Summer brief progression

This is a piece Hannah did, and is the first piece of work I took inspiration from in our swaps. Her use of  varying thicknesses of black line on the white background is striking and effective as an illustration depicting the scene in Waterhouse's painting. I could imagine this appearing on a poster or flyer about the nymphs.

Here is my response from Hannah's piece. I kept the black and white theme initially, using ink pen on white paper, before I added coloured pencil to a copy. Like Hannah's use of minimal features, I left the nymphs faceless, focusing instead on their hair and figures. The hair was initially intended to appear like the waves of the water, but in the finished piece they appear to be floating in air rather than water; ghost like rather than sirens? The lack of facial features makes the nymphs more menacing, and more like objects; as Hylas views them as objects of desire.

Above are two examples of Bryony's responses. We all naturally seemed to become fond of the use of lines in the hair. It creates a sense of the hair flowing, and links to the idea of water. Visually, it is overwhelming, linking to how Hylas and the nymphs' other victims relate to with the sensation of drowning in the water. 

I wanted to focus more on the faces of the nymphs. Instead of looking at the faces in the painting, I based this face on Marion Cotillard. This is because I was struggling to capture the features of Waterhouse's nymphs and studying their features became counterproductive. Also, when I imagine a nymph (i.e. enchanting faces) she is one of the first people who came to mind looks-wise. I used 2b pencil and ink pen, then photocopied the original and added watercolour. 

After studying the nymphs I decided to focus more on their environment and how I could explore that visually. The nymphs are 'children of nature' and in the painting are surrounded by lily pads, trees and flowers. My studies of these flowers evolved from a sketch I did of some flowers in a park. In the first example I created a 'flower bed', which Bryony elaborated on in her own piece:

Although the difference in our drawing styles is evident, i think the simple addition of Bryony's nymphs gives the odd bundle of flowers a place, giving the nymphs a platform for the iconic figures they are.

Hannah's translucent use of watercolour in this piece is dreamlike and adds to the tranquil atmosphere of the image. My first thoughts when looking at it was that it would make a brilliant design for a stained glass window.

In turn, I added to this piece with watercolour. It is not meant to be a literal background; more like a suggestion of their environment. I think the watercolour became too overwhelming. I needed to use more of a light suggestion of colour rather than drowning the image with it. I think the line drawing Bryony created is far more effective and is more appealing as a simple piece, like a small book illustration.

Dirty Car Art

Stumbled across this today when I was browsing illustrations inspired by 'Hylas and the Nymphs'.

'Meet Scott Wade – a talented artist, who like every creative  and curious person can’t resist a dirty rear car window. We suspect that Scott started off with clever sayings, like, “wash me”, however his later works became much more sophisticated.

He lives on a mile and a half of dirt road – caliche, as the locals call it, road-base: a blend of limestone and gravel clay. Driving over this surface results in a fine, white dust that billows up behind any vehicle driven faster than a galloping turtle, coating the rear window. Being an experienced artist it wasn’t long before Scott started experimenting with techniques to achieve these amazingly detailed and shaded drawings.'

[http://www.boredpanda.com/dirty-car-art-by-scott-wade/]

More examples can be found on his website: http://www.dirtycarart.com/

study for 'Hylas and the Nymphs', John William Waterhouse, circa 1896


There's something about classical studies like this that really appeals to me. The sensitive pencil work is perfectly fitting for the ambient, dreamy atmosphere of the scene in the story.


In fact, I believe that sketches like this are often far superior to the painstakingly painted visions that they precede. There is a massive difference, visually, between the paintings and the sketches. In this example, the subtle shading of the women's faces contrasts with the wavy, gestural pencil lines, details which are lost in the final paintings which appear bland and airbrushed in comparison.


As a fan of inky, sketchy styles of illustration, I suppose it does make sense that the sketches are more interesting to me (not to say that I am not amazed by Waterhouse's painting talent!). In the studies we see the freedom of the artists' hand movement; the pencil moves more swiftly, spontaneously. The dark lines which overlap some of the softer detail demonstrate this freedom. In a painting they would seem out of place, but when this drawing is viewed as more of an illustrative piece, the lines add to it, as though the hair of the women has become fluid/blown about in a breeze, and the waviness of the marks looks like a suggestion of the water and water plants around them.

Fond memories of 'Jason and the Argonauts'

Film still, Jason and the Argonauts, directed by Ray Harryhausen, 1963.


I have always considered the 'old school' stop motion special effects the most impressive! Far more life-like than the CGI that is used so often today.

Re-familiarising with the story behind 'Hylas and the Nymphs'

Last night I decided to dig out the old VHS player, and raided the old tape collection to find some old treasures to watch. I picked out a recorded tape of James and the Giant Peach. In my laziness, I left the tape playing in the hope that it would reach the end and rewind itself, but as chance would have it (after some interesting, verging on vintage adverts) Jason and the Argonauts started playing! This is perfect research and has helped me get into the story behind Hylas's quest, and find out a little more about his character/personality. 


In the film he is portrayed as the crew member with 'brains' rather than 'braun', as demonstrated when he confidently challenges Hercules at a discus throw. Hercules manages to throw the discus straight to a rock far off the coast, confident that Hylas (comparatively small and non-muscular) will not be able to beat him and win a place on the Argo. However, Hylas cleverly skims the discuss on the sea, hitting the rock with the discus which then flies clear of the rock. 


