Anatomy and Time

This week I started off by looking at a book called 'The Anatomy of Flowers' by Arthur Harry Church. It is filled with intricate drawings of cross sections of flowers (such as the drawing below), some of which looked like expressive shapes rather than flowers.

Scan of drawing from 'The Anatomy of Flowers'

I began by painting accurately the drawings from the book, and also drawing the parts of the plant that interested me most. However the most successful part of this exercise was when I scanned in one of my drawings and cut it into the main shapes of the flower, rearranging it into another shape. This collage idea worked well for me as it created an imaginary shape that I wouldn't have drawn if I tried to draw normally: I will bare it in mind for other drawings that I complete. 

My Collage made up of my original drawing based on the anatomy of flowers.

This week I also collected seed heads from Hogweed and drew them at different stages in time, from being alive and flowering, to having seed pods, and being dead. Whilst drawing all of them in different styles, one drawing inspired me to create these drawings below. I illustrated how many flowers/buds/stems, each seed head had with a key, which I thought linked back to representing data very well. 

Data drawings from Hogweed seed heads

I also came across an artist called Marisa Redondo this week who creates lovely drawings for a similar context to what I want to make designs for. She has a brand called River Luna, and her work can be found at http://www.riverlunaart.com. 

River Luna Artwork -- https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/RiverLuna

I love the way that she uses painterly effects and line, and creates tone (even through thin lines). I wanted to explore the way that she creates her designs, so I have been recreating the way she works so that I can be inspired by the techniques and methods she uses.

My response to artwork by River Luna

I tried creating the designs using various methods, but the most effective are the designs above, created digitally from a watercolour painting and a fine liner drawing. Although I didn't get quite the same effects as Marisa creates with her paintings, I have taken on board different ideas and techniques, including filling abstract shapes with loose watercolour, and experimenting with fine lines on top of this. I intend to develop these in my own way next week.