Student Support
Looking at other artists
Open College of the Arts
This booklet is one of a series of guides for students studying with the OCA. Others in the series are: • Study skills • Keeping sketchbooks and learning logs • Assessment and how to get qualified You can either download a pdf copy from our website www.oca-uk.com or ring the office on 0800 731 2116 for a paper copy.
Cover illustration Caroline Firenza. Other images courtesy Bridgeman Art Library
Looking at other artists One of the most important aspects of developing as an artist or photographer is to look at other artists’ work. This guide will help you make the best of every image you look at, train your visual awareness and develop your visual skills.
Look at everything you can Look at all sorts of work: amateur artists’ work, contemporary professional work, old masters, visit museums and galleries to see the latest exhibitions and existing collections. Get art books out of the library and buy art books if you can. Use the internet as much as possible. The internet has become a wonderful forum for photography and art. Even if you live in an area that makes it difficult to get to exhibitions, or if you are disabled or confined in some way, the internet opens a world of opportunity to discover artwork. For instance the major public galleries not only publish samples of exhibitions on the web, but often have the whole exhibition on the web available as well as in the gallery. It is impossible to overemphasise how critical it is to look at other artists’ work. All art is created in a context. Artists through the centuries have been influenced by others, some very strongly. Whole movements in art have been instigated by single works of art, or the work of just one person, driving forward with a new technique or approach to their work. Looking closely at paintings, sculptures or photographs can reveal information about techniques that you would never get by looking at a poor scale reproduction of the work. At exhibitions you can always tell who the practising artists are. They are the ones right up at the canvas, closely scrutinising every brush stroke or mark made, to see what they can Detail from the Mona Lisa Leonardo da Vinci learn.
Don’t think that basing your work on other artists’ work or consciously using ideas from others is cheating. All art, in a sense, is about other art. When we find a subject to depict, we see it, at least in part, through the eyes of artists we are familiar with. That is why it is so important for you to have a good, broad knowledge of art and artists and to develop an informed opinion on them, and the ways in which they can influence your work.
Time taken to browse exhibitions, books and internet galleries is not time wasted. It will feed your imagination and develop your technique.
In the bath Edgar Degas
Visiting exhibitions Try to see as many exhibitions as possible. It doesn’t matter if the work isn’t of the highest order. There is much to learn even from not-so-good art. In many images even if the whole picture isn’t completely successful, a part of it may be interesting. In others the idea behind the art may be a revelation even when it hasn’t been successfully carried out. You may see images where artists have been struggling with the same problems that you are experiencing and through their failure see possible solutions. In an exhibition by local artists or photographers you may see local subjects to paint or photograph whose possibilities hadn’t occurred to you before. When you visit a gallery or museum, decide whether to look at everything, tiring yourself and as a consequence taking nothing in, or whether to be selective. If you are going to a large exhibition, it is often better to quickly walk round the whole exhibition and then go back to focus on just the few that really drew your attention. See if there is a guide book, postcards or if you can take photographs.
Argentine Anthony Caro
Be prepared to be surprised You may go to look at paintings but find the sculpture or the garden every bit as rewarding. Don’t in any case ignore the building in which the paintings are being shown. Ask yourself how well the works of art relate to their environment. Don’t forget to take a sketchbook and notebook with you whenever you make a visit. It is also a good idea to take a friend who may be able to give a valuable second view on what you see, and discuss the exhibits with you. A page or two of notes about each visit will be a valuable addition to your learning log.
The main elements Remember, when you look at art to consider all the main elements that make up a work of art: shape, form, space, value (light and dark), texture, colour and line. Consider the composition. Is it harmonious and unified? What are the proportions like (the different elements of the composition in relation to each other)? How much variety and emphasis is there? Is there a comfortable balance in the work? Is there rhythm and movement?
Insomnia Jeff Walter
Annotating images Make judgements • First describe the art work,work; this will make you focus on it. You can do this in your head or make notes on paper. • Then analyse it, using the tips above. • Once you have analysed the elements, try to second guess what the artist intended. What do you think the artist was trying to convey? This is the most challenging part of looking at art, and is called interpretation. • Finally, draw your conclusions. This is much more to do with your personal response to the work. How does it make you feel? What reaction do you have to the elements and composition? Does the work feed your imagination? Does it intrigue you or does it leave you cold?
Composition with Mona Lisa Kazimir Severinovich Malevich
A very useful activity after a visit to a museum or gallery is to annotate postcards or your own sketches of images that interested you. This simply means adding explanatory notes to the pictures. Put notes around the edges of the pictures rather than obscure them with writing. One way of annotating a postcard is to stick it in the top half of an A4 sheet and draw a line across the page about two thirds of the way down. Above this line and around the postcard there is space to make comments about the card. You may wish to comment on the accuracy of the reproduction, the way something has been depicted, the use of a particular colour, or the way the painting has been composed for example. Comments can be made in the form of sketches as well as words. Below the line jot down anything about the painting that can’t be worked out from looking at it but needs further research – things like its date, whether it was commissioned, whether there are other similar examples by the same artist, where they are, and so on. Annotated postcards and drawings of images can be included in your learning log.
If you keep your learning log online you can copy and paste images into your blog, but make sure you acknowledge the sources for copyright reasons.
Selecting art books How should you go about selecting what books you should choose? Your individual tastes, your tutor’s advice and the availability of books will be determining factors. Modern art books nearly always have great quality illustrations in them, and the books you will want to keep will almost certainly be those packed with large good quality illustrations that you can use for reference for many years. In that sense art books are great investments. Don’t feel that any book you buy or borrow has to be read from cover to cover. If you do read a book on art, make notes about it in your learning log to remind you of the key points. Don’t forget there are several good sources of second hand art books to buy on the internet.
Using the internet to look at art There are a myriad of art galleries online. These range from individual artists who promote their work on the web, through to galleries who promote a range of artists’ work, some of which do not have a physical gallery at all, but for whom all sales are directly online. There are specialist sites for printmakers, photographers, illustrators and fine artists. All major public galleries have websites, and these often have a large number of images from current exhibitions displayed on the web. Some galleries have their entire collection online. The majority of Tate Britain’s collection is online for example. There is more art and photography at your fingertips through internet access than could ever have been imagined even twenty years ago. Develop your internet search skills, find what you are interested in and your visual development will transform. If you do not have internet access at home, try to make a trip to a library or other source for internet access at some point every month.
Look at the resources section of the OCA website for suggestions of art and photography websites to visit. You need to be logged in to access the information.
A seated male nude twisting around Michelangelo
OCA's website www.oca-uk.com is your first stop for information about courses, plus access to help, support, advice and tips from tutors and other learners. Register on the website, upload a picture if you like, and get chatting to other students via the forum. Find out about exhibitions and books recommended by fellow students, discuss the state of contemporary art or the music industry, share tips on techniques and processes, and share your thoughts on studying from home.
Open College of the Arts Michael Young Arts Centre Redbrook Business Park Wilthorpe Road Barnsley S75 1JN
[email protected] 0800 731 2116 www.oca-uk.com
