I started the week by working on a sculpture of my face. I used air drying clay and newspaper, which created the texture i needed. That being said, I don’t think I focused enough on texture in the skin. Maybe mixing paper into the clay will allow me to create a more interesting surface without betraying the integrity of the sculpture?
In general, I found the exercise extremely helpful in visualising why certain parts of my face look the way they do. For example, I thought about which shapes were caused by the bones in my face and which ones were more due to the sagging of my skin. I think this knowledge will be useful when painting.
Sculpture is a medium I find naturally creatively engaging. Maybe it’s due to how active you are when sculpting - I also think it’s how it lends itself to mixed media. This is something I could maybe look into incorporating into my paintings. I enjoy how Njideka Akunyili Crosby does this in her paintings.
Once DJCAD Clay get back in touch with me, I would like to work on sculptures of a larger scale so as to capture more detail. I also learned how to stretch a canvas, so I will be working on a portrait on a larger scale too. For the time being, I think I will keep painting self portraits as I can pose for myself for much longer but I will also ask my flat mates if they can pose for some drawings so that I am practicing other faces too. I kept looking into Celia Paul this week, so I am interested in how portraits can serve as an autobiography - whether that be of yourself or those closest to you.