My Life is Emo by Amadea Low Mann Ting

MY LINE IS EMO (visual journal)

FOUNDATION 2D AMADEA LOW G07

RESEARCH MARK MAKING TECHNIQUES Automated Drawing Or Surrealist automatism is a method of art making in which the artist suppress consciousness in his work. It was created in the 20th century and pioneer by Andre Masson, a french artist, who practiced such drawings.

This is the practice of random drawing, where the hand is allowed to move “randomly” across the paper. The outcome is based on chance and accidents, as the process is free to the subconsciousness of the artist.

What attracted me to this form of drawing is the simplicity in its randomness and abstractness, yet the outcome can be a beautiful one.

Here are some explorations of Andre Masson’s work.

“A Paul Éluard” (1924) To me, this has a dream like, fluid feel to it. Though it’s not a neat picture, the idea is conveyed and I can see distinctly the elements in the art.

Automatism in the Surrealist Movement “Although a far cry from any form of academic art, Surrealism was responsible for a surge of creativity and spread rapidly across Europe to become the dominant style of modern art during the inter-war years. Its imagery, though often bizarre and absurd, captured the imagination of both art critics and public. However, despite Breton's assertion that Surrealism was "psychic automatism in its pure state", in the end, only a small percentage of surrealist works were generated using automatism. Furthermore, one should note, that the automatist methods used by surrealist artists were not totally unconscious. Thus their automatic drawing was not 100 percent automatic, but also involved a degree of conscious intervention to render the image more life-like or acceptable.” (http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/definitions/ automatism.htm) From this small excerpt, I find myself more and more interested at how people view this form of art. Though is “automatic” and supposed to be “subconscious”, a lot of automated works had a tinge of consciousness to it.

Salvatore Dali He is a famous surrealist that produced works from his dreams and imaginations. In doing so, he could change the real world to the way he wanted and not what is actually is.

During the 1930s, he became one of the representatives of the surrealist movements.

CONCLUSION If we could just snap our fingers and have a piece of art churned out. The affect automatism has can seem digital and technological. After looking through the different works from different artist, i’m very inclined towards this form and very excited for mono printing and to just randomly work and explore automated drawings.

Automatic Drawing (1927)

Here are my mark making tools:

I made this with two materials. Paper yarn and thread wound into a ball.

This was created with strips of small paper wound together.

Instagrammer: @eva_magill_oliver

When I was looking through dierent mark makings on Pinterest, I stumbled across this artist. I saw her work, where she used dierent mediums, shapes, paper, cut outs and I was very interested and inspired. The following is me trying it out. I used a paintbrush here to create fixed shapes and random blotches.

Helen Terry http://www.helenterryart.co.uk/blog/2015/2/7/a-daily-practice

I took to liking her work, as she had a record of marks and lines daily. Her work inspired me to create my mark making tool that is heavily based on texture. I created the following marks based on rolling and moving my tool across the paper in dierent fashions.

RESEARCH ARTIST Sol Lewitt He is an artist that produced works on minimalism, geometric shapes and played with a lot of lines.

His thinking and thoughts on what an artist is also intrigued me further. “His belief in the artist as a generator of ideas was instrumental in the transition from the modern to the postmodern era.”

“LeWitt believed the idea itself could be the work of art, and maintained that, like an architect who creates a blueprint for a building and then turns the project over to a construction crew, an artist should be able to conceive of a work and then either delegate its actual production to others or perhaps even never make it at all.” (http://www.theartstory.org/artist-lewitt-sol.htm) His visual art consisted of lines, basic colour and simplified shapes. Often, the product of his ideas weren’t actually done by him. He had assistants and groups that would help and finish his projects. He simply set the direction for them.

In this sense, the end result could not be entire controlled by the artist. This raised the issue of authority and ownership of art in its production.

These are some of the artwork that I like. I like the clean lines that are shown and the play around with shapes that Sol Lewitt uses.

MONOPRINT AND MARK MAKING EXPLORATION

mono print 1

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mono print 2

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mono print 3

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mono print 4

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mono print 5

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mono print 6

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mono print 7

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mono print 8

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mono print 9

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mono print 10

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mono print 11

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EMOTIONS RESEARCH AND ANALYSIS

Emotions:

A strong feeling deriving from one’s circumstances, mood, or relationships with others.

Emotions are sophisticated and subtle, the epitome of what make us human (http://www.iep.utm. edu/emotion/)

Personal meaning:

I would classify emotions into two main categories: positive and negative emotions. Emotions are then subdivided into futher categories like joy, anger, suprise, sadness, fear and love. But in all these aspects, the negative and positive have more impact. For example, positive anger in a situation where appropriate, would stand out more than just anger alone and it evokes a very different feeling from negative anger that may arise out of a bad situation.

I researched for more emotions that spilled out of the usual emotion spectrum. I felt that a lot of the words couldn’t express the emotions well, or there were constant overlaps. I felt compelled to create or combine emotions to further express what I want to convey through my lines.

On the following page, I have listed down the emotions I used in my project(and as best as I can fitted them into a category.)

Category

Emotion

Definition (According to lines)

1

Blithe

A light hearted fluffy emotion. (Happy and carefree). Showing a casual and cheerful indifference.

2

Serene

A peaceful calm tranquil feeling. No rush in anything. The elements of the lines are sparsed.

