Abstract

The Jerwood Drawing prize is an annual exhibition that aims to show the diversity of contemporary drawing practice. It is selected by a distinguished panel of artists, writers and curators. The selected artwork was the first of a series that sought to examine the nature of narrative in contemporary drawing. The primary area of research involved an investigation into the perception that artworks showing a clear and illustrative narrative content may sometimes be little more than overt representations or ‘illustrations’, while the most aesthetically satisfying are suggestive of source, rather than literal or illustrational.. The research was undertaken to create a drawing that had an apparent, but also more ambiguous narrative content. With this drawing the viewer is uncertain about what is happening or why. This exploration into the context that the viewer imposes on visual storytelling resulted in a clearer understanding of the process that occurs when illustration is presented as ‘fine art’. Viewing the drawing alongside the other artworks in the show and listening to the comments made by viewers helped me form judgements on this point. The research also provided me with a more profound understanding about the different creative processes that are employed in the two disciplines of ‘fine art’ and ‘illustration’. A catalogue was produced for this touring exhibition ISBN 0-948327-19-7