Unit 12 Live Brief. Mother & Child. Itaglio Artist Profile. Jean Sariano

  Born May 30th, 1943 in Oran, Algeria, Sariano is an Algerian/American artist, he was  heavily involved in the Pop Art Movement-as evidenced in his prints and paintings. My reason for finding his work so enjoyable is because of how surrealist/abstract it is is-not only is it  another format of the Pop Art movement-it also happens to be a quirky and uniquely amusing one. His work remind me of an illustrator of a children's book. Light hearted and minimalist, Sariano's work is delightful cheerful.

A bonus below for locating an Intaglio Print that is also connected to the project!
The piece below is an Aquatint Etching, which was signed and titled in pencil, and completed in 1979. The subject matter of the work is motherhood-specifically the birth of a child. I feel that this piece was produced from imagination because of the anatomically inaccurate presentation, and the clear evidence that this is a surrealist pieces of an abstract nature.

I believe that this piece is to be taken at face value-it is an expectant mother with her off spring emerging from her womb, in a way that more resembles a chick hatching from its calcium shell casement.

The piece has been arranged in a simple and balanced manner, and the artist has chosen a single and flat colour scheme; red, blew, pink and grey for the background. The red hue is the most dominant in the piece. The piece is a mixture of lines; curved and straight. I believe hat the print holds together as a unified whole-as a piece with flat colours-with multiple triangle shapes also found within the piece.

As this is an Intaglio print-and I have also used Intaglio in a minimalist fashion-my handling of the technique suggest a successful application of my skills in Intaglio printing.

When observing the work one gets an impression of startled surprise. Evidenced possibly in the expression of the mother figure in the piece. The piece conveys feelings of
unexpected shocks found within life, be it a baby or marriage proposal. And my feelings about this piece-I feel-are neutral. The surprised expression will be with me every time I look at this painting, but I feel neither delight nor disgust when looking at this piece-my feelings are content and neutral.

Jean Sariano

Jean