Shameen Arshad
Methods and materials
Entry 1
I spent a lot of my time at the wood workshop in the beginning of the year trying to learn how to build canvases from scratch. Not having done this before I never truly realized the importance and the complexity behind preparing a surface. Though the process is tedious it does allow me more freedom as to which type of imagery I produce. I feel it also gives me complete ownership of the painting, as what was formerly a joint effort ( between me and my carpenter) now became a one man operation.
In order to achieve great command on the stretcher making process I resorted to creating several different sizes, some rather unorthodox to test how the shape of a canvas can contribute to the subject matter at hand such as in my second painting I wanted to show an intimate encounter with my subject, a subject that I was observing from the corner of my eye on the bus. I wanted the image to capture that experience exactly how I had witnessed it. Creating a narrow long canvas helped me replicate the experience as the strangely cropped image was read in a similar way in the second group crit.
As spontaneity is largely important to my work making the stretchers in advance only helped in retaining this energy, reducing delays between the moment that the image formulated in my mind to its execution.
Entry 2
I have made several efforts to consciously work on different surfaces to see which best contributes to my imagery.
This also helped me understand the potential of the ideas germinating in my mind. I felt like the comfort level I had with canvas was keeping me from taking my work forward. Thus, I put on my apron and forayed into constructing a panel. After having observed my classmates using a panel as a base for their acrylic painting I realized that the result on that surface was much more vibrant giving the image a more of a presence.
Entry 3
The start of the semester I was trying to work on many different ideas, conjuring up different images that on the surface did not seem connected. However, after researching and trying to work through my ideas on canvas, I realized it was the idea of displacement that seemed to inform my thoughts recently. After focusing on this theme I realized something that I connected the most with the idea of relocating - cardboard boxes. My family when moving predominantly used cartons or big cardboard boxes to pack up all our belongings. Thus , I thought of using cardboard sheets to talk about a metaphorical relocation. The surface though might be more sturdy then one would believe has a greater sense of temporarility reinforcing the idea of an "evolving identity" as described by Geraint.
Entry 4
Despite having used acrylics or oils on canvas in the past, I was rather overwhelmed with the quality and characteristics of similar materials available in London. The chemical makeup of the same products were slightly different, now creating very different results. A whole world of possibilities opened up, were slight variations as to how surfaces were prepared resulted in varied visual outcomes.
Not having used anything other than “ sarash” (animal glue) or plastic emulsion to prepare a canvas surface, I wasn’t very familiar with gesso and primers. Thus, I choose to treat my first two cotton canvases with acrylic primer which had less than desirable results. Not being familiar with the drying time of the primer, I ended up applying more over layers that weren’t completely dry. This made it impossible to blend paint on the surface and I ended up with muddy colours. This experience only reinforced the need to understand the materiality of paint.
Our sessions with Tim have been rather edifying making me realize how we use many art materials on a daily basis despite not having a proper understanding of their constituent elements or the science that goes into the correct way to use them, to get the best result. Due to this we are unable to manipulate them in a way to get the most out of our medium.
The one thing that I found the most interesting is how most of us were using spirit and turpentine interchangeably, not realizing how they produce totally different outcomes. Tim explained how using spirit inevitably results in patches in an artwork.
The class was particularly useful as it provided information about different dilutes, primers and prepared surfaces in the market, reducing some of the disorientation I felt on perusing the different aisles in art shops.
Entry 5
In a short intro to the photography studio Nick Manser enlightened us on the correct way of documenting our paintings and how to work a professional camera . I have often felt that the quality of images have often reduced the impact of my work. Not being able to properly capture different marks and details, the work would look dull and the paint would lose its vitality. This workshop just reinstated the need to understand the importance of presentation in the art making process.
Also, being from a country that had substantial sunlight I have mostly photographed my work outdoors. Photographing artwork in artificial light, though with its additional complications also result in better documentation as the photographer has full control over the distribution of light across the surface of the image.
Entry 6
I’ve always struggled to know when it is a good time to stop working on a piece. I experienced the same problem when trying photo transfer the first time. However, considering it was my first time trying the technique I wanted to see the accuracy that could be achieved with the technique. I kept capturing the progress as I went along.
This semester has been quite an experimental one for me. I have tried to explore different surfaces from watercolour paper to drawing sheets to acetate. Despite the intimidating process it is rather exciting to see how a slight change in surface the image completely transforms.Also, I tried to compare photo transfers made from acetone, gesso, white acrylic and matt gel medium.
I decided to eventually use the technique in one of my bigger paintings where I did eventually run into a problem. Having made the mistake of using a very large format image led to various ripples that produced a very faulty result.
Entry 7
For my most recent painting I used very little phototransfer but it did to my delight create a nice variation from parts of the canvas that are fully covered with paint. It enhanced the collage like feel of the image I was trying to create. The reason as to why I wanted to create a painting that seemed more like collage is because of the nature of the technique where you collect images or visuals from different sources and bring them together to construct a narrative. When taken out of their initial context and recontextualized the images transform completely to form a new meaning. I look at the Pakistani identity the same way. Pakistanis are a concoction of diverse characteristics, features , influences from different communities and cultures, coming together to form a different identity. Though our qualities may have been derived from a mixture of different cultures, when combined it becomes a seperate entity.
Furthermore, the idea of painting the image instead of using collage on canvas was to reinforce the idea of how these different qualities are bond together as to be virtually inseperable from one another. Therefore I did this through recreating seperate photographs on a single surface and treat them in the same way when it came to paint application.To me collage seems to have a more temporary or ephemeral quality where as painting, a long time surviving tradition speaks more about permenance. Thus, i feel using paint as my material to create images that look like cut outs is rather important to show this contradiction.
Entry 8
The "tale of a fractured identity" is the most experimental paintings I created this year. I have tried to implement many different mediums and materials to stay true to my topic of diversity within the singular. The painting came into being after alot of planning as well as many changes in strategy when i came across unexpected results.
I started to build an image using photoshop to gather all my ideas in one space. I also used digital manipulation to help me weigh the different options when it came to composition. Considering the image was too consist of a plethora of ideas and visuals, composing them the right way required more attention. The intention was to show an image that was overloaded with information and slightly chaotic yet for it to maintain its aesthetic quality.
Step two was to recreate a similar image on canvas using photo transfer and paint. In this case photo transfer proved ineffective which resulted in two days of scratching the print off the canvas. Though it was time consuming to get rid of the print, I learnt exactly how to do so, using a paint scrapper that I purchased from a hardware store.
Through this painting I got to explore many different ways of creating an image. The nature of the image itself was highly open to many different types of execution. I got to see how a visual completely transforms through changes in medium and surface. i.e converting a digital file into a painting.
Furthermore, I tried to recreate parts of the image on paper as well as canvas to find an effective surface to work on. While working on this painting I familiarized myself with the print studio. I went on to experimenting with different papers (blue back, somerset, acetate and artcard) as well as inks used for printing getting a different result every time for the same image. The images shown below were printed on many different printing papers before I chose the somerset sheet.
The process of this painting ended up being more significant to me than the result itself as I gained a better understanding of different art mediums, mainly digital and hand made techniques.I have tried to reach a symbiosis of digital art and painting. I also adopted a working technique where I make small samples using different materials to recreate the same visual. for example the portraits included in the work were initially supposed to be projected on a tracing sheet taped on the canvas but later evolved into 9 x 11 cm print outs, glued onto the painted surface.
The painting was also very technically challenging as I had to be careful with the combination of different mediums, to ensure an aesthetic image and also to ensure the longevity of the artwork.
