Development work

I have been playing with the theme of 'turning a blind eye' and being led astray as a comment on how people can be deceived or horrible truths can be hidden by a government or by the restriction of unbiased media.

I was also really struck by a quote i read in the paper over the weekend commenting on poverty - "A fish rots from the head down, never from the tail up". I thought this was a really powerful way to explain why privilege and poverty persists in countries like India and Africa since there is not good political governance to ensure that aid is distributed fairly and properly and that those in need at the bottom of the chain are considered. 

Use of colour

I have been looking at the photography of Miles Aldridge and the work of Titian for inspiration on how to use colour. I love the acid tones in Aldridge's photos which make the models who are in very static and almost dead poses look alive and vibrant. I also like the selected use of colour and the highlights of 2 - 3 main colours.

I think the work of Titian is inspiring due to the use of so much colour in a complicated composition which does not detract from the piece, but which instead brings it together. I particularly like the use of blue and coral pink which stand out for me in this work.

Animation trial

I have started an animation looking at the idea of making a monstrous image out of what i consider to be a real life monster - Nick Griffin. I like the idea of playing with identity and masks. It uses a quote he said after being criticised on his appearance on Question Time.

Test Animation for FMP from Lindsay Wiggin on Vimeo.

Development work so far...

This is a selection of development work so far looking at...

Tribal morality in religion:

 

Ideas for a scene in an animation:

 

Racism and discrimination:

 

The effect of mass media:

Vanity:

The persecution of women:

FMP Historical Research

ARTHUR RACKHAM: Arthur Rackham illustrated many fairytale books and most famously,  the Grimm tales. I like the silhouette imagery and the simplicity of these drawings. 

GUILLERMO DEL TORO: I am inspired by the mix of fantasy and fact in Guillermo del Toro's films and how he portrays real life monsters and monstrosities through dark and twisted characters and stories.

FRANCIS BACON: I love the distorted, grotesque and nightmarish feel of this painting. I am interested in the way Bacon has reinterpreted a former piece of art, much in the same way i want to reappropriate and disfigure images from the media etc. It is bold abstract and surreal and i like the use of colour with the vivid purple.

JONATHAN BARNBROOK: I want my FMP to fit with Barnbrook's message that design should be a force for cultural change and should filter into the reader's consciousness.

KERSTIN KARTSCHER: I like the figurative drawing style of Kartscher, the thin lines and muted palette and the dark and intriguiging feel her work has.

MARIANNE BRANDT: Bauhaus photomontage was created as a play between the artist and mass media and was often used as a critical commentary on politics and public welfare. The use of collage with images from the media and old books in my project will reflect this inspiration. I like the use of blank space in Marianne's work and the superreality she creates.

MM PARIS: I love the illustration style in this campaign for Balenciaga and the way it is overlaid over photography.

MAN RAY: I am inspired by the sensuous photos of Man Ray and his surrealist vision of the female form. I like the cropping in this image which just isolates the lips.

EGON SCHIELE: I like this Schiele piece with its thin lines and jaunty figure of the nude.

My FMP Proposal

WORKING TITLE: (A) MORAL


Morality - n, pl -ties
1. the quality of being moral
2. conformity, or degree of conformity, to conventional standards of moral conduct
3. a system of moral principles
4. an instruction or lesson in morals


Amoral - adjective
1. not involving questions of right or wrong; without moral quality; neither moral
nor immoral.
2. having no moral standards, restraints, or principles; unaware of or indifferent
to questions of right or wrong: a completely amoral person.

Brief :

To produce a thought provoking and meaningful comment on the issues of morality and amorality in culture today.


Treatment :

This project will examine issues of discrimination, inequality and social pressures within current news stories in order to demonstrate the fine line that can be drawn between what is considered moral in society today. Everything in life today is fast and cheap, people seek the shortest route to something, people are cynical about everything...moral values can often become clouded in the fight to look after yourself and your own.

I want to address issues which might force a person to question their moral values and present the viewer with a call to action. I want to look at Descriptive Ethics, how many moral beliefs are based on prejudice, ignorance or hatred, and Tribal Morality, where the norms of a collective can be imposed
on and prescribed to an individual, and I want to comment on this within the work. The final outcome could be seen as a dilemma, calling the viewer to assess their own values.

My work will incorporate references to fairytale imagery and metaphors using a mixture of collage, illustration, and mixed media. I am interested in how these artificial and elaborate tales were written to teach the reader the fundamentals of life and how they ended in a moral message. Fairytale plots are often quite dark and mysterious and I want this feel to come through in my work, using the juxtaposition of imagined creatures with real life monsters, and imagined realities with horrific things that are going on in the real world.

Final Outcome :
I would like my work to be presented as a patchwork of printed images, reminiscent of a quilt and which ideally would also incorporate elements of moving image. Different sized prints would be placed together in a geometric pattern overlaid with illustration and colour.  This will play on the tradition of quilts used as vessels for personal or collective memories and carrying a narrative, dating back to the 1830s when abolitionists used the quilt design to show anti-slavery poetry and messages.  I would also like to produce a book.

The moving image content of my work will be abstract and will build on the ideas in my print work. I think it would work compliment the print work to have the animation with a traditional gilted frame around the screen, as if it is a traditional painting. I think this would again play on the storytelling and fairytale element.