Philippa Claire MacDuff

Recent Life Drawings

2011-12-01T12:28:00.000-08:00

I haven't posted in a while - since my last post I have been doing some life drawing at a really interesting little place in Oxford called the Jam Factory - It's a great space that offers all kinds of workshops, has a little gallery of sorts, and a bar for that post drawing G+T (sometimes it's crucial after a few hours of solid drawing!) Below are some of my latest drawings. Please excuse the terrible quality of the photographs - they were taken on the go with my iPhone.

Egon Schiele and interpretive dance

2011-09-29T12:09:00.000-07:00

I have recently seen a show advertised that is to be performed at the Oxford playhouse - I think it's a really fabulous idea and I can't wait to see it. A theatre company are doing an interpretive piece on the sketchbooks of Egon Schiele - he's my favourite artist of all time. In 2009 I travelled to Vienna to see some of his work in the Leopold Museum and various other galleries around the city and it made my spine tingle to see his drawings and paintings in person.

I am very keen to see how his sketches will be translated into dance, and tickets are very reasonably priced.

The Featherstonehaughs draw on the sketchbooks of Egon Schiele

Past Printmaking Projects and Looking to the Future

2011-09-27T10:30:00.000-07:00

Lately I have been making a valiant effort to get back into printmaking. I have been making some preliminary sketches and brainstorming in order to develop some of my previous work to create a new body of work and expand upon my portfolio, however I am still in the preliminary stages.

Above is one of a series of photo lithographs I made in 2010 focusing on the female form in print. The original photographs were taken using a projected image over the model, and four separations were made digitally and then overprinted to create this effect. I further explored this projection technique in some of my photography work, another example of which can be seen below.

I m very excited by the use of pattern in printmaking, and would be keen to explore this further in my work, perhaps using stone lithography. Please check back for further developments on this project.

Life in Oxford.

2010-10-18T07:26:00.001-07:00

I know I have been lax about updating this but I have slowed down a bit recently on the art front because I am focusing on trying to find work in Oxford. I recently purchased a new DSLR camera (a Canon EOS 7D) so I am still taking pictures but I am not working on any major projects at the moment. Here are a couple of shots from around Oxford. Hopefully when I find work and new models in the area I will be able to get a few new projects underway, I do have several idea building upon some of my themes from college.

The Naked Lunch #1

2010-05-23T12:45:00.000-07:00

(Click to enlarge)

This piece is one of a pair of large-scale digital photographs based on Manet's "Dejeuner sur l'herbe" which have been hand coloured using a traditional Photo Oil technique. It has not been digitally manipulated. This piece has now been sold but I am accepting commissions.

The Naked Lunch #2

2010-05-23T12:40:00.000-07:00

(Click to enlarge)

Yesterday's News

2010-05-23T12:26:00.000-07:00

(Click to enlarge)

Above is my finished piece, "Yesterday's News" a PVC advertising banner measuring 10x7 feet. This piece is for sale, and I am accepting commissions for similar works, on both larger and smaller scales. Please see earlier posts for further information on this piece.

I would like to express my sincere thanks to The Deep Sea Restaurant, Dundee for providing the chips.

Small Hand-Tinted, Hand-Framed, Hand-Developed Photographs

2010-05-23T12:16:00.000-07:00

(Click to enlarge)

Above are the smaller images from my exhibition. All of these photographs were taken using a Canon AE-1 and developed in the darkroom. Several of these images have been hand-tinted using traditional Photo Oil techniques and all frames are handmade. None of these images have been digitally manipulated. All are for sale and I also accept commissions.

Degree Show

2010-05-23T10:44:00.000-07:00

My degree show opened on Friday 21st May and will run until Saturday 29th May 2010. So far I have sold a few pieces and due to high demand I am now taking commissions.

Below are some photos of the work in my show. If you wish to purchase any of these pieces or to commission a piece from me, please contact me on

TEL: 07595250245

EMAIL: philippamacduff@googlemail.com

DEGREE SHOW OPENING PHOTOGRAPHS

You're a Two Faced Cow

2010-04-20T14:50:00.000-07:00

Trying to recreate the Lomo effect until I can actually afford to buy a Diana camera. Hello, last ever student loan installment!

And I still have a thing about lobsters.

Chips

2010-02-11T08:43:00.000-08:00

Alongside my Naked Lunch project, I am currently undertaking another project which has been inspired by the British tradition of Page 3 girls. I have been experimenting with newsprint and the nude female form, with the addition of chip-shop chips (which until very recently, were almost always wrapped in newspaper) in an attempt to bring to life the printed image of the female 'glamour model', and inviting the audience to question their own moral values on the female nude, and why certain images are to be deemed 'acceptable' and others are not.

This is also an ongoing project and I have received sponsorship from the Deep Sea Restaurant in Dundee Nethergate, who have been supplying me with all of my chips. If all goes to plan, this project will be the focal point of my degree show, featuring a photograph printed onto a large PVC banner.

In order to do this, I feel the need to obtain the perfect image, which I have as yet been unable to do, but as my photography skills are improving I feel that this will be possible with continued practice.

I have been gaining confidence using the medium of photography, which until a few months ago was a very new medium for me, and I have been learning more and more about lighting and composition, so I feel that the latest series of photographs for this project are much more effective than the last series, and so hopefully I am beginning to take a step in the right direction.

EDIT: I have chosen an image after undergoing three photoshoots. The image has been very lightly manipulated using Photoshop in order to enhance the tone and contrast.

The Naked Lunch

2010-02-11T08:34:00.000-08:00

One of the projects on which I am currently working is a photography project entitled 'The Naked Lunch' depicting two of my favourite models and fellow students at DJCaD. The project was inspired by the famous Manet painting, Dejeuner sur l'herbe, and shot in an abandoned factory in Dundee. The project is ongoing, as I feel that a few more shots need to be taken, though meanwhile I am experimenting with different techniques to enhance the work such as the aforementioned hand colouring. These are two of the original shots, which have been lightly edited using Adobe Photoshop to enhance contrast and picking out certain colours within the images. It is important to me that the work has a gloomy feel, while retaining an overall vibrancy of colour.

Hand Coloured Photographs

2010-02-11T08:12:00.000-08:00

In the last couple of days I have been experimenting with hand colouring black and white photographs. I am still in the early stages, but the results have been quite pleasing, I just need to get the hang of it as I have never tried it before.

Here is an example of one of my experiments, using an image from my 'Naked Lunch' series. As you can see, the results are fairly subtle and as yet, I have only been able to experiment on photographs with a glossy finish. This particular image has been created using oil tints but I will be continuing to experiment using oils and pencils.

At the end of the month I will be undertaking a course in the DCA on Black and White photography, learning how to use a darkroom to create my own prints. I have acquired a film SLR camera which I will use to take the shots that I will then develop myself, and then I will experiment with hand tinting these images to create manipulated photographs that have not been altered through digital means. I am really excited about the prospect of learning to develop my own photographs as I have never been given the opportunity to do so before and feel that it will really add further depth to my work. I love taking a hands-on approach and I feel that that sense of involvement and process can occasionally be lacking when working only with digital prints.

About me

2010-02-11T07:46:00.001-08:00

I am a fourth year Fine Art student at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design, Dundee. During my time at art college I have experimented with various techniques, such as printmaking, painting, photography, and sculpture and using life drawing as a supplement to my personal projects.

My artwork is mainly concerned with gender roles in society and challenging cultural stereotypes and ideas of acceptability regarding the female form. I wish to encourage my audience to question their own moral views on the erotic and classical female nude.

Currently, I am working towards my degree show which will be opening on 21st May 2010 in Dundee.