Plan

I have put a print out of this in my studio space, but just incase you've missed it, and have an interest in my work, here is my basic third year plan.

Pip Preece’s 3rd Year Plan

The contemporary is derived from its traditions, so my work takes the past and creates new meanings and avenues.

By looking into the work of certain past artists I have gained an interest in the concept of their reconstruction of art works in a contemporary manner.

The re -make.

The remake can be any medium in which that said artist believes a previous piece can be reproduced in a contemporary manner. All art is a reaction to an experience, but the re-make is specifically a reaction to an experience of ART.

Paula Rego, Sebastian Schrader and Francis Bacon, whether directly or indirectly, have all produced re-makes. Bacon’s reworking of Velazquez’s ‘Pope Innocent X’ is the most direct. He has continued with the medium of oils, and the essence of the composition and subject is fundamentally the same. However there is a power shift in the contemporary piece. The ideology of spirituality has a stronger presence in Bacon’s work, and thus gives a new contemporary connotation to the work.

Rego’s humorous adaptations of Disney’s Snow White are another example of such re-makes. She has twisted the childlike innocence of the character and used the fairytale only as a thin guise for psycho-sexual intrigue and taboo, giving the story a more mature, sexual edge, through a feminine view point. Her choice to alter the medium from animation to oil paint also shows the transition of the tale from childhood to maturity.

Schrader’s initially classical looking paintings are in fact possibly the most contemporary paintings. He associates his work with an ongoing philosophical-psychological investigation of familiar myths and histories. By referring to art historical motifs and subjects with the gesture of painterly perfection, he reflects on the contemporary role of the artist and painting as well as current issues.

This year my work will take the remake into consideration. Past works will inform my practice and be revised to generate contemporary art with its roots firmly in the traditions of painting. I will be working with the medium of oils, in order to continue the traditions of the originals, and to hold tight the relationship between the two.

My plan for my work is not solid, as I have not yet selected which paintings to take into consideration, however I do have some visions for possible directions.

I will be working from photographic imagery most likely posed in set conditions utilising people I am familiar with, but will also use news photography as a reference where required. My work will make statements about contemporary society with a humorous undertone.

At this stage I do not see any need to focus on the work of a single artist, but plan to use several familiar pieces of art as inspiration. In that way my work will have an instant impact, rather than alienating viewers by forcing jargon on them. It is my strong belief that art should initially be visually initially, and then the option of further research and information should be a secondary element.