Textile Research.

After the advice from my pitch one task I have set myself is to find some Textile Artists that I like and could influence my work. I will also look at Artists that use elements that I want my work to contain.
The thing I am looking for are:

• Rich colours
• Textured pieces
• Use of range of materials e.g wide range of fabrics.
• Use of different methods e.g. felting painting embroidery. 
• Subject matter, skulls, found items, textured items.

Alison King- First website I found this Artist on.

Trapped in the peat

"I am looking at the abandoned peat workings and how the distinctive layers trap remnants of past lives -skeletal, ferrous, fibrous. I am fascinated ,not only by the rich colours and texture of the peat but also its historical importance to a past way of life when it provided a source of warmth to an impoverished community." Taken from the website linked above, this section of the text grabbed my attention as she mentions items of past lives that have been trapped. This interests me as one focus of my project is skeletal remains and items that have ended up in a certain place as a result of time. Alison King works in a range of methods from stitching to felting and from painting to dying fabric, this is one of the many reasons her work appeals to me. I also like the way she works with really rich colours.

Pitch Feedback

Once I had completed my pitch the tutors gave me some points for me to focus on and take into consideration how they might help me.

• Explore many pathways e.g.moving image, textiles 3D
• Incorporate all these pathways as one and think about the possibility of creating a mix media piece.
• Don't be afraid to explore contextual research from other pathways. e.g. research art its that use light/sound.
• Research a lot more into the textile field more and the method available to you.

to make these point valid I intent to focus for a while on contextual textile research. I am hoping this will give me more starting points for my work to develop and will also help me understand in greater depth the field I want to study in.

Pitch Idea Three

After a discussion withh a different tutor I have decided to inclued a third idea and it was discussed that there was always a current theme running through out my book. This was textural paintings and surface textures. To manipulate this idea to adapt to my inital theme I came up with the idea of Time/Debris Decay and Decompose.

As this Idea was only thought of a few days ago I have been unable to create any experimentation work but I have been able to take some photographs which fit into the three catogories above.




My mind map.



A page from my journal that
notes the advice from my tutor.

Below are the set of photographs I have taken with my three words in mind.

To develop this idea further I colud take these photographs into textiles by using a wide range of materials and methods to create textural pieces.

• Burning paper
• Using the heat gun to create different effects on different materials
• Felting
• Weaving using a range of materials and/or found objects
• Wax

Pitch Idea Two

My second idea for my pitch is Time, old and new. I wanted to look at the was thing change over time e.g.buildings,books,technology,fashion and towns.

Below is my initial mind map for this idea.


Mind map of ideas.

Below are a set of photographs and experimental pieces and still life set ups I have created.

Set of three photographs of my vintage still life .

Set of modern still life set up.

The aim with these sets of photographs was to collect objects from around my house and seperate them into two catogories old and new. With the vintage set up i tried to collect items that contained nuteral colours like browns and reds and also clasical shapes. Whereas with the new set I aimed to used bringht eye catching colours and modern shapes. To develop these ideas further I experimented with painting the editing photos and photoshop and also changing the surface of the photograps.


Experimenting with Paint




A water colour painting of a section of my photograph.



















I like this painting because the colours from the pink perfume bottle are reflected on the others, also the contrast between the geometric and natural shapes works really well.




Another water colour painting of my old perfume bottle.





















Here I have decided to glue a piece of sugar paper down to see what effect the water colour paint will have on the paper. I think this painting works very well as the nuteral tones all compliment each other, also the way the overall tones and shades of this painting are warm but the purple in the center balences out the picture.
To develop this idea further I could take these painting and produca a set of photoshop pictures, or I could also take these painting and change them into textile pieces but sewing into the or transfering them onto material and working into them.




Manipulating Photograph/Painting surfaces.


In the photograph below I have used nail varnish remover to try and degrade the surface of the picture. I think this effect works well as it gives the photograph a distressed look and also takes aways some of the colours.

Photograph of my old still life set up












In the photograph below I have used a wet tea bag and draged it lightly across the surface of my painting. As I used wated colours the moister  and water of the tea bag has diluted the paints and a black overtone has been created. As with the other picture I think this works well as it gives the feeling of only seeing part of the painting as if its not fully finished.

A painting of my old perfume bottle.

In the picture below I have took a photograph of the painting I did using water colours then distressed it with a tea bag. I the chose to upload the picture onto the computer and use photoshop the change the atmoshpere in the picture. This works really well as the lines the tea bag created give the impression of a bright light coming from the top left hand corner.

Photoshop edit.

The photographs above are all based on one idea, to give this idea more substance I could reasearch into more pathways to follow e.g. the comparisson of old and new buildings.

Pitch Idea One

Time is my heading and from this I have developed three ideas which I could bring forward and use and a main theme for my FMP. My original intention was to use time as my one word, but after developing a small boddy of work,it was discussed that time was to vast of a subject to explore in the short period of time I have to complete this project. Taking forward my best pieces of work I will now explain my three ideas.


Time/Light
My first theme I have explored is the interaction between time and light.A few ideas that I have considerd exploring are:

• Colours in the sky at different times of the day.
• Sunset and sunrise.
• Different effects the weather has on the sky e.g. raing, sun and lightning.
• Taking pictures of the sky on a Journey.



A mind map of ideas.






















Below are a set of pictures of experimantational pieces I have developen in my sketch book.


Idea One.





















On the left side of the photograph above are three photographs takes at 5 minuet intervals out of a college window. My aim with this activity was to capture the progression and changes in the cloud formations. On the right hand side are a few quick sketches using a range of media e.g. conte crayon, acyrlic and water colour paints. I wanted to experiment with what media would be best for capturing the colours and textures in the photographs. The set of squares are coloursa taken from the photograph took at 16:10. My next step was to develop that small section into another piece.



