---------------
CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVSRSITY,
~IGURES
~N
--~---- ~---------------------~
NORTHRID~~
PAPER
:<'IGURES ON CLAY
An abstract submitted in partial satisfaction of the
requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in
Art
by
Eva Halina Bilinski
January, 1981
The Abstract of Eva Halina Bilinski is
appr~ved:
Watson Cross
John .Hannah, Ghairman
Calif~rnia
State University, Northridge
ii
DEDICATION
Thie thesis is dedicated to my parents, Kazimierz Jan
and Helena Maria. Bilinski,· who early in my life o-pened my
consciousness to the whole world of art.
iii
AG KI-!0\'/LEDJKS:NTS
Since I am an incarnation of my experiences, I
humbly
acknowled~e
must
my teachers and friends who have in-
fluenced my productivity.
My thanks
City
Colle~e
~o
to
Pr~fessor
An~elee
Clyde Kelly of Loe
who was first to see the possibilities of the
extension of my techniques and ideas in the medium of clay
and who encouraged me in this
I
would
Professor
~.lso
Jeor~e
like to
directi~n.
·acknowled~e
the support of
Alsup to whom I am indebted for his sus-
taining assistance,
and
~enerosity
encoura~ement
at every
phase of the work.
My special thanks are due to my mentor, Mr. Watson
Cross, who played an important part in my development and
who was a great aid in
brin~in~
out my individual talents
and abilities.
I
also wish to express my sincere
~ratitude
to
Professor John Hannah for his valuable advice, accessibility, understand in! and sound
tion of this essay.
His
hi~h
~idanc
e
durin~
the prepara-
standards were a constant
challen~e.
Thanks are also due my friends, Evelyn
Ted Schofield, for
knowled~e
bein~
supportive and
~iteck
sharin~
and
their
with me, and especially Elizabeth and Edward
iv
Aston for their many pertinent
su~~estions,
continual
assistance and moral support.
I would like to record my thanks to Chuck Pribyl for
his help with the mechanical matters necessary for the
success of the exhibition and to Jane DeCuir for her time
and assistance with the
or~anization
of the installation.
And, I especially thank my future husband,
(Paul) Ansourian, for his continous inspiration,
faith,
lovin~
support and a
~reat
v
Bo~oss
endurin~
deal of -practical help.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Title Page
ii
iii
Dedication
lv-v
Aaknowled~ments
Table of Contents
vi-vii
viii
Statement
Abstract
Background History
1-3
Result of Exploring Different Media
4
Qualities of Watercolour
5
Technical and Aesthetic
Considerations of Watercolour
Qua:I.ltle~
or Clay
6-7
8-9
Technical and Aesthetic
Considerations of Clay
10-12
The Role of Intuition
13-14
Line and Rhythm
15-16
Colour
17-18
19
White Intervals
vi
Back~round
20-21
Distortion and Improvisation
22
The Element of the Accidental
23
Artistic
24-25
Inte~rity
In Celebration of the ?i!Ure
26
27-28
Summary
29
Biblio~raphy
30-42
Illustrations
v11
STATEME11T
I have tried to
sense of
ap~ly
to my works in clay that same
ex~lor~tory-discovery
in the dimensions
or
pa1ntin~
that I have so
and
lon~
used
drawin~.
Perhaps I reveal more of myself in th-e way I work
than in the way I write, but I am certain that I am
by an inner impulse, a
and materials.
completed
feelin~
~ided
for certain forms, colours
It is not until they are revealed in the
drawin~,
~aintin~
or clay piece, that they can
speak to me or that I can learn from them.
viii
ABSTRACT
F I:JURES 0 N PAPER
FI3-URES ON CLAY
by
Eva Halina Bilinski
Master of Arts in Art
BACK3-ROUND HISTORY
After completion of my undergraduate work, while
living abroad, I was often overcome by the longing to
paint.
medium.
