Coursework Unit 1. Fine Art. AS level. 2005-06

Students at William de Ferrers School have to produce two coursework units at AS level.

The first unit (‘Portraits & self-portaits,’ see below) had to be completed, mounted and presented by December, 2005.

A written evaluation had to explain the processes the student had been through in arriving at their finished piece and the reasons for the decisions they made. The development of their work had to be clear.

Portraits & self-portaits

A portrait explores what it is to be human.

Students’ work had to express some aspect of what it is to be human and living now at the beginning of the 21st century.

It had to involve both form and content.

Students could work in 2 or 3 dimensions; experimenting with, for instance: paint, sculpture, collage, print, photography, use of text, video, objects.

Students would already have collected digital images and studied the working methods of an artist, which could form the basis for the development of their ideas.

Students could choose one of the following areas to explore: body, self, image, identity.

The Body

The location of our being. Flesh, blood, bone.

We live in an age of body-related issues, such as: genetic engineering, cloning, plastic surgery and extreme makeovers. Is it biology, essentially, that determines who we are?

• Jenny Saville.

  Jenny Saville paints herself in an uncompromising way on an exaggerated and monumental scale; raising issues about sheer size, cosmetic surgery and flesh (e.g. ‘Plan,’ 1993).

• Anthony Gormley.

  Anthony Gormley casts his own body in an attempt to express ideas of humanity which are free from the constraints of race, creed and language.

• Marc Quinn.

  ‘Self,’ 1991 (aka ‘Blood head’).

• Ron Mueck.

  ‘Mask,’ 1997; ‘Mask II,’ 2001.

• Lucien Freud.

  Self-portraits (e.g. ‘Reflection,’ 1985;
  ‘Painter Working, Reflection,’ 1993).

The Self

What is the real me? Do people have an inner life, complex thoughts and emotions? Do we have a soul or a spirit, or do we no longer believe in these ideas?

Artists have continually tried to express their feelings of an inner life through symbolism, colour, gesture or through exploring the imagery of the unconscious mind.

• Frida Kahlo.

  Frida Kahlo's self-portraits are full of symbolism expressing the physical and emotional traumas of her inner life, after a tragic accident caused her to endure horrific injuries (e.g. ‘The Broken Column,’ 1944; ‘Diego and I,’ 1949).

• Pablo Picasso.

  Picasso painted himself at all stages of his very long life. His last self-portrait (1972) expresses the ultimate fear of a man who knows he is about to die.

• Xenia Hausner.

  Xenia Hausner captures an inner strength to humanity through her strong use of colour and form on a large scale (e.g. ‘Ballet Russe,’ 2000; ‘Coco,’ 2002).

Image

Who do I want to be? How do I want others to see me?

A portrait can reveal only what you want it to reveal. People can hide behind an image, or invent a completely different persona to present to the world.

Possible artists to look at:

• Andy Warhol.

  Andy Warhol's self-portraits sometimes have a camouflage pattern superimposed onto a printed image of his face (e.g. ‘Self-Portrait with Camouflage,’ 1986).

• Cindy Sherman.

  Cindy Sherman photographs herself ‘posing in a role’, suggesting images from a film still (e.g. ‘Untitled Film Still #53,’ 1980; ‘Untitled Film Still #56,’ 1980; ‘Untitled Film Still #66,’ 1980).

• Gavin Turk.

  Gavin Turk (‘Hello,’ 1994) represents himself as a teenage rebel in a witty waxwork model, dressed as punk rocker Sid Vicious (‘Pop,’ 1993).

• Tim Noble and Sue Webster.

  Tim Noble and Sue Webster present themselves as a clever shadowy illusion in a world of trash culture (e.g. ‘Miss Understood and Mr Meanor,’ 1997; ‘Undesirables,’ 2000).

Identity

Who am I? Am I male, female, black, white, rich, poor, an idealist or materialist, popular, powerful, an intellectual or religious person, a breaker of rules or a traditionalist?

A portrait can identify a person's culture, background, social connections, social status, gender or beliefs.

• Albrecht Durer.

  Albrecht Durer not only paints himself as Jesus (‘Self-Portrait in a Fur-Collared Robe,’ 1500) to show off his incredible skills and his standing in Renaissance society as the most important artist of his time, but also to express his religious beliefs.

• Gaugin.

  Gaugin also paints himself as Jesus in ‘The Yellow Christ,’ 1889, but then again in ‘Portrait charge de Gaugin,’ 1889, as a fallen angel.

• Chris Ofili.

  Chris Ofili fills portraits with glitter, dots and beads of colour, using collage to express his own cultural identity in which his Western and African heritage merge together (e.g. ‘Afrodizzia,‘ 1996; ‘The Holy Virgin Mary,‘ 1996;).

• Sarah Lucas.

  Sarah Lucas’ work shows her identity as a defiant outsider with ‘attitude.’ Angry, foul-mouthed and witty (e.g. ‘Self-Portrait with Fried Eggs,’ 1996; ‘Two Fried Eggs and a Kebab,‘ 1992).

• Banksy.

  Who is he? Political imagery.