The art of staring

My Master of Fine Arts exhibition consists of six monoprints on paper, two acrylic paintings on paper, and eighteen oil and/or acrylic paintings on canvas. My goal has been to explore new ways of paint application, to further develop my skills in dealing with formal issues in painting, and to reach higher levels of personal honesty in my work. It was my desire to transcend a previous style of painting associated with my career as an illustrator while retaining my long standing interest of painting people.

THE ART OF STARING by Richard Nathan Graham A thesis submitted to the faculty of the University of Utah partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Fine Arts Department of Art The University of Utah March 1996 THE UNIVERSITY OF UTAH COLLEGE OF FINE ARTS SUPERVISORY COMMITTEE APPROVAL of a thesis submitted by R ich ard N. Graham This thesis has been read by each member of the following supervisory committee and by majority vote has been found to be satisfactory. Chairman: -V- i------------- *-----------------------------\ Joseph M arotta - /2 - 4 5 R. D. Wilson David Dornan THE UNIVERSITY OF UTAH COLLEGE OF FINE ARTS FINAL READING APPROVAL To the Graduate Council of The University of Utah: I have read the thesi. s o f ____R__i_c_h_a__rd__ _N__. __G_r_a_h_a_m__ ________________________ in its final form and have found that (1) its format, citations, and bibliographic style are consistent and acceptable; (2) its illustrative materials including Figures, tables, and charts are in place; and (3) the final manuscript is satisfactory to the Supervisory Committee and is ready for submission to the Graduate School. Date Chairpesion, Supervisory Committee Approved for the Major Department R. D. W ilson Chairperson Approved for the Graduate Council ito b e rt S. 'O lpin Dean, College of Fine Arts ABSTRACT My Master of Fine Arts exhibition consists of six monoprints on paper, two acrylic paintings on paper, and eighteen oil and/or acrylic paintings on canvas. My goal has been to explore new ways of paint application, to further develop my skills in dealing with formal issues in painting, and to reach higher levels of personal honesty in my work. It was my desire to transcend a previous style of painting associated with my career as an illustrator while retaining my long standing interest of painting people. TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT................................................................................................................... iv THE ART OF STARING................................................................................................1 PRINT DESCRIPTIONS................................................................................................7 PRINTS........................................................................................................................ 11 REFERENCES.................. ..........................................................................................36 THE ART OF STARING Recently I was seated in a public meeting when I noticed a toddler standing very close to me, staring at my face. He didn't politely blink way, for he was too young to know that staring at other people is a breach of social etiquette. I became fascinated by his lack of self-consciousness as he indulged in his curiosity about the faces of other people. I envied that child, for I too would have loved to turn in my seat and stare at those behind me, studying the contours of their faces, observing the uniqueness of the form, noticing subtle color shifts within their skin, and speculating about the personality hidden within. I have no doubt I would have found that activity much more engrossing than the meeting itself. But unlike this child, my social conditioning forbids me from staring. At least in that setting. As an artist I have permission to stare. In the context of my studio I allow myself to look at people for as long and hard as I wish. This is the essence of what my art is about. As far back as I can remember I have had an intense fascination with other members of the human race, and I find I gain great satisfaction in committing their images to canvas. For me, as an artist, no other subject competes as powerfully for my attention. The complexity of form and the intricacy of human psyche have made figure drawing and painting an artistic preoccupation that shows no sign of losing its novelty Figure painting, for me, is a responsive act and my process is to use powers of observation to react to what I see before me. Approaching the painting session with