Critical Evaluation
Emerging aims
My early ideas for the project were quite broad. They were themes around time, space (environments), narratives and people. Over the course of time, I narrowed it down to pattern and repetition. I got this idea because throughout Perec’s narrative there are reoccurring things that he mentions. In particularly, the pigeons and the buses and where they are going. Later, I established that the message I wanted to communicate was a comment about the everyday and routines. Similarly one of the themes in the book were the everyday and making the mundane extraordinary. Although there are some things that repeat from each day, no two moments happen exactly the same.
Research
I did some research on conceptualising pattern. I thought it was important to understand what patterns mean psychologically and what effect it has on the viewer. Alan Fletcher in “The Art of looking sideways” describes pattern as a single element that is repeated. This is illustrated with a series of pictures of 1 shape being used tessellated to form different patterns but by using only that 1 shape. (See page 8)
“Patterns introduce a degree of control into this chaotic world” – Alan Fletcher
In addition to this, patterns are associated with order and safety because patterns repeat the same and are therefore predictable. (It is easy to see what comes next) I feel this helps reinforce the message with what I am trying to communicate in my final outcome. The ideas of “safety and order” help reinforce that routines are a good thing because the things we do everyday is like a “safety net”, it’s non-threatening, repetitive and predictable. Similarly to how patterns repeat themselves and are all the same.
Methodology
I started drawing out different elements based on the things Perec mentions in the first chapter. My intentions were to talk about the space with illustrations. I put them into a composition whilst paying attention to visual depth; I made the things that I thought were significant stand out, and the little details to add interest. When I filled in the piece with two colors, I noticed what stroke me were the positive and negative shapes of the bird. I thought it was interesting blending positive and negative shapes into each other because it created a different shape altogether.
I took this further by putting silhouettes into the negative space so that there were shapes within the shapes. For example there is traffic background in the shapes of the people, there are building contours in the shape of the bird and there are shapes of trees in the shapes of a group of pigeons. After this, I focused on positive and negative shapes of birds because I felt they have a strong aesthetically pleasing shape. There is something about birds that are graceful, how they fly and how mankind was fascinated with being able to fly.
I noticed that the drawings that I did at this point was like screen printing because I’m working in flat layers of colors.
And I saw some interesting pattern designs done with layers in the book called “The Fundamentals of illustration” by Lawrence Zeegan Crush. The artist cut into layers of card that show through to create an image. Similarly, I looked into a artist called Henri Mattisee that also used a similar approach by making a collage out of colored cut shapes. What I found this technique appealing was the fact that you can see and feel the texture of the shapes where the negative shapes have been cut. You could almost feel the craftsmanship in the making of it. The handmade aspect of it made it feel special or aesthetic in a way.
I decided to incorporate this into my own work and therefore cut out the different shapes I had in my previous drawing. (shapes of cars, birds, people, buildings etc) I tried out different compositions such as spacious, arranged in subject matter or just random. The color of the paper made a difference to the mood of the piece. For example, the red stood out the most and demands a lot of attention whereas the blue is more passive and relaxing.
With feedback from my lecturer and peers, they encouraged me to explore this further by repeating the same shape over and over again and think about: What is pattern? What would happen if you changed the scale? What negative shapes does it produce?
This led me on to produce cut stencils of my own with a scalpel like the ones I saw in “The fundamentals of Illustration.” Firstly, I noticed the color choice was important. When I used the primary colors, it made the mood feel inviting, happy or friendly. In contrast when I used darker reds and greys it made it feel more immediate as if the birds were flying towards you. In terms of pattern, the birds repeated did create some nice positive and negative shapes.
I also tried to incorporate shapes within shapes; basically a bird with a pattern of birds within it. This shows a sense of “repeat, repeat, repeat”, again and again which is essentially what pattern usually does. I felt this worked well except it would be better if the scale of the birds were smaller because they look too big to be repeating.
Effectiveness of the work produced
I think my end outcome was successful but to an extent. I think the way I’m using pattern to comment on the everyday and routines works well. The repetition in the patterns represents the repetitiveness of daily routine. I think I have used color well, the warm neutral colors help communicate that routine is a positive thing.
I feel that my work relates to the brief well because I’ve tried to incorporate similar themes into my work. The main idea that I had explored were patterns but I feel if I had more time I could have explored this further. I’ve identified patterns as something being all the same, the next step would be to break those conventions and see what happens when you break that pattern. For example, on a routine basis we might have a tea everyday, but not every cup of tea is the same. Sometimes it’s perfect, other times there is spillage, or too much milk etc. If I started to show some variation within pattern then this could make it more visually interesting and it would be pushing the boundaries of “What is pattern?”.
However, I feel pleased that I have tried a few mediums. Such as photography, drawing, hand cut stencils and going digital (Photoshop). Each one has a different purpose and are good for different things. For example, I found the stencils were good for moving around different elements to decide on composition, scale or the effect of color. Whereas the photography was good for telling a narrative: how objects tell you about the people who inhabit the space. On the other hand drawing is not necessarily good for realism but it can interpret a feel of a place with different mark making. If I had more time, I could have took this a bit further by using the laser cutters or doing some printmaking. It really would have been something I would be interested in doing.
I had a few relevant research material such as “the art of looking sideways”, “the fundamentals of illustration”, Henri Matisse’s work etc. I could have expanded this further by looking at the history of pattern and more designers work and how they use pattern.
In a sense, it has been an interesting journey, one that is worth carrying on pursuing in my own time. The beauty of it was that I didn’t know where this was going to lead me, when I started this project I didn’t think of pattern and repetition straight away. But by experimenting with different ideas and approaches, it led me onto this idea and I began to notice what I was really interested in. There were some new skills I learnt on the way, such as using a craft knife (without injuring myself). And a different way of thinking about things such as: challenging ideas, breaking conventions to see what would happen and to do broader research in the future to gain an awareness of the context that I am working in.
