Block Print
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Planning
Inspiration
I took inspiration from the Expressionist works of Edvard Munch and Wassily Kandinsky, as well as my own family's culture. Expressionism is a movement in which the artist's objective is to depict the world through an emotional lens. Reality is often distorted or exaggerated to emphasize the emotions within the art. Through my research, I learned that "The Scream" was based on a personal experience of Munch. He had been on a walk through nature when his two companions left him. Abnormally, he let out a piercing scream. "The Scream" was an expression of intensity, pushing emotions to the extreme. Although full of flowing lines and simple designs, Expressionism works are deep and personal when given the right emotion. I wanted to incorporate this into my piece. The emotion I chose to convey is joy. I found this to be a good juxtaposition to the often more negative feelings of Expressionism. The scene of my piece is inspired by Mexican folkloric dance. These are dances that emphasize local culture infused with ballet characteristics. My father is Mexican, and so I wanted to express my roots by showing a woman in traditional folkloric clothes. In my block print, a woman is dancing as a celebration of her culture. The sky is calm, a symbol for the feelings of content and happiness she feels.
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(click on pictures for citations)
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Planning Sketches
This project took a lot of thought on my part. My first sketch is of a girl who is sitting against a tree and crying while thinking about her father. I wanted to mimic the feelings in Separation by Munch by using long flowing lines and the clouds over the subject. After this first sketch, I decided I didn't want my theme to be sadness or loneliness, but a happier theme. |
My second sketch was when I decided to incorporate folkloric elements into my art. It showcases women dancing in traditional clothes in front of a sunset. The sun symbolized strength and life, something their culture gives them. After a bit, I felt as if this wasn't exactly the feeling I wanted to portray. I also think this sketch didn't have quite enough elements from the Expressionist pieces I was drawing inspiration from. |
This third is the design I decided to go with for my final product. I felt that the flowing lines and simplicity of the background seemed to fit the themes of Expressionism. There also isn't much distracting from the main point of my piece: the girl dancing in a traditional dress. She appears content with herself, a feeling I wanted to convey in my block print. She is in a village, and I wanted to showcase her in her home. In the end, I changed certain things. I felt that the ground in my sketch appeared a bit off, and I found that using lines that are longer and winding towards the horizon are better at showing movement and distance. The inner rings of the design in her dress also proved difficult to carve, so I simplified the 2 closest to her waist into curved lines. I also improved the design of the building behind her in my final product. |
Process
My first step was to redraw my final sketch onto the linoleum with pencil. I shaded in what I would be cutting out so that I wouldn't get confused. It also helped me visualize what my final product would look like. During this stage, I also realized that some of my lines were too thin. In order to better adjust to the medium, I had to thicken certain lines so that they would be visible when I printed by piece. I also realized I didn't like the little horizontal lines that made up the ground, so instead I made long flowing lines that disappear into the background. I think they better emulate the Expressionism works my piece is based on and show movement better.
The next step was to start carving into the linoleum block. At first, it was difficult. I hadn't yet figured out the best way to grip the cutting tools or angle it to get the smoothest lines possible. I also misjudged how deep I had to carve. I started with the arms, and they were carved in far too deep. Another thing I changed from my sketch was the lines of her dress. The arches were too time consuming and difficult to carve, so I made some smooth lines instead.
My final step was inking. First, I put a small amount of black ink on a metal tray using a spoon. I was very wary, as too much ink would cause the lines to be less visible. Next, I rolled the ink out with a brayer until it was smooth and covered the entire surface of the roller. When the ink was even, I rolled the ink onto my block. I made the coat even and covered the entire surface. I then centered a piece of white paper above the block as best as I could and pressed it down. I used a baren to press the paper onto my print. I moved it in circles, applying pressure the whole time. After about a minute of this, I peeled off the paper and set my print on the drying rack. |
Experimentation
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Pictured to the left are all my prints. I redid the printing process 2 times to get the best one possible. The top row is my first round of prints and the bottom is my second round. After seeing how some aspects didn't come out quite right in the first round, I did some more carving to make the negative space smoother and cleaner. I found that the small, round shaped tools were the most useful to me because of all the thin, long lines in my piece. For the clouds, her arms, and the ribbon tied around her waist, I used a bigger, round-tipped carving tool. I often made crude lines first, then went back and smoothed them out. The smaller tools were very useful in carving out the more intricate details. It is also quite clear that throughout my process I got better at applying the ink to the paper. At first, I didn't apply enough pressure while I was pressing the baren into the paper, but I adapted and spent more time pressing the ink into the paper.
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Reflection
Overall, I'm happy with how this came out. Everything went according to plan and I'm satisfied with my final product. This piece also gave me much more insight into who I am and my priorities. Looking back, I feel as if there are details about my piece I wish I had done a bit differently. The background makes the piece look a bit full, perhaps I could have put the sun from my second sketch in the background. The biggest change I would make is making her appear happier. I couldn't because the details of her face were too small. I wish I had planned more in advance and made her face bigger so it was easier to carve. It would reflect the themes I want to get across much better. Doing two round of prints was also extremely helpful. After the first round, I knew what improvements to make and how to enhance the good aspects of my work.