limited preconceptions, I wait for the muse, allowing myself to speculate on who the models are, checking for personality clues in the way they choose to sit, their body type, or clothing they wear. Their facial they choose to sit, their body type, or clothing they wear. Their facial featureswill almost always give clues of an internal soul through external shapes. In this responsive mode I notice how often my own internal projections affect the outcome of the work. In this sense I am using the person as a mirror to reflect back to me aspects of myself, both conscious and hidden. The process of creation I choose embodies this responsive attitude. Gestural pulls of the brush may illustrate impulses I have while attempting to capture, for example, a body posture or a facial expression. It is my desire to allow moment to moment responses to remain on the canvases' surface in the form of paint layers and pentimento marks. I want my work to reveal the process of creation. I apply paint in a loose and gestural manner, creating a lively surface through means of thick and thin pigment applications. I choose mediums and methods that will allow me to record radical perceptual sensations which may strike me at any stage of the painting process. It is not uncommon for me to take an entirely new direction midway into a session, completely changing the pose, composition, or color scheme. The underpainting is exposed as a record of these changes. Thus, the final product is a record of the responses that took place inside my studio; the moment to moment reactions between the sitter and painter. I can similarly relate with the statement of artist and philosopher Fredric Franck who said figure drawing "is an ongoing meditation-in-action by eye and hand combined on the on riddle that has priority over all others; ‘who am I?' ‘Who are you?' Whom am I drawing?' It is always the confrontation with myself via each human being I draw" (Franck, 1989, p. 40). The human physique affects me on a physiological level: the wide variety of possible poses, as well as the range of different body types and opportunities to observe on the skin the interesting play of light and shadow. The psychological aspects of figure painting hold a deepest fascination; each sitter has a different character, a unique psyche, and because of that I shall never run out of subjects. As Alice Neel once said, " I am a collector of souls" (Hills, 1983, p.105). It is the model's personality that triggers my responses in what color and composition I will use to represent their uniqueness. My response to their emotional state and personality traits act as impetuous to dictate how this painting will be approached. I wish for each work to be as unique as the persons themselves. I find that we all have an affinity and connection to the human body by the mere fact that we each possess one. We react strongly to figure images because of this commonality. As an example, one can imagine that in an anatomy class when the professor cuts open the bottom of a cadaver's foot, students will likely react as if the foot were their own. Because of this collective connection, images of human form can be the most powerful tools for expression. I wish for my audience to feel in their own bodies the strength, vulnerability, anguish, or delight I felt was contained in the body of my model. I wish for them to see the human physique as a container for emotions both past and present, a storehouse of feelings, experiences, and sensations. Faces, body types, and postures contain so many symbols and associations for the viewer that the figure is, indeed, a "loaded" image. During my thesis exhibition I was startled to learn that viewer perception of my of my work could differ substantially from my intention. The obese nudes I had painted received a strong reaction from some who felt they were an assault to women. The cropped figures, they said, objectified women; and the confining squares represented the attitudes of a male dominated society bent on restricting women's rights. This ardent reaction came as a surprise to me, and I found myself in the position of being viewed as a political artist. It was not my intention to become one. In looking for unique figure subjects, I felt that the corpulent forms offered unusual opportunities for pictorial design. My attention was on the play of light across the forms, and I explored ways to compose the paintings in a semiabstract manner. My concern was on "formal issues." In so doing I was participating in the long pedagogy of art history in which the figure was a frequent motif, a centuries