Writes Leo M. (U3rds)
Last year, the Thirds embarked on a project inspired by Michael Reeder, an American modern artist whose figurative and graphic style explores themes such as personality and identity. This project helped us to experiment with different forms of mark making , some of which we had never tried before.
Our project consisted of four main parts: the skull executed in oil pastel on paper; the background which was done using oil spray paints; the embellishments which were made using acrylic; and finally, the hand which was digitally enhanced on Photoshop. We therefore had the opportunity to try using a range of media.
For the skull, we first had to draw a sizeable grid onto brown paper, then copied the same grid but smaller onto a reference photo. Using the grid method, we drew the skull onto the paper. After this we drew using oil pastels, inspired by the way Reeder draws his skull in a Classical Gothic style. Most exciting was the spray painting of the background, where we were given complete freedom- a brilliant chance to unleash our inner vandal!
Next came the embellishment of the background. For this we used stencils, some of which we made ourselves. Finally, we used Photoshop to make a digitally enhanced hand inspired by the Ben Day dot method. All in all, this was an incredibly fun project and one in which the end results showcased our creative journey.
