Practice Makes

ANELLA SCHABLER

I’m a queer, biracial artist currently completing my undergraduate studies of visual studies and art history at the University of Toronto, with intention of pursuing fine arts as my career and lifelong passion (I assume in education, but wherever the wind takes me). I enjoy exploring little details and intimate moments. I value parts of everyday life–childhood, emotion, identity, and sensitivity in my work.

Through a multitude of mediums, most notably in painting, sculpture, and textiles, I immerse myself in reflection through documentation accompanied by the experience of living. I believe that cherishing memory–both good and bad–creates compassion for the future and ourselves, especially rooted in cultural pride and self expression. This consequently adds a certain ‘ugliness’ to my work which I enjoy–an aspect bold or grotesque that contrasts the beauty I use as a front for my work. I love having some truth peek out behind the aesthetics. I love pushing myself through material, subject, and form to create pieces that allow the viewer to sit, stay, and converse with themselves.

Read the article in PDF form here. 


Figure 1. Reference Painting, 2023. Anella Schabler.
Figure 2. Materials, 2023. Anella Schabler.

I have found that there is a void in material-based education and the educational system in general; there is a sentiment of endless motion, propelling us from one project to the next, often leaving little to no time for creative exploration, discovery, and self-reflection.

Therefore, by amassing a variety of online research, extracting relevant experience with similar media and historical contexts, my aim for this edition was to present my research, active material implementation, and self-reflective analysis upon the process and compatibility for my needs as an artist. I think this applies to any medium, profession, and subject area, in that there is always a part of our respective practices that seems inaccessible due to lack of knowledge and time we can allocate to new skills amidst a rigorous and repetitive practice we had previously established for ourselves.

Over the course of this research, I found myself questioning the aspects of my practice that I had assumed to be solidified and unchanging. The subject matter I interact with in my work, use of adjacent materials, and even visual aesthetics were challenged as I approached oil painting as not a disruption, but as an extension of my practice.

“The subject matter I interact with in my work, use of adjacent materials, and even visual aesthetics were challenged as I approached oil painting as not a disruption, but as an extension of my practice.”

I also found myself delving into questions of ‘originality’ (or style, some may call it) within visual aesthetics, especially within a medium so charged with Western/European influence and various associations with art movements. Considering historical contexts to evaluate the prestige of oil painting as a medium and resting in the knowledge that historically, nothing is original, allowed me to not only utilize oil painting in an informed manner, but also synthesize my own personal techniques that let the medium support instead of restrict me.

I admit that this research, although based in a visual art medium, is noticeably wordy and annoyingly cerebral. This, I find, is something we artists sometimes lack during our creative process. We assume that the creative block originates from the content or execution behind our art, but in reality, we fear going deeper; to consider the joy in our practice and its benefits for us, which bars us from accessing a true understanding of our art.



Figure 3. Evidence of Thinking, 2023. Anella Schabler.


THE FOUNDATION

As I do with anything daunting, I started off with a checklist. In other words, set some goals—about what I needed to research in order to invest in this medium, its uses and associated techniques, and its historical contexts that I was interacting with by using it. I was mainly scouting for ways in which it differed from acrylic paint, a medium I am much more familiar with. Although, there are many similarities between them which made learning this medium relatively easier. I knew that I only required basic colours, however required more exploration on accompanying materials like oils and drying mediums. This is where I realized how little we (but mostly I) as artists consider our wellbeing over our craft, be it energy, time, physical labour, and mental involvement. How often do we consider the strain our practice places on us?

“Considering our own personal care...should become an integral part of our creative routines.”

I came to the conclusion that due to my lack of separated rooms or large windows in my apartment, and the tendency to somehow get paint on my hands that I would more likely be able to ensure my own health by using water-soluble oil paints, which don’t require toxic material to break them down and clean them. Considering our own personal care – eye strain from staring at Rhino for 5 hours straight, stretching our hands between model building, taking breaks between painting sessions, eating and drinking, and knowing when to stop for the night should become an integral part of our creative routines.


THE PREPARATION

Onto more technical research, I began comparing various ‘traditional’ techniques most often associated with oil painting. I considered what my previous knowledge in acrylic could help with in regard to this material, and what I would need to struggle with. I found that even when I couldn’t place it originally, I already had developed these techniques in my own practice, and didn’t need to be as intimidated as I originally assumed.

It’s funny how most of my ‘notes and research’ ended up being personal anecdotes and reflections rather than factual statements. I knew that some techniques off the bat I would despise and didn’t force myself to pursue something that wouldn’t serve my artistic needs. It was very refreshing to approach learning and art as an open, free-form discovery rather than rigid instructions in preparation for a specific finished product.




Figure 4. Practice Paintings, 2023. Anella Schabler.


