An Invitation to Gaze

This blog is a visual, on-line record of my art work and my personal research (guided simply by what I like) into art history and contemporary art.

Most of my paintings on display here are for sale. If you are interested in purchasing a work,

please e-mail me at hannahsjb@live.co.uk

Many of my works posted here are Digital Finger Paintings. For this reason the images have been watermarked. Please, no unauthorized reproductions: If you would like to use any of the images of my works that you see here (or elsewhere) please contact me, I am always happy to help if I can.

I hope that you enjoy this blog. If you would like to receive an email link to the new posts as they come on-line, just scroll to the bottom of the page and click on Follow the Blog . (And don't forget to check the Archive, also at the bottom of the page, to see older posts with more pictures.)

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Finally, if you would like to read this blog in another language, please use the "translate / traduisez" tool in the left-hand column (under "contact me"), although I cannot guarantee the quality of the translation (I've already seen that the French translation "n'est pas terrible") it may help.

Wednesday, 15 June 2011

The Painted Lady

(Above) The Painted Lady
14.5cm x 15cm
June 2011
Mixed media on paper.

Often when I am working on a painting, I find myself thinking about art that I have seen and enjoy. So it was this evening with this painting, which prompted me to reflect on two paintings in particular: one by the French Fauve painter Maurice de Vlaminck (below) and another by the Russian born German Expressionist Alexej Jawlensky (further below). I've already referenced the painting by Vlaminck in the post dated Monday 23rd May entitled "La Sirène or The Model in Black Lingerie".

(Above) Portrait of a Woman by Maurice de Vlaminck

(Above) A painting by Alexej Jawlensky.

Monday, 13 June 2011

At a Glance

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Scroll over the images with the cursor. Pause on an image to see that post's title and click on the image to open the post.

The Woman on Deauville Beach

(Above) The Woman on Deauville Beach
14.5cm x 18cm

June 2011
Mixed media (Faber Castel Albrecht Durer watercolour crayons, Windsor & Newton Indian inks, Daler Rowney FW acrylic inks, Caran d'ache Neocolour II water-soluble wax crayons) on 100% cotton rag, acid-free paper (200g).

Thursday, 9 June 2011

The Woman from Somalia

(Above) The Woman from Somalia
June 2011
15cm x 18cm
Mixed media (Faber Castel Albrecht Durer watercolour crayons, Windsor & Newton Indian inks, Daler Rowney FW acrylic inks, Caran d'ache Neocolour II water-soluble wax crayons) on 100% cotton rag, acid-free paper (200g).

The female face fascinates. It's a reoccurring motif in my painting. Its simplicity and the artifice of make-up and fashion allow me to explore the decorative surface of the painting. The female face is everywhere: she dominates our cultural imagery, acting as a "cultural barometer" or more literally a personification of cultural norms and trends. My works comment on the ubiquitous female face. Whilst some of the women in my paintings are known and recognisable, my paintings are not so much portraits as simply painted representations of this woman, of her face. The painting's title can sometimes point to the subject's identity, but if the titles provide a possible narration to the painting's significance the artist is an unreliable narrator and titles can be used to create an illusion, to question the polarity of fact and fiction.

Thursday, 2 June 2011

The Black Beret

(Above) The Black Beret
14.5cm x 18cm
June 2011
Mixed media on paper.

This painting started as a study after a photograph of Brigitte Bardot in a black beret. As I was working the painting I wondered off course a bit and found myself thinking more about two paintings: a portrait of the French actress by Kees van Dongen (below) and (futher below) the painting by Toulouse Lautrec of the French cabaret singer Aristide Bruant wearing his iconic red scarf.

(Below) Brigitte Bardot by Kees van Dongen

(Below) Aristide Bruant by Toulouse Lautrec

Wednesday, 1 June 2011

The Blue Hat

(Above) The Blue Hat
15.5 cm x 18cm
June 2010
Mixed media on paper.

The Singer (in red)

(Above) The Singer (in red)
14.5cm x 18cm
June 2011

Mixed media (Faber Castel Albrecht Durer watercolour crayons, Windsor & Newton inks, Caran d'Ache Neocolour II water-soluble wax crayons) on 100% cotton rag, acid-free paper (200g).

I often research images on the Internet, which can lead to some wonderful discoveries. So it was yesterday when I came across the French painter Jacqueline Marval (1866 - 1932). If like me you are a fan of Marie Laurencin's work or indeed of Kees van Dongen, you'll probably enjoy Marval's art. There is a site dedicated to her work at www.jacqueline-marval.com

(Below) A self portrait by French artist Jacqueline Marval.

