Exercises on Abstraction
Composition Sketches
Progress Pictures
My Finished Painting
My Rationale
For this abstract painting project, I chose to paint my family’s front garden. For my composition, I included our Japanese maple tree, a hydrangea, and a lavender bush. I have spent so much time outside in the garden, and it has become an important place for me. The plants and tree that I chose to include are focal points of mine when I look out into the garden. For this painting, I wanted to focus on bright colours, as well as texture through layering.
I originally thought that the abstract art style referred to what I now know is non-objective art. I often thought of compositions with bright shapes and sharp lines that didn’t resemble realistic scenes, but evoked feelings nonetheless. I now appreciate that abstract art exists on a continuum and that there are many different ways to use abstraction in painting. Two pieces that I really like from the PowerPoint on Image Development Strategies are La Tristesse du Roi by Henri Matisse and Gauguin Tahiti and Picnic by Paul Gauguin. What I find interesting about these two pieces is the simplified shapes and bright colours used. Another style that I love is that of Abstract Impressionism. I learned that this style is characterized by its use of looser, smaller brushstrokes and an emphasis on form rather than realistic depictions.
One challenge for me while working on this painting was creating form while also focusing on the shapes and colours in my painting. I wish that I had added more depth and form to the hydrangea, especially. I wanted to keep the colours bright, but that meant that I wasn’t able to give as much attention to the form of the plants and tree. I started by painting the hydrangea in more of a simplified style with distinct shapes and colours. I liked the way it turned out, but as I started painting the tree, I realized that the two styles didn’t match. I ended up going in a different direction with the tree because I wanted to create layering to showcase the beautiful mix of greens and reds in the tree. Because I loved the way the tree turned out, I decided to redo the hydrangea. I painted on more layers of various pinks. I really liked how the layering turned out on both the hydrangea and the tree, but if I were to do something differently, I would also add more layers to the lavender bush and the vegetation under the tree.
Final Thoughts
Overall, I enjoyed exploring abstract painting techniques because I felt that I had more freedom to take liberties with the composition and colours of my subject. I also tend to gravitate more to abstract art, so I liked having the opportunity to paint one of my own!