Up until that time, oil had been my primary
However, oil paints were not practical for me
to set up during the course of my travels throughout
Europe so I turned to watercolour which is a much more
convenient medium, lightweight, easy to transport and
store.
I liked its quick, clean, fresh quality.
Watercolour seemed to encourage me to think ahead
and I became bolder with my painting tools.
In fact,
speed and courage are requisites and the spirited
1
2
handling of watercolour as well as the ttfeel'' of this
elusive medium made me have an immediate affinity for it.
Watercolour is suited to improvisation and to the capture
of fresh, vivid impressions.
The very fluidity of it
frees the imagination and dictates a looser rendering.
As a student at the Sorbonne, I would often spend my
evenings at figure drawing classes in Montparnasse where
I was able to continue drawing the nude which has been s
compulsive occurrence in my work since the beginning and
which was my artistic mother tongue.
However, at that time I was still trying to copy the
figure, rather than refer to it.
In fact, I was aiming
for photographic detail instead of portraying my own subjective response to it.
Hyperrealism became the fashion-
able art style and I one of its groupies.
Technical per-
fection was one of my prime goals and I gave little
thought to expression of feeling in art but rather concentrated on actual representation of the model before me.
Nevertheless, I did love the human figure as subject
matter and started to try to express it through my newly
found medium.
In my attempts I discovered that the joyfulness,
directness and spontaneity of watercolour did not lend
itself successfully to detached rendering of the figure.
Each medium has its own technical rules and its own
3
unique impact and one has to respect the disciplines
peculiar to that art form.
The sheer nature of
waterc~lour
to capturing a record of a mental
in~
seemed to be geared
c~nception,
for express-
a statement about my persJnal response to the figure.
It seemed to involve me more in my art and allow me to
experience life more fully.
I started to see my feeling
and reaction to the model being expressed before me.
The
medium liberated me and taught me valuable lessons about
myself and the importance of integration of subject, mood,
form and self in a
paintin~.
Both watercolour and later
clay made me more aware of the subconscious as a motive
force in art.
Finally I began to really work with delight and to
use my feelings as sources for the formation of visual
images.
The real subject of my work now is not the figure
but how paint and clay have changed me and hopefully how
it will
chan~e
the viewer.
RESULT 0:<' EXPLORIN3-
DI'<'FB:E~NT
~~DIA
Experience in one medium affects and influences exploration in another.
Durin~
at
the period when I was
c~ncentratin;
on ceramics
Professor Kelly told me that one medium helps
L~CO,
another and that I would find that the experience in clay
will have benefited my drawing and that
makin~
pottery is
especially conducive to drawing because the mind gets used
to
thinkin~
in mass and shapes.
Mr. Watson Cross at CSUN feels that it is a
~ood
idea
for an artist to change his medium now and then because
paintin~
the same type of picture day after day cannot
help but lessen the keen interest he had in the
I
a~ree
very
with him that a
stimula.tin~
chan~e
be~inning.
of media or approach can be
and even inspirational.
New materials
often pique the imagination.
The variety of media a.nd supports chosen in my work
is due to my own love of exploration of different methods
of expression suitable to the different facets of my personality.
The point in this exploration is to be open to
the endless possibilities which truly exist.
Each medium has its own personality.
These differ-
ences in turn contribute to the expressiveness of the work.
5
~UALITI~S
OF WATERCOLOUR
Much of my interest in watercolour paintin$
ins~ired
ha~
been
by the work of people like Cezanne, Sar$ent,
Demuth, Marin, Prendergast, Pascln, Rodin, and, of course,
my mentor at CSUN, Watson Cross.
As an interpretive medium,
its poetic possibilities are unrivalled.
Henry Miller in his book To Paint is to Love
A~ain,
describes the spirit of watercolour:
Watercolor has affinities with the sonnet, or
the haiku, rather than the Jeremiad. It ca~­
tures the flux and essence, the flavor and
perfume, rather than the substance. Ambiance,
that is what the watercolor renders uar excellance.l
·
In watercolour everythin! depends on freshness.