(Below) Jacqueline Marval (1866 - 1932)

Thursday, 26 May 2011

Pink Venus

(Above) Pink Venus
14.5cm x 17cm
May 2011
Mixed media (water colour, Caran d'ache Neocolour II water-soluble wax crayons, Windsor & Newton Indian ink) on 100% cotton rag, acid-free paper (200g).

I've developed this painting from the drawing below.

(Above) Seated Nude (Venus)
9cm x 11cm
May 2011
A drawing produced using the Handwriting App and stylus of the Sony Reader, printed on acid-free paper and hand signed in ink.

Monday, 23 May 2011

La Sirène or The Model in Black Lingerie

(Above) La Sirène or The Model in Black Lingerie

May 2011

15.5cm x 18cm

Mixed media (Faber Castel Albrecht Durer watercolour crayons, Windsor & Newton Indian inks, Daler Rowney FW acrylic inks, Caran d'ache Neocolour II water-soluble wax crayons) on 100% cotton rag, acid-free paper (200g).

A painting that I've developed from the drawing below.

(Above) The Model in Black Lingerie

May 2011

9cm x 11cm

A drawing produced using the Handwriting App and stylus of the Sony Reader, printed on acid-free paper and hand signed in ink.

PS
Whilst browsing the web this afternoon, I came across this painting by Maurice de Vlaminck:

(Above) Portrait of a woman by Maurice de Vlaminck.

Wednesday, 18 May 2011

The Swedish Girl in the Blue Hat

(Above) The Swedish Girl in the Blue Hat
16cm x 18cm
May 2011

Regular followers of my blog will know that my work often references images that I have seen, frequently on the Internet: paintings, photographs, sculptures... This painting is fairly typical of how I work. I've developed it from a drawing (below) that I produced using the stylus and Handwriting App of the Sony Reader, inspired by a painting by the Swedish artist Pelle Aberg (see further below).

(Above) The Swedish Girl in the Blue Hat

May 2011

A drawing produced using the stylus and Handwriting App of the Sony Reader and then printed on acid-free paper and hand signed in ink, inspired by a painting by the Swedish artist Pelle Aberg (1909 ? -1964) (below) that I happened to see whilst browsing the Internet.

(Above) Pelle Aberg (1909 - 1964)

Taking inspiration from art history is by no means new, for example the Chinese-American artist Walasse Ting (1929-2010) clearly references Manet in this beautiful version (below) of Olympia.

(Above) Walasse Ting (1929-2010)

(Above) Olympia by Edouard Manet

Manet's painting itself seems to make a nod towards Titian:

(Above) Venus d'Urbino by Titian

Sunday, 15 May 2011

The Woman in Black (posed for the French photographer)

(Above) The Woman in Black (posed for the French photographer)

16cm x 18cm

Mixed media on paper

May 2011

This painting follows a study that I did (see below) using the Handwriting App of my Sony Reader of a photograph that I have in my studio by the French photographer Willy Maywald.

(Above) The Woman in Black (posed for the French photographer)
9cm x 11cm
May 2011
A drawing produced using the Handwriting App and stylus of the Sony Reader, printed on acid free paper and hand signed in ink.

Wednesday, 11 May 2011

Pictures in the Archive

If you are new to the blog, don't forget to check the Archive (keep scrolling to the bottom of the page) where there are more paintings to see.

Now in the archive:

(Below) The French Sculptor's Russian Muse

(Below) Odalesque

(Below) London Girl (born in Djibouti) (SOLD)

(Below) The Ascot Hat (SOLD)

(Below) The Senegalese Woman

(Below) Flower Power

(Below) The Polynesian

(Below) The Viennese Mermaid

Sunday, 8 May 2011

The Seated Nude

(Above) The Seated Nude
May 2011
15.5cm x 18cm
Mixed media (Faber Castel Albrecht Durer watercolour crayons, Windsor & Newton Indian ink, Daler Rowney FW acrlyic ink, Caran d'ache Neocolour II water-soluble wax crayons) on 100% cotton rag, acid-free paper (200g).

Thursday, 5 May 2011

Le Chat

(Above) Le Chat
19cm x 16.5cm
Mixed media on paper
May 2011

A portrait of one of my cats, Nobby, who, like Zorro, sports a mask and, like James Bond, a bow tie.

