Choice Project
Illustration
Ascension of Venus48cm x 60cm
Watercolor on Watercolor paper February 2020 Exhibition TextAscension of Venus is a watercolor illustration of my own version of the Birth of Venus, by Botticelli. I used his piece, as well as the surreal and dream-like style of Japanese artist Aya Takano, to recreate the classic scene in a new way. I admire the styles of both artists respectively, and when brainstorming for this project, I knew that I wanted to combine the work of Takano with a more classical artist. I want Ascension to serve not as a sequel of the piece by Botticelli, but as a recreation of the painting in a way that would further push the myth of Venus and accentuate the dramatic structure of all of Greek mythology.
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Planning
Inspiration
My first inspiration for this piece was the Botticelli painting, The Birth of Venus. The painting was made for the Medici family, and was seen as a form of evolution for painting at the time, because of the medium that Botticelli used to complete the painting (tempera on canvas). The nudity in the portrait was also seen as a bit outlandish because it was very abnormal to see a nude female figure in art during the 16th century, and the figure on the right seems as though she is attempting to cover Venus to maintain her modesty. I was really drawn to this piece when researching for this choice project because I really enjoy the color palette of the piece, as well as the detail in the figures (such as the billowing hair of Venus).
My second inspiration for this piece was Aya Takano's SuperFlat art style. Aya Takano's work mainly consists of girls/women in dreamscapes/cityscapes with the purpose being an escape from reality and a dive into ideal, alternative worlds. She is heavily inspired by science fiction, which her father influenced, and has made work in a multitude of mediums. The image on the right, Venerable Fox, The God of Abundance, was the piece I chose to draw specific inspiration from, because I really enjoyed the fluidity of the woman in the center of the piece, as well as the blending of color and (stylistically) simple, yet complex composition of the background. I wanted my piece to have a more dreamlike look to it, rather than Botticelli's hard lines and classical style. |
Planning SketchesThe first few sketches I wanted to focus specifically on the styles that Botticelli and Aya Takano have, and experience what it is like to draw something IN that style. The first style that I focused on was Botticelli's piece, and I focused mainly on Venus and her flowing hair/relaxed pose. I also drew some of the other figures seen in the piece because at this point I was unsure whether or not to include them in my final painting.
The more difficult style to practice was that of Aya Takano, and this (at least for me) was because I essentially had to throw away the concept of proportion and the way that body parts actually move/ what they look like. The face configuration was another thing that I struggled with because while I enjoyed how Takano simplified the face and focused a lot on the eyes, I wanted to stull include features like noses and eyebrows because I wanted there to be more facial expression in my piece. I then realized that I wanted my piece to focus only on Venus and the story of how she came to be. My title, Ascension, implies rising to a higher level, so I wanted the piece to maintain a similar level of design to the Botticelli piece: flowing hair, a relaxed pose, and a small smirk/ all knowing expression. It was really fun to practice different versions of Venus, all with different levels of detail and intricacy. This sketch is the closest to that of my final piece, and you can see the different notes that I wrote for myself in order to make sure I got the overall tone right when I began to paint my final piece. Like Aya Takano, I wanted to put a lot of floral/natural elements into my piece. This would also add to the ambiance of the scene, where Venus stands on a sea shell over the water. |
Process
Experimentation
Style was the main thing that I experimented with a lot for this project, because I got to decide what I researched and what kind of piece I would create. The style of Botticelli and of Aya Takano are very different and so I had fun practicing these different techniques and combining them in a way that I found most pleasing visually. Something that I thought would be important to incorporate was the fluidity of Takano's figures in her work, and focus on that fluidity specifically with Venus. You can see this in the purely organic form of her body and the simplified facial features.
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Process
The first step was to transfer my sketch from a small sheet of paper to the larger sheet of watercolor paper. I did this in pencil, making sure that I wasn't pressing too hard because this would make it more difficult to erase/make lighter when I began to paint. This step I always believe is one of the most important, because it sets up the guidelines for the rest of the piece and helps you decide what you want, and where.
