Creating Neo Deco – 15-09-24

Website link: https://corneakkers.com/neo-deco-15-09-24/
Printable: https://corneakkers.com/product/printable-neo-deco-15-09-24/

Lucien Lorelle

This graphite pencil drawing ‘Neo Deco - 15–09-24’ is inspired by one of the works of Lucien Lorelle. Recently I discovered his photographs by chance and immediately I was captured by his feeling for strong composition. There was a challenging photo showing a woman in a reclining position. She has one leg raised and both arms tucked inwards. Almost surrealistic. Not every pose I crave is that strange. Neo Deco – 02-09-24 is rather classic and even normal. However, last one was a puzzling bodyscape inspired by Walter Bird. Somehow I feel attracted to abnormal body positions. It is as if I look for challenges enabling me to draw them still recognizable yet abstracted. Walking on the brink of all my artistic capabilities and anatomical knowledge. You easily face the risk of having people loose track and refute it for the wrong reason.

A Different Challenge

Netherlevess I think I succeeded in getting anatomics plausible once again. There was a different challenge though. That was to overcome the abundance of negative space around the leg in the lower part. Hence the extrapolations of circular patterns stemming from body such as the lower leg. I simply extended them to further. It’s a trick I invented during the creation of my Roundism style. By now you know the story. Roundism became another style I like to call ‘Neo Deco’. For years I sought for a perfect combination of straight and round structures. Roundism was a nickname anyway, taking the edge of the presumptuous title ‘Neo Cubism’. Neo Deco could not be the definite title though. For the moment it is the best title I can come up with. Even though the style isn’t meant as decorative only. To me the rendered structures are rather spiritual of nature.

Graphite pencil (Faber Castell Pitt Graphite Matt pencil 14B) drawing on Strathmore Bristol paper (21 x 29,7 x 0.1 cm)
Artist: Corné Akkers