Talking Pattern- Esme Waterhouse-Duignan
For when researching patterns, i looked back at the graffiti images i took when i was researching talking colour. I wanted to express the shapes i saw, into patterns. With this pattern i really like the graphic bright colours. I used oil pastels to create the initial drawings but then used photoshop to duplicate and resize the image so i could cut out and collage back together.
To create the original drawing i used gouache paints and a black fine liner to replicate a piece of graffiti i saw. I love the bold geometric shapes which i wanted to recreate. With the duplicated and resized images i wanted to imagine how this pattern could look in different ways by rearranging and rotating. I think the crazy, all over the place aesthetic fits the vibe of the original graffiti better than the uniformed straight pattern as it reflects the fun and rebellious feel.
Again, using an oil pastel i drew a pattern that combined harsh pointy line work with meandering soft line work. I really love how this pattern comes together when lined up next to each other.
Here i combined all the patterns at once and i really like the mixture of all the different colour palettes and line work. I love the funky bright feel.
From my talking colour work, i was so heavily inspired by this door in Hackney Wick i captured. I felt as though it had a lot of character and wanted to extract all the different patterns i could see from this one door.
3rd November 2025 @ 11:03 pm
This piece demonstrates a delightful spirit of exploration through its visual language. Though the overall approach appears straightforward, it reveals the student’s keen perception and deepening understanding of the relationship between pattern and colour. By distilling geometric motifs and vibrant colour palettes from street culture and urban environments, the work conveys a youthful, unabashedly expressive visual energy brimming with rhythm.
The work deconstructs and reassembles patterns derived from graffiti and architectural details—such as the doorways of Hackney Wick—demonstrating an exploration of the equilibrium between ‘repetition and variation,’ ‘order and chaos.’ Through collage and reconfiguration, the interplay of colour and geometric rhythm forms the core of the composition’s visual tension. While formally still somewhat naive, the attempt to convey complex emotions through minimalist forms represents a significant breakthrough in visual exploration.
Should the artist continue to delve into the narratives or symbolic meanings behind the patterns while deepening experiments with materials and textures, the work could achieve a deeper emotional resonance. Even within its minimalist framework, this project demonstrates a sincere spirit of exploration and an intuitive grasp of colour harmony, signalling strong potential for artistic growth.