Assignment Learning Outcomes

Demonstrate an understanding of “positive and negative space,” “figure/ground”
relationships such as “alternation,” “figure/ground ambiguity,” and “interpenetration”.

Mini-Assignments

1. Use a lamp at home to play with creating interesting shadows.  What happens if you place the lamp close to an object vs further away.  How do we understand that the shadow is related the object? Use your sketchbook to capture any interesting shapes.

Materials

Paper, lamp, drawing materials

Time

3 hours

Vocabulary

Figure/ground relationship, interacting or integrated, alternation/ambiguity,
interpenetration, positive/negative space, abstraction, non-objective

Info

At the threshold of perception we see objects against backgrounds. The whole visual world may be thought of as a continuous series of figure / ground relationships with objects overlapping their backgrounds. The perception that objects seem to stand out against a background is defined as a “figure / ground relationship.”

Several kinds of relationships can be identified: the “vignette” in which the object “floats” away from the edges of the sheet or ground; “interacting” or “integrated” figure / ground relationship in which both the figure and the ground have equal importance; “ambiguous” or “alternating” figure / ground relationships in which it is unclear just what is the “figure” and what is the “ground” (e.g., a checkerboard, or the classic vase and profile reversal). “Interpenetration” involves a reversal of the figure / ground relationship at selected points where contour lines would otherwise be lost against a predominately dark or light background. (e.g., Graphic designers will often do a figure / ground reversal where text is run over alternating dark and light areas. Though the value of the text is shifting dramatically, the relative contrast of the figure / ground relationship remains the same.)

Process

1. Make a composition from a series of “found” silhouettes. Emphasize the use of the whole paper. Avoid “vignettes”.

2. Working with a partner and a portable lamp, trace a series of shadows from interesting parts of the body. These can be full figures or fragments – but the final composition must be no larger than 18 x 24 inches (this requires severe cropping in most cases). Encourage the use of integration and interpenetration. Try to achieve a total “nonobjective” result or, conversely, try to focus on a clear story or narrative. (avoid the gray area between these two ideas…)

Artists / References

“Mimbres Painting: An Artist’s Perspective” by Tony Berlant
Images of Mimbres Painting Pottery