Colour is a Joy in itself.
Not only does the support
affect tbe colours trut it is a colour itself, and, being
white, is the highest tone in the
paintin~.
The technique
appears to be simple but, in fact, watercolour is a difficult medium because the colours are transparent and must
be painted alla prima without any !Dins back -- no second
chance!
Every brushstroke is a moment of truth for the
artist.
I also like the
~lain
tools of the medium:
paper, a brush or two and a few pigments.
a sheet of
The art of water-
colour is simplicity itself.
IHenry Miller, To Paint is to Love Again (Cambria
Books, Alhambra, California, 1960), p. 4o.
6
TECHNICAL AND
AESrHETI~
CJNSID~R~TIONS
OF WATERCOLOUR
Mastery of watercolour reflects an ability to express
the most with the least amount of brushstrokes and paint.
11
John Marin once said:
Paintin~
is like 3-olf; the
fewer strokes I take, the better the picture. 112
My paintings exploit rapid brushwork and fluid paint.
Since they are done quickly, they generally have great
spontaneity.
tones.
I start in boldly and set in broad colour
With free movement I indicate movement.
..
,
t
••
It was at the Musee Rodin where I first saw the wonder of Rodin's watercolours.
I quote a passa5e in which
Rodin himself praised the sketch in terms which might be
applied to his own watercolours: ·
How can one fail to admire a lightning sketch in
which the artist has recorded the memory of an
emotion felt, of an action seen or comprehended;
a sketch whose expressive impact has been rendered with absolute sincerity, without attenuation, exaggeration or reserve; a sketch in which
sensation is entire a.nd the notation of effect
as valid and complete as in a picture? The
artist has succeeded - almost effortlessly - in
expressin~ his thoughts.
A rough su!)gestion
has conveyed the spirit of the work, and imprecision in its flexivility, enables the beholder's
imagination to make additions, thus com~letin~
what the artist has been searching for.
2Frede--r1'ck s. W1~t , John Marin -- Frontiersman
(University of California Press, Berkeley and Los Angeles,
1956)' p. 33.
3aernard-cham~i~neulle , Rodin:
His Sculnture, Drawand Watercolors (Harry N. Abrams, Inc., New York,
19~7). p. 87.
in~s
7
The watercolour medium presents opportunities for
artistic exploration and satisfaction
throu~
creativity
that is extremely personal and individualistic.
clay I feel humbled by it.
As with
The medium continues to inform
me that there is much more to discover and learn.
8
~UALITIES
0? CLAY
Clay is another material that allows the snontaneity
and imoulsiveness that I require.
~onsive
It is flexible and res-
and like watercolour is fluid.
dous freedom of expression.
It gives a tremen-
Both are malleable materials
and both are related to my lyrical unconscious stream.
There is no falsehood in the world of clay.
Clay and creativity go
ty.
to~ether
with a natural affini-
The raw and unformed clay stimulates the imagination.
.
'
.
It is a creative medium, tactile, plastic, physical, receptive and vulnerable; it responds to bold handling and encourages vigourous expression, invention and experimentation.
It is also unpredictable, a quality which I enjoy.
It is impossible, even after years of experience, to prediet exactly what will be its final form.
Most decisions about the clay are made while it is
still wet.
The immediacy of this method makes it exciting.
I also enjoy the organic and tactile quality of clay as
well as the smell.
There is an element of play in it.
Working with clay is a sensual, aesthetic experience.
In the search for my course of uniqueness in terms of
artistic activity I wanted to find somethin5 that would
relate to and express some of the immediacy and excitement
of painting and with which to make a statement completely
my own.
Ceramics offers an unlimited breadth of expression
9
and I found that I can
ex~ress
myself with
~reat
freedJm
and power through this medium.
