the process

This was how the scribble flower design from the previous post started. Well, it actually started with a visit to the flower shop. Our assignment was to purchase a flower with a large face such as a lily or sunflower or Gerbera daisy, etc. and bring it to class along with the fattest black marker we could find. Once we were in class, we lined up all the flowers on a table and walked around it drawing the flowers individually. The idea was to be quick and try to fill the page which was 8.5 x 11. It was kind of like musical chairs as we stood in front of one flower awaiting the go ahead from the instructor, then we would draw furiously for about 3 minutes at which point she would tell us to stop and move on to the next flower. The above flowers are what I came up with and out of all those the instructor/client chose this flower as my motif.

Our next assignment was to reduce our motifs and create a "tossed" layout. The idea with a "tossed" layout is it is supposed to be reminiscent of having thrown the flowers in the air and letting them land where they will. In practice, it is more complicated. The goal is to have an evenly spaced design making sure that there are no "holes" or "alley ways" in the layout and each motif should rotate to aviod having a "Vegas slot machine" look. This is my layout.

My graphic design background gave me an advantage at this stage because my first layout was approved by our very demanding instructor/client. Some of my classmates who have not had any prior art background were required to do many revisions before having their layouts approved. I'm impressed with their efforts as this is a whole new world for them. Like many people, they have wanted to express themselves through art for ages but have been discouraged until now. It is exciting to see the flowering of creative expression that comes through us all. I continue to realize how fortunate I feel to have had parents who always encouraged me to be creative. That is not the norm and I will forever be grateful to them for that gift.

You may have noticed that I refer to my instructor as a client as well. That is because the school is structured in an effort to replicate the textile industry with the instructor acting as a client. I greatly appreciate this aspect of my education. It is my experience that most art education programs fail to address this important facet of an art career. In my next post I'll show you how we went from black & white layout to final color painting.