Wednesday, March 25, 2015

Last lesson...well maybe.

Our last online lesson with Jane Davies was to construct our own lesson, then follow it through.  We were given TWO weeks to do this, so that there could be discussion with Jane about the parameters we were setting ourselves in the first week.  We then had a week to do our 10 pieces.


Above is one of my final pieces....It could do with a little tweaking here and there but, basically, I'm happy with it.

I chose to take a photo of my own, a still life, and progress it through many stages to abstraction.  Jane thought it might be a little difficult, but I was sure I wanted to do it. 
 
I began with one of my own photos, cropped, from a dinner party. (I have plenty of those).



Then I simplified it so that I had a better idea of shapes, textures, and colours that I wanted to use.


Keep in mind that these are EXERCISES, and done fairly quickly, though some have many layers of line, veiling, etc.







I've not included all the pieces I did...just a few.

It was a wonderful lesson in setting your own goals, and in following through on a series.  So much so, that Jane has kept the class open for a couple of weeks so that anyone else who feels inclined to have a go it this, can. 

I guess that validated my decisions for my own lesson.

For anyone with some internet and blogging skills, Jane's classes are SO worthwhile.  She really pushes you to find your own voice, and hands you the tools to use to do so.  She is thorough and constructive in her criticism. 

It is an absolute bonus to see how all your classmates progress, and how they all deal differently with the same lesson.


12 comments:

  1. Nice work Jo. Had no doubt that you could abstract it away. Love what you showed. xox

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  2. I find this so interesting Jo, Particularly as I really have trouble getting my head around how one would successfully paint an abstract painting.

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  3. Oh wow! Such a great result, I wouldn't have guessed at the beginnings at all.

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  4. Thank you, Jo. It's been fun watching your progress through these lessons. I LOVE you final painting. Now I think I'll head over to Jane's place and check out her class schedules. Bye for now.

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  5. This was a great lesson choice for you and each piece is so interesting on its own but when referenced back to the beginning photo, it's quite extraordinary! I'll definitely give it a try - once again, you've inspired me. Some of your pieces kind of remind me of your birds-eye view landscape abstracts.....you definitely have an eye for this. I agree that Jane offers a great class with worthwhile feedback - I learned SO much! And it was a joy to take it with you and watch your progress each week. Get well soon!

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  6. I knew you would be able to work this out brilliantly Jo!

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  7. Can't say enough how great it is to see your progression photos here
    and how brilliantly you went with your vision and followed your intuition.
    Fabulous !
    Happy April...
    oxo

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  8. As usual of late, I'm running far, far behind. I'm working on an AB that has taken on a life of its own, and consumed all my time.

    I was really impressed that first, you were able to create your own lessons, even though the instructor wasn't sure about it. Way to stick with your guns and forge ahead nicely. I truly enjoyed this series of artworks. It was also nice to be able to follow your concepts from the photo to the abstract. This was a wonderful exercise and a great way to give instructions to yourself and others. Thank you for sharing these!!

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  9. the word Pentimento comes to mind with your piece, all the full bodied weight of the original peeking thru, very intriguing work, Jo. Thanks for sharing the progression with us... beautiful work!

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  10. Hi JM - good to catch - glad you are feeling better and enjoying the online challenges. B

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  11. Fascinating concept and so cool to see the stages along the way. Thank you for sharing this.

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