Artist Research / Exhibition insparation / Books
Joy Labinjo
Joy Labinjo’s large-scale figurative paintings often depict intimate scenes of historical and contemporary life, she is known for her large colorful figure paintings with flattened perspective that take inspiration from her collection of old family photos, found photos and historical archives.
I had the privilege to see her work in person at the Baltic. Labinjo's work comes from a personal and first perspective as she tells the story of her family and culture through her paintings. Her painting style reflects her Nigerian culture, and I feel that the colours, shapes and patterns reflect that. Using her family photographs and archives is challenging as you're letting the audience who will see these paintings into private moments of your life, which for most would just be seen by family only, which shows vulnerability within her work.
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In my project currently, I am exploring my first year of moving from the Philippines to the Uk. I want to use her ability to tell a story in her own style using primary photographs that I already own. How to turn those images into paintings of art rather than just replicating the photo.
Ged Quinn
British artist Ged Quinn is renowned for his densely layered paintings that combine symbolic and surreal elements and transform art historical references into a contemporary experience. Quinn's works combine complex histories and mythological references with landscape, still-life and genre painting traditions. Themes of religion, politics, literature and film permeate his works. Yet with decidedly Surrealist undertones, Quinn's dream-like paintings resist interpretation.
When researching this artist, I was particularly drawn to his work on where he layers his paintings. This reminds me of a digital collage made in real life, where you layer photos on each other. I found the concept exciting and wanted to use it in my project. The foundation of my project is moving on a journey. Although it is the journey of moving to another country, using my primary childhood photos changes the main focus to family, culture and experience. Through seeing his work, I found a way to visually show a journey where it is still relevant in my piece using maps, abstract movement markings and string while still including the digital images I have drawn.
Gallery visit: Baltic - Carolina Caycedo
I went to visit the Baltic during the summer. Upon deciding to use maps in my project, I remembered Caycedo's exhibition.
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Carolina Caycedo does work that addresses the commons, environmental justice, just energy transition and cultural and environmental biodiversity. Through her studio practice and fieldwork with communities impacted by large-scale infrastructure and other extraction projects, she invites viewers to consider the unsustainable pace of growth under capitalism and how we might embrace resistance and solidarity. Process and participation are central to Caycedo's practice, bringing a collective dimension through performances, photographs and videos.
When walking into her exhibition space, I first noticed her big piece of abstract, which can't be missed as it faces the entrance. I was drawn to the piece because of its size and wanted to look closely at how she created that abstract design. At first glance, it is aesthetically pleasing with compositions and colour but also shows a precise shape and movement despite the conceptual intention.
When I looked closer, I realised it was a satellite map. Upon reading about the piece, I was informed that it is a mural combining satellite imagery from the construction of the El Quimbo dam, the first dam built with transnational capital in Colombia over the Magdalena River and the Yuma River.
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I wanted to include satellite maps in my project as I feel it gives more information visually of locations in a piece. From Caycedo's work, I can see an example of a way to manipulate the image to make it seem from far away that it is an abstract piece of art. This is important as I want to include abstract techniques that I have learnt from my previous project, as I enjoyed creating abstract pieces of work where colour and brush strokes speak for themselves.
Book: Colour Me Blind - Fiona Rae
I picked this book at the St. Peter's campus library. I have found two artists I feel inspired to use their techniques for my project through reading this book.
Fiona Rae has developed a distinctive body of work, full of restless energy, humour and complexity, which has set out to challenge and expand the modern conventions of painting. Rae rapidly moved through the playbook of abstraction in the 1990s, devouring and re-presenting the tropes and fixations of modernism through the lens of movie and televisual culture, quick to grasp the rapid changes in contemporary visual culture and insert her painting practice into the present.
Rae's work has this element of digital art with her bright colour hues and sharp geometric shapes that are intentional. She combines those elements with the use of gestural abstract marks, which leaves a contrast between them.
I like her bold approach in her painting. In a way, by combing both abstract as well as images, I feel it has a story. I think it's very interesting that from afar, the whole piece looks abstract, but when looking closer, you can make out objects and things that don't just mark making.
Book: Colour Me Blind - Paul Morrison
Paul Morrison is a contemporary British painter best known for his methodical black-and-white floral paintings and prints. His works are produced by scanning and projecting historical and vernacular prints and illustrations depicting flowers and gardens. The individual elements are often disproportionate in size: a dandelion becomes threatening due to its immense size; a giant tree is shrunk down to a miniature.
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