Sunny Day in the Country60.96cm x 60.96cm, acrylic paint on canvas, March 2024
I created this art piece because I wanted to explore a new art style that I have never tried before which is Post-Impressionism. I also created this art piece because of the emotion I felt from the inspiration I used which was "landscape with Ploughed Fields" painted by Vincent Van Gogh. This painting is meant to show how agriculture affects the natural world and how it disrupts the landscape in this painting. |
Inspiration
The inspiration I used for this project was "landscape with Ploughed Fields" by Vincent Van Gogh in 1889. Van Gogh is a world re-known artist that was part of the post-impression movement. Van Gogh was most known for his use of color and his post-impression style. Van Gogh was born on March 30th, 1853 in North Brabant, Netherlands. "Landscape with Ploughed Fields" isn't one Van Gogh's most popular paintings but I believe it is one of his best paintings that he has made. When I first saw this painting my eyes started at the bottom and worked it's way up following the the farm field. My eyes did this because of the way the stokes that Van Gogh did with his paint brush. Van Gogh painted the farm field in a vertical form top move the viewers eyes up the painting. The emotion that I felt when I saw this painting was sadness because agriculture is destroying this beautiful landscape. That is why I choice this piece as my inspiration because of the emotions feel and how this art piece connects to my theme. Planning I started planning this project with three planning drawings to figure out which direction I wanted to go with this painting. When I was planning, I wanted to go different directions while keeping the same idea. My plan was to sketch out three different Van Gogh landscape paintings and see which one I like the most. After I had my three different sketches done I landed one the first one because I feel like it best represents my theme. I feel this way because this sketch shows the different between land that humans have taken over and land that hasn't been taken yet in one landscape. Process I first started my process by making a canvas to paint onto. The first step to making a canvas was constructing the frame of the canvas. After the frame of the canvas was complete, the next step was to cut out a piece of linen to wrap it around the frame. Since the linen was cut out the next step was to wrap the linen around the frame and use a staple gun to secure the linen to the wooden frame. After the linen was secure to the frame the move was to apply gesso. The gesso is very important because it creates a base layer for the acrylic paint to sit on while also tightening the linen to make it easier to paint on. The most important aspect about applying gesso was once you gessoing a canvas to not stop until it is complete, this is because if one part of canvas tightens and another part doesn't it can snap the frame of the canvas. After the gesso dries then it is ready to be painted on. After my canvas was prepped and ready to be painted on, I could start by putting my sketch onto my canvas. After I had my outline complete I was ready to start putting paint on my canvas. I started painting the farm field first because that was the biggest part of the painting and it would take the largest amount of time. I was having trouble creating the Van Gogh painting style I was going for but the way I got around this was to start with a base color and then take two or three colors and paint small stokes on that base layer. I kept layering the small strokes on top of each until it was hard to see the base layer. After I completed the farm field I moved my way up the canvas and started on the wall behind the farm field. With the wall I wanted it to stand out so I decided to make the strokes horizontal to break up the painting to move the viewers eyes more. After I had the farm field and the wall done I started working on the sky because I thought it would take a long time. I started the sky with the sun which I didn't texture because I wanted it to stand out from the rest of the painting. After I had the sun complete, I started on the rest of the sky by working my way from the sun to the outside of the canvas. I started with the base layer of yellow and did small stokes of red, orange, and more yellow. After the sky was complete the next step was the path which I did with small strokes of yellows, browns, and a little black, The next step after the path was done, was to start on the mountains which I did by painting a light grey on the closet and farthest mountains. After I painted the other mountains I started on the middle mountains a dark grey. The next step after I had the base layers complete I started texturing the lighter mountains with different shades of grey, blues and white. The next step was to texture the dark mountain with darker greys, blues and black. The only thing left after the mountains were done was the house and the trees. With the trees and the house, I started with base layers again and added small strokes with lighter and darker tones of the base. After I textured the trees and the house my painting was complete. Refection Looking back at this artwork I would say I succeeded at most parts of this piece but also failed at some other parts of this piece. Where I think I succeeded the most was with the sky and with the mountains. I say, I succeeded at this part because of the way it compares to Van Gogh's art style. Two things I would say I failed at in this piece is the farm field and the wall because the colors mixed and didn't create the look I was going for in this piece. The colors mix because I was impatient and didn't give the paint enough time to dry which caused the look that I didn't want. If I were to do this project over again I would do everything the same with this art piece except I would take more time with the farm field and the wall. Overall I would say I succeeded with this art piece because it is what I envision in my head with my sketches and outlines. Critique Comparing my artwork and Van Gogh's artwork, there are many similarities and differences. The main similarities between these two artworks is the style that they are painted in and the landscape they are painting. These two paintings share these similarities because I took what Van Gogh made and turned it into my own art piece. The main difference between these two artworks is the color used in each of these paintings. My painting uses a wider range of color than Van Gogh's painting, this is most seen in the oranges and reds in the sky and the different blues in the mountains. Experimentation The thing that I experimented with the most was getting the look that I was going for with Van Gogh's Post-Impression. I first started with making a base layer and after the base layer was dry I started to add small strokes of other colors. My first go at this style didn't work well because I didn't stack them on top of each other enough and put them far apart. In the farm field the strokes were closer together but still not close enough. In the sky and mountains is when I started to get the look I was going for from the start. I got this look because I stacked the strokes on top of each which made the look I wanted. ACT Questions Clearly explain how you are able to identify the cause effect relationship between your inspiration and its effect on your artwork. Van Gogh's painting "landscape with Ploughed Fields" influenced the style of my painting that I used in my painting and the landscape that I painted in my painting What is the overall approach the author has regarding the topic of your inspiration? The approach that Van Gogh took when making this painting was to paint a landscape but in the Post-Impression style that Van Gogh is known for. What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, culture, etc. while you researched your inspiration? When I was researching Van Gogh his paintings, I discovered that Van Gogh was one of the most influential artists of all time. I knew Van Goh was popular but I didn't know how influential he was until I did my research. What is the central idea or theme around your inspirational research? The central theme of my research was Van Gogh and what he did for the for the Post-Impression art movement. What kind of inferences did you make while reading your research? The biggest inference I made while doing my was that Van Gogh was a amazing artist and made incredible works of art. MLA Citation Landscape with Ploughed Fields, 1889 by Vincent van Gogh, www.vincentvangogh.org/landscape-with-ploughed-fields.jsp. Accessed 31 Mar. 2024. Paintings, Department of European. “Vincent van Gogh (1853–1890): Essay: The Metropolitan Museum of Art: Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History.” The Met’s Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History, 1 Jan. 2000, www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/gogh/hd_gogh.htm. “Post-Impressionism Movement Overview.” The Art Story, www.theartstory.org/movement/post-impressionism/. Accessed 31 Mar. 2024. |