Petra Stokar – Master Thesis | 4.1.2 Process Versus Result

4.1.2 Process Versus Result

I have been often asked how my painting is created because the people only see the end result and not the process that led to it. I started drawing portraits when I looked in the book of Aragon and I saw a portrait from Matisse very easily drawn in black ink. Only the outline of the face, the eyes and nose were visible. The face looked very easy to make and still it had an expression, it had clarity, I started to draw it. I had to draw it several times and each time I drew it, I saw something new in the picture. Sometimes I focused on the eyes then focussed on the mouth and gave myself the time to learn the form of it. Then on the nose, the glasses and the cigar. Each time I drew the whole drawing again so that I could exercise the different forms and after drawing the face 5 times I was very happy with the result because I thought painting a portrait was difficult but now I had found a way to do it.

Drawing 1

Drawn on a white paper one sees the face of Matisse with a friendly expression. It is a frontal view of the face. And a cigar in his mouth. He is wearing glasses. And has big eyebrows. A little bit of his beard starting to grow is visible. Only the outline of the nose and eyes, are drawn. The picture has its power from its simplicity. It is drawn with a minimum of lines.

Pic 4.8

I didn’t think that the eyes needed to be that close to each other, this drawing is created with a pentel pocket brush with black pigment ink. It forces you to draw quickly otherwise the ink becomes to thick. It is also important that when I use this brush I support my hand, arm, elbow on the paper in order to make the drawing easier and more relaxed for my body.

Drawing 2

The next is another process drawing of Matisse. This time the face has an angry expression. It is a frontal view of the face. It is drawn on a white background. With a black ink pen. This time the face is not looking so friendly. It has a Moustache and a Cigar, also the left eye is smaller than the right eye. The face is wearing glasses. The right side has a big eyebrow, the left eyebrow is missing. It is funny, to try to draw an identical face, but in the end, the expression differs so much.

Pic 4.9

I found out that drawing forms in one line for example.. a circle makes it much easier for me then to draw forms when I am concentrating. It’s much easier for me to draw faster and makes my drawing much clearer. I also found this out with the Alexander Technique which came back when drawing Matisse. Don’t be critical at yourself because a drawing has time, you can always go back to it.

The picture is drawn on a white background with black ink. The picture shows two heads. In the centre of the page. Here I am particularly working on finding the round shape of the head of Matisse. Therefor on the left only a circle is visible, a shape, an attempt to circle a shape. The eyes, the nose and the mouth are missing. The second head on the paper is drawn from a side view. The first circle is not fully closed, but is open on the sides. The head has a bit of an egg-shape. The second head is watching the first head. The second head looks in the direction of the first head. It looked like both images are in close relationship to each other. It is almost as if they have a dialog. It is as if the face is looking in its own mirror. At least I have the feeling that the face is looking in its own mirror. In the second head, only one eye is visible.

Pic 4.10

The picture is drawn on a white background with black ink. It is a picture from Matisse with a friendly expression. Here the face has a quite circular shape. With Matisse smoking a cigar and wearing glasses. Only his head is shown and the neck is missing. The face looks quite fat. The view is frontal and we can see an attempt of a growing beard. The eyes are big and clear, they have a bright look into the world.

Pic 4.11

The picture is again drawn on a white background with black ink. This time we see the finished result of the picture. The head is more slender and the lines are not closed everywhere. The lines are built from a lot of dots. In order to be able to adapt a line if that is necessary. Even the collar of Matisse’s blouse is visible on this drawing. And part of the blouse itself. It is the first finished portrait that I have done.

Pic 4.12

It shows me laying on my bed with a drawing easel. It is a picture with a red glow on it. There is a book laying next to me: Henri Matisse, Roman, written by Aragorn is written on the cover. I am drawing the face of Matisse on a white background. The round shape of the head is visible with one eye. I have a black pencil in my right hand. My body has a concentrated expression, and tension is shown in the hand while I am holding my pen.

Pic 4.13

The Use of Assistants While Drawing

In order to be able to draw my assistant placed my drawing board on to my bed, she gave me the pen, the rest I could do myself. While I was drawing, my assistant took pictures of the different stages of my drawings like Lydia Delectorskaya did with the drawings of Matisse, which is demonstrated in the book, «With Apparent Ease.» She was also taking pictures of me while I was drawing and on top of that she was drawing the face of Matisse herself in order to feel how the face was made. I find the method of Lydia Delectorskaya a very good method to document a process. It also shows the different roles an assistant can have during such a process, not only as a helper but as an observer as well.

Pic 4.14

The next drawing is Matisse drawn by my Assistant. It is drawn on a white paper, with a green pen. The lines are secure. There are no open space in between. And the face is laughing and wears a happy expression. The next drawing is also made by my Assistant. Again on white paper with green and red pen. The red and the green colour are mixed in a daring combination. The picture is the wrong way around though I leave it this way, for most people look at it like this. She has tried to draw me when I was drawing Matisse laying on my bed. It is a simple picture, but thats what it makes it so powerful. On the picture, the bottom part of my drawing paper is visible. Thats why you can only see the bottom part of the head of Matisse. The pen that I have in my right is not near the head of Matisse, it is somewhere at the bottom of the sheet. My face looks concentrated.

Pic 4.15

Two drawings by assistant Christine King

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