THE PRACTICE

Going off my technical research, I selected a range of techniques that would either complement my current painting style or guide me through an unfamiliar technique. Following a classic colour wheel, I copied a section from a previous painting I had made, which highlights my usual painting style. I often add a multitude of layers until I’m satisfied with the fine details, which ends up creating visual texture and interest. What I feared most was losing my ‘style’ on the basis that my ‘style’ was a product of my medium. Acrylic paint dries fast, so you either blend like the wind or are forced to layer. Oil paints, however, allow you to take your time mixing, blending, and contemplating the state of your piece. I was, in fact, correct. Attempting multiple techniques for a single-layer application destroyed my preconceived routine and forced me to approach this medium with its own perspective and treatment. I learned quickly that my developed tendency to work quickly does not translate gracefully to a medium requiring patience and a somewhat irreversible process. In order for me to paint over any mistake or fix it, I’d have to wait at least a day before being able to do so. To combat this, I bought a fast-drying medium that mimics acrylic paints’ drying tendencies, which helped me transition into oil painting more (It is more than ok to find accommodations and tools to help you with your practice! You are not required to struggle).

I will admit, the practice pieces were not my best work. Does this look like a high-school “painting style” project? Yes. Should I have done more fundamental practice? Sure. Is this just how I learn? Also yes. I allowed myself to understand that 1) this was my first time EVER using this medium and 2) diving straight into this medium is most engaging, educational, and fulfilling to me. I would rather do a million horrible paintings than a million easy exercises. Obviously, I will at some point try a master study of some old painting and break down the techniques I struggled on into smaller pieces, but implementing learning into my process allows me to improve and learn in real time.

“Stepping outside of a curriculum and exploring self-initiated study is strengthening my connection to my own learning and practice.”

This sometimes results in multiple attempts and revisions, but knowing the work I put behind the final product is what really illustrates success for me. This was only somewhat of a non-‘traditional’ education structure in terms of steps, but also pacing. Being able to dedicate hours of my day on my own time, based on my own energy was a nice change of pace. The biggest reason I refused to try oil paints for the longest time despite my interest in them was because I was too afraid I couldn’t learn it in two weeks in time for a project deadline. And truthfully, I couldn’t. Stepping outside of a curriculum and exploring self-initiated study is strengthening my connection to my own learning and practice. Upon examination, I now have multiple techniques available to me that I can freely incorporate into my current practice that both diversifies and strengthens it.


THE BIRD’S EYE VIEW

The reason I so often place ‘style’ and ‘traditional’ in quotations is that I am aware of the narrative and historical weight oil paints hold within the world of art and fine art. Why am I so obsessed with defining my ‘style’? How must I separate myself from other artists and why is it our tendency to do so? Where did this competitiveness stem from? Why is studying the masters our best way of improving? Who decided on the distribution of that title and why are we required to hold ourselves to the precedents they have set? Any amount of art history knowledge and critical thinking informs us that these narratives of superiority, culture, race, and cultural osmosis are as solidified as they are chronologically old. As a case study, hearing how Impressionism is taught within a general art history course (most often through a Western/European lens) versus the perspective within my East-Asian art history course differs so greatly. This allows us to understand that art in all its forms, styles and eras are not as definitive as we think them to be, and that global perspective should be considered regarding art.

The obsession with ‘style’ or ‘traditional’ technique goes beyond any objective basis of fine art criteria, but is instead an element of othering, a refusal to blend or acknowledge inspiration, and a deep desire to define oneself in comfortable terms and expectations. We as artists must recognize the roots and uses of our craft and materials. For example, what is urban planning for? Who, why, and how? Why do we see portrait and still life paintings as such important categories? How do we treat other forms of creative arts like writing and performance? We should also question why we have worked in a certain way for so long. We should wonder if there are any improvements to be made that we can actively implement for our own practice. In multiple contexts, artistically and historically, we as artists are responsible for engaging with our material and its history as closely as we examine the objective quality of our work. Attempting to define ourselves—bind ourselves to an identity, a medium, a goal—is sometimes more restrictive than productive. We must strive for critical engagement with our media to better serve its purpose. Most importantly, we should question if these procedures serve us, and adjust accordingly when possible. We deserve to be recognized as more than a social marker, the origin of a product, or a product of our environments; professional, institutional, and otherwise. We deserve to take care of ourselves and our passions within our practice.

With this project, I wished to connect with myself more within my creative practice and add a missing element within my learning that requires a more personal, reflective approach to artmaking. I found it most rewarding to take a deep dive into multiple aspects of my practice. I think that this is a foundational basis in which we can develop a stronger sense of artistic self and I am excited to continue my practice and further develop my skills in a more thoughtful, meaningful way. I wish that for everyone as well, as we all develop our own inspirations and learn about ourselves.