After finishing the sketch, I decided to work from the bottom up. The bottom portion of the piece (the water and flowers) is a completely different color scheme than that of the top of the piece (the sky). I also had decided to paint the vines sprouting from both sides of the piece as well, which is something I regret because it made painting the sky much more difficult. After this step, I began to paint the body of Venus in the center of the piece. I wanted to make sure I was making my piece similar to that of Aya Takano, so I included the dramatic blushing of the face and rouge colors elsewhere (knuckles, knees). This skin color was a combination of I really enjoyed painting the body and face, because it was another source of experimentation for me. One of the main parts that I am really proud of in this piece is the hair and the level of detail I was able to give it with my brush. The final step in this process was to paint the background of the piece. I thought a while about what I wanted to have in the background, and I decided to make it a simple sunset colored sky with some rosy clouds, because I wanted the level of detail in the flowers and in the figure to stand out the most in this piece. It was very difficult to mix a large enough amount of paint for the entire background before the paint would dry on the page, and I used a water soaked brush to stretch it as much as possible, without losing any pigment. I also had to go back in a separate time to fill in the white spaces in between the vine leaves, and then go over those leaves with another layer of paint to make sure the orange hues were not mixing with the green ones. |
Compare and Contrast
Compare:
- Both pieces depict the goddess Venus (also known as Aphrodite) atop a seashell, referencing the myth of her birth from sea foam and how she rode the shell to an island called Cyprus.
- Venus herself commands the most attention in the piece, being in the center and creating radial movement of the eye (all around the center before moving to either side of the piece). This is intentional in both pieces, because the goddess of beauty and love would of course draw the attention of anything and anyone around them (for Botticelli's piece, you can see this in the way the other figures in the painting are facing Venus and seem as though to be moving closer to her, and you can see it in my piece in the way the flowers are positioned; some are floating off from their stems and surrounding Venus on her shell).
Contrast:
- My piece relies less on actual anatomy and proportion and instead focuses on the ethereal myth that is Venus' birth, which contrasts the more realistic looking depiction of the event by Botticelli (all of the figures in Botticelli's piece are more proportional and look almost as if they are real people).
- The colors used in my piece are generally lighter than that of the piece by Botticelli, and I decided to do this in my piece because it would further push the idea that Venus' birth is something out of a dream or from another world (she was born from sea foam in a world of gods and goddesses, and I wanted to play with the idea of what an otherworldly being would look like).
- The medium used in the respective pieces is different: my piece is watercolor paint on a sheet of water color paper, and Botticelli's piece was tempera on a canvas. (the medium of the piece is also more significant in the case of Botticelli, because the way in which he applied tempera to the canvas was not a common thing in his time, where people usually stuck to painting on wooden panels).
- Both pieces depict the goddess Venus (also known as Aphrodite) atop a seashell, referencing the myth of her birth from sea foam and how she rode the shell to an island called Cyprus.
- Venus herself commands the most attention in the piece, being in the center and creating radial movement of the eye (all around the center before moving to either side of the piece). This is intentional in both pieces, because the goddess of beauty and love would of course draw the attention of anything and anyone around them (for Botticelli's piece, you can see this in the way the other figures in the painting are facing Venus and seem as though to be moving closer to her, and you can see it in my piece in the way the flowers are positioned; some are floating off from their stems and surrounding Venus on her shell).
Contrast:
- My piece relies less on actual anatomy and proportion and instead focuses on the ethereal myth that is Venus' birth, which contrasts the more realistic looking depiction of the event by Botticelli (all of the figures in Botticelli's piece are more proportional and look almost as if they are real people).
- The colors used in my piece are generally lighter than that of the piece by Botticelli, and I decided to do this in my piece because it would further push the idea that Venus' birth is something out of a dream or from another world (she was born from sea foam in a world of gods and goddesses, and I wanted to play with the idea of what an otherworldly being would look like).
- The medium used in the respective pieces is different: my piece is watercolor paint on a sheet of water color paper, and Botticelli's piece was tempera on a canvas. (the medium of the piece is also more significant in the case of Botticelli, because the way in which he applied tempera to the canvas was not a common thing in his time, where people usually stuck to painting on wooden panels).
