The FINAL

Project 1, Figure as Landscape, Final Image

Medium: Photography; Acrylic paint
Model: Patrick Torres

The PROCESS

Start to finish, face to canvas: figure as landscape. 

 

 The whole environment.

 

Layer one!

 

Don't let this expression fool you, he definitely enjoyed this process...

 

I guess this was probably hard to do with paint on his lips, yum. 

 

'Isn't this why you came to art school, to become art?!'...his response matched this expression.

 

The intensity of this shot is incredible.

Color Palette

 

My actual palette I used on location to match the background. Mostly cool colors, blues greens and purples, with hints of bright red. White and black posed as good contrast for the bright hues.

Faces work as palettes too! Patrick's completed canvas, matching the surrounding background using every color from above. No, his eyes aren't Photoshopped, they actually matched the background, too!

Trial and Error

Well, I learned today this valuable thing called dusk. It happens, every night. So even when you have this great face painted, it gets too dark. Oh, you forgot your add-on lighting? Good thing ISO 3200 makes your photograph full of noise!!

Sheesh.
This is my process, my trial and error, my 'I'm so going to redo this'...sadly.
Other than that little scheduling/timing issue and equipement hatred, this was good practice. The acrylic is an awesome medium! Next time will try to conceal the eye better, and line up background with paint on face from a different perspective.
I think I'm still going to use this location for the final product.

"They'll see you before you see them"

Adding a bit of humor to your day!

While racking my brain's filing cabinet for any artists I may have ever heard of that painted a body into a landscape, I remembered these commercials that came out awhile ago, having cops as bodyscapes to 'crack down on drunk driving'. Yes, this is mainly comical and awesome, but it still plays a part in being a reference for the project. It is still about a figure as a landscape that is not noticed at first glance.

(Bare with the video, for some reason it plays each commercial twice? It's the best resolution I could find, and the only one with all three commercials in one video). Credit goes to YouTube, and the video can also be found at this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o78-tgaKzAU

Artist Reference

Jean-Paul Bourdier has an extensive portfolio on his website including his exhibit of 'bodyscapes'. Show below are just a few of my favorites, especially the first and last images.

 

 

http://www.jeanpaulbourdier.com/

 

 

These two are not as indirect, the body stands out more so than the rest, 

but the element of design is incredibly strong.

 

 

 

 In relevance to my project: this is the direction I want to take, but not necessarily the exact representation. As much as I'd love to paint a body in a full-figured landscape, not too many people are open to standing in the middle of the world nude and painted...and I can't say I don't blame them.

 

My idea is more focused on the face. 

That being said, I'm still searching for an artist who has incorporated the face.

Meet Patrick.

Well, Patrick's hands.

This is my model, which as you can see, has modeled for me before (I don't just do this to my friends for fun). He's committed and realizes at some point in the next few weeks his face will be slathered in yummy acrylic paint! We've continued to meet up and discuss some possible places to find and use colorful graffiti, so I'll post more photos as I venture around. In the meantime, my camera is receiving some R&R...and hopefully a replacement for its 12 year old self.

Figure as Landscape - Reference Photos

Over the past week I ventured out to the location I had in mind for my figure to be morphed into. Posted below are a series of shots of possible graffiti to use. I'm a bit unsure as to how safe this area really is, so that might need some further looking into and ultimately may lead to my projects demise. Until then, I still love this concept.
The photos are certainly not as close up as I will be getting for this, basically at all, but as stated this was merely checking out the area and seeing what the boundaries were. I find the blue-toned graffiti in the second image most intriguing.