Considering his apparent intelligence (as portrayed in the film), it only highlights the power of the Nymphs. Although Hylas's cause of death in the film is not made explicit, his sensible character is still made evident; someone intelligent would surely be less vulnerable to the cunning charms of the women in the lake, yet even he can't resist them.

Summer Brief: Exchange and Re-Interpret

THE BRIEF

Part 1- Initial Meeting

Before you leave today, get into groups of 2. You are then to arrange and meet together at an Art Gallery.

• select and agree on a piece of work that you see
• read the information about the piece and understand its' context
• what is it about?
• what was happening in the world at this time? Record artist and date.
• Discuss the work and observe what it is that interests you about it.
• Buy a postcard of the image, photograph it or find it in a book so that you can refer back to it.

Part 2-The Project

• buy a sketchbook
• independently respond to/re-work the image
• identify a theme within the work to focus on
• what is it that you find stimulating?
• if it is not apparent at first-let it emerge (as Picasso did!)
• your connections can be obvious or abstract. You may home in on a tiny background detail, or focus on a purely aesthetic quality e.g. shapes or colour. You may ask what is happening in the picture and build your own narrative or trace what has influenced this piece of work. The piece may lead you to think about a social or political concern. Let yourself go on a journey. It doesn’t matter where it ends up. The A-Z is what is important. Record your thought process and engage with something that you find genuine interest in. Post musings/observations on your blog.

Part 3-Pairing

From the work you have created individually, agree a date to exchange your work with your other half either by post, email or physically.

Work intuitively to either respond to or interact with the piece of work. You should make 6 exchanges together. It is entirely up to your pairing whether you develop the same piece of work that you started with or you begin to have a range of images that derived from the original choice.

There are no limitations on size, format and media. Surprise us.

This is the first time we have been asked to do a serious collaborative project, and the thought of mixing with and working from the imagination of my class-mates is exciting and I'm really looking forward to seeing what evolves from our exchanges.

After being briefed, I grouped together with Bryony and Hannah (we have confirmed with our tutor that it is ok to work in a three). 

'Hylas and the Nymphs' by John William Waterhouse, 1896, Manchester City Gallery

We visited Manchester City Gallery, where we explored the art work and decided on a classical piece, ‘Hylas and the Nymphs’ by John William Waterhouse. It is based on the Greek legend Jason and the Argonauts.

 ‘Waterhouse's Hylas and the Nymphs brings to life a version of the Greek myth, Jason and the Argonauts, as told by William Morris in The Life and Death of Jason. In Morris' version, Hercules is left on the island of Lemnos after his companion, the handsome Hylas, wanders away from the ship. Hylas comes across a group of sea-nymphs who, enchanted by his beauty, seduce him into loving them, eventually dragging him into the sea water with them. The Argo leaves Hercules and Hylas behind on the island, and Hylas is never found.’ –

['

John William Waterhouse's eroticized Hylas and the Nymphs’, Meaghan Kelly '05.5, English and History of Art 151, Brown University, 2004, (http://www.victorianweb.org/painting/jww/paintings/kelly11.html)]

This is quite a large, visually rich painting, with lots of detail. It draws the viewer into the story; the moment that has been captured seems very intense, making it captivating. The main focus of the painting is the gaze held between Hylas and the Nymph who is holding his arm. He appears hypnotised, held there by the seemingly magical hold she has over him. According to the story, the nymphs thereafter drag him down into the water with them, never to be seen again, so there is a strong sense of foreboding. From his body language, it could be inferred that Hylas is fighting his own sense of caution. His stance is vulnerable, he is surrendering his will as he leans towards the Nymph, almost like her gaze itself is pulling him forward physically, yet his left arm is held back, leaning his body partly away from her. He appears unconsciously aware that he shouldn’t give in to their seduction; he has to move on with his quest.

There is so much to read into and analyse when looking at this picture. The main theme that arises is the female allure; the nymphs’ role as femme fatales.

It is interesting to consider how they appear. At the time this was painted (1896), Victorian pornography was getting considerably raunchy, and in comparison, this image which is famously portraying the nymphs as sexual beings, is quite tame.

So far, in my attempted studies of the painting, I’ve discovered the major difficulty is recreating the look of the gaze. The eye contact between Hylas and the Nymphs is what makes the image so powerful; getting the eyes right makes or breaks the picture in terms of the mood they create.

I also find it interesting how the expression and general demeanor of the nymphs does not immediately suggest that they are ‘femme fatale’ in an obvious, predatory sense. They are not making an apparent effort to lure him in in a sexual way. In fact, the women appear overtly pure, and deceptively innocent; most look slightly shy and tentative in Hylas’s presence. This is enforced visually by their pale skin, which seems to make them glow ethereally; they light up the dark water around them, like beacons that he cannot avoid. Their danger is arguably increased by their seemingly harmless nature. Their surroundings, the dark depths of the mysterious water around them, is what makes the scene so ominous. Their appearance as beautiful, lovely females is what enables them to pull him into their enchanting imprisonment.