3

Fugue

A kalidescope effect that feels very gypsy-ish when they’re high on drugs/weed. Fugue means that one loses awareness and displays hysteria etc. (A bad joy)

4

Satisfaction

A tranquil feeling too. Like an old man staring out into the ocean. Thus I felt there was some satisfaction.

5

Attraction

This is big choppy lines, yet it feels minimmal, calm and abit artsy. I was very attracted to this line and made it to my emotion.

6

Organised Chaos

Mess, in a orderly fashion for something I like and love to do. Thus, I categorised this under love.

7

Sentimentality

It’s like looking back at things of the past. The layers have abit of self indulgent nostalgia.

8

Desire

A moveing, fun, excited active action and emotion. Thus, the desire to do stuff and move around and do something.

9

Liberosis

A ‘whatever’ happens feeling. Thus, things that unfold is unknwon and may suprise. Also, a feeling that one couldn’t care less. Thus the choice of this unusual emotion.

Meticulous

Very careful and precise. I placed it under suprise as i felt one may not know what to expect while viewing the line.

11

Flustered

An element of confusion and lost amidst this. It also feels very busy and rushed.

12

Nostalgic

The edges look like a old film. Like one thinking back of the old times with a tinge of sadness.

Melancholy

At lostt, typically without much reason and explanation.

The very dark elements add to this sadness and melancholy.

14

Anxious

General anxiousness about things. Scribble like marks and the feeling of unertainty is shown.

15

Chaotic

It’s all over the place and the final outcome feels somewhat unknown. There’s disorder, yet in an orderly fashion.

Compulsive Anxiousness

Like someone with OCD, it’s neat and structure, ye the feeling is unsettling. A tinge of worry can be felt.

17

Antsy

Very pricked and agitated. It’s ant like looking too. Restless feeling and it’s all over the place.

18

Depressed

A mess of lines that look very negative. I feel a hand covering one face popping up for the lines.

Collected Psychoticism

Like a cold blooded murder, after his kill he doesn’t feel anything but calm and peace, very unaffected by what he did.

Thus this felt like a collected madness or psychoticism

Manipulative

This constant pattern that repeats itself. It’s darkness feel harsh and painful, like trying to twist someone’s mind.

Joy

10

13

16

19 20

Love

Suprise

Sadness

Fear

Anger

FINAL SELECTION OF LINES (20 LINES)

First feelings: Happy, Laid back and Chill.

Category: JOY Emotion: Blithe

First feelings: Negative chaos Category: Fear Emotion: Chaotic

First Feelings: Ocd/anxious/anxiety Category: Fear Emotion: Compulsive Anxiousness

First feelings: Whatever, I don’t care, anyhow Category: Surprise Emotion: Liberosis

First feelings: Meticulous Category: Surprise Emotion: Meticulous

First feelings: antsy, pricked Category: Fear Emotions: Antsy

First feelings: Serene and calm Category: Joy Emotions: Serene

First feelings: the effect of being high on weed Category: Joy Emotion: Fugue state

First Feeling: lost and nostalgic (like a negative film) Category: Sadness Emotion: Nostalgic

First feelings: Depressed and all over the place Category: Anger Emotion: Depressed

First feelings: busy and flustered with many things going on Category: Suprise Emotion:Flustered

First feelings: organised chaos all of ver the place for something you like Category: Love Emotion: organised chaos

First feelings: melancholic and sad, missing something Category: Sadness Emotion: Melancholy

First feelings: reminiscing the past and looking back at things Category: Love Emotion: Sentimentality

First feelings: all over the place with excitment and fun, wanting to be active and moving Category: Love Emotion: Desire

First feelings: General anxiety, constant, like scribbling on a paper when feeling that anxiousness Category: Sadness Emotion: Anxious

First feelings: calm and calculated, like the psyche behind a murderer. After his kill, he doesn’t feel much Category: Anger Emotion: Collected Psychoticism

First feelings: dazed and blank, a tranquil feeling Category: Joy Emotion: Satisfaction

First feelings: Psychotic and complicated Category: Anger Emotion: Manipulative

First feelings: minimal, artsy, calm and regulated Category: Love Emotion: Attraction

FINAL LAYOUT EXPLAINED I decided to put my lines from light to dark. I felt that the gradual contrast played a part with how the lines played out in the project. Even though the tones are in a gradual manner, the emotions are all mixed up and jumbled round.

I felt that if I were to order emotions based on categories, I would be too structured and fixed.

Emotions, as defined earlier, is an expression that’s dependent on ones mood, situation, location and circumastance. I thought this manner where the emotions were mixed felt more real and human. I didn’t want to force out a connection that would systematically flow within the all the lines.

This pattern that i’ve arranged the lines in, I feel, flows more and tells a better story of the emotions that I’ve picked and chosen. But of course, the emotions went from a very light hearted and calm manner to a very dark and melancholic feeling.

Would you say that it may be reflecting how I felt?

I would say that the visuals would flow better if I were to arrange it in such a manner. My personal sentiments and feeling, most often would start of like how I displayed my lines.

As such, I also placed it in this manner as I find myself starting the day quiet, cheerful and observant. But at the end of a tiring day, my thoughts will jumbled all over the place due to fatigue, tiredness and all the information being dumped into my brain. Thus, I would say it reflects a little bit about me through the tonal contrast in my line presentation.