I discovered a personal
kinshi~
and satisfaction in
workin5 with clay and have embraced clay as a medium for
my particular expression.
I had no difficulty in trans-
ferring my current freedom in painting to this new medium
and by now I have come to think of it as the other half of
my work.
10
rECHNICAL AND
A~STHETIC
CONSID~FA!IONS
ma~ical
Ceramics is a very free,
ran~e
a wide
of plastic
expressi~n
dan~ers
material and offers
but it has its limita-
tions as well as its possibilities.
and sensitive in its first
OF CLAY
sta~es.
It is very
One of the
shrinka~e durin~
is with uneven
the
fra~ile
bi~~est
dryin~
process
which particularly affects slabs - the base for my panels.
As the
m~isture
leaves the clay, the particles come closer
to!ether and the slab shrinks a little.
unevenly, the outermost
ed~es
When slabs dry
dry first, then when the
middle
~arts
start to dry, the
ed~es
ri~id,
be~in
to curl up and crack.
which are already
To lessen this problem,
I place my slabs on perforated shelves for better
dryin~
If it is a plate I'm
leav1n~
of plastic
dry, exposed.
~1eees
aerat1o~
I cover the rim with a collar
the middle which would be the last to
I also alternate
coverin~
and
uncoverin~
my
with plastic so as to distribute the moisture eon-
tent evenly.
Developin~
course
!ro~
an open clay body with the addition of
also has helped the clay's structure resist
wa:rp-tng------an-d-cracltin~
stages by
bein~
aurin!; 15o'tn t:ne-dryln!; and
more porous.
to use larger slabs and
During the
~reen
This in turn has allowed me
~lates
sta~e,
firin~
I
in my work.
1mpr~vise
directly on the
smooth, damp clay.
It is this fluid feel of the tool in-
c1s1n~
tactile surface of the clay that is
the
waitin~,
11
most pleasurable and
durin~
which I reel most at ease with
my medium.
I reel responsible ror
rrom
be~innin~
carryin~
the process
throu~h
to end in contrast to many European artists
who perrormed only one phase or the operation - that or
decorat1n~
the ceramic base rurnished by another.
I want the material to be
~enuine
trinsic beauty or ceramic surrace
and reveal the inyet I don't
paintin~
want to lose the reel or the ceramic medium.
I want to
decorate the surrace and .sti.l.l be true to the nature of
the mea ium.
An endless
ran~e
of ideas can be discovered in the
paintin! on plates and platters, and every one or them
that I make is an adventure.
Paintin~
on ceramic permits
me to use the brush with oxides, wax resist, stains and
engobes.
Some or my plates reflect the sestural power
and zest of abstract expressionism.
I love to experiment
and try new combinations of colour, textures and rorm.
An interplay between clay and slaze brin!S both a
fusion or colours and surraces.
"9lay of glossy surface
colour
a.~ainst
a~a.i nst
Contrasts abound in the
rou~h
surface, of luminous
creamy opaque whites, or active
passa~es
a;ainst quiet ones, of cools a;ainst warms.
Surface textures,
varyin~
degrees of
trans~arency,
opacity, glossiness and mattness all offer a
avenues for !)iving character to
~lazes.
~reat
many
12
Texture and
~loss
appearance of colour.
play an im?ortant role in the
Colour can seem intensified or sub-
dued by bel ng transparent or opaque.
Opaque colours create
a much flatter surface, whereas transparent colours give a
feeling of depth or distance.
A colour can also vary simply by
of the
~laze.
~lazes
different kilns.
can also
~ive
varyin~
the thickness
different results in
In my work, I have tried to exploit these
characteristics.
The moment of truth r~ally comes during the firin~ of
the kiln.
