Sarah Jennings

Fine Art & Art History Student at Manchester Metropolitan University UK based Oil Paint and Watercolour Artist

[sarahjennings]

I wanted to make a video, showing home videos from my own childhood. I've spent the whole of this project looking through old family photos and my dad kept coming back with memory cards full of family videos. It turned into a frequent event whenever I was home, of us sitting down and watching them together. I've felt like this project has been a collaborative one from me and my family and given me new memories and made this theme even closer to me and my family.

I've never edited a video before and I am happy with how it came out, I think it gives the project more personality as the viewer can hear and see whats happening. I edited it in iMovie and it worked well for a beginner.

I won't be including the video in the final degree show exhibition as I don't want it to become self involved and want to keep the whole idea of childhood within the project, without it becoming my childhood. Though they are pictures from my childhood I want the paintings to still be relatable.

[sarahjennings]

I was having issues with this account so am transferring all of my degree show work to another account. I will still post all art, cakes and aesthetic things here, but the account @sarahjenningsart will be where all of my portfolio work will be from now on.

[sarahjennings]

Possible design layouts for the upcoming degree show.

There are two options, one with a vintage, retro wallpaper inspired by the 'Open House' exhibition from the Whitworth Art Gallery. I think if I were to use the wallpaper the paintings would have to be framed with thick black frames, like the photographs are in the Whitworth exhibition, so that the paintings would not be lost in the busy backdrop. The wallpaper would be more appropriate if there was a larger collection of paintings being shown.

I think the blank background would be a better choice, just as it related more to the photo album theme I am trying to achieve. I also want to have the paintings in pairs around the exhibition, so the white walls would be better to look like the loose pages from a family album. It would also be difficult to have stripes of wallpaper around the rooms.

I want to now begin to choose the final paintings I will include in the Degree show and how they will be arranged.

[sarahjennings]

Wanted to share a selection of watercolour paintings and sketches from over the years.

I love working with watercolour and I think it compliments my style well. Watercolours have always been my comfort material and are how I most like to paint portraits.

[sarahjennings]

George Shaw, 'Scenes from the Passion', Late 2002

George Shaw is a UK based contemporary artist who is best known for his paintings focusing on suburban matter. All of his paintings have a familiarity to them, that we have all seen these places before and walked past them not thinking anything of them. Shaw sees the beauty in them and paints them in a style that lingers in between realism and hazy memories.

My painting 'Skye' was inspired by the mundane works of Shaw, from the carpet and the sofa coverings being a style many people have seen in their lives, with the original photograph being taken by a child, everyone has photos when the kids ran away with the camera. Of the subject not being in frame, to the fingers over the lens and the close up blurred subjects.

[sarahjennings]

Tracey Moffatt [no title], 1997

Moffatt is a photographer who explores her own memories and identity as a lot of her work is biographical. As part of her Mothers Day series, Moffatt explores the relationship between herself and her own mother.

I like how her work shows people in action, like they are images of moments frozen in time.

[sarahjennings]

Sue Rubira, 'Maggie', 2008, oil on canvas

Rubira is one of my favourite artists and I have always found much inspiration with her work. She uses watercolours and oil paints to achieve a photorealistic look with her portraits. I feel she captures the soul of who she's painting, with her soft painting style which I try to achieve with my work. With her painting 'Maggie' being her mother, who is heavily featured in her work.

[sarahjennings]

Today's progress on the newest painting 'Grandma and Grandad'. I started by layering down the darkest tones in the background to help me track the shadows. I then started on the background to work my way forward. I painted the clothes by blocking with the mid tones, then building with shadows and highlights. Then I worked on the arms to establish the skin tones, ready to start on the faces.

[sarahjennings]

Two more additions to the 'Family Album' series. 'Trapped' and 'Grumpy Grandad Smiling'

These are two I've been tweaking for a while, the ground in 'Trapped' always looked too flat and the grass I tried to paint created a weird texture which I didn't like. So I decided to focus on the tones of the grass rather than the texture and I think it gives a better look. I also re-painted the ropes as they appeared too flat.

The second painting is one based off of a photograph from my Aunties wedding in 2009. I spent so much time on the foreground and background surroundings, and really liked how they looked. But it was the faces I couldn't get quite right, they didn't capture the emotions in the original photograph or just looked strange. This was an important piece for me to get perfect, as my grandparents in this photograph have both passed away and wanted a painting of them to remember them with. My "Grumpy Grandad" was famous for his constant disgruntled expression and I was apparently the only one who could make him smile. And this photograph captures this moment, making it one that means so much to me.

[sarahjennings]

Finished painting of 'Mummy', just need to wait for it to dry so i can varnish it. The updated finished painting is the one on the left.

The painting on the right was how it first looked when I thought I was finished with it. However, the more I looked at it, the more I thought it didn't look right. It didn't have a lot of dimension and the painting style in parts was too rough and in other places appeared over blended. The whole painting also looked too brown, especially the skin tones.

So I decided to touch up some of the bits I didn't like. I added more tones and shadows to my mums hair and I think it looks so much better and adds more dimension to the painting. I also added more warmth into my own face to give the painting more life. I like it so much better with the alterations and think it looks more sophisticated.

[sarahjennings]

For 'Family Album' series for exhibition

Starting another painting, the MDF board is primed and I've mapped out the darker tones and shadows. This painting is one of my grandparents on a holiday from when I was younger. I love this photograph and when I came across it I couldn't not paint it, I wanted to honour and remember them in this project, and I know how much this will mean to them when they come to see it for the degree show exhibition.

Often when painting directly onto a white canvas, colours can appear slightly different than in the photograph. The Neutral background helps to make the colours look more natural.

[sarahjennings]

Selection of paintings from 'Family Album' series.

I like how they looked hanged as a collection, as if pages from a family photo album. I'm still deciding whether to hang them as a whole in the degree show, displaying them in a line to appear like film, or, display them separately to give the look of loose pages of a photo album.

'Amber Donkey', 'Angry Face', 'Dancing', 'Fishing'

[sarahjennings]

Working on another cake, vinyl cake with clash logo in fondant.

Another tier to go underneath.

[sarahjennings]

Working on a painting for the 'Family Album' series

Focusing more on close personal relations. This is a photograph of me and my mum from 2006, I love this photo and just shows the love I have for my mum and the importance of family relationships throughout this project.

[sarahjennings]

Fondant decorated lemon cake

[sarahjennings]

'Family Album' series, 'Skye'

Oil paint on panel (21cmx14cm)

This painting is of my childhood dog, from an image taken by my brother when he was young. I think this painting catches the charm I wanted in this series, that it has a youthfulness to it with the Westie wandering off behind the sofas.

[sarahjennings]

Another finished painting from the 'Family Album' series, 'Fishing'

Oil paint on panel (21cmx14cm)

One of my favourite paintings from the series, I really like how this painting came out. With the brightness the sun rays give and the shadows from the leaves. I think this image is the epitome of childhood, fishing for rubber ducks.