The information I had for the inspiration comes from my knowledge on art history, a class I took in sophomore year. I knew about art movements, it was simply about choosing which one spoke to me for this project. I also gained new knowledge on artists. For example, I learned more about the messages in Edvard Munch's work. I knew of him and Expressionism, but I didn't know much about what his work meant. I discovered that "The Scream" was based on a personal experience he had, which gives me much more insight on him as a person. However, I still feel as if my art history knowledge is lacking. In the future, I'll continue to learn about art movements and artists to give myself more background for my next project.
The information I had for the inspiration comes from my knowledge on art history, a class I took in sophomore year. I knew about art movements, it was simply about choosing which one spoke to me for this project. I also gained new knowledge on artists. For example, I learned more about the messages in Edvard Munch's work. I knew of him and Expressionism, but I didn't know much about what his work meant. I discovered that "The Scream" was based on a personal experience he had, which gives me much more insight on him as a person. However, I still feel as if my art history knowledge is lacking. In the future, I'll continue to learn about art movements and artists to give myself more background for my next project.
Similarities
Differences
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ACT Responses
Clearly explain how you are able to identify the cause-effect relationships between your inspiration and its effect upon your artwork.
The Expressionist works I drew inspiration from feature intense emotions that distort reality, which I conveyed through my piece by showing happiness on the woman's face and giving a simple background design. The folkloric elements were from my Mexican culture, and I incorporated my culture by dressing the woman in a traditional dress, doing a traditional dance.
What is the overall approach (POV) the author (from research) has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
The author's POV regarding Edvard Munch seems to be that he was a revolutionary who wanted to showcase emotions in a new perspective. He made his subjects seem intense and drew from his own emotional experiences as inspiration. In regards to the Mexican folkloric dances, the authors seemed subjective in their explanation of the components that make it up and what it symbolized for the people.
What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, cultures, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
Through my research on Expressionism, I learned that art comes from a part of humans' souls that want to showcase our emotions; the things that make us human. When looking at Expressionist works, many people thought they were the works of madmen, which goes to show that intensity can be scary and new ideas can be seen as dangerous. My research on Mexican folkloric dance has shown me that people want to preserve their culture and history, as it was created by many groups of people to tell stories about who they are through movement.
What was the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?
The central idea around my research was to showcase emotions through something personal that I, and many others. go through; self-acceptance.
What kind of inferences did you make while reading your research?
While reading my research, I inferred that folkloric dance was a way for Hispanic cultures to celebrate who they are and keep the spirit of their heritage alive. This was proven true, as these dances are still done today.
The Expressionist works I drew inspiration from feature intense emotions that distort reality, which I conveyed through my piece by showing happiness on the woman's face and giving a simple background design. The folkloric elements were from my Mexican culture, and I incorporated my culture by dressing the woman in a traditional dress, doing a traditional dance.
What is the overall approach (POV) the author (from research) has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
The author's POV regarding Edvard Munch seems to be that he was a revolutionary who wanted to showcase emotions in a new perspective. He made his subjects seem intense and drew from his own emotional experiences as inspiration. In regards to the Mexican folkloric dances, the authors seemed subjective in their explanation of the components that make it up and what it symbolized for the people.
What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, cultures, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
Through my research on Expressionism, I learned that art comes from a part of humans' souls that want to showcase our emotions; the things that make us human. When looking at Expressionist works, many people thought they were the works of madmen, which goes to show that intensity can be scary and new ideas can be seen as dangerous. My research on Mexican folkloric dance has shown me that people want to preserve their culture and history, as it was created by many groups of people to tell stories about who they are through movement.
What was the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?
The central idea around my research was to showcase emotions through something personal that I, and many others. go through; self-acceptance.
What kind of inferences did you make while reading your research?
While reading my research, I inferred that folkloric dance was a way for Hispanic cultures to celebrate who they are and keep the spirit of their heritage alive. This was proven true, as these dances are still done today.
Bibliography
Kandinsky, Wassily. “Murnau Street With Women, 1908.” Wassily Kandinsky, 1 Jan. 1970,
https://www.wassilykandinsky.net/work-291.php.
“Separation - Edvard Munch.” USEUM,
https://useum.org/artwork/Separation-Edvard-Munch-1896.
“The History of Folklórico.” The History of Folklórico,
https://www.dartmouth.edu/~bfd/Folklorico.html.
“The Scream, 1893 by Edvard Munch.” Diego Rivera,
https://www.edvardmunch.org/the-scream.jsp.
“The Scream - Edvard Munch.” USEUM,
https://useum.org/artwork/The-Scream-Edvard-Munch-1910.
https://www.wassilykandinsky.net/work-291.php.
“Separation - Edvard Munch.” USEUM,
https://useum.org/artwork/Separation-Edvard-Munch-1896.
“The History of Folklórico.” The History of Folklórico,
https://www.dartmouth.edu/~bfd/Folklorico.html.
“The Scream, 1893 by Edvard Munch.” Diego Rivera,
https://www.edvardmunch.org/the-scream.jsp.
“The Scream - Edvard Munch.” USEUM,
https://useum.org/artwork/The-Scream-Edvard-Munch-1910.