7 STEPS TO ABSTRACTION
Artists & Illustrators|June 2020
Do you struggle to loosen up your drawing skills and create meaningful abstract paintings? CHRIS GILVAN-CARTWRIGHT reveals his seven practical steps to success
CHRIS GILVAN-CARTWRIGHT
7 STEPS TO ABSTRACTION

1 ESTABLISH AN ETHOS

When making abstract art, the most important thing to remember is that you can’t go “wrong”.

My students are often concerned that when they are drawing from the figure, the whole history of formal life drawing is weighing upon them and the right or wrong way to do this can haunt them. They will often have a fixed idea about what makes a good or bad drawing and arrived at a point where they feel their work has become too rigid. If this sounds like you and you also wish to loosen up, it’s important to establish the right mindset, one that takes the pressure off having to produce a perfect, exhibition-ready piece.

In order to do this, I like to give myself some tenets to work by – things I can bear in mind during the creative process, such as “concentration is essential”, “in order to draw you have to start from innocence”, or “if you know what you’re doing, you aren’t doing it properly”. You might want to write your own tenets out and pin them to your wall while you work.

2 REMEMBER TO PLAY

Being playful is the most radical thing you can do. I find that in order to successfully start making an abstract artwork, I have to be open to all the possibilities and directions in which the work could take me. In doing so, I am allowing the process of making work to govern the outcome, rather than being overly analytical and critical of what I am doing.

Bu hikaye Artists & Illustrators dergisinin June 2020 sayısından alınmıştır.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

Bu hikaye Artists & Illustrators dergisinin June 2020 sayısından alınmıştır.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

ARTISTS & ILLUSTRATORS DERGISINDEN DAHA FAZLA HIKAYETümünü görüntüle
Still life IN 3 HOURS
Artists & Illustrators

Still life IN 3 HOURS

Former BP Portrait Award runner-up FELICIA FORTE guides you through a simple, structured approach to painting alla prima that tackles dark, average and light colours in turn

time-read
5 dak  |
March 2022
Movement in composition
Artists & Illustrators

Movement in composition

Through an analysis of three masterworks, landscape painter and noted author MITCHELL ALBALA shows how you can animate landscape composition with movement

time-read
6 dak  |
March 2022
Shane Berkery
Artists & Illustrators

Shane Berkery

The Irish-Japanese artist talks to REBECCA BRADBURY about the innovative concepts and original colour combinations he brings to his figurative oil paintings from his Dublin garden studio

time-read
7 dak  |
March 2022
The Working Artist
Artists & Illustrators

The Working Artist

Something old, something new... Our columnist LAURA BOSWELL has expert advice for balancing fresh ideas with completing half-finished work

time-read
2 dak  |
March 2022
Washes AND GLAZES
Artists & Illustrators

Washes AND GLAZES

Art Academy’s ROB PEPPER introduces an in-depth guide to incorporating various techniques into your next masterpiece. Artwork by STAN MILLER, CHRIS ROBINSON and MICHELE ILLING

time-read
7 dak  |
March 2022
Hands
Artists & Illustrators

Hands

LAURA SMITH continues her new four-part series, which encourages you to draw elements of old master paintings, and this month’s focus is on capturing hands

time-read
7 dak  |
March 2022
Vincent van Gogh
Artists & Illustrators

Vincent van Gogh

To celebrate The Courtauld’s forthcoming landmark display of the troubled Dutch master’s self-portraits, STEVE PILL looks at the stories behind 10 of the most dramatic works on display

time-read
6 dak  |
March 2022
BRING THE drama
Artists & Illustrators

BRING THE drama

Join international watercolour maestro ALVARO CASTAGNET in London’s West End to paint a dramatic street scene

time-read
7 dak  |
March 2022
Serena Rowe
Artists & Illustrators

Serena Rowe

The Scottish painter tells STEVE PILL why time is precious, why emotional responses to colour are useful, and how she finds focus every day with the help of her studio wall

time-read
8 dak  |
March 2022
Bill Jacklin
Artists & Illustrators

Bill Jacklin

Chatting over Zoom as he recovers from appendicitis, the Royal Academician tells STEVE PILL about classic scrapes in New York and his recent experiments with illustration

time-read
8 dak  |
March 2022