Sustained Investigation #4

Artist's Statement:

Cows are huge methane emitters, and the dairy industry plays a major part in producing greenhouse gases. I wanted to show something that connected the milk we drink to the cows that make it, and show the grunginess and grit that comes with those cows. I had the idea to use an empty milk carton to show this connection, also because a milk carton is a barrier that keeps milk in. This relates to methane as a greenhouse gas that keeps heat in, playing a part in causing the warming climate of our planet. 

I used an empty milk carton to connect to the dairy industry. I also wanted to connect to commercialism, and the impact on the environment that that commercialism has. I had some trouble with the smearing of the ink, because the milk carton is covered in polythene, which is plastic and didn't absorb the ink very well. At first I wanted to gesso the outside of the carton, but then I decided to use the white inside as a background. 

For my process I researched into dairy industry, and researched how and why cows cause a negative impact of the environment. I made some initial sketches to get my ideas down as well. I had never drawn cows before, so I searched up cows feeding to find references. I didn't want to plagiarize, so I combined two sources to create the image.