Reflection
I really enjoyed this project. It was the first one where we got to decide what we were doing, and I knew immediately that I wanted to do something where I could make an illustration. I did, however, want the piece to be full of color and have a level of sophistication to it, and this led me to watercolor. Watercolor is a medium I have used for many years and being able to use it for a school project for the first time was really exciting for me, because I got to further my technique with things I have learned from other painting projects. Watercolor was a good choice for this project because I was able to give my piece a smooth/sophisticated look while still having the feel of a traditional illustration. I used two watercolor sets for this project, as well as two brushes (all of which were my own): Pelikan and Koi watercolors. The first brand of paint I used, the German company Pelikan, has very opaque and bright colors even after adding water to it. The other brand, koi watercolor, is very high quality and blends really well on paper. The only difficulty that really arose during the process of making this piece was when the paper would absorb too much of the water and become really easy to tear, and this forced me to take breaks from time to time as not to pull apart the fibers of the paper. If I were to do this project again, I would probably start with a light wash of color in the background before painting things with a lot of small spaces (vines), but I was putting it off a bit because I didn't know how I would be able to make an even color across the whole page.
ACT Responses
1. Clearly explain how you are able to identify the cause-effect relationships between your inspiration and its effect upon you art work:
I wanted to implement the free flowing style of Aya Takano into a more traditional piece like Birth Of Venus by Botticelli.
2. What is the overall approach the author has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
Aya Takano was largely inspired by science fiction and created otherworldly ideas in her head, and this caused her technique to be loose and her color palettes lighter, to further push the boundaries of reality and make her work seem like a dream. For Botticelli, his purpose of painting Venus was to create an idealized image of Venus/Aphrodite for the Medici family, so the whole scene depicts different gods/goddesses (including Venus) in a perfect way: they have no flaws, they draw attention to themselves, and the figures in the piece all have a purpose.
3. What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, cultures, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
The culture of the time period where Botticelli lived was very different than that of Aya Takano, and it is clear in the way that he paints the female figure (free of any imperfections and agreeable for the standard of women during that time) was intentional; the myth of Venus/Aphrodite explains that she is a goddess of perfection and beauty.
4. What was the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?
The theme of my piece to be focus on the fairytale/myth that is the birth of Venus. Aya Takano does a great job at making even mundane scenes into a complex visual metaphor, and I wanted to do the same thing with my piece.
5. What references did you make while reading your research?
I could infer from my research that Botticelli’s design of Venus was based upon his fantasy of what she would look like, a perfect being, and this encouraged me to further push the boundaries of that fantasy.
I wanted to implement the free flowing style of Aya Takano into a more traditional piece like Birth Of Venus by Botticelli.
2. What is the overall approach the author has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
Aya Takano was largely inspired by science fiction and created otherworldly ideas in her head, and this caused her technique to be loose and her color palettes lighter, to further push the boundaries of reality and make her work seem like a dream. For Botticelli, his purpose of painting Venus was to create an idealized image of Venus/Aphrodite for the Medici family, so the whole scene depicts different gods/goddesses (including Venus) in a perfect way: they have no flaws, they draw attention to themselves, and the figures in the piece all have a purpose.
3. What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, cultures, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
The culture of the time period where Botticelli lived was very different than that of Aya Takano, and it is clear in the way that he paints the female figure (free of any imperfections and agreeable for the standard of women during that time) was intentional; the myth of Venus/Aphrodite explains that she is a goddess of perfection and beauty.
4. What was the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?
The theme of my piece to be focus on the fairytale/myth that is the birth of Venus. Aya Takano does a great job at making even mundane scenes into a complex visual metaphor, and I wanted to do the same thing with my piece.
5. What references did you make while reading your research?
I could infer from my research that Botticelli’s design of Venus was based upon his fantasy of what she would look like, a perfect being, and this encouraged me to further push the boundaries of that fantasy.
Bibliography
- “Aya Takano- Artist.” Perrotin, Perrotin, www.perrotin.com/artists/Aya_Takano/15.
- “Botticelli The Birth of Venus - What Is the Meaning of This Painting?” Love From Tuscany, lovefromtuscany.com/art/botticelli-the-birth-of-venus/.
- “Botticelli's Birth of Venus.” ItalianRenaissance.org, ItalianRenaissance.org, 20 Aug. 2012, www.italianrenaissance.org/botticelli-birth-of-venus/.
- “Botticelli The Birth of Venus - What Is the Meaning of This Painting?” Love From Tuscany, lovefromtuscany.com/art/botticelli-the-birth-of-venus/.
- “Botticelli's Birth of Venus.” ItalianRenaissance.org, ItalianRenaissance.org, 20 Aug. 2012, www.italianrenaissance.org/botticelli-birth-of-venus/.