I have taken time on this book, sewing into it, cutting into it and drawing into it and I have picked out a few artists that really captured my attention. This included the likes of Aboudia (work shown below) who paints complex visual universes on vast canvases which bring together many fragments which each work through the trauma of the reality of children in war. This is an example of pop and abstract expressionism. However I liked this work due to the meaning that have been put behind the pictures themselves.
Another artist which had a particular impact on the gallery was that of Rafael Gómezbarros who took up a whole room with an installation of ants which symbol human skulls to address the plight of millions of displaced immigrants who are constantly crossing the planet in search of asylum. I liked this idea a lot by using one thing to symbol another, I.e. using the ants which have a natural aptitude for hard labour and complex social organisation to resemble the immigrants. This is a similar idea which I have used for my stone carving, I.e. using my family's initials carved onto what could be interpreted as a baby's block to symbol family unity and preservation.
This artist had a real impact on me and so i decided to research him further. I therefore created an A1 artist research page: 
On this page i have provided more indepth detail about the artist himself and i have explained why he has had such an impact upon my work. His concept of symbolism complements my stone carving of my familys initials. I have been able to obtain inspiration from this artist and now i feel as if my stone craving has become more than a block of stone. It has true meaning which i feel this artist illustrates in his work.
Whilst at the gallery I also took drawings from some of the works of Vincent Michea who is a pop artist. I found the compositions of his work interesting and poignant, specifically the image of the man and women in a close embrace.
Another artist which I particularly liked was Ben Quilty. He is a recent artist who has won numerous awards this year which giving him a place to show his work at the Saatchi Gallery and I found them mesmerising. His inhabit series challenges ideas of Australian colonialism and identity through oil paintings of Captain Cook evolving from a devil into portraits of the artist.
These paintings were exceptional in that there were so many of them, two walls were filled. The idea of building something up and then taking it apart is an unusual idea. Ben had also taken the time to spray paint the back wall with black surroundings which really added to the impact of the images. A further painting Ben had painted was a self-portrait from 2009. He has squashed another piece of paper on top of the picture to create a mirror image in acrylic. This is powerful and moving and forces the onlooker to analyse the painting carefully to see what it is trying to show. The image is in fact of Ben himself 'smashed' as the painting is called. It is again a symbol of himself and self-reflection and this is what I like so much about his work. 
An artist which fitted in perfectly with the title of my project 'Reflection' was that of Richard Wilson who has used the entire bottom floor to create an installation made of recycled engine oil which has completely flooded the entire floor space. It transforms the gallery into a site of epic illusion which absorbs and mirrors the gallery architecture. It has been shown in the gallery since 1991. It is the only permanent installation and is incredibly fitting for my project.
Finally and for possibly my favourite artist of the entire exhibition come from a modern taxidermist named 'Polly Morgan'. Whilst none of her large works were being shown in the gallery, I came across some of her smaller pieces being shown in the gift shop and they took me by breath taking surprise. I don't usually take fascination by taxidermy but these works showed a true meaning with deep thought and that is what drew me to them. Each piece was displayed in a glass bell jar which is already a symbol of preservation. The first resembled a tiny chick being pulled up by a single red balloon. It is poetic sculpture that captures the essence of the living spirit with a chick being gracefully lifted from death. This piece has been named 'still birth'. The pure nature and concept of this piece is moving. It is a way of capturing the dead in the most graceful way. I see it as a beautiful work of art and preservation. It is preserving a moment in time and I love that idea.
Many artists have inspired me in this visit to London and I hope to take with me their cultural values and personal meaning and morph them into my own work as I continue forth on my own journey of reflection.
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