Representation
The work seen in this image, represent a series of works Walker did called Birth Reflections. Walker spent time at the maternity department, taking photos and following members of staff. This then turned into a series of paintings and drawings, represented in ink and oil. The paintings feel like snapshots into special, critical moments: they have a sense of urgency. This can be seen though the quick painting method Walker has used to depict her subjects and also when considering the nature of what she is exploring. I have included these images as I've been looking at Walkers when in relation to my paintings of women of the NHS. Particularly, I have been thinking about modes of displaying my paintings in the future and looking at how Walker displayed these paintings at University College Hospital. This is significant, and an option I could consider for my own work.
When considering how to hold the two strands of my practice together Boswell demonstrates a methodology for this mode of research. Within her exhibition ition 'For every Real Word Spoken' the audience is invited to scan the hand drawn QR codes held by the women Boswell has depicted. Boswell has combined the transitional modes of drawing with the modern technology. The QR code takes the viewer to a platform where personal truths and observations about the figures, chosen by the figure depicted.
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' Each woman was also invited to choose the title of her portrait. Drawing on a lineage of black female literary and artistic ancestry, Boswell’s works will tell the stories of a networked community that cannot easily be contained within a single image.'
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I have been exploring the work of Tamara de Lempicka. During a tutorial, a tutor reflected on how the women I paint are often extremely fashionable and appear glamorous which reminded me of the work of De Lempicka. When exploring her work, I looked at how De Lempicka painted fabric and used this in my depiction of Dr Shehla. De Lempicka's work is a hybrid of cubism and neo-classicism, her work has a clear signature style. However, its not the signature style that drew me in, more the cropped composition: the women taking up most of the frame, her handling of fabric and the subject matter,
Knight largely uses watercolour and oils to create her paintings. Her paintings are in the style of impressionism. She paints marginalised communities and women working. The significance to the women working, is what drew me to Knight, prior to her work. I hadn't seen women working during their period expect as 'land girls' during WW2. Exploring women and women has always been an interest of mine. I particularly enjoy within the works, the objects around the women that situate them in their time period and job.
Lucas creates work that explores themes of sexuality and gender, often playful and with humour. I started to explore her work more in-depth after the Big Women exhibition where Lucas spoke to us in-depth about the exhibition and her practice more widely. Recently, I have been examining her work in relation to her use of eggs.