Reflective Statement

Relevance of work to proposal:

This semester I have pursued the investigation of apocalyptic, dystopic and utopic imagery. I wanted to investigate the reasoning and theory behind this imagery both in historic and contemporary times, and either enhance or undermine our reading of recurring signifiers and motifs by their presence in landscape arrangements. The final works are relevant to my proposal as I have directly addressed these ideas and reinterpreted the images and text I researched from film, television and written sources, but has evolved from my original title of Before the Apocalypse to become Apocalypse, Dystopia, Utopia - A Study to not only present but deconstruct such notions.

Conceptual development:

My ideas have developed this semester from wishing to depict the stages of apocalyptic development as mutually exclusive temporal events, to bringing the motifs and signifiers together in a simultaneous staging. Originally, I intended to depict the distinct settings of the foreshadowing of an apocalypse, the event itself, the immediate aftermath, and then visions of what we imagine rises from the ashes. However, from reading the theoretical ideas of Margaret Atwood I realised that there cannot be a utopia without elements of a dystopia, or a dystopia without elements of a utopia. Hence, I realised that these ideas are not mutually exclusive, and developed an artistic curiosity as to how the incorporation of apocalyptic imagery also would affect the reading of the final works in a visual confusion. As ideas that have no basis in the real and only exist in art, they are also subjective. Therefore, my depiction of the ideas underscores artificiality and deconstruction, asking the viewer to question the basis for such thoughts and undermine their supposedly ‘sublime’ nature. I also became engrossed in the writing of 17th century poet John Milton, using passages from his text Paradise Lost to investigate another potential form of landscape through the literary dimension, and play with the use of colour as an intervention towards the gravitas of the subject matter.

Technical development:

My technical development this semester has involved refining my presentation of my painting maquette to allow it to stand alone as a finished artwork. The choice to leave Apocalypse, Dystopia, Utopia ­– A Study unfinished became one mainly based on time constraints, however I also enjoy the conceptual result that has ensued. It means that the works are dependent on each other for their reading and interpretation – one cannot be fully understood without another – and thus it has become a physical manifestation of my thematic ideas. I enjoyed both painting in black and white and colour, and playing with a range of materials including paper, fibre and foam to create a dioramic representation of conflicting symbols, with the medium itself also contributing to the concept of artificiality.

Personal Evaluation:

This semester I believe that I have achieved a series of works that successfully reflect my conceptual ideas and have additionally allowed me to experiment with aesthetic ideas. To further my practice, I would like there to be more interaction between the two and three-dimensional elements I create, and more experimentation with their identity and dependence on each other. I intend to further this work by continuing my research on the signifiers of the utopia, rather than such a concern with dystopic and apocalyptic imagery.