Wednesday, 4 May 2011

The Cyclist

(Above) The Cyclist
15.5cm x 18cm
May 2011
Mixed media on paper.

This painting was developed from a study (below) that I produced with the stylus and Handwriting App of my Sony Reader after a thumbnail photograph that I found on the Internet of a young Eddy Merckx wearing the pink jersey. I've changed the writing on the jersey to make a more generic image.

After doing this painting I found myself thinking again about the work of the German Expressionist, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner.

(Above) Portrait of the poet Guthman (1910)

by Ernst Ludwigh Kirchner

Monday, 2 May 2011

The Russian Model

(Above) The Russian Model
May 2011
14.5cm x 17cm
Mixed media on paper.

Saturday, 30 April 2011

The Glamour of Red

(Above) The Glamour of Red
April 2011
14.5cm x 17cm
Mixed media on paper.

Thursday, 28 April 2011

The Green Hat

(Above) The Green Hat

April 2011

14.5cm x 17.5cm

Mixed media on paper.

This painting was developed from the drawing below.

(Above) The Green Hat
April 2011
9.5cm x 11cm
A drawing produced using the Handwriting App and stylus of the Sony Reader; printed on acid-free paper and hand signed in ink.

In yesterday's post, I mentioned how I've been thinking again about the work of Marie Laurencin. I've also been looking at paintings by the German expressionist Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, in particular this portrait:

(Above) Portrait of Gerda (1914) by Ernst Ludwig Kirchner
Von der Heydt Museum, Wuppertal, Germany
http://vdh.netgate1.net/Welcome_2.html

Wednesday, 27 April 2011

A Winter Hat

(Above) A Winter Hat
15.5cm x 18.5cm
April 2011
Mixed media on paper.

Marie Laurencin is one of my favourite artists and I often find myself thinking about her work when I am painting.

(Below) Femme à la robe verte by Marie Laurencin

I've just found this lovely portrait of Laurencin on a French blog and was struck by how much she looks like her paintings.

(Below) Marie Laurencin (1885 - 1956)

Monday, 25 April 2011

A Hollywood Hat

(Above) A Hollywood Hat

April 2011

15cm x 18cm

Mixed media (Faber Castel Albrecht Durer watercolour crayons, Windsor & Newton Indian ink, Windsor & Newton Calli calligraphic ink, Daler Rowney FW acrylic ink, Caran d'ache Neocolour II water-soluble wax crayons) on 100% cotton rag, acid-free paper (200g).

I've developed this painting from a drawing (below) produced using the Handwriting App of the Sony Reader.

(Above) A Hollywood Hat

9cm x 11cm

April 2011

At a Glance

Why not try viewing the blog posts in Mosaic or Flipcard format? It's a quick way of seeing all the posts all at once.To do this, add the word "view" to the blog URL address. Alternatively, just click on the Flipcard image immediately above. Once you are in the View page, click on the drop down list marked by the turquoise button with the word "Sidebar" in the top right hand corner and select a format. Scroll over the images with the cursor. Pause on an image to see that post's title and click on the image to open the post.

To be is to be perceived

I hope that you enjoy this blog. If you are new to the site, don't forget to check the older posts that are now in the archive (see either "Blog Archive" or "Older Posts" at the bottom of the page). And please pass the link onto any of your friends or contacts who may be interested; better still, why not sign up to follow my blog with regular email up-dates? (See "Follow the Blog", again at the bottom of the page - just keep scrolling down).

Your gaze is very important and it's good to know that my paintings are being seen. After all, "esse est percipi" as the eminent Mr Berkeley maintained: "to be is to be perceived".

Sidonie, la mère de Claudine, as I (erroneously) imagined her (SOLD)

Every picture has its own story to tell and whilst they are by no means obligatory, titles can provide a useful point of access to a painting or other art work. They allow the artist to offer meanings and even to tell a story. If there is a narrative behind the titles that I create for my paintings it is usually one that tells of the painting's creation: how the painting came into being, evolved and took on its final personality. Certainly, as I am painting my "portraits", (which sometimes reference a "real", living or historical, person but not always) I find myself entering into a dialogue with them, getting to know this person that is taking shape and form on the paper. This painting of Sidonie actually started as a study after looking at the highly stylised treatment of the female face in medieval stained glass windows. (When I was at art college I won an award that allowed me to travel around France to study stained glass. My study was quite preliminary but it is an interest that has stayed with me.) I'd also recently visited the church in Tudeley, Kent, to see the wonderful stained glass by Chagall. Most of the windows in Tudeley use a predominantly blue palette, but a couple of the windows are an irridescent yellow. Surprisingly, yellow is not an easy to colour to use in large areas even if it is one that cannot fail to evoke warmth and optomism. So, as this gentle woman's face took hold on my page I found myself thinking of "Sidonie" the mother of Claudine, the little girl in Colette's autobiographical stories La maison de Claudine in which Sidonie is a discreet but constant, loving and protective presence and force. Sidonie is evoked in these short stories from a child's perspective; this painting too has a certain child-like vision. So, the gentle woman on the paper became, in my mind, "Sidonie, la mère de Claudine." Unfortunately, after re-reading La Maison de Claudine, I realised that the real or original Sidonie was actually blond and rather short and round. So, I had to revise my title: "Sidonie, la mère de Claudine, as I (erroneously) imagined her."

