Gitanjali Art Practice

Please Scroll all the way down and start reading from end to start (as that would be the correct order)

Initially being a still life scene of a laptop facebook screen, I had many different idead with this piece but the ideas were just not working out. Initially I intended to paint the facebook page showing an artist posting his or her artwork and sharing that with their facebook friends virtually. However, half way through painting this, I realized this idea was not really working, or it was just too straightforward. After that, me and my tutor discussed ideas where we came up with the possibility of the canvas being cut from the centre, and have something going on behind this canvas, which could be witnessed through that hole in the canvas, to add a 3d element to the artwork. I like this idea, however when it was discussed with the 3d workshop staff, they exlained that cutting a hole in the canvas was very risky and that the canvas would fall apart. They suggested removing the entire canvas completely from it's frame, and working only with the canvas, however I did not want this. Another idea was mentioned by the workshop staff, where I could project an image onto the the canvas to show the contrast between the digital and the hand-made. I also liked this idea however this also didnt quite work out. In the end, I thought of the concept of viewing art, or anything digitally. When I was on my phone one day, trying to log into Facebook, an error kept displaying. Looking at that constant error sign, this gave me an idea. It made me realize that one cannot rely on technology and it is uncertain when it may brake down or just not load. Using that 'loading error' sign therefore, I came up with some words and painted those on the facebook page canvas.

Overall, I can say that I have developed as an art student, learning to get out of my comfort zone and try out new mediums for making art by using the workshop facilities within the university. From solely using paints and traditional media to make artwork, I have learnt how to use the workshops to think outside the box and create new forms of art, which are not just 2D pieces. Furthermore, learning from the experiences which were shared by the guest lectures within the 3030 module, and being part of the Beaconsfield show, has definitely given me a clear insight to what it is like to be a professional artist. I also now feel, more confident and prepared for the upcoming group shows in May and June.

Final Stages...

I used MDF to make the box in the wood workshop and then used things like foam board wallpaper for the elements inside the box. I then used gel medium transfer to transfer traditional oil painting print-outs to some canvas, which were then made into small canvas frames using balsa wood. 

To make the phone’s ‘screen’, i used some black Arcylic and cut out the shape of the phone using the laser cutting machines in the 3D workshop. I also used vinyl for some elements such as the ‘samsung’ and ‘instagram’ logo texts. The rest of the phone is hand-painted using oils. By combining paints with things like vinyl, I aim to show the handmade and technology within the same piece. 

Gel medium transfer in process for the gallery inside the phone 

Our Studio Photos

Inspired by the work of Nastya Nudnik, i tried to edit some photos of actual art galleries and add certain emoticons next to each person in the gallery, trying to figure out what they may be feeling. I love the idea of combining these digital symbols with real-life situations, so i attempted this on photoshop with a few photos. 

For this piece, i used a balloon and some papier mache glue mixture, with acrylic paint. It was my first experiment with papier mache, which i really enjoyed. Creating artwork in 3D provides an exciting change of the way i usually work, which is mostly 2D. 

Facebook paint splatters - Acrylics on High Impact Polystrene

Binding + designing a cover 

The Tangible and the Digital

Twitter Art Collage 

I looked at a large map of art shows that are currently on around London. It reminded me of how the way people search for art has now changed. Instead of visiting galleries, people now use ‘hashtags’ in order to make their work searchable within a certain category, or to search for particular things, or art. Therefore, I wrote #art on top of the map, in large, to show how this particular feature within social media and the internet kind of, takes over the entire map, hence the way in which we search and witness art. 

With this piece, i plan to combine the handmade with the presence of the virtual world, taking into account the application; ‘snapchat’, where people take photos of where they currently are are send them to their friends. These images can only be viewed for a couple of seconds. I plan to use acrylic lettering cut-outs for overlapping the oil painting. 

Richard Hamilton inspired Collage - Art Gallery social media