For my rules, I wanted to keep it simple to make it easy to follow but still restricting. These rules could be applied to a digital or many different physical mediums but for this assignment and timing (not having to wait long for things to dry) I went with paper and markers for the medium. The rules are as follows:
- Use a square canvas
- Draw lines without lifting the pen/brush/marker from the canvas
- Lines must be drawn starting and ending at one of the 4 corners of the canvas
- Must work with a color pallete that is set before you begin
- It can be no more than 7 colors but must be more than 3
- You cannot draw lines with the same color twice in a row
- You have the duration of the song of your choosing to draw
- The song must be under 10 minutes
- You must be listening to the song as you draw
The first piece I created was done before adding the last rule. Not having any stopping condition left it too open.
The next pieces I did all had a song constraining the time and influencing the process. The canvas and marker size also have some variation between pieces.
Having someone else follow these rules was interesting to watch as their goal seemed to be to color in the entire canvas and they worked very intensely.
I like how the ruleset is medium-agnostic. I noticed that in all of your examples, all 4 corners are utilized as a start or endpoint. I found that interesting because that was not a rule, and based on the rules it would also be allowed to start and end at the same corner.
Did you find yourself enforcing any additional rules on yourself based on the music, or as the music progressed? It would be interesting to hear if the style of line or the moment-to-moment selection of color shifted with the music.
I appreciate the way you go out of your way to fill most of the page and make many different lines and patterns with these rules. It looks like it took a lot of time and effort!
Did the song choice effect how you moved the lines?
I’ve noticed that it tends to fill the entire canvas in the end, because there’s nowhere to draw. Do you think a song is a little long?
Have you thought about limiting the time of drawing each line?
I love how this piece seems to have so much relationship to tension, just the way the lines take on so much of this emotional feel. The way the colors produce direction for my eyes is really helpful for viewing. Did you have a preference on what type of song worked best for you while drawing?
I love the freedom in what can be created. You could potentially replicate another art piece but follow the idea that the stroke has to start and end in a corner. you gave the open time frame and allowed for overlap…could be pretty sweet
10/10 will try
Like Josiah said, I was struck by how all the examples appeared to be cousins or siblings because of the organization that your corner rule imposed. I appreciated the freedom that this artwork provided. I wonder, did you feel the music influenced the artwork? If you listened to calm music, would the artwork appear less chaotic? I love color and find the results oddly pleasing.