Artist's Statement I

Figurative and very colourful, my paintings feature mostly women: heads and faces, nudes and full-length, dressed portraits. Some of my work is produced from direct observation but more often it is informed by the photography and other imagery that animate the media (publicity, magazines, television, film, the Internet). Always "reality" is tempered by the process of drawing and painting (I enjoy making and leaving the marks of the crayon and paintbrush) but also, inevitably by perception, memory and imagination. I try to create images that are full of colour and life and, no doubt for this reason, sensual. Sometimes, my paintings are also a little "quirky": the sitters often strike a sideways regard that engages the viewer's gaze. My paintings are an invitation to gaze at the gazed. Gazing in this way mirrors what the artist does. The artist looks and through their work they give another significance to what they have seen. The act of looking, the gaze, is very important, or as the Anglo-Irish 18th century philosopher George "Bishop" Berkeley reminds us: "to be is to be perceived". Of course, the gaze is particularly important for women, who throughout life are accompanied by images that define feminity. The gaze is equally very important for the artist, whose work is born from looking and surely created for the purpose of being seen.

Many of my recent paintings have been developed from Sony Reader drawings. These are drawings that I have produced using the tactile pad and pen and the manuscript function of the Sony Reader PRS 600. In addition to the primary text-reading function, Sony has equipped its e-reader with an application that can be used for doodling. I enjoy using this device to draw even though, or perhaps because, it is rather unrefined as a drawing instrument. For example, the line produced by the Reader pen is invariable and compared to the small area provided by the screen for drawing, rather thick. The resulting mark is comparable to that produced by a large felt-tip pen, but it can be erased. I have found a way of importing these documents from my Reader to the computer and from there to other graphic applications from where I can work them further, sometimes whilst they are still in an electronic format using Paint or PhotoStudio, or more often simply by printing them and then reworking the image in mixed media on paper or light weight card. In this way, the digital drawings are a kind of palimpsest: the original electronic document provides a basis for reworking and development into a new work, which tends to keep its original small format; a size that contributes to the end painting's sense of intimacy.

Artist's Statement II

The Female Face
With the secularisation of society, the icon has evolved and now occupies a space beyond the preserve of religion; one constant remains however: the female face is still the principle messenger and continues to dominate the imagery of our culture. Omnipresent, she is almost a "cultural barometer", or more literally, a personification of cultural norms and trends.
My works comment on the ubiquitous female face, They are not so much portraits as simple painted representations of this female face. They have been described not only as colourful, but also edgy and sensual. perhaps because the women that populate my paintings are aware of, indeed pre-empt the viewer's gaze. The gaze that looks out from my paintings is, I believe, as intriguing as it is impenetrable: intriguing enough, I hope, to trigger the viewer's curiosity and speculation on the paintings' significance. Further layers of meaning may be generated by the paintings' titles, which offer a possible narration to the images. However, if the titles are a narration, the artist is an unreliable narrator. The titles, like the paintings, question the polarity of fact and fiction. just as the sitter's appropriation of the gaze creates equivalence between the viewer and the viewed and my work challenges the distinction between the subject and the object.

Behind the Mask, a Woman's Portrait

This self-portrait was developed from a drawing produced using the Handwriting function of the Sony Reader, which I have re-worked in mixed media (ink, watercolour, gouache) on paper. Many of my paintings feature portraits of women, or rather representations of the female face, which have always and continue to fascinate artists and image-makers. The title offers another layer of meaning: “Behind the Mask: a Woman’s Portrait.” Throughout life, women are accompanied by images that define their femininity. The female face that we see in our culture’s imagery is like a mask that represents one aspect of a woman’s identity. (See post of same title, dated: 25.04.10)

See the Archive

In mixed media (ink, crayon, watercolour...) on paper this portrait of my partner was developed from a drawing produced using the Handwriting app of the Sony Reader, which I enjoy using to draw even though (or perhaps because) it is rather unrefined as a drawing tool: the line produced by the stylus is invariable and, in comparison to the area of the small screen (9cm x 12cm), quite thick. The resulting mark is comparable to a marker-pen line, but it can be erased. The original electronic document provides a basis for reworking and development into a new work.