old tradition of artists who have chosen the human form because of its beauty and complexity. I was somewhat bewildered to learn that my work was being viewed with political meaning when none was intended. This experience provided me with more awareness of the ramifications of figure images in our society today and my responsibility to at least be conscious of the reactions they may receive. I also believe that the viewers have an obligation to recognize their own interpretations and honor them as an element they provide to the communication process. Another awareness I received in this program is the importance of moving away from cliches and contrite methods of working that tend to mask rather than reveal my honest response towards the subject. My background in commercial illustration (in which speed and professional polish played a high priority) influenced me with idealizing methods that can interfere with emotive and deeper creative responses to the sitter. My aspiration now is to accept the challenge to transcend predictability and the stereotypes of my previous work and explore ways to record a more honest and spontaneous impression of what I see before me. The program was instrumental in revealing to me the need to transcend old habits associated with the polish required of commercial illustration, and to replace that polish with a fidelity to personal response. I cannot say that at the end of my two years I have completely freed myself of the habits of predictability I had developed over the years. Perhaps I never will. Perhaps I will incorporate them successfully into my own painting process. But my studies succeeded in convincing me of the importance of painting with a diligence to the truth, and for that I am grateful. I leave with a new understanding of this dilemma and a lifetime of experimentation to address the answers. Page number six was not assigned in this manuscript. PRINT DESCRIPTIONS 8 1. Miss Blair 48" x 74" Oil and Acrylic on Canvas 2. Chris . 48" x 73" Oil and Acrylic on Canvas 3. Trina, Leslie and Ayuli 69" x 48" Oil and Acrylic on Canvas 4. Jen and Maureen 72" x 42" Oil and Acrylic on Canvas 5. Women Seating 60" x 48" Acrylic on Canvas 6. Group Posing 67" x 51" Oil and Acrylic on Canvas 7. Dave 36" x 48" Acrylic on Canvas 8. Figure Landscape 84" x 42" Oil and Acrylic on Canvas 9. Figure Landscape in Orange and Blue 60" x 60" Oil and Acrylic on Canvas 10. Figure Landscape in Yellow and Purple 48" x 48" Oil on Canvas 11. Figure Landscape in Green 9 60" x 60" Oil on Canvas 12. Someone's Mouth 48" x 48" Oil and Acrylic on Canvas 13. Someone's Mouth; Smiling 48" x 48" Oil and Acrylic on Canvas 14. Janet 11" x 15" Monoprint on Paper 15. Life Thru the Fish Eye 8" x 10" Monoprint on Paper 16. Woman with a Red Face 8" x 10" Monoprint on Paper 17. Woman Dancing 8" x 10" Monoprint on Paper 18. The Warrior 6" x 14" Monoprint on Paper 19. Red Woman Dancing 81/2" x 10" Monoprint on Paper 20. Soul Descension 5" x 8" Acrylic on Paper 21. Modern Man 6"x 10" Acrylic on Paper 22. Figure Landscape in Green and Purple 48" x 48" Oil and Acrylic on Canvas 10 23. Virginia 48" x 73" Acrylic on Canvas 24. Alona 48" x 73" Oil and Acrylic on Canvas PRINTS 12 Miss Blair 48" x 74" Oil and Acrylic on Canvas 13 Chris 48' x 74" Oil and Acrylic on Canvas 14 Trina, Leslie and Ayuli 69" x 48" Oil and Acrylic on Canvas 15 Jen and Maureen 72" x 42" Oil and Acrylic on Canvas 16 Women Seated 60" x 48" Acrylic on Canvas 17 Group Posing 67"x 51" Oil and Acrylic on Canvas 18 Dave 36" x 48" Acrylic on Canvas Figure Landscape 84" x 42" Oil and Acrylic on Canvas Figure Landscape in Orange and Blue 60" x 60" Oil and Acrylic on Canvas 21 Figure Landscape in Yellow and Purple 48" x 48" Oil on Canvas 22 Figure Landscape in Green 60" x 60" Oil on Canvas 23 Someone's Mouth 48" x 48" Oil and Acrylic on Canvas 24 Someone's Mouth; Smiling 48" x 48" Oil and Acrylic on Canvas 25 Janet 11" x 15" Monoprint on Paper 26 Life Thru the Fish Eye 8" x 10" Monoprint on Paper 27 Woman with a Red Face 8" x 10" Monoprint on Paper 28 faoyl'aM 9y Woman Dancing 8" x 10" Monoprint on Paper 29 The Warrior 6" x 14" Monoprint on Paper 30 Red Woman Dancing 81/2 " x 10" Monoprint on Paper Soul Descension 5" x 8" Acrylic on Paper 32 Modern Man 6" x 10" Acrylic on Paper Figure Landscape in Green and Purple 48" x 48" Oil and Acrylic on Canvas 34 Virginia 48" x 73" Acrylic on Canvas Alona 48" x 73" Oil and Acrylic on Canvas REFERENCES Franck, F. (1989) . Life Drawing Life. Arlington, Virginia: Great Ocean Publishers. Hills, P. (1983) . Alice Neel. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc.