Artist Research

Edgar J. Brown
    My first artist that I found for my research project was Edgar J. Brown.  I searched for artists for created sports images and came across Brown.  I am a big sports fan and wanted to explore different ways that sports are portrayed through art.  I came across Edgar J. Brown's paintings and I think he does a good job showing emphasis through painting.  One specific painting of Muhammad Ali shows a great illustration of what I was saying, the main emphasis is on the bright red in Ali's gloves punching forward.  The brightness of the red in the gloves shows what Ali was all about.  Another great painting of Brown's is of UFC star Randy Couture.  The color in the painting is dull, aside from the blood Couture draws from one of his punches.  I think that the main focus of Brown's paintings are the emphasis he uses with color to draw the viewer into a certain part of the piece. I think that the way that Brown incorporates emphasis with color would be a fun art project to work on for myself.  The color that he chooses to bring out the brightest is important with drawing the viewers eyes towards to main focus.

Andy Warhol
   The next artists that I chose to research was Andy Warhol.  Andy Warhol changed art with his unique drawings and use of color.  Some of his famous artworks include "The Soup Can," and paintings that incorporated such celebrities as Marilyn Monroe and Elvis Presley.  Warhol attended Carnegie Melon and studied fine arts.  Warhol attributes his love for art at a young age to the fact that he came down with chorea as a result of scarlet fever.  Warhol was bed ridden and found himself exploring drawing and collecting pictures of celebrities.  While at Carnegie Melon, a friend of Warhol's inspired him to further explore his art technique of "pop art."  Such examples of his "pop art" are his paintings of Marilyn Monroe and pink and black knives.  Warhol's paintings have been modernized and you can now find clothes and different forms that have the famous Campbell's soup cans utilizing unique colors.  I am not sure how I could incorporate Warhol's ideas into my own art, mainly just copying his idea with Marilyn Monroe and the different colors.

Pablo Picasso
   Another artist I looked into was Picasso.  Picasso is one of the most famous artists that someone would think about, along with Van Gogh and Michelangelo.  Picasso was born in 1881 in Spain, where his father was a professor of art, so unlike other artists, Picasso had art "in his blood."  Picasso took many trips to Paris during his younger years and studied the impressionists.  Picasso, at about 30 years old, relocated to Paris, where he remained all of his life.  It is said that Picasso's art can be broken into time frames.  Early in his career, he embarked on the "Blue Period," where the colors and forms that he painted were melancholy and flat of form.  Next, Picasso had the "Rose Period," which was similar to the previous period, only a little more romantic in color.  Picasso also further explored an idea of "Cubism," and then collage art work.  He even found himself drawing themes about women and children, and sculpting.  It is said that Picasso's affect on modern art is "immeasurable."