An Object of Vision

"A woman must continually watch herself. She is almost continually accompanied by her own image of herself."

"One might simplify this by saying : men act and women appear. Men look at women. Women watch themselves being looked at. [...] The surveyor of woman in herself is male: the surveyed female. Thus she turns herself into an object - and most particularly an object of vision : a sight."

Two quotes from John Berger's book "Ways of Seeing", published by the BBC (London) and Penguin Books Ltd (Harmondsworth, Middlesex, England). First published in 1972. These quotes are found on pages 46 and 47 of the 1985 paperback edition.

Sony Reader Drawings

There is frequent reference in this blog to "Sony Reader drawings". These are drawings produced using the tactile pad and pen that comes with the Sony Reader PRS 600. In addition to the text-reading function Sony have equipped this e-reader with a bonus application for handwritten notes and doodling. I enjoy using the device to draw even though (or perhaps because) it is rather unrefined as a drawing tool: the line produced by the pen is invariable and, in comparison to the area of the small screen (9cm x 12cm), quite thick.

I don't think Sony envisaged sustained use of this application as the resulting documents, once uploaded onto a computer via the Reader Library, are not easily transferred to other software applications for further use. To keep the images and to do paper printouts I have to first import the manuscript document from the hand-held Reader device to the Reader Library software from where I do a copy of the whole computer screen showing the drawing embedded in the software. (see below). The drawing can then be cut and pasted into a clean page using Paint, Photostudio or Photoshop and then printed. The process of importing the drawings from the Reader to the computer is a little convoluted but the hassle is worth it as I often use the paper-prints of these drawings as a palimpsest. They provide a good starting point for more work.

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Wednesday, 15 June 2011

Monday, 13 June 2011

Thursday, 9 June 2011

Thursday, 2 June 2011

Wednesday, 1 June 2011

Thursday, 26 May 2011

Monday, 23 May 2011

Wednesday, 18 May 2011

Sunday, 15 May 2011

Wednesday, 11 May 2011

Sunday, 8 May 2011

Thursday, 5 May 2011

Wednesday, 4 May 2011

Monday, 2 May 2011

Saturday, 30 April 2011

Thursday, 28 April 2011

Wednesday, 27 April 2011

Monday, 25 April 2011

Contact Me

Sold !

Les

Translate / Traduisez

The Enid Lawson Gallery Has Closed

Watermarked Images

Art4Site

Other Websites

The Maeght Foundation

WinWatermark

Aphrodite (wore a red dress)

The French Sculptor's Russian Muse

Acknowledgements

Lithography on Facebook

At a Glance

Trevor Edmands

Older Posts in the Archive

Un beau chat (Nobby)

Older Posts in the Archive

The Singer (in red)

The Blog Archive

Learning Lithography

To be is to be perceived

Steel Magnolias at The Place, Bedford

The Affordable Art Fair: a report in "My Mail" on-line

Click here for more information about The Affordable Art Fair

Black Madonna (SOLD)

Lithography

I Saw An African Queen (Sold)

The Beautiful Painted African Woman

"Out of Africa" at the National Open Art Competition Exhibition

The Painted African

'Selene, because her face is moon-shaped." SOLD

Les in his check jacket

"Mr van Dongen's Lovely Red Hat - a tribute" (SOLD)

She had orange hair and blue eyes

Stockings

Galatea looks at Pygmalion

Dorothea Smartt

Sidonie, la mère de Claudine, as I (erroneously) imagined her (SOLD)

An Iconic Portrait

Steve, a portrait

About Me

Geisha

Dark-eyed nude, detail

Artist's Statement I

The Arab Boy (I met through Kees van Dongen)

Artist's Statement II

Behind the Mask, a Woman's Portrait

See the Archive

See the Archive

An Object of Vision

Jacqueline

Girl with Bird (Feb 2010)

David Hockney

"K" - enjoying the glamour of the red dress

The Hairdresser

Sony Reader Drawings

More Info

Art on the Internet