The accident of
~laze
or kiln is part of the
birth of any ceramic form and is accepted as such.
particularly, my plates often emerge
result of the brutality of the fire.
sli~tly
In raku
cracked as a
In fact, surprises
that happen in the firing may send me in a whole new direction in further exploration of this wonderful medium.
my
firin~
I do
in both oxidation and reduction atmospheres and
look forward with excitement to the open in~ of a kiln.
Be-
cause of chance variations in the conditions inside the
kiln, a
~reat
variety of effects may be produced and I can
never tell with certainty what will be the results.
I
deli~t
in the character of the clay and in all the
processes of ceramics.
13
THE ROLE 0:<' INTUITION
Reason is only a part
emotion and
ima~ination
~f
our mental acuity.
Intuition,
are also means by which we create.
I find that I am often unaware of aesthetic decisions I
make in the development of a painting.
the structure of my picture
lettin~
I feel my way into
my subconscious deter-
mine my choice of colours, forms and values.
This total involvement at the moment of doins is very
satisfyin~.
It seems to be a trance-like
~ctivity
with all
objective feeling at· least'momentarily suspended.
As Mark Rothko said:
There is often an element of surprise present in
the accomplishment of truly creative acts - a
standi n~ back by the artist and a silent exclamation: 1 How on earth did I do that!" To lose
one's self-awareness in the makin~ of a work of
art is to become tuned in to a ~idin~ and controllin5 force not present in the routine operations of consc1ousness.4
and Odilon Redan:
Nothin~ in art is accomplished by the will alone.
Everythin! is accomplished throu~ a docile submission to the dictates of the unconscious.5
Art must have immediacy in order to have life.
Quick
sketching stimu.lates the ability to capture the prominent
4Graham C ollter , Art and the Crea ti ve Con sci ou sne s s
(Prentice-Hall, Inc., Engleweed Cliffs, New Jersey, 1972),
p. 40.
5Antir8-.L'h8te-~:, "The Unconscious in Art," Transition,
26' ( 1937)' p. 82.
14
features of any subject
acting fast prevents
second thoughts.
with~ut
~ne's
wavering.
ideas from
bein~
Thinking and
dissipated by
Maurice de Vlamink stated the proposition
well when he said:
My aim is to rediscover the impulses submer!ed
in the depths of the unconscious, which superficial life and conventions have concealed from
us ••• I have composed from instinct, and I paint
with one single idea which ~or me excuses everythin~:
saying what I mean.
~aly~ and ·ntetfried·:.:Gerh·at!du,a ... Expressionism
(Phaidon Press Limited, Oxford, 1979), pp. 49-50.
15
LINE AND RHYTHM
A line can capture a moment or mood by
essentials and
notation.
puttin~
and revealin; means of
the
them down in a personal and lively
drawin~
In fact,
seizin~
is one of the most
ex~ressin5
fascinatin~
one's idea.
A line can be eloquent, explorative, fluid, quiet,
dynamic, sinuous.
There are thou sands of variations.
Line itself has mood; it can express the sensation of restin~
feelin~
or having the
happy sensation
throu~
of restlessness;· it can create a
curves or it' can give a
feelin~
of
vibration and movement.
Sometimes my own personal rhythm dictates my choice of
lines in conjunction of mood suggested by the model.
Line
is an important part of the pictorial shorthand I use to
convey essential sensations.
more than it states.
tin;uished for the
the
thin~s
It is selective and
su~gests
In fact, a sood drawin! is often dis-
thin~s
it leaves out, rather than for
it includes.
My love of line spills over into my painting, whether
on paper or on clay
rhythms.
throu~
the interplay of linear
Line binds the composition and hooks the vital
parts together.
In my ceramic panels, where I cut the
pieces is crutial to the tota.l design because I establish
visual direction lines which then sugsest movement and
hold the composition together.
16
I often work with ink in combination with watercolour.
Sometimes the drawing is initiated with a Pentel pen.
I
then reinforce linear and planular rhythm with coloured
washes
which tend to dilute the Pentel ink
makin~
the line
soft and at times vague.
