Jill Edmonds

Total this week: 8.75 Grand Total: 141.25

This week, I cleaned up my drawings on Photoshop and placed them in my Pecha Kucha. I put the finishing touches on the presentation over the weekend and thought about what I was going to say about each piece. I took the advice given to me in my run-through and applied it by giving each of my final pieces 3 slides and 4 images each. 

My body of work comments on the symbiotic relationship between humans and nature (as opposed to the “man vs. nature” trope). Through my intertwining of human anatomy and floral forms, I touch on the importance on living in cooperation with the environment, instead of opposing it. Humans were meant to live in harmony with nature; it is evident in every part of every human being, down to the DNA. Everything in the body contains organic forms which appear frequently in the environment. In addition to this, humans have always sought (whether or not through conscious effort) to mimic nature in their own creations. Humans are beyond living with nature, side-by-side; they are, themselves, a part of it, just as much as the flowers and the trees and the weeds. I am commenting on the importance of the human species to be conscious of just how connected they are to nature, what they take from it, and how this affects their own longevity. My spinal column piece highlights the parallels between nature’s systems of structure and those of the human body. Vertebrae provide the same function as a strong stem or trunk to support growth and vegetation. The systems in place in nature which support the human race are taken for granted, such as the ability for plant life to produce oxygen and sustain life on Earth. Just as each body system provides a specific function to keep humans alive, systems in nature provide the same function for plants, animals, and humans alike. Humans need to embrace their connection to the environment, recognizing the similarities between anatomical structures and structures contained in nature, and appreciate the wealth of resources that have been provided for humans to thrive on this planet.

I have finished the piece I’m calling, “Bloom,” and I spent today’s time on gathering images. I named the other two pieces and named my series, “Organics.” I’m beginning my Pecha Kucha and will have it finished by the end of the week. 

Timelog 11 11.6 1.5 hrs drawing 11.9 3.3 hrs drawing 11.10 1.6 hrs drawing 11.11 1.7 hrs drawing 11.12 1.6 hrs drawing 11.13 .6 hrs timelog/blog posting total this week: 10.3 hrs overall total: 121.65 hrs

This week I finished the brain stem piece and started on a breast tissue and anatomy piece. I plan to start on a heart and lungs large combination piece and finish the rib cage/spinal column piece before Friday to bring to class. I am excited to work on the bigger piece and finish the rest of my smaller ones. This is the finished brain stem piece with left negative space. I made a few adjustments since my last posting.

10.31 – 2 hr drawing 11.01 – 4.75 hr drawing 11.05 – 3.5 hr drawing 11.06 – 1.75 hr drawing total this week: 12 hr overall total: 111.35 hr

Yesterday, I started on rendering the brain stem. When I sit down to do this I get sucked in and want to stay put for hours at a time. Our brain stems are bigger than I thought and do more than I knew. This is the thing that keeps us alive. It is beautiful and complex in itself so I wanted to highlight this relationship in my drawing. It is currently unfinished; it may need another day to resolve. 

total this week: 19 total total: 99.35

This week I made significant strides in my work and finally sat down with a plan to execute. It was satisfying to finally get the ball rolling and back to the ‘root’ of my initial discoveries. My goal is to finish this piece before our guest critique on Friday. 

TOTAL: 80.35  

hours this week 10 total hours 71.85

I enjoyed the smaller version of this piece so much from the sketchbook that I decided to create a larger version on knockoff Strathmore with chartpaks. It’s been lovely working with these and getting to (finally) relax and warm up with drawing. I’m thinking I’m finally finding my niche in this class and really excited to see where this takes me. I hope to do an overlay of a skeletal system intertwined (and/or created)  with flowers over the top of this quilt-like pattern. I can definitely see this becoming a body of work!

hours this week 11.6 total hours 61.85

I’ve been doing a lot of work on my new concept: combining human systems and floral elements. I’ve been looking at veins and arteries as well as bones and noticing the similarities.  There are two more drawings in this series so far. I am very interested in the direction it’s going!