my final major project at college

[philbe123]

was unsure where to put this thread on Wet Canvas so I'll put it in here. I'm currently working on my final major project based on the phrase restrained desire, my initial thoughts revolved around the geisha and how they are highly desired and sought after by Japanese men of higher status, their social status leaves them hidden and quite restricted to social classes often beyond those who are not high class. the restraint is more of a metaphor of the Geisha's availability and she is the desire as she brings satisfaction and enjoyment through her work of art. for all their perfection the men could also feel the urge for sexual desire as the geisha leaves them in awe. so I wanted to capture that sexual desire in the theme. I've researched Japanese artists, illustrators, shibari artists and one of my favourite installation artists - christo. if you have time please look at some of his work.

I thought i'd share my favourite idea to start with which is the hair. i have other ideas, thinking of alternatives to rope, using rope to form the human body, the kimono being ripped up and used as rope, manga style, vines, using tattoos(images of beauty-chrysanthemums and cherry blossom) as symbol of the geisha, all these are initial ideas and will be picking a maximum of 4/5 out of 9 ideas. please leave feedback if you view, it would really help with my project as i can also write that I've looked at other opinions in my sketchbook and also develop my ideas even further.

[philbe123]

more ideas

[Basalt]

The last two sketches are great.
I think you should develop the last sketch as your main idea it's the strongest most mysterious. If the modern Geisha leaves the man wanting more, this sketch works with that in my opinion. In the sketch before, everything is revealed, there's closure, no need to want more.

Trying to be constructive: About the concept of desire- there's more to it than a naked woman.
A Geisha is going to have a dark, cunning side to survive that lifestyle, similar to qualities of a Siren (from Greek Mythology). Sirens lure men with their voice, what charm do Geisha use?

Here's a grain of salt . to go with

[vmrs]

I think the most interesting one is the last with the figures made of ropes. That I think could be developed into an interesting final piece. I also like that the third to last has a piece of yarn showing, I'm not sure if you were using that as a reference or were going to incorporate it into a multi media design, I like the idea of a multi media design (though I would advise using embroidery thread instead of yarn, it would be easier and comes in many many colors)
The tattoo on a geisha would be interesting as tattoos are not the norm in Japan and are associate with criminal behavior. It would be provocative for a Geisha to have one.
They're all interesting ideas, I would use your gut instinct and go with whatever ones really grab you personally though irregardless of what anyone else thinks.

[philbe123]

Basalt: thanks for the comment. interestingly enough i did a project about the siren last year which i wasn't particularly happy with the outcome. i quite like your "A Geisha is going to have a dark, cunning side to survive that lifestyle". i have to keep that desire caged, the man could be left wanting but by tradition they can't have it(the sexual needs) which leads to the restraint. in many ways you could say the geisha has restraints herself with geisha traditions being strict, there are certain things they cannot have like a child, as vmrs said: a tattoo or being in married and in love. they can be a mistress but not a wife unless they retire from their profession. it's a two way street.

i used the naked woman because it's a symbol of beauty, however you're right there other ways of portraying this beauty. my research shows me that the geisha has many different charms, if sirens use their vocals, Geisha can also use vocals, music, art, conversation, flattery. but one key element which is forever imprinted in the Japanese culture is "perfection". in the geisha's case it's perfection of ability. everything they do has to be perfect.

vmrs: i have started to do a felted model of the geisha's face and covering it with embroidery thread. I'm not very good at felting or textiles but I'm giving it a go. that idea is similar to the rope figure but is more semi-abstract. i like the tattoo idea because the tattoo can tell a story or portray the personalities of the geisha. it's got that hint of disguise.

[Basalt]

Hope to see more progress.

[philbe123]

i have done some experimenting with idea number 5,7 and 9. quite a lot of experimenting wasa bit unsuccesful and only certain pieces have made it to the standard that i can develop on for my final piece. i have picked 4 of the best and from here on i will decide to choose just one to use as my final piece.

the idea that i like the most is idea 7, the hair bondage. the two best i have chosen for this one. i was thinking of ways to alter the idea and break up the image and overheard someone speaking about psychology, the rorschach patterns instantly came to mind so i though i would experiment with this. i drew inside the rorschach pattern and it paid off quite well.

idea number 6 was the tattoo, vines and geisha. i did an oil painting on board using no mediums and just oil paint just to speed up the process due to time constraints. it was meant to show a sign of ambiguity between the the vines and the nature of the tattoos relating to the geisha but i couldn't quite capture that.

idea 9 was to use just rope to represent the female body form using abstract. i had to find the cheapest rope to experiment with and found clothes line rope for 60p, not sure how much that is american dollers/cents but it is dirt cheap. the colours available were not great so i chose one which resembled skin tone.i made a skeletal structure then wrapped wire so i can model the structure of the body, then continued to build on the sculpture with more rope.

[vmrs]

Bravo! all the way around!
I especially like the rope one, it reminds me of a voodoo doll.

[philbe123]

thanks vmrs. my tutor is pleased with soem of the outcome. my personal favourite is the blotted paper with line drawing within. my tutor prefers that i do the rope idea but use yarn and wax instead, so i've decided my final piece will consist of 5 2d pieces and 1 sculpture.

[philbe123]

so my final project has been completed and all lived to it's expectations. results came through and i got a distinction grade.

[philbe123]

...

[honeyjasmin]

nice project buddy!