American Psycho Analysis/Research

Focusing on the book rather than the film, I plan on making a series of responses from my favourite and most important sections of the story. 

Some pinnacle moments/quotes:

• " ABANDON ALL HOPE YE WHO ENTER HERE is scrawled in blood red lettering on the side of the Chemical Bank..." 
• The whole chapter 'Morning' where Bateman describes his intense morning routine. (Page 23).
• "Did I ever tell you that I want to wear a big yellow smiley-face mask and then put on the CD version of Bobby McFerrin's 'Don't Worry, Be Happy', and then take a girl, a chow, a sharpei, it doesn't really matter..." (Page 111)
• The whole chapter 'Killing Dog' where he brutally murders a man's dog for no apparent reason and nobody else seems to notice or care. (A sign of things to come).
• The whole chapter 'Paul Owen'. An iconic moment in the film (as pictured above), however, it goes into a lot further detail in the book. "Blood starts to slowly pour out of his mouth shortly after the first chop, and when I pull the ax out - almost yanking Owen out of the chair by his head..." (Page 205)
• "While taking a piss in the men's room, I stare into a thin weblike crack above the urinal's handle and think to myself..." (Page 217)
• Chapter 'Lunch with Bethany' - another iconic scene from the film although I think a different character is used. The nail gun to the back of the head. But again, in the book  it's a lot more graphic. "placing her hands flat on thick wooden boards, palms up, and nail three fingers on each hand, at random, to the wood by their tips." (Page 234)
• "In this office right now I am thinking about how long it would take a corpse to disintegrate right in this office." (Page 264)
• "In the morning, for some reason, Christie's battered hands are swollen to the size of footballs, the fingers are indistinguishable from the rest of her hand..." (Page 279)
• Chapter 'Killing child at Zoo'. Similar to the killing of the dog, at first nobody notices the child's disappearance and he easily gets away with it. (Page 285) 
• Chapter 'Tries to Cook and Eat Girl'. 

Useful links:

• http://www.uncustomarybookreview.com/2012/10/american-psycho/
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fng29MgqSNc&t=510s
• https://www.gradesaver.com/american-psycho/study-guide/metaphors-and-similes

Often considered a modern classic, the book is a representation of the society we have created, from the treatment of women to the rich being able to get away with murder.

Reflection and First Self Portrait (7x7 image)

The proposal I made towards the start of the module isn’t well suited to the work I am currently creating although I have forgotten to document the changes to my ideas (classic me). The proposal focuses more towards listening to other people’s conversations but this has changed drastically because I’m too awkward to do it.

The suggestions for what happens next have been that I continue looking at American Psycho and possibly look at more content in the book. This is something I am planning on taking throughout the majority of the module. It has also been recommended by a peer that I possibly look at other books once I have drained American Psycho and it comes to a halt. My initial intentions were to look at a number of books (mostly focusing on the horror genre).

A peer recommended that I look at the ‘Me Too’ movement for the BICeBE brief which I have been considering doing for a while but keep putting it off because it involves making a GIF. I need to consider how women are empowered and would rather focus on the positive changes of the movement rather than the negative aspects.

Upon reflection as a whole I need to get moving with the women’s empowerment brief and possibly find someone to help with the animation aspects (possibly a collab). I also need to consider a home for the horror characters that I have currently created and how these ideas will develop).

INITIAL RESEARCH

What do I like?

• Halloween 
• Politics 
• Plants 
• Reading (classic literature, fiction, horror)
• Veganism 

Some favourite books:

Naive Art

Listening to feedback last year I looked further into naive/primitive and outsider art in hopes to further understand and extend my own practice. The appearance of my work often expresses 'naivety' and I hope to apply this to more serious literature such as American Psycho to almost add an innocence to the character. This may make my audience initially question the work, but when they look further their initial reactions will alter.

Naive Art:

• 'Created by a person who lacks formal education/training that professional artists undergo' 
• 'Recognised/imitated for its childlike simplicity/frankness.'
• Often a flat rendering style with a rudimentary expression of perspective.

Examples:

Henri Rousseau - Surprised!

Niko Pirosmani - Deer

Ivan Generalic - Unknown

Updated Proposal/Statement of Intent

After feeling too awkward about eaves dropping on other people's conversations and watching their actions to produce work, I have decided to alter my proposal to something I am more comfortable with and enjoyed producing last year. 

Last year the 'About the Author' brief got me back into reading and I've been filling my bookshelf ever since. The work I produced during this brief has been commented on as some of my strongest work to date, which I can agree with. As well as this I also really enjoyed producing the work and would like to develop this further. 

Being a bit of a weirdo, one of my favourite books I have read in the last year was American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis. The story is full of metaphors for the society that we have created today, Patrick Bateman repeatedly gets away with murder. Why? Because he is a rich, white male. 

I intend on creating a series of response to my personal favourite parts/quotes in the book. 

As well as this brief, I am planning on covering a number of different competition and live briefs such as the BICeBe Poster Call which goes back to my political routes. I also plan on responding to some editorial briefs as this is an area I am comfortable in and can produce quickly. 

Intent/Tone of Voice:

• Making American Psycho seem almost childlike and humorous with the use of colour and simplified imagery, focusing on the strangest quotes and the most graphic scenes. 
• Dark/dry sense of humour to capture the essence of Patrick Bateman's life.
• Initially naive but upon further inspection the image is quite dark/gruesome/serious. (This applies to both American Psycho and editorial briefs)
• The BICeBe brief - more of a positive tone of voice as its about women's empowerment (use bright colours but still integrate a sense of humour to make the work memorable).

Themes/Subjects:

• American Psycho - horror, gore, treatment of women, gays and POC, 90s, yuppies, humour, naive.
• Editorial briefs - depending on the brief (my usual approach is childlike responses to serious matters)
• BICeBe Poster Call - women, empowerment, positive change in society.

Audience/Context:

• People who have an interest in literature (American Psycho may extend into further books).
• Horror fans 
• Newspaper/article readers
• Left wingers
• Women of all generations BICeBe - but specifically those on social media that are more likely going to view the work on a regular basis).

Goals and Ambitions:

• Produce a strong body of work to use in my portfolio to take with me into the future. 
• Work more with moving image (essential for BICeBe brief) 
• Create a series of prints in response to American Psycho (and possibly other books) similar to those from the Folio Society.
• Make myself/others laugh

Practical Skills/Media/Formats:

• Print (especially screen)
• Intend to develop skills further in digital print to make work with the aesthetic of screen print that can be produced faster and more efficiently using Photoshop.
• POSCA pens - using them more often and experimenting using more layers and colours with them. Seeing how they can produce texture and be altered digitally.

Potential Content/Outcomes:

• Large body of experimental/playful development before producing finalised pieces of work. 
• A series of prints in a Folio Society inspired format for American Psycho brief.
• Quick responses to editorial briefs that have been produced in a small amount of hours/days.