FINAL PROJECT
multi-media (See below)
Detail 1
graphite and gouache on paper
Detail 2 & 3
oil on masonite
Zach Pedroncelli
Artist statement
My purpose is to grow. I want to observe, experiment, collaborate and enjoy painting and
creating visual images. Frustrations will always exist but I’m feeling optimistic today so I’ll say
they are minimal. I hope to find motivation consistently and continue learning to better myself. I
think my personal growth during the course of this class has strengthened my technical ability
and overall idea of what it is I strive to make. My goal is to continue to explore mediums,
surfaces, and overall my fascination with the human figure. I want to be able to capture not only
proportional accuracy well but I want to build personality into my paintings. I want to focus on
my subjects and portray them in a light so that people who know them personally can say that
is definitely them not just in image. I think this class opened up my mind to exploration and
removed my fear of changing style and medium. I also think that the engagement of our peer
body and instructor helped the class as a whole grow a lot. I think it was the most informative
and one of the most enjoyable class so far in my college experience because of people’s
openness and willingness to provide useful feedback. It gave me something I can carry
afterwards and really help improve my work. This final piece was difficult because of our open
variety with style and materials. I wasn’t sure which way to go and decided to do an
experimental undertone one each one to see the effects on the overall weight and dimension of the figure. I think I taught me a lot and overall doing two weeks of portraits improved my
proportion skills and overall shape of faces of such differing variety. I think this project showed
me that I am making slight progress technically which is always reassuring.
The female face on the masonite board is so good! Personality really comes through in that one and I really like the way you painted her hair.
ReplyDeleteThe style of the painting you did in gouache is amazing. I love how you started with a rose colored wash and used that as the foundation. The eyes are awesome and I like how you concentrated on the detail only on her face.
The figures on Masonite board make me think as if they both belong in lockets. The girl head on the Masonite is definitely my favorite as I feel you displayed her really well. The value in her hair is really done well from lights to darks and the bags under her eyes and shifts are very subtle in the face. The figure on paper is so different from the other two but is really intriguing to look at. I have definitely seen an improvement in proportion on this final project. Attention to detail is very nicely done, good job.
ReplyDeleteThroughout the course your paintings have definitely grew just as everyone else's. Within these piece i find the raw masonite to be refreshing but also with the look of unfinished. Though I'm sure you set out to capture there faces and not full body i feel a frame of some sort would make the faces become stronger. I definitely hear you out when it comes to Hak or whatever his name is moving all the time because it is hard to capture a moment. Within his piece i feel that you captured several of his moments which is quite amazing. The graphite gouache piece seems to be more successful because of the tone and style that you chose for it. I like the tape lines.
ReplyDeleteI think you mastered your challenge with the pink painting. there is so much emotion in her eyes, its as if she was telling you a story about something so sentimental to her. I agree with what you said about people's willingness to provide feedback. You gave me the idea of using things around the figure to get the right proportions for faces. even though i'm far from mastering that challenge, your advice is very useful, and I was able to use it when painting the bodies in my project. Your paintings always have so much energy in the background, I hope that you will be able to create that same energy in your future figures as well.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite of the three is actually the gouache on paper, there is something about that vibrant orange and figure that is really nice. I like the large scale you worked on for the faces, it would be interesting to see you work on the figure in the same scale. You also have some very nice colors in the skin, like the reds around the eyes. I think I would have liked if the masonite boards had been cut down a bit, having such a large untouched/untreated area feels odd.
ReplyDeleteI love the way you captured their expression in each of these. I can tell that you enjoyed working on this project. Your style is never fussy or bland. I like the movement of all of these pieces. My favorite piece of your project is the girl at the top. You've managed to have a different piece that looks almost vintage. Your work has progressed quite nicely and you have pieces that are thoughtfully composed.
ReplyDeleteFrom this painting I'd say that you feel most comfortable with graphite and gouache. I like the way you approached these studies. I think you have improved technically with proportions. Always be careful with outlining things you paint (Huck's facial features) You did a great job balancing the other too pieces, but I think that his face doesn't hold together quite as well.
ReplyDeleteGreat approach and good way to challenge yourself in a way that we didn't through this class!
I am so pleased to see your improvement throughout the class! This project has come across as the best one you've created. You've improved in both technical aspects and proportions. I really like the image you've done of Jenny the best, even though it really doesn't look like her, the softness you've added to her face, and the choice of blue eyes really added to the contrast of the sienna/orange tones you used for the rest of your piece. I am excited to see what you will make next!
ReplyDeleteZach, these final paintings remind me very heavily of Alise's final. Your paintings are so out of your normal style, with background treatment and figure treatment, and bear so many similarities to old roman portraits I asked you if you were paying homage or inspired by them. That aside, the amount of color variation and balanced use of placement make all of these works very even.
ReplyDeletethe portrait of jenny is by far my favorite! what makes it look so great is the organic feel i would get if looking at a sketchbook. the other two i feel are a bit muddy but they still look like the people. the jenny portrait is the real accomplishment though
ReplyDelete