Finding Your Voice

"Pay attention to what draws your attention."

Like anything in the arts, the only way to find your style is to do a lot of work:

• Not only will your skillset improve, but you’ll quickly learn what you like and don’t like.
• Much like your handwriting or fingerprint, the way you draw & paint will come naturally to you.
• Keeping a small sketchbook on hand at all times allows me to practice what I do & to notice the things that catch my eye regularly.
• Take note of the subject matter, medium, substrate and even time of day that you like to work.
• Remember, it is a lifelong journey which requires a lot of practice & patience.

CRITIQUING YOUR WORK:
An important part of finding your voice as an artist, is also learning how to critique your own work. In art school, this was one of the most valuable things I learned, which includes the value of TALKING and WRITING about art.  Artwork often has Subject Matter like a face, a dog, flowers, trees, house, vehicle and more.  All artwork has elements and principles.  The Visual Elements are line, colour, Shape, Form (volume), Texture, Value (tone).  If you can find a relationship that creates a visual effect, you have discovered a Principle. 

Artists connect things and move the viewer’s eye with repetition. Interest and motion are added to artwork by repeating things like shape, color, line type, value, subject matter, size, and so on.  Several categories of Style are realism (photographic), expressionist (less realistic with lots feeling), surrealist (real but impossible or dreamlike), formal (orderly and controlled), nonobjective (without subject matter), abstract (not realistic). Share first impressions and guesses. State what you see, not what you like or don't like. Do not judge. Describe, analyze, and interpret.

l.  What stands out the most when you first see it?
2.  Explain why you notice the things.
3.  Really look versus seeing…what else seems important?
4.  Why does that feel important?
5.  How is contrast used?
6.  What leads your eye around from place to place? What connections do you notice?
7.  What do you notice about the style used by this artist?
8.  What seems hidden in this composition?
9.  Why do you think this is important?
10. What feelings and meanings does this artwork represent?
11. What titles could you give this artwork?
12. What other things interest you about this piece?

MINI CRITIQUES:
With our classmates, we often did mini-critiques that would focus on something that we found interesting along with a question that comes to mind about the piece or series.