Ink is a very versatile medium which can be used in a
variety of ways to produce different effects.
I consider
it to be a bold medium for expression and a spur to experimentation and creativity.
.
'
The way an artist uses iine reveals a rich portrait of
himself, provides the viewer with a definition of his aesthetics and reflects his mood at the moment of creation.
Rhythm is the base of art and is achieved
·form of repetition.
throu~
some
The lines and accents of the body
should be arranged in a rhythmical order to create a feelin~
of movement or flow on the surface.
The
arran~ement
of the areas surroundin! the f1!Ure
should be dependent upon the directional lines of' the fi!;ure.
For example, if a certain feature makes a particular
angle, that angle may be repeated elsewhere in the composition; but an even more important consideration is the opposition to it made by
nei!hbourin~
patterns.
pulls help the des1$n to hold to;ether.
aware of' these rhythms when I start
dually
ceeds.
emer~e
Contradictory
I am not
paintin~
alwa~s
but they
~ra­
in one form or another as the paintin! pro-
17
COLOUR
Colour has alwaye been important to me and I enjoy it
for its own sake.
field.
It
~ives
It
funct1~ns
de~th
to unify the pictorial
to the space within the picture and
it adds an element of movement.
It is also a vehicle for
emotion.
My awareness of the relativity of colours due to their
interactions helped convince me that they had to be dealt
with intuitively rather than be rule or mathematical calculation.
I use colour intuitively and choose those which for
some subconscious reason appeal to me
colours are not preplanned.
expressin~
somethin~
My
I use colour primarily for
I have found within myself in response
to the subject instead of
istics of colour.
emoti~nally.
workin~
with objective character-
Since colour is an expressive force, I
use it as my inner needs demand.
I present colour in such a way that it
representational function.
ima~e
~aintin~
I distribute my
so that they are balanced.
colour rhythmically and with improvisation.
acquire shapes and
~ive
beyond its
The emotional content of the
tells me what colours to use.
colours as I'm
~oes
I use
My colours
dynamism to the composition.
Though I have no preference for any specific colour,
I sometimes do
~et
a
crav1n~
for a particular colour that
18
may predominate in a series.
Picasso once said that
after a walk in a forest, for instance, he feels & need
to empty the sensation of
~reen
into a
~icture.
19
WHITE INTERVALS
The
ex~itement
produced by colours is further empha-
sized by the use of white intervals which in turn play a
vital part in the design.
The whites are active
emphasizin~
rhythms and
bri;ht colours.
throu~out,
preventin~
They also create
separatin~
claShes
li~ht
amon~
forms,
the
and an open and
airy quality.
Colours are surrounded by
lar~e
areae of white in
such a way as to suggest that the colour extends also into
the unpainted paper.
The white intervals also take on shapes and the deSi!n both of the colour areas and of the intervals is as
important as the identity of the subject.
20
If
"'9A'J K1R.OUND"
Perhaps
11
background" 1 s
n~t
a good word to use; it
sounds like something not very important - a mere backdrop.
However, everything that happens behind and around the
figure is important.
We hardly ever see a figure against
a neutral void, or as Watson 'Jross calls a painting of that
type:
"lonesome figure in a snowstorm."
The paraphenalia
of the studio- an easel, cabinets, some student's supplies,
etc. - are useful in dividing up the space·and all contribute their sha.re to the whole pattern.
One shape influences another and imagina.tion is activated by the relationship of two colours or forms.
the many subconscious brain actions is to invent.
One of
We use
this capacity to creatively modify the facts in front of us.
Every painting is a unique problem and each requires
different solutions.
Sometimes the picture dictates the
change it seems to demand as we work on it and the work
undergoes unexpected changes.
For instance, an accent on
the left-hand of a painting may be called for by a line on
the
ri~t.
Every brushstroke modifies the preceding one.
