17.02.2025 - 03.03.2025 | Week 3 - Week 5
Maisarah binti Mohd Sufian | 0358458
Design Principles | Bachelor of Design (Hons) in Creative Media
Task 2: Visual Analysis & Ideation
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LECTURES
View all lectures here.
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EXERCISE
Instructions
For this task, we are required to write a 300-350 word visual analysis adhering to the guide in the lecture notes. With our design principles knowledge, we are required to sketch out three ideas for how our selected artwork can be improved, describing them and including a 30-50 word rationale for each.
Visual Analysis
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| Marlene Dumas, Oh, Oh, Oh, Not Again, 1996/2001; Ink and metallic acrylic on paper, 13 ¼ x 10 in. Retrieved from National Museum of Women in the Arts. No Man's Land Online Exhibition |
This artwork is in a portrait format. The only subject is a woman, who's head takes up all of the space on the canvas. Her face is viewed at a 45° angle, and her features are small, two round eyes, a slim nose and mouth agape to show two front teeth. At the bottom right, just below her teeth there is a long indiscernible object which is touching her bottom lip. The visual elements in this piece are the colours, white, grey and black. Those are the only colours seen, most likely different concentrations of ink. The head is it's own organic shape, with a clear distinction of colour from the background. Space placed between the facial features give the illusion of the angled face looking to the side.
As for the principles, this artwork has a strong emphasis on the face of the woman, where there are no other clear details or bordering lines in the composition. The features are painted in contrast between the head and the background, varying greatly in value. This piece is also asymmetrically balanced as most of the visual attention is placed on the right-hand side of the canvas. It is harmonious, in that the use of colours compliment one another, yet the bleeding edges of the face provide variety from the clear edges of the head. The proportions of the composition is realistic, with the width between the facial features contributing to it's recognizability.
This artwork was created in 1996, by South African artist Marlene Dumas. The artist's goal was to paint what we cannot see (nmwaadmin, 2016), and I find that the artwork does reflect a more spiritual aura, with the piece giving off a dramatic energy. It is not to see, but to feel, and the artist has a achieved that goal through an abstract approach, her use of medium allowing the viewer to associate with different feelings and emotions. Personally I imagine that the woman is looking back at someone with a mixture of fear and confusion, And whoever this person is has clearly invaded her space and has put her in a position where she is unable to speak up for herself by instilling a presence where she feels that in order to keep herself safe, she must silently accept. The 1990s was also a time where artists tended to look at current issues such as exploration of gender and identity (Art of the 1990s, n.d.), which I think the piece resonates with as well.
References:
nmwaadmin. (2016, November 15). National Museum of Women in the Arts. National Museum of Women in the Arts. https://nmwa.org/blog/nmwa-exhibitions/no-mans-land-fragmented-bodies/
Art of the 1990s. (n.d.). Artsy. https://www.artsy.net/gene/1990s
Sketches
Sketch #1
Rationale: I shift the angle of the head so that it is facing forward, placing all the features along an axis for symmetrical balance. I will also add flowing lines and shapes to add movement to the piece, using different textures. Organic lines would be placed on the bottom right and top left corner, moulding into shapes under the principle of similarity. This, with the movement on top will add a sense of unity and maintain the balance. These lines represent different external energies.
Sketch #2
Rationale: This is a more graphic design approach, where the woman serves as imagery for added text. The text may be about the feelings of a woman in society, where the information will be arranged in vertical alignments with a hierarchy. The text and image are placed in a way to balance the composition, with added white space in the middle to give rest to the eyes from reading the lines of text. I would keep the image almost true to the original artwork with minor changes in detail. In correlation to my personal views towards this piece the text should be about the internal monolog of a woman who has been placed in a position where she is not able to speak her mind to fend herself or speak up against her perpetrators in fear of worse consequences towards her retaliation.
Sketch #3
Rationale: Creating the shape of the head by blocking in the background (Principle of Closure), and emphasising the facial features, eyes and mouth. They are placed along a point on a 3x3 grid, applying the Rule of Thirds. The eyes and mouth are drawn out of proportion, adding further contrast and visual interest. The motive behind emphasizing the eyes and the mouth is that these are one of the most expressive parts on our face, you could tell the emotions of someone just by their eyes and their mouth allows them to speak, the strongest tool in conveying thoughts. In the artwork the eyes clearly express more than the mouth, as the mouth is being covered by something which is stopping her from truthfully speaking her mind. This is the message that I want to convey, women are commonly put in situations where they are not able to say what they want due to old fashioned prejudice. Some people believe the words of a woman is inferior. This has led to most women having a silent way of communicating through their eyes, they are almost able to understand what each of them are feeling without needing to utter a single word.
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FEEDBACK
Week 4:
Specific feedback: The interpretation part of my analysis can be a bit more personal, what the artwork means to me.
Week 5:
Specific feedback:
- Sketch #1 is a good opportunity to showcase my illustration skills but doesn't have the same opportunity to convey as strong as a message as sketch #2 and #3
- Sketch #2's text can be further elaborated in the rationale, it may be generic yet also specific, and should have a personal touch to it. The changes I make to the imagery should also be clear.
- Sketch #3 is a good balance between #1 and #2 as I can convey a strong message without the use of text, and is more of a challenge for me to try. The meaning and purpose should be written in the rationale.
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REFLECTION
Experience
The consultations I've had with Mr Martin have been very helpful for me to understand what I personally want my final artwork to convey. Consultations are kept very brief with good points made and he has definitely helped me in making my final decisions on sketches.
Observation
At first I didn't really understand how different or how similar we have to keep our our work to the original piece but I then understood that it is not actually to improve the artwork but to apply different design principles in our own way. After realizing this it definitely helped me kick start my sketches and get my brain going.
Findings
I found that almost every part of the design has a motive and meaning, and there is always a principle behind it. With a clear direction and purpose making art is not as difficult as it seems. I am definitely choosing to go with a more artistic route rather than graphic design which is what I'm usually used to, it is definitely a great way for me to push my boundaries and test my limits. Overall I have learned a lot about deeper meanings behind artwork and how I can take examples from it and apply it to my own.
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