Surface Research
During my foundation year at VCUarts, in my Surface Research class, I experimented with two-dimensional media, including color and line.
"БГ (BG)"
November 2024
Zine; watercolor and printer ink on cardstock
8 pages; 7x9.75"
Our assignment was to create a zine utilizing any mediums but while including a past sculpture and on the subject of memories. A zine is a self-published booklet that is not proliferated on a large scale. In this project, I play with the medium of the zine as a cyclical artwork. This informed my choices to compose the images in both directions to create a new reading order, as well as to spiral bind it. Cyclicality ties in to the theme of my zine. Family and history is a determiner of the present and means to understand injustice. My identity as Bulgarian American informed the subject matter and color palette. White, red, and blue are a part of the national costume of Bulgaria and typical American patriotism. The process of creation involved digital collage, including: a publication on Bulgarian folklore by Assen Nicoloff, my prose, artwork, photographs of Bulgaria, and family portraits. My study of typography continued to be relevant when it came to my collage and writing. Typography and writing provided structure that would be expanded upon and come into conflict with my visual artwork. When printed, I used watercolor to add texture and emphasis because of the physicality attached to this medium. Additionally, this object is unique, as only one edition exists. Note that this zine incorporates my painting "Inside". The psyche and trauma of one's ancestors and culture remaining relevant to oneself was a concept I represented using this motif lifted from a self-portrait of my skull.
"Inside"
September 2024
Ink on paper
22x30”
Contrast and perspective were techniques I utilized to abstract the human form further. This painting is based off of a wire sculpture I created off my likeness. Specifically, this is a top-down view of the “skull” of the sculpture created from wire, masking tape, and painted over in black. Photographs of the aforementioned sculpture can be seen below. My desire to remove recognizable human features from this artwork stemmed from my exploration of the psyche as an eye into ourselves.
"Rules"
October 2024
Acrylic on panel
30x22"
The creation of this painting involved a lot of plotting, as can be seen in my sketches. The fibonacci sequence and fractions were applied to the increments of the circular blue gradient in the center of the piece. Likewise, the red-green strips of paint are based upon the golden ratio and how the golden spiral would intersect with the aforementioned sections. Though color is very emotive, I integrate a rational focus based on math, as well as a visual allusion to space exploration.
"Seen (But Not)"
October 2024
Gouache and acrylic on paper
22x30"
On the basis of the title word (“Seen”) I use typography as a communication tool that still signifies meaning even when not shown completely. My abstract portrayal of architecture on the outside of the composition and creation of infinite, irrational, yet recognizable isometric perspective are choices I pursued to unsettle the viewer when they aren’t given the full picture.
"The Plummet"
September 2024
Ink on paper
22x30"
My objective when investigating line was to portray precision and gravity. These two are portrayed through the contrast and placement of light and shadow. The concentration of lines within smaller areas as well as the use of patterns, both of which I explored in my sketchbook, aided in the creation of my dynamic composition.
"Planet Halo (Star Trek: Gemini System)"
December 2024
Zine; Watercolor, alcohol markers, and printer ink on cardstock
24 pages; 6.5x9"
This comic zine was created for my final project. The story utilizes the world of Star Trek but is my own creation. Within one week I had completed my outline, script, and thumbnails. It took another week to draw my comic onto the full-size paper, and in the days following that I inked my comic, scanned it, and added text via photoshop. From there, I printed it out, painted select areas using watercolor and alcohol markers and bound the zine. My multimedia process and intense planning produced a high standard of work that developed my ideas completely, especially considering the time frame. Relevant artistic choices include an atmospheric and emotional use of color, impressionist brushstrokes, and a visual connection to DIY media culture. Below are some assorted pages from this comic that I feel best represent this work.