A Walker To Remember (week 10)

Here is my finished work for the protest project. I looked through many photos of people protesting, searching for a dramatic image with a pleasing visual balance. I considered using a photo taken of protesters demonstrating against a different issue and replacing the sayings on their picket signs with sayings used in the Wisconsin protest. I decided to focus on the sheer number of people at the event to help demonstrate the general importance of the situation. I found a great photo of the inside of the Capital filled so thickly with protesters that you couldn’t even see the floor. I was concerned that people would not recognize the inside of the Capital and decided to switch my focus to the area just outside the Capital. I ended up finding a great photo of the front of the Capital and the vast sea of people flooding the surroundings. I felt that this image would clearly represent the protests and that people would feel a connection to it no matter what their stance was on the issues at hand. I do have a personal opinion when it come to this bill, but I do not want to tell people what to think or try to change their beliefs with my artwork. Instead I want to inform, immortalize, and spread awareness of this major issue.

I made a lot of conscious decisions concerning my mark making, stylization, color choice, etc. I started the drawing with thin, soft and loose lines to get the general layout down. I slowly made harder, thicker lines and I feel like this process reflects the increase in complexity and intensity of the events as they unfolded. I recreated the scene in the photo with very high contrast so that the white of the capital fades into the white of the paper. I only drew the shadows in-between the windows and pillars to gain this high contrast effect and add that dramatic feeling I was looking for. I believe that these graphic stylizations will give the viewer the impression that these events are both intricate and clouded.

I feel like I was successful in reaching my goals for this project. I am satisfied with the process, layout, concept and aesthetics. My focus is clear and I was able to express what I wanted to convey to my audience. The most challenging part was deciding on what aspect to focus and what image would best represent my goal. Overall, I really enjoyed researching, ideating and creating this work. I am excited to see how the class responds. I don’t expect them to necessarily see the neutrality of the work because of the dramatic feel to it and the strong emotions relating to the bill. I want to know what the class thinks my intentions were and to get their first impressions of my work.

See the previous post for the original photo I based my drawing on.