t depend on language whatsoever. Christoph Niemann’s illustrations are an example of this. He uses physical objects as well as drawings to construct these puns. For example including a coffee cup which implies a sleepy morning or a tea bag to represent a butlers’ delicately ironed and tucked shirt in which he is able to serve afternoon tea.

 

 

We have a skill to construct and decipher visuals which can be used as a method to develop our verbal skills. Examples of this can be seen through our ancestors who produced imagery before language, or through babies who can translate symbols before interpreting or creating verbal language. 

Humour that is used in visual imagery and puns can be seen as a practice for people to interpret and master metaphors and symbols in art. Although verbal puns have been analysed more carefully, visual puns are becoming more popular and will remain to influence and establish our conceptual, analytical and visional thinking.

 

Caricatures 

– A representation of a subject that exaggerates its characteristics to produce a comical or grotesque effect. For example, as part of a political cartoon: a drawing representing current public figures or issues symbolically and often satirically.

Key characteristics of a caricature:

• exaggerated features
• symbolic
• visual metaphors eg animals, pear shaped head, objects could become metaphors

Drawings and animations often ‘get away with’ more both literally and symbolically. For example in Tom and Jerry when Tom gets blown up by a bomb. Satire can combine imaginary elements with strong and clear references to the real world. Although fictional elements may be used, they are often combined with events or situations that have happened in the real world which then becomes metaphorical. Satire uses ridicule, mockery, exaggeration to attack and criticise vice, corruption, and abuses of power. If people use humour when not in a powerful position it is not considered satire. Social satire combines ‘laughing at’ and ‘laughing with’. It is often easier to talk about situations/events when humour is involved, this makes them more acceptable.

 

I was traveling on a long journey in a car shortly after the funny-ha-ha CTS session. We were listening to the radio in which they were discussing the current Brexit situation for over an hour. All I kept hearing was that Theresa May is constantly trying to delay Brexit and is asking for more time to try and organise a deal. She is trying to negotiate an extension so that we don’t need to leave the EU on the 12th of April without a deal in place. This inspired me to make a caricature drawing of Theresa May, who, in the illustration is part of a clock which she is attempting to stop from having her time run out. 

 

Nostalgia and Retro

Reminiscing and indulging in pleasant memories of past events is something we can all find ourselves guilty of. Either through recollecting past experiences or considering times before ours. Our weekly CTS session was focused around the influence and importance of times that have gone by. Conversation was initiated through the question “Why is the past of relevance?” to which some of the answers included that past events should not be forgotten so that history doesn’t repeat itself and historical elements should be preserved as they connect us to exact dates, occasions and places that are considered significant moments. We also discussed questions such as “Is nostalgia an inherently conservative tendency, a preference for looking back rather than forward, or a romantic yearning for the past that never was?,” or “Can nostalgia be a source of creativity that also strengthens social bonds and shared identities?”

An immediate way of recalling memories or nostalgia can be through personal and individual aspects. These could be combined of sensory prompts that can be visual but also be recollected through smell, taste, and touch etc, for example smelling a certain fragrance or hearing a specific song. Memory and nostalgia can be viewed through the personal and individual, as well as a cultural and collective. Although we tend to think about the past more often than we may like to admit, it may not always be identical to the actual events that occurred, due to us favouring selective moments. “One of the defining characteristics of nostalgia is that it promotes selective memory and possibly a misrecognition of the past.” (Kohn, M., 2010. ‘Toronto’s distillery district: Consumption and nostalgia in a post-industrial landscape.’ Globalizations, 7(3), pp. 366)

The part of the session that I found most captivating was when we were separated into groups to take part in further reading and discussion. We were given the choice which group to pick based on different categories, including the likes of ‘Digital vs Analogue’, ‘Hipsters’, ‘Keep Calm & Carry On’, ‘Mexican Street Art’ and ‘Swiss Art’. 

I chose the category ‘Mexican Street Art’ in which we were given an article to read by David Byrne titled “Nostalgia for the Real – or, Bad is Good”. The article underlines the idea that with today’s technology perfection is too simple to achieve and therefore argues that “the industrialised world has become nostalgic for “imperfect” design.” Especially in design, artists and magazine editors have been known to resemble the work of unrecognised artists who probably can’t spare the money for certain software or even a laptop. Some may believe by replicating a piece or style, they might actually become or own it themselves, when in fact they have just simply altered the original. Since the 19th century, artists have abandoned realistic styles, because machines have the capability of creating things faster and more exact. They decided to disregard their techniques and instead draw “like a ‘primitive’”. Although everyone is striving for perfection, once it has been achieved there’s nothing more to it. Imperfection, on the other hand, has feeling and soul and is intimate, and because it’s not owned by everyone, for example, because it hasn’t been created in the same style etc, it is a more desirable piece of work.

These images are the same example as the food from a street food bakery would taste extremely nicer than a croissant from Tesco. Despite the fact they are less flawless or even less clean, they taste, smell and feel better, because it could have a homemade recipe or even love and effort that has gone into making it that a chain can never achieve. Perfection, in that sense, may not even be perfect at all. Imperfections have a way of making things unique and more often than not it is through the mistakes or things that have gone wrong you end up with a desirable piece of work. Unfortunately, these copies and adaptations are likely to override the original pieces of work, because the originals were simply used as inspiration and don’t have the popularity or fame to stand out. “If the unreal at various points and places around the world manages to completely obliterate the real, …, then the real itself will eventually become merely a memory, a quaint story, a picture in a book of something that no longer exists.” This reminded me of a great example of when I visited stalls in South Africa in which you could find so many hidden talents of work, be it from art to jewelry and more. But although these are true artists, none of them would have a website or advertisements to showcase their work further for promotion and yet people will be able to take inspiration from them who are able to produce and advertise it on a larger platform.