Writings
MFA Thesis
The idea that all paintings are narrative in some form is an important aspect in my approach to art making. The art of story telling is present throughout history, but has become muted or glazed over in current society. I look for characters from little known fairy tale and depict them in moments of strength and self-reliance with intent to inspire the viewer to seek to know more, each image intriguing enough to wonder how they all connect. I explore the place that fairy tales have today and the idealized versions that have integrated into contemporary culture using the triptych format of Gothic altarpieces and single panels. Depicting various stories I strive to maintain the romantic quality, the luminescence that oil can achieve, and a minimal background to draw out the importance of the detail present.
The basis of my project is that of the role that fairy tales have evolved in the last hundred years or more. What started as a fascination with Arthurian legends and the narrative aspect found in the paintings from the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood’s developed into an interest in stories that have been lost in popular culture. Female characters taken and/or inspired from the fairy books compiled by Andrew Lang at the end of the nineteenth century; wanting to take that character in a moment where they are on their own relying on themselves versus the damsel in distress that is so often portrayed in contemporary renditions of fairy tales or folklore. I selected the stories that I drew my characters from by the lack of infiltration of popular culture. The way that Disney and other animated movies has taken the characters or just the title (Princess and the Frog) and have taken the plot and sugar coated for today’s children; turning a story that has some dialectical warning or lesson into a simple moment of entertainment. The extent of this loss was clarified to me when working in a book store a mother was looking for a picture book of the Little Mermaid and when asked if she was looking for the original or Disney version was shocked to discover that the traditional one ends with the little mermaid jumping over board, killing herself and not the prince instead of marrying the prince and living happily ever after.
Initiatory I decided to focus of stories with elements of gruesome physicality to the plot, i.e. The One Handed Girl; the aspect that, in regards to female characters, has been taken out of children’s stories. The reaction that the first triptych had when I first showed the finished piece was what I had hope with the disturbance to the viewer once they got past the initial Romanticized style of the figure, that of shock and curiosity to how the three panels are connected to form a single narrative story. That is the goal I have for my paintings, I do not expect the general audience to know the tales that the imagery is referencing but to trigger some curiosity for the viewer to go and find out the rest of the story. But that would isolate the viewers, separating those that only are attracted to that which is not imagery of physical injuries to female characters. With that I included characters from tales not popular but have the quality of idealic beauty while still in a moment of independence.
The independence or self reliance of the female character is an important quality to me with the selection of stories I paint. The overly done situation of the female being unable to act or take care of themselves in a large majority of children’s tales is upsetting to me with the message it presents to girls of each generation. The empowerment that is trying to find its way into the lives of the female population since the seventies is often non-existing in children’s literature, with a few exceptions. The damsel in distress is the princess syndrome that inflicts us throughout life expectation that young girls have as they grown up.
I designed and constructed a variety of costumes for my model, layering each for the needs of a particular character. Researching the details that distinguish one individual character from another; the figure’s action and positioning being the main focus not the particular face, following outside the category of portraits. The compositions will be high contrast creating emotional dramatization of the image, causing the background to be simplified to rudimentary suggestions of form.
The paintings are in both single and hinged triptych panels. The way in which wooden altarpieces found in late Gothic and early Renaissance were used in a narrative capacity to give the viewer a type of visual literacy. places the 'fairy tales' into their idolized context created by society but maintain the images of the original aspects of each tale. Why were these stories formed? They were formed entertainment while having an underlining dialectic means of teaching, mostly morals and behavior. I am taking these images and using the form of visual education that appear in early Christian art. Visual literacy has been part of society constantly but has grown exponentially in the last century with the development of TV, photography, media and internet. Images are bombard upon us at every turn.
I have already designed and made costumes for a model to wear and researched for the variations needed for a particular character. Researching the details that distinguish one individual character from another; the figure’s action and positioning being the main focus not the particular face, following outside the category of portraits. The compositions will be high contrast creating emotional dramatization of the image, causing the background to be simplified to rudimentary suggestions of form.
Bibliography
Blue Fairy Book. “Felicia and the Pot of Pinks” Ed. Andrew Lang. Originally Published 1889. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, 1966
Brown Fairy Book. “Sister of the Sun” Ed. Andrew Lang. Originally Published 1904. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, 1965
Classic Border Designs by Twentieth Century Masters: Bradley, Teague, Cleland, Rogers and Hornung. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, 1995
Green Fairy Book. “Prince Fickle and Fair Helena” Ed. Andrew Lang. Originally Published 1902. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, 1965
Grey Fairy Book. “The Story of Dschemil and Dschemila” Ed. Andrew Lang. Originally Published 1900. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, 1967
Lilac Fairy Book. “The One Handed Girl” Ed. Andrew Lang. Originally Published 1910. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, 1968
Ready-To-Use Old Fashion Small Frames and Borders: copyright free designs, printed one side, hundreds to use. Ed. Carol Belanger Grafton. Mineola, NY: Dover Publication, 1990
Ready-To-Use Art Deco Borders: copyright free designs, printed one side, hundreds to use. Ed. Theodore Menten. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications1985
Ready-To-Use Art Nouveau Border On Lay Out Grids: copyright free designs, printed one side, hundreds to use. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, 1986
Ready-To-Use Flora Borders On Layout Grids: copyright free, printed one side, hundreds to use. Ed. Stephen Bernath. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, 1988
Ready-To-Use Old Fashion Small Frames and Borders: copyright free designs, printed one side, hundreds to use. Ed. Carol Belanger Grafton. Mineola, NY: Dover Publication, 1990
Red Fairy Book. “Soria Moria Castle” Ed. Andrew Lang. Originally Published 1890. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, 1966