Cliff Note- On occasion I have an idea that I wish to carry out. The idea this time came in the form of trees. An idea I had was to create a set of four images. In each image it would show a tree in each different season, however I couldn't find a way to make it interesting. It was an idea that's been used so many times that I couldn't make it unique, no matter the medium I used. It always came out not feeling like my piece, instead it felt reused, or worse, stolen. In the end, I got a piece that, while very close to completion, made me feel for my work. Perhaps not proud per say, but it made me feel a genuine melancholy way, and I new that I had done something right.
Technique- Now, generally I feel I used the material fairly well. At first I was using the oil pastels much like I would a pencil, in strokes and pinprick like lines. However as I was told, it made more sense to blend all the oils together in one upwards direction. After doing so I was told to go even further and add a texture to the leaves and the grass in the image. This progress can be seen, as I left the past mistakes in and added the suggestions in other images. I feel my use of cardboard added a field of depth to the image that otherwise would've looked flat.
Media- The use of oil pastels here showed a newfound respect for the material. As before the pieces would look like nothing more than fancy crayon images, the new addition of a separate medium made the piece feel a little more completed. It not only added depth, it also made the colors feel more important, as the dull tone of the cardboard made the vibrant colors feel all the more appreciated.
Idea/Concept- Now here's where I believe I flourished. What first was simply a story of a seasonal tree quickly became more. It told a tale of life, and all it's amazements and it's tragedies. I first thought of it as just a tree, but quickly realized that I was representing more. It showed the wonders of life, and how you grow, you become stronger, you begin to love. But eventually, you grow old, things about you change; be it your love life or maybe the way you look. I am somewhat crushed that I didn't finish the set, however part of me feels that that's not necessarily a bad thing. It's somewhat obvious what the last part of life is,and though we were not able to see the stump that this tree would become, it serves as a reminder that death is an inevitability. While for many it is a hard pill to swallow, it is one that everyone must confront, and so I say that it's more important that we think of our lives as "incomplete". We will always be looking for some way to justify our lives, but in the end, we must realize that we were not meant to do everything, simply to do what we could.