Idea development.




















The photograph above is of a page in my sketch book where I was experimenting with my ideas and developing them further. With this perticular piece I have took a grid of colours inspired by the ones in my photograph. My intention was to develop this into a 3D box formation made out of wire. The forground and background of this piece would be divided into a few sections made up of squares and rectangles. Each of these would be filled with a range of media all inspired but this one photograph. The small section with the four numbers sewn into it represents the time the photo was taken. On the left hand page of the sketch book I was experimenting with the interaction between ink, cloth and paper.





Experimenting with paint.



The photograph above was a result of asking a Tutor for advice on painting a landscape picture. I was finding it hard to capture the gradient change in colour. The top painting is a demo that i was showed and the bottom one is my version of my photograph. I have tried to capture the sun coming throught behind the cloud and the silhouette of the town. I think this idea would work well in a set of a few paintings perhaps in a range of media. Also included in this picture is a journal entry for that date.

Yayoi Kusama

On a recent trip to London one of the Art Gallery's we visited was Tate Modern. Upon this visit I came across the artist Yayoi Kusam.Not knowing anything about this artist I entered the exhibition with an open mind to what I was about to experience. As I pre read the information leaflet I already knew that this artist liked to use light and sound in many of her  instillations.
Entering a dark room I was took back by the bright, fluorescent spots covering the room from floor to celling. People looking totaly astounded by the hypnotic feeling you gained from this instillation. I saw a little girl in a white dress that was glowing up a birght blue because of the lights. Her face lit up with joy as she twirled round in a circle. This is what got me thinking of including light and sound in my work, my aim of this will be to give the viewer a multi sensory experience when viewing art as a leisure activity.

An original page from my journal.







another research page from my journal.



Research in my sketch book.





Orly Cogan

The first time I discovered the works of Orly Cogan was when a tutor recommended researching into her works for a textile project on my level 3 Art and Design course.She is a artist whom I admire because of the way she depicts women's roles in today's society and the messages girls and women of all ages take away from viewing her work. I also really admire the way in which she uses vintage fabrics and revitalises them by hand stitching images over the top.

'Voice mail'

The images above is that of Orly Cogans 'voice mail'. This particular piece is a vintage doily underneath a hand embroidery piece that shows a woman on a mobile phone.I admire the way in which she uses only a simple stitch to create such detailed art works.

Sketchbook work

The images above is a hand embroidery piece I have created in the style of Orly Cogan.My aim with this piece was to give it a textural feel my making the hair of the woman slightly more 3D. Similar to the works of Orly Cogan I have also used simple shades of colour to fill in the white spaces, I also wanted to characterise the feeling of the importance of the females role in society, this is why I decided to place a frame around the figure to make her the centre piece.

Salvador Dali-The Persistence of Memory

Salvador Dali- The Persistence of Memory

 I first came across this particular art piece in High School whilst browsing the internet for Artist Research for my GCSE. As my theme is time I thought it would be beneficial to me to research deeper into this piece the meaning behind some of the images depicted.

Salvador Dali Video-see the bottom of the linked page
Upon doing this I came across a video of what seems to be recording the reactions younger children express when viewing this piece. Listing to this brought to my attention the fact that there is a face sort of hidden among all the chaos of the melting clocks,small tree and cliffs in the distance.I first looked at this piece purely because is contains clocks/time as a subject but I am fascinated my all the small images and details I have noticed.

    Sketchbook Research

2O Minuet water colour painting of Salvador Dali's The Persistence of Memory

Pitch Ideas

My main theme for my FMP was originally 'Time'. After a few weeks of exploring this theme and compiling small pieces of work and contextual research I have realised that my theme was to vast and I needed to focus on a more specific pathway.After a discussion with my Textiles tutor and a quick review of my book, I have made the decision to split my theme into three subsections. 

My first idea is the interaction between time and light. 

•   The way time effects the colours of the sky

•   Specific colours in the sky e.g. sunset, oranges and reds

•   Effects different types of weather can change the colours and patterns in the sky

•   The transition from day to night

My second idea is the comparison of old and new.

•   Vanity items

•   Schooling items

•   Towns/Cities

•   Technology

My third idea is the way things change over time.

•   Decomposition of Birds,food and flowers.

•   Decay-Buildings,Cave formations

•   Debris-found items, collection items over time.

I am currently researching my three themes by exploring both contextual research and creating my own small art pieces using a wide range of media. This is to ensure my pitch will run smoothly and my peers and teachers will gain a clear understanding of my ideas and visions of what I want my FMP to poses.

Getting Started

Prior to today I had no knowledge on how to set up a blog. So I organised a tutorial with a Jamie. During this session he gave me advice and guidance on how to set up, edit and customise my blog to suit my needs.My aims throughout my blog are to cross reference both work in my sketch book and contextual research.In doing this I hope that it will aid me on my FMP journey.

These two pictures show my first written exploration of my theme.I intend to research some of these ideas in great depth and develop or combine them to make my FMP.

My original journal mind map of my theme

Mind map in sketchbook of my theme.

 

Initial Ideas

For the starting point of my Final Major Project I wanted a theme that would be interesting for me to explore and also must also have the ability to be developed into a wide range of ideas. This is why my initial thoughts were that 'Time' as a word on its own would be an perfect way to start my FMP.


A few more aims I hope to achieve through completing my FMP are...

• To give the audience a multi sensory experience when viewing art and a leisure activity.
• For my work to be eye catching to view.
• Have the audience questioning what the story behind my pieces are.

There are three key elements I intend to explore and combine in my Project These are...

• Artificial Light- Yayoi Kusama- Tate Exhibition 9/02/12-05/06/12
• Time-Salvador Dali- The Persistence of Memory
• Textiles- Orly Cogan- Textiles Artist