^^watercolour painting forming the base background of utopia. (A1 PAINTING).
A theme I touched on in my research and essay for this project was “Human vs Posthuman” and “Utopia vs dystopia”. Thinking about the state of the world without human presence is intriguing to me; contemplating how our actions have negatively impacted the planet and how it old potentially thrive in our absence. There are plenty of stories, films, and tv shows exploring this idea, such as the dystopian stories of The Hunger Games, Divergent, Station 11, and plenty of others… but all of these look at humans in a posthuman world. I started looking into potentially how the planet itself would fair in a posthuman world. Would it be as dismal and ominous as the popular stories make it out to be? War torn and dangerous? Or would it actually thrive and regenerate in our absence?
During forced isolation and quarantine in response to the Covid 19 pandemic, there have been various stories of wildlife returning to humans inhabited places that were once shared, but are now dominated by humans. For example, swans returning to rivers in Italy… it seems that our absence, or the absence of our harmful behaviours are re addressing the balance between human life and natural life. Our isolation is giving the planet a chance to breathe.
Considering these two opposite keywords, UTOPIA and DYSTOPIA; i decided to look further into patterns, colours and symbols that fit within thee two categories.
UTOPIA: A utopia is an imagined community or society that possesses highly desirable or nearly perfect qualities for its citizens.
DYSTOPIA: an imagined state or society in which there is great suffering or injustice, typically one that is totalitarian or post-apocalyptic.
I see both of these places as conflicting environments, contrasting in symbols and colours. Utopia is smoother, more flowing, filled with nature and life, balancer and harmony; whereas dystopia is conflicted, chaotic, harmful and dangerous.
I have noticed within recent projects i have used the mediums of watercolour paint and fine-liner patterns to create backgrounds and/or imagery that feels encompassing to look at, almost a visual meditation. To illustrate utopia, i would use more green colour, blending shades together like water. With dystopia, i would use more reds, blending them less, and focussing on black line pattens to distinguish boundaries between shapes- being more aesthetically bold and controlling.
On the theme of utopia, i envisioned what symbols/motifs i feel are most fitting, and designed various leaves, animals, and plants each with their own contributing purpose. In the centre of the piece is a human face, emerging with two hands as if they are holding something. This figure could be Mother Nature, readdressing the balance between human and nature, or re emerging from the shadows in the current absence of human life (in Covid 19 isolation). This is a commentary on the damage human behaviour is having on the natural world, our arrogance and sense of entitlement- and the beauty that can flourish when we stop. Hopefully, after our lockdown has been lifted, we will realise the negative impact our actions are having, and approach the planet with more compassion and respect, rather than greed and entitlement.
Over the course of this project I wanted to challenge myself in terms of size an scale of illustrating- seeing whether my method of working changed when my canvas became bigger; or what difference this might make to my final design. I really enjoy the process of working large scale, i feel that it gives me more freedom of movement, both on and off the page. The physical challenge of working large scale, interpreting angles and ways of working on the physical plane of the space; helps me to develop my process of working and consider new ways of approaching mark making. With these two particular pieces, I’ve used a blend of spontaneous watercolour blends to create backgrounds and set the colour palette/tone of the overall piece- and then working in with detailed symbols/motifs. I wanted to play with the movement of the piece- the interaction the viewer can have with the art. With this, i decided to create each piece of the design separately, and piece them together like a collage- but no piece is fixed, they are removable and re arrangeable. This is helpful for me to figure out the most visually effective composition, as well as exploring the “ever changing nature of nature”.
This method has also allowed me to work in a variety of mediums: watercolour paint, ink, fine liner, coloured pens, and collage. It’s interesting to see the change in the boldness of colour within different styles, and how this creates subtle changes throughout the piece- creating more depth and a sense of layering.
When playing with the watercolour backgrounds, i edited different elements of the painting digitally- creating different versions. I particularly liked the inverted version of the red background- created a layered blue piece that reminds me of water, or clouds- a design i want to keep for potential future works. This process of digital editing is really useful for me when it comes to brainstorming new ideas- or potential colour schemes. I also like seeing the contrast of inverting pieces- as the same painting has the potential to look unrecognisable in its new filter.
Looking closer at the watercolour blends, you can make out various patterns and shapes within the paint, another element of this medium I particularly like. Up close, it looks like a collection of smaller paintings, pieced together into one big design. For example, as a whole, the above painting could look like a map, or a bird eye view of a forest, or algae bin a pond. Up close, i can see tree patterns, bird figures, insects, water patterns, etc. The borders created by the water drying creates a sense of layering, adding depth to the design.
Inverting this painting changed it completely- creating a more outer space/galaxy effect. I find this an interesting juxtaposition- the same painting representing something the natural Earth world can also represent outer space.
Caitlin Noble 