A challenge emerges from the very act of the painting,
and then something else is produced and then something else
changes that and so an evolutionary process develops.
artist must be responsive to these events
him.
occurrin~
The
before
In fact, I often feel as if I am following the brush
21
where 1t leads me.
Part of the fun of painting is being
open to these developments as well as learning from them.
22
DISTORTION
A1~
IY-?~OVISATION
My theory is that anything that is justified by an
aesthetic
reas~n
is right.
I have found form in deforming.
To take a perfectly
formed plate and cut it into two, three,or more parts
took courage to do.
My "broken" plate series make use of
negative space in between the pieces.
The shape or size
of these negative spaces actually become positive spaces
and bring to mind the
psycholo~y.
fi~re-ground
patterns of
~estalt
I try to treat the positive and negative
spaces with equal importance in their relation to the
subject matter.
Exact copyin; of the model bears little or no relation to the excellence of the work.
I improvise and in-
vent forms in my work if I feel they add to the whole as
well as omit others if they seem to disturb the
paintin~.
Sometimes I alter shape, colour or form for em9hasis or
for compositional unity.
Modification should add to the expressive quality of
the whole.
I distort to more fully render the sensation
I feel and wish to express, whether it is line, colour or
form.
As
Henri Matisse said:
11
Exactitude is not truth". 7
7charlo:t~e, _Willard, Famou~ Modern Artists - From
Cezanne to Pou Art (Platt & Munk, Publishers, New York,
1971), p. 43.
-----~~~-----·---.
23
THE ELEMENT OP THE AG C I DENTAL
In the media that I favour, the element
plays a very
im~ortant ~art.
It
~ives
o~
accidoat
a quality of life
and vitality.
In watercolour,one of its most attractive qualities
is the textural variety both intentional and accidental.
In fact, I find a continual fascination in
will happen when I paint in watercolour.
that element of accideat or
seein~
what
There ie always
sur~rise.
Ceramics, too, is a medium where rapidity
o~
execu-
tion is essential and where accidents may readily occur.
Many of them occur in the
sli~t
firin~,
where, for instance, a
variation in temperature can mean a difference in
colour.
The artist has to be alive to the accident and
thou~
it is an element outside his conscious intent he has to
develp his ability to take
and rejoice in them.
assert1n~
itself,
advanta~e
of these accidents
After all, it is the materia.l
speakin~
to and
inform1n~
him.
24
INT~~RITY
ARTISTIC
Clay has taught me to feel my way in watercolour and
to develop a better instinctive
A
lar~e
feelin~
for a situation.
part of the manipulation of clay is
feelin~.
Ex-
perience in ceramics helped me to understand form, to feel
it, and to be more aware of myself and the
from my hands as I shape a pot.
tuitive
thin~
tains it.
ener~y
flowin~
Throwin! becomes an in-
as it catches the mood of the moment and re-
I realize that this sensibility-is a part of me
and start to be more confident about myself and my intuitive creativity.
~esture
has a
I learn that
everythin~
I make in clay
and a personality that comes from the
I brin5 to the clay.
instantly revealed.
\~atever
It is
feelin~
the clay evokes in me is
affectin~
me and I am
affectin~
it.
These experiences made me more fully realize the importance of personal artistic
inte~rity,
the need to be
true to oneself and to trust one's instinctive
feelin~s.
To be truly happy the artist has to be true to himself.
He must not please others at the expense of his own pleasinte~ri ty
ure and
or conform so as to be accepted or be-
cause of peer pressure or adopt any "isms" because they are
fashionable.
es and
for~et
he stops
bein~
He must trust himself, use his own experienctrends.
He must be true to himself or else
a creative artist.
25
r.mat makes one artist 1 s painting-different' from
another's is his particular view of the visible.
In
ceramics, every individual touch is different; the feeling the a.rtist
~rin3s
to tbe clay is wbat makes the work
true to him.
In the search for my own direction I have found the
means of expression that suit me and which enable me to
exteriorize my moods without falsification or loss of
integrity.
