sculpture/mixed media, fashion

I really enjoyed my first elective, sculpture and mixed media, I made a conscious decision to approach it in a  simple straight-forward way ,and, more importantly, to enjoy the 'process' without looking too far ahead to an 'end product'. I was absolutely delighted with the grade that I achieved , I'm putting that down to the fact that I 'chose' to enjoy myself and not to complicate it as I  normally would !  Also I got very sound advice from the different tutors along the way.... taking on board that advice and working with it. Also to do well in the elective was hugely encouraging and a boost to the confidence. If you want to burst your bubble, thinking that you're doing marvellously, start the fashion elective!  that fairly brings you back to earth with a bumpy landing....I am half-way thro' and thank God for 'rag week' because fashion is fast and furious. it is a great learning curve in all aspects and even in time-management,  there is no time for 'napping'. Is it  best suited for a younger student?  I'm not being ageist here but I am being realistic. I'm approaching fashion  in a broader 3D way of thinking rather than just 2D. The tutor did point out that every design has a back, a front and a side, I had forgotten that and was thinking purely of colour and texture. At the moment I am actually using some of the contextual research from the 'Sculpture elective' for  fashion  as a basis for my designs. I can definitely see a follow thro' of in my contextual notebooks.  Next week-end I will be in London to see 'Les Miserables', all those fabulous costumes..!!! and I will be visiting Tate Modern, If I can fit it in I'd also like to get to the V@A,  Mind you, after another week of fashion I'll be lucky  to have the energy to just get as far as London  !!! I'm not being ageist, as I said before,...... but I am being honest.

connections

For my assessment in Jan my work was paper card and fabric predominantly in white, I surprised myself by moving away from an  emphasis on colour and texture, which I had rigidly stuck to,   For my 'Sculpture and mixed media'  elective my work is all based on 'making connections'. I am taking this absolutely literally by making a series of connections using as many found materials that I can source, I'm using flexible garden wire  to make a series of curved circles each connected to the other. I have also glued wooden skewers all pointing inwards to a centre, all connected, it looks something like a 'starburst'. Also a piece I made for my last semester which is constructed of plastic rings used for holding beer-cans together, has really tied in with this present  project. If I were to relate 'connections' back to a human context the opportunities to research and investigate would ,I think, be infinite. Regarding the relationship to the five senses, I think Sight Smell Hearing Touch and Taste are all about 'connections'  and memories that each of these senses evoke. Some happy or maybe some perhaps sentimental ? Each of the completed  pieces, when  individually photographed, take on a very different look and expose themselves in another dimension. I researched the work of various sculptors, such as Eva Hesse, Tom Freidman, Sol Lewitt and Andy Goldsworthy,  and the Artist  Michangelo Pistoletto from the Art movement 'Arte Povera' in Italy. By the end of this week I will  have read some interviews  with various Artists  in the hope of gaining an understanding of their thoughts behind the concepts.   Working in 3D has enabled me to discover that I really enjoy the process of putting 'things' together  and looking at the results of their interaction. Instead of just looking at the aesthetic value of an object, I now look at it and am curious to know as to how  it would look  if I connected it  to something else. All of the above is a revelation and a litle bit scary, to think that you thought you knew where you were going only to discover that it might not be the 'right' way after all  is daunting to say the least. If it keeps happening who knows where I might end up ???!!!! This feels a bit like week one all over again...... watch this space.

for 'The Urban Environment' I chose the word maps and then I created a personal map of my daily journey from college to home.

Happy New Year !

Since my last blog  I have moved on from colour and texture, [my 'comfort zone'],  looking more at  the actual  'skeletal' shape of the fuchsia, which is, I think,  far more interesting than the flower itself. I found a book, [accidentally] in the library on microscopic marine organisms, the name of the book is 'Art Forms from the Sea'. These forms make up a fantastic variety of incredible shapes, a lot of them look like kitchen utensils, collanders etc others look as if they are chain-mail helmets and hats and there are even a few lampshade lookalikes !The book is by Ernst Haeckel, a German scientist and artist who was absolutely passionate about his work, all the illustrations are done by himself. I copied these shapes by making holes in card using a six-hole paper punch and to make even smaller holes I used needles. The finished pieces were redolent of something being corroded or eaten into. On a canvas I stuck down metal washers of different sizes, I also used white thumb-tacks. I wanted to see the same effect on fabric so I cut various sized circles out of wax cloth ,normally used for making table-cloths. I did not want to use a softer fabric as the resulting effect would not have worked. I prefer to cut curved lines for their fluidity and flexibility. I spotted a plastic shape that holds  beer-cans in place, the shapes are perfect and they can be pulled and stretched etc so I am collecting as many as I can from local shops and an off-licence. They're not easy to come by  because the staff in these places probably think I'm nuts, I am thinking of getting in touch with the Bulmers factory in Clonmel or C&C  in the hope that they would send me a few hundred, I'm not very hopeful but it's worth a try! I am enjoying this part of my project and am delighted to have moved on from colour using only white or opaque materials. This is somewhat of a revelation! I looked at the work of the artist Tara Donovan which is in the Stephen Friedman gallery in London. Two of her instalations she made using white paper plates and styrofoams cups respectively, it is all very white, bright and airy. whereas I don't yet have the vocabulary to descibe her work I can say that I have really surprised myself by loving it.

Amsterdam

I went to Amsterdam and spent an entire day in the 'Van Gogh' [ pron : goch as in Gok....Wan !] Museum.  For years I wondered about the correct pronunciation of this artists name. It was fantastic.....fab museum.... plenty of refreshments... also saw an exhibition of work by the 'Naturists' and it was superb. Came home to start into History of Art essay and I lost three days out of my life....!!!! Sat at the computer day and night, unwashed and unfed, not a pretty sight, felt like Ms. Haversham in herwedding dress.  I never want to see another book on Gothic Art' ever again....actually If I could make a bonfire from the books and the reams of wasted paper I would and I'd like to dance around it like a witch....handed it in today, what a relief to see the back of it and I love C.C.S .....!!!?

friday targets

I got good advice from my tutor last week to make a list of things to have completed for the end of each week, it has been  helpful in that it has kept me focussed and I did actually get thro' my list and there was great satisfaction in putting a line thro each one, I wanted to share this advice and hope that it might be of some help to others, I think I am making progress at last, 8 or 9 weeks on !!!  and I intend to hang on in there a bit longer...