This is an exercise choosing an editorial from a newspaper/magazine, reading it through and highlighting key words which convey the meaning of the piece.
The National Trust magazine is full of photos, pictures and information of the great outdoors.
Usually a few pages are given to the work of the National Trust volunteers. I like this recent write-up from the NT Spring 2020 quarterly magazine about a Volunteer Ranger at Lizard Point, Cornwall:-
“If you want to spot a seal, go and speak with the lady in the red T-shirt. “. That’s me, the Volunteer Wildlife Ranger waiting with a telescope at Lizard Point in Cornwall. I encourage everyone to come and peer through the lens. It’s a joy to watch an oyster catcher forage for cockles and you might be lucky and spot an Atlantic grey seal, chough or bottlenose dolphin.
(and the extract continues….) Being a Volunteer Wildlife Ranger is all about meeting people and I love that side of it. You can’t beat the feeling when you help someone spot a distant seal or soaring bird and get a joyful reaction. I remember a lovely little boy of about six who was desperate to see a seal. The sea was a bit rough that day – not ideal for seal-spotting, but when he saw one, his reaction was just phenomenal. That joy is absolutely infectious. It’s a real privilege to share wildlife experiences with people.
Most people visit the most southerly point to gaze out and have an ice-cream. I might ask, “Have you seen the gannets diving in the bay?. They dive into the sea at about 62 mph. “You see a spark of excitement and they’ll hurry to share the new knowledge with their friends. I always hope they’ll take that feeling away with them. The more we can spread that spark, the more we’ll be able to protect this precious outdoor-space”.
Following the instructions in the exercise to jot down the words that summarise the meaning of the entire text, I am selecting the following:-
Volunteer Wildlife Ranger, Red T-shirt, Seals, Birds, Oyster catcher, Cockles, People, Ice-Cream, Joy, Sea.
I hope to capture a sense of a National Trust Volunteer sharing in the joy of the Cornwall wildlife and to put this in one sentence I would phrase it as ” The role of the National Trust Volunteer Ranger sharing the enjoyment of protecting the outdoor space”.
In my first sketch I find it helpful to refer to the image provided by the OCA of the cricketer holding a pen. I decide to build my sketch in the same way centering on the Red T-shirt of the volunteer “wearing” the symbols of the wildlife and environment. So I select these words from my list: Red T-shirt, Seal, Oyster catcher and ice cream. The ice-cream being associated with enjoyment and visitors on holiday.
So this is my initial sketch
At first I decide this is going to be the complete image where I have included the symbols of the words I selected. However on research I find the oyster catcher has three pronged webs, so it is necessary to repeat the sketch . I also feel that the oyster catcher may look comical however does not look joyful with it’s head down. I re-draw the T-shirt and add some movement into the image while keeping only the webs of the oyster catcher and referring back to the initial word list.
The Oyster Catchers “forage for cockles” so now I include a shell and this balances with the tail of the seal. I also consider that the T-shirt does not need to be overly feminine as all volunteers may wear a uniform T-shirt.
All the selected words have been symbolised: Red T-shirt, Seal, Oyster catcher, cockles, ice-cream and there is an expression in a leap of joy by placing the image above the sea in the draft below:-
I then redraw it . However if I had drawn the seal tail facing the other way the overall figure would be shaped like the letter J for joy. I could add an OY at the right hand side of the image.
So the design below is not to be the final piece as I later experiment with flipping the seal tail so it faces in the other direction.
Summary: I acknowledge that the above image is insufficiently classical for an authority like the National Trust. And perhaps it is best not to place a NT emblem on this example. It is simply a general response to the editorial. This exercise; Getting the Gist is providing thought about how the ordinary can be transformed into the extra-ordinary without loss of understanding eg the Oyster catcher’s webs become arms, the cornet changes into a new hair style ! However a human figure is identified. The exercise also begins to demonstrate the importance of symbolism and research.
Research into symbolism through Wikipedia describes a mermaid in folklore as an aquatic creature with the head and upper body of a female human and the tail of a fish. (sometimes mermaids can be benevolent eg teaching humans cures for diseases). Certainly the National Trust Volunteers help to protect and “heal” environments and provide a safe experience for recreation and relaxation for the general public and visitors, where they can de-stress.
Mermaids “evolved” from the sirens (half-bird & half woman) of Greek mythology. I would like to think I read this before creating the image with the bird arms however I only discover this now and it is a coincidence that I chose the oyster catcher from the text. Similarly I now read that naturalistic theories on the origins of the mermaid suggest they derive from the sightings of seals !
On further investigation on Wikipedia, cockles are edible marine bivalve molluscs. They are bilaterally symmetrical heart shaped and superficially resemble a scallop. The scientific name for the type of genus of the family is Cardium (from the Latin for heart). I look back at my image and wonder if the observer would recognise the drawing of a mollusc/scallop of the right hand. I can imagine someone asking “what is that?”
I like the idea of a heart shape as this is a volunteer doing something they enjoy sharing with others.
I am aware that a scallop is associated with pilgrims and this fits in with the “pilgrimage” of the visitors to this place in Cornwall.
So I am learning that I need to do more research before and during the image making process. This exercise is helpful in being introduced to the course.
Two days later I revisit my drawing and ask myself if the viewer would really understand the image. Re-reading the “The key is communication ” in the OCA course studies reminds that illustration is visual communication. So does the image communicate the message of a Volunteer Wildlife Ranger? Perhaps it is best to add selected text. This is added as waves on the sea.
The flipping of the tail to the left forms the letter J to which letters OY are added and the ice-cream is left uncoloured so it does not distract from the T-shirt. Turning the tail left has brought the red T-shirt forward to the viewer, giving it more emphasis. I also hope the image gives the volunteer an aspect of dignity as well as enjoyment.
Perhaps the writing could be further elaborated with embellishments for additional waves however this is at an early stage of the course and it feels necessary to ensure the words are comprehensible. I am not sure whether I have achieved the correct light/shade of the tail to match the shading on the T-shirt. But when the tail flips back it will get the light from above so I shall leave it as it is.
This is my final piece.
Today 27.2.2020 I read on the BBC webpage an article published by the National Trust which seems to link in with my recent studies so it is included here. It is encouraging the public to engage with nature.
Adelaide Art 