Now my painting and my
cerami~s
stand side
by side, two forms of a single visual faculty and a
single thought.
26
IN C"S;LE3RATION 0:<'
'!'H~
::'IJ.tTRE
I respond to the magic of life
the
livin~
human form.
throu~h
the medium of
Throu;h it I strive for a closer
approach to truth.
My paintin5s are about the model and they are about
me.
They are the result of the effect of the model on me.
I am concerned with expressing my personal vision of
the subject and not imitatin5 its appearance.
involved with shapes and their
accomodati~n
I am also
into composi-
tion as well as the' forms, patterns and relationships
between them.
The play of forms fascinates me as does my
desire to leave visible the arrested moment and to
brin~
home to myself my own deli;ht and pleasure.
The complexities of the nude makes it an inexhaustible theme.
There are always new revelations to be made.
In the body exist certain directions of line which oppose
each other and which express action as well as fluid,
sinuous curves.
The combination of these varied qualities
and rhythms and continuously varying contrasts make the
figure most valid as subject matter.
The figure is my inspiration and I am dedicated to
celebrate its virtues.
I wish to preserve the vibration
of its life in my art.
I now ask the viewer to join me
in a joyous celebration of the figure.
27
SUMMARY
My work has grown out of a
ona
f~r
combinati~n
painting and tha other for
~f
affectio~s,
cera~ics.
During these last two years, in particular, I developed my art according to my own temperament and in the
direction of increased freedom.
By
experimentin~
with
many techniques and materials in my searching experimental
nature and response to the figure a personal calligraphy
emerged.
There is virtue in using materials sympathetic to oneself.
I project my own particular personality and psyche
via the figure onto the painting surface, be it paper or
clay.
My approach is generally expressionistic with natu-
ral and manmade form stripped of non-essentials, reduced
to summarized shapes and rendered in thick
ener~etic
strokes.
The fluid nature of both watercolour and clay as well
as process-inspired accidents liberated my creative powers
and fired my imagination.
I freed myself
~rom
the extreme-
ly precise detail that occupied so much of my earlier
painting and discovered the real joy of painting.
I tried to go beyond rendering to express my inner
feelings and experiences in life
throu~
line, colour and
form and to transmit the essence of intuitive responses to
the fi.gure.
I feel that feelings are a safer criterion
28
than any set of rules.
To quote Georges Roualt:
tg
Only my interior feeling appears
eternal and uncantestably certain.
8James Thrall
Prints (The Museum
me to be
•
29
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Ch s.mp i !Sneu 11 e , Bernard • .:.::R:.;:;.o~d~i..;;;n~:-.::.:H:.;:i~s;_;S:;..;c;..;u;;.:l~o.;;..t.::.:u::-i-r..;;.e..z..,-.:D. ; .r. : ;a;: w:-=i:. .: ;n: asz.. : .s
and Watercolors. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc.,
1967.
Collier, :Jraham. Art and the Creative Consciousness.
En~leweed Cliffe, New Jersey:
Prentiee-Hall, 1972.
:Jerhardus, Maly and Dietfried. Exoressionism.
Phaidon Press Limited, 1979.
L'b8te, Andre. "The Unconscious in Art.tt
(1937), p. 82.
Miller, Henry. To Paint is to Love Asain.
California: Cambria Books, 1960.
Oxford:
Transition, 26
Alhambra,
Soby, James Thrall. Geor5es Roualt: Paintinss and Prints.
New York: The Museum of Modern Art, 1947.
Wi,ht, Frederick S. John Marin -- Frontiersman. Berkeley
and Los An~eles: University of California Press,
1956.
Willard, Charlotte. Famous Modern Artists - From Cezanne
to Po• Art. New York: Platt & Munk, Publishers,
1971.
30
ILLUSTRATIONS
31
'
.
.32
'
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34
;
t
39
39
.
'
41
42