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This is a collage of photos that I have composed for this unit from school and a local souk in Mutrah.
Mindmapping & Observations
Like, Don't Like, further Ideas
This is where I drew a little section of the chosen photograph. Next to it, I decided what I liked and disliked about the little sketch, and then any further ideas. I decided that I like the layering colors that make a nice messy thing in the middle. I also like the muted colors and the dullness of the sketch. I dislike the large tube at the bottom, and I don’t think I will include this in the draft/final piece. I brainstormed an idea of using the smaller tube that goes vertically up the wall as a timeline of Oman, so I did some research into the history of Oman, and found that there were multiple overthrowings that I could represent with the messy bit. I thought that maybe the tapestry on the top (from the reference photo) could represent trade, as cloths and tapestries were once traded in Oman. I took these ideas to a group class discussion, and some people said that I could make the tapestry like a net, and make khanjars falling through it. Although I think it’s very creative, I don’t like the idea, and I won’t put it in my draft. I also wanted to put something at the bottom, where the timeline tube would start, and thought maybe I could make the smoke of a frankincense burner be the start of the timeline tube. That is as far as I got for my further ideas after doing this small sketch of an interesting bit of the reference photo.
Developed Idea sketch
This is a small sketch using the ideas I talked about in my first sketch. I have a small burner at the bottom, and a messy bit in the middle connected to the burner with smoke, and then that 'smoke' goes up into a tapestry on the top. I like this idea, although I don't like the technique/materials I used to make them. I need to use gold acrylic paint to make the burner pop and contrast more, and also do some designs to make it more interesting. I also don't like how I've done the messy bit, which in my draft I will change and try to copy from my first sketch. the tapestry at the top looks fine, and I think I will keep it but instead use acrylic paint.
Background
I also need to do something with the background. On the right of that small sketch I have printed out 2 prints of my small sketch, where I can practice some background ideas. The first print has a background of mountain scene of Oman as it's background. I like this one and I will include it in my draft, but the background needs to be very muted, and not as vibrant as it is in this photo. I don't like the second background because it's too muted and dull, the painting overall looks boring.
Above that bit is where I practiced muting the background colors, just by mixing a very tiny amount of color paint with a lot of white paint, which has worked very well.
Frankincense Burner
The burner from the developed idea sketch is boring and dull, so I experimented with gold acrylic paint and brown paint, which I like a lot better. I also used a black marker to draw in some designs where the smoke could escape. I chose the 3rd (last) frankincense to pursue in my draft.
LOCAL COLOR
This unit we looked at metaphors and layered meaning. We had 2 photography trips; one around the school and one to a local souk in Mutrah. We used these photos as our inspiration to create a metaphor represented in a final piece.
First Draft
What I like;
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I like how faded the background is. This is definitely what I envisioned from the beginning. It allows the piece in the middle to stand out more and be the focal point.
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I really like the burner at the bottom of the painting because the designs are so similar to what I observed in the souk.
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The messy bit at the top looks much better than before when I was experimenting above.
What I don't like;
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I don't like that there isn't a lot of detail in the background. I think my intention of making the background realistic was lost in trying to make the background as faded as possible. In my final product I will need to add more detail to the background in order for people to understand what it is.
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I also think the messy bit in the middle needs more contrasting colors, to make it look more chaotic rather than a blend of blacks and browns and grays.
Final Product
Statement of Intent
For this Local Color unit we would have to make a final piece that utilized a photo from the souk and was able to make layered meaning and metaphors. We started off by learning the difference between ‘taking’ and ‘making’ a photo. We understood that we would need to compose a photo instead of take a photo that we think looks nice. We first composed photos during class time around the school, and then we had a field trip to the souk where we got a lot more interesting photo opportunities.
Out of the 10 photos I made, I chose this photo out because I really liked the color scheme, and how different it is to all the other photos I have. It looks more calm and peaceful; contrasting to the other photos where there were lots of jewels and bright busy colors.
I find the tube going vertically across this picture very interesting, and that is what I wanted to start my intentions with. I decided that I would try to incorporate something from the souk, so I thought that I could represent the tube as a timeline of Oman. I did some research about Oman’s history, and found that there were many leaders and overthrowings, so I thought that I could use the messy bit in in the middle as a representation of the time period of Oman that was a little bit unstable and unsure - due to all the overthrowings. That was as far as I got with my ideas before we presented our intentions to the class and got some feedback.
Some people said that the tapestry at the top reminds them of a net, and have Khanjars falling through it or getting stuck in it. I like the idea, but I’m not quite sure what metaphor it would be representing, so I don’t think I would be putting that in my final piece. Although it did make me think about how I was going to use that tapestry, so I thought about Oman’s history again, and thought that I could use the tapestry to represent trade in Oman, because that once was a huge contributor to Oman’s economy.This would help me to represent 2 ideas from Oman’s history; the many leaders and trade as a part of the economy.
From First Draft to Final Piece
After reflection of my draft I realized I need to add way more detail into my final piece if I want it to resemble a scene in Oman. For example, people couldn't tell what the intended mountain was because there wasn't any detail that contrasted. However, while trying to add in contrast and detail, the background wasn't faded enough and didn't make the middle stand out like it should. I didn't want to restart it because I don't think i'd be able to recreate something with the same amount of detail. So I had a problem where I needed to fade the background but I didn't want to restart it, and I couldn't just use white glaze to fade it. I decided that I could use this oppurtunity to try out Photoshop. This would allow me to not lose any of my detail and still do what I want to do.
Metaphor
This painting is used to describe the history of Oman, through the trade and war specifically.