Looking at other artists

Open College of the Arts

Student Support
This booklet is one of a series of guides for students studying with the OCA.

Others in the series are:

• Study skills

• Keeping sketchbooks and learning logs

• Assessment and how to get qualified

You can either download a pdf copy from our website www.oca-uk.com or ring the
office on 0800 731 2116 for a paper copy.

Cover illustration Caroline Firenza. Other images courtesy Bridgeman Art Library
Looking at other artists
One of the most important aspects of developing as an artist or
photographer is to look at other artists’ work. This guide will help you
make the best of every image you look at, train your visual awareness
and develop your visual skills.

Look at everything you can

Look at all sorts of work: amateur artists’ work, contemporary professional work,
old masters, visit museums and galleries to see the latest exhibitions and existing
collections. Get art books out of the library and buy art books if you can. Use the
internet as much as possible. The internet has become a wonderful forum for
photography and art. Even if you live in an area that makes it difficult to get to
exhibitions, or if you are disabled or confined in some way, the internet opens a
world of opportunity to discover artwork. For instance the major public galleries not
only publish samples of exhibitions on the web, but often have the whole
exhibition on the web available as well as in the gallery.

It is impossible to overemphasise how critical it is to look at other artists’ work. All

art is created in a context. Artists through the centuries have been influenced by
others, some very strongly. Whole movements in art have been instigated by single
works of art, or the work of just
one person, driving forward with
a new technique or approach to
their work. Looking closely at
paintings, sculptures or
photographs can reveal
information about techniques that
you would never get by looking at
a poor scale reproduction of the
work. At exhibitions you can
always tell who the practising
artists are. They are the ones right
up at the canvas, closely
scrutinising every brush stroke or
mark made, to see what they can Detail from the Mona Lisa
learn. Leonardo da Vinci
Don’t think that basing your work on other artists’ work or consciously using ideas
from others is cheating. All art, in a sense, is about other art. When we find a
subject to depict, we see it, at least in part, through the eyes of artists we are
familiar with. That is why it is so important for you to have a good, broad
knowledge of art and artists and to develop an informed opinion on them, and the
ways in which they can influence your work.

Time taken to browse exhibitions, books and internet galleries is not time
wasted. It will feed your imagination and develop your technique.

In the bath
Edgar Degas
Visiting exhibitions
Try to see as many exhibitions as possible. It doesn’t matter if the work isn’t of the
highest order. There is much to learn even from not-so-good art. In many images
even if the whole picture isn’t completely successful, a part of it may be interesting.
In others the idea behind the art may be a revelation even when it hasn’t been
successfully carried out. You may see images where artists have been struggling
with the same problems that you are experiencing and through their failure see
possible solutions. In an exhibition by local artists or photographers you may see
local subjects to paint or photograph whose possibilities hadn’t occurred to you
before.

When you visit a gallery or museum, decide whether to look at everything, tiring
yourself and as a consequence taking nothing in, or whether to be selective. If you
are going to a large exhibition, it is often better to quickly walk round the whole
exhibition and then go back to focus on just the few that really drew your
attention. See if there is a guide book, postcards or if you can take photographs.

Argentine
Anthony Caro
Be prepared to be surprised
You may go to look at paintings but find the sculpture or the garden every bit as
rewarding. Don’t in any case ignore the building in which the paintings are being
shown. Ask yourself how well the works of art relate to their environment.

Don’t forget to take a sketchbook and notebook with you whenever you make a
visit. It is also a good idea to take a friend who may be able to give a valuable
second view on what you see, and discuss the exhibits with you.

A page or two of notes about each visit will be a valuable addition to your learning
log.

The main elements

Remember, when you look at art to consider all the main elements that make up a
work of art: shape, form, space, value (light and dark), texture, colour and line.

Consider the composition. Is it harmonious and unified? What are the proportions
like (the different elements of the composition in relation to each other)? How
much variety and emphasis is there? Is there a comfortable balance in the work? Is
there rhythm and movement?

Insomnia Jeff Walter

Annotating images
Make judgements
• First describe the art work,work; this will make you focus on it. You can do this in
your head or make notes on paper.

• Then analyse it, using the tips above.

• Once you have analysed the elements, try to second guess what the artist
intended. What do you think the artist was trying to convey? This is the most
challenging part of looking at art, and is called interpretation.

• Finally, draw your conclusions. This is much more to do with your personal
response to the work. How does it make you feel? What reaction do you have to
the elements and composition? Does the work feed your imagination? Does it
intrigue you or does it leave you cold?

Composition with Mona Lisa

Kazimir Severinovich Malevich
A very useful activity
after a visit to a museum
or gallery is to annotate
postcards or your own
sketches of images that
interested you. This
simply means adding
explanatory notes to the
pictures.

Put notes around the

edges of the pictures
rather than obscure them
with writing. One way of
annotating a postcard is
to stick it in the top half
of an A4 sheet and draw
a line across the page
about two thirds of the
way down. Above this
line and around the
postcard there is space to
make comments about
the card. You may wish
to comment on the
accuracy of the reproduction, the way something has been depicted, the use of a
particular colour, or the way the painting has been composed for example.
Comments can be made in the form of sketches as well as words.

Below the line jot down anything about the painting that can’t be worked out from
looking at it but needs further research – things like its date, whether it was
commissioned, whether there are other similar examples by the same artist, where
they are, and so on.

Annotated postcards and drawings of images can be included in your learning log.

If you keep your learning log online you can copy and paste images into
your blog, but make sure you acknowledge the sources for copyright
reasons.
Selecting art books
How should you go about selecting what books you should choose?

Your individual tastes, your tutor’s advice and the availability of books will be
determining factors. Modern art books nearly always have great quality illustrations
in them, and the books you will want to keep will almost certainly be those packed
with large good quality illustrations that you can use for reference for many years.
In that sense art books are great investments. Don’t feel that any book you buy or
borrow has to be read from cover to cover. If you do read a book on art, make
notes about it in your learning log to remind you of the key points. Don’t forget
there are several good sources of second hand art books to buy on the internet.

Using the internet to look at art

There are a myriad of art galleries online. These range from individual artists who
promote their work on the web, through to galleries who promote a range of
artists’ work, some of which do not have a physical gallery at all, but for whom all
sales are directly online. There are specialist sites for printmakers, photographers,
illustrators and fine artists. All major public galleries have websites, and these often
have a large number of images from current exhibitions displayed on the web.
Some galleries have their entire collection online. The majority of Tate Britain’s
collection is online for example. There is more art and photography at your
fingertips through internet access than could ever have been imagined even twenty
years ago. Develop your internet search skills, find what you are interested in and
your visual development will transform. If you do not have internet access at home,
try to make a trip to a library or other source for internet access at some point
every month.

Look at the resources section of the OCA website for suggestions of art
and photography websites to visit. You need to be logged in to access
the information.
A seated male nude twisting around
Michelangelo
OCA's website www.oca-uk.com is your first stop for information about
courses, plus access to help, support, advice and tips from tutors and
other learners.

Register on the website, upload a picture if you like, and get chatting to
other students via the forum.

Find out about exhibitions and books recommended by fellow students,

discuss the state of contemporary art or the music industry, share tips on
techniques and processes, and share your thoughts on studying from
home.
Open College of the Arts

Michael Young Arts Centre

Redbrook Business Park
Wilthorpe Road
Barnsley S75 1JN

enquiries@oca-uk.com
0800 731 2116
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