Evaluation Of Origins

During this project I have developed my work through a connection between practice and research. At the start of the project it was the visual research that forwarded my project and helped me settle on an idea.

An important part of the project was to edit and select ideas to develop the work further. This technique was introduced during the machine part of the textile world. I was creating samples, then looking back over them to edit out what I liked about each sample and then creating another one. This was very useful as it taught me how to look at my work in a different way. It also taught me how one idea can lead onto another idea, that the more you do the more ideas will spring from it.

Whilst working on this project I have made some important self discoveries that will hopefully in the future will help move my work forward. One of them being stopping during a project. At certain point in the project, I stopped at a point and just made the same samples over and over again. I felt that i didn’t push my idea further enough and played it a little too safe rather than experimenting. I felt that I was worrying too much about what I was creating rather than just sampling. 

During this project I have learnt to take a step back and look over visual research properly and take time to notice what the picture is telling me. This is something that I have never really thought of doing before, which I believe is where my downfall is when I stop during a project. Again, this was pointed out in my assessment as something I should be doing often on every project I do. 

Looking back over my work, I don’t believe I used my contextual references very well. I think that I picked good artists and designers to influence my work, but never looked back over them and used their ideas in my work. Again, this was brought up during my assessment, I was told that I should broaden my research and look at other artists, not necessarily textile artist. 

I believe that I am using my studio and workshop time wisely. During the start of the project I didn’t make the most of the time and focused on working from home on independent study sessions.Then as the world went on and I switched to machine embroidery, where the work was a big more structured, I began coming in and using the machine rooms. I think this has got me into a good routine of coming into university and working in the studio. 

Origins Project

Machine Samples

These are some machine samples I created during the machine workshop. During this workshop we were taught a number of different machine feet, such as the tailor tack foot and the pin-tuck foot. We were also taught to use the embellisher which is something I enjoyed a lot as it was very fast and had very quick results. We were then asked to created a certain number of samples using each foot. We also had to stick to a monochrome palette. This is something I found very difficult as first as I struggled using the machines, I also found it very hard to stick to just black and white. To overcome this I spent a lot of time practicing on the machine to see what samples I could produce. 

Origins Project

Hand Stitch Samples

These are some hand stitch samples I created in reference to my idea of rain. I decided to stick with the colour pallete of blues and greys. These samples are an experiment I did using the idea of random stitch and not having a pattern to stick to. The middle photo I used tinfoil instead of a fabric, then added french knot on top in a random pattern. The tinfoil worked really well during this experiment as it creased whilst I was stitch onto it. Also, when I pulled the thread too tight the tinfoil started to rip, this gave quite a nice effect as you could see the stabiliser underneath. 

Origins Project

Photography

These are some photographs that I took during our trip to Liverpool. These were taken from the coach window, at the start, during and end of the journey. As you can see it was raining during the journey. Having struggled to connect my drawings and my samples I began to look through my photographs for inspiration, which is when I came across these photos. I deiced to focus my hand stitch samples on the characteristics of rain. I started focusing on the blue and grey colour pallete using stitch in straight lines to represent it falling from the sky.

Origins Project

Experimenting With New Materials

This week, I have been asked to pick 'multiples of the same object' from a pound shop. I decided to pick cocktail sticks. We were told to experiment in different ways using our object, the only thing we were allowed to use was thread to hold the chosen materials in place. I found this task really hard and struggled with I quite a lot. Having such limited materials was very hard. After playing around for a while and looking at old work from this project, I started tying the cocktail sticks together into a rope shape. After finishing the piece, a tutor suggest placing it in the light to see what shadows came off the shape. I was amazed by how different the shape looked in the sunlight and how the shadows created such a different piece all together. 

Origins Project

Drawing Workshop - The Art Of Editing and Selecting

During this workshop, we were given the task of trying to refine and edit our pictures, taking things we liked from the pictures and pushing that idea further. My main focus on the project is people and their journeys. These are some original sketches I have done. The other picture being one idea that I was experimenting with. I decided to trace the original sketch, turning it into a basic shaped drawing. I then added colours over the top using different tools, in this picture I used watercolours. I plan on pushing this idea further and further in order to create brand new marks and techniques and a whole new set of drawings.

Origins Project

Trip to Liverpool Biennial

  As part of our first brief 'Journeys', we took a trip to the Liverpool Biennial. This is a huge exhibition of art, placed in different locations all over Liverpool. The first gallery i visited was the 'Open Eye Gallery', where i had never been before. The gallery only featured two exhibitions, one by Kohei Yoshiyuki and another by Mark Morrisroe. 
When walking into the glass building, the first piece i saw was 'Love Hotel' by Kohei Yoshiyuki. Which is photographs of CCTV images from a pay-by-the-hour hotel. The pictures feature couples engaging in sexual activity. Which are in turn shown on televisions. I found my self drawn into this first piece. The graininess of the pictures made it near impossible to see what was really happening, the only thing visible was the outlines of the bodies, 
almost like shadows. 

The second piece of Kohei Yoshiyuki work i saw was called 'The Park'. This was an exhibition with a twist, something i have never experienced before. We were taken into a completely pitch black room, only a few people at a time and given a small torch. 

The pictures were all on the walls, using the light to see what they were. The pictures, again, featured couples 


engaging in sexual activity, this time there were spectators, watching and joining in. This captured the unseen activities that happen at night. The idea of having a torch with you to view the pictures, made it feel like you are just discovering these people, almost like you part of the spectating. I instantly, just like the 'Love Hotel' piece, felt drawn to these pictures. They are very raw pictures of things that you don't realise happen. 
After researching about this piece of work, I found that this underground society was stumbled upon accidentally by Kohei Yoshiyuki, which in turn he  started visiting more often and became a spectator himself, giving him the chance to capture these raw photographs. 
The journey aspect i took from this piece was the fact that Kohei Yoshiyuki stumbled across this hidden side of the park, by taking a journey. This shows that any journey could lead to something unexpected, as if no journey can be determined. 

Summer Brief - Kites

'Summer Brief - Kites'

During the summer, i had a short brief set called 'kites'. The theme was to create a kite, using any materials, any shape and any size. I decided to create whats called a 'Chapi-Chapi' kite, which is shaped like a diamond. I chose the media of knit, using the colours, red, white and blue. The reason i chose these colour was that my topic subject was Great Britain. I wanted to use this theme as Britain has been in the news a lot for all the amazing things that have happened this year, such as the Royal Wedding, the Olympics/Paralympics and the Diamond Jubilee. 

Art and Design Foundation

'Illustrations'

These are some drawings I have done focusing on shoes, these being converse, vans and brogues. I tried tried to pick shoes that many people would instantly recognise. I created these drawings using a pen, as I find pencil quite difficult to draw with.

Art and Design Foundation

'Abstract Photography'

Some shots from my ‘Abstract Photography’ brief. I liked the idea of photo blurring and not being able to quite see what is really there. The idea of identity is taken away by doing this. The model is my younger sister. I decided to add colour to them, as I thought that the colour confused the picture even more taking away the true identity of the picture.

Art and Design Foundation

'Get Thee To A Nunnery'

These are scans from my sketchbook, which is taken from my ‘Inspired Transformation’ brief. My inspiration was Ophelia, from the play by William Shakespeare ‘Hamlet’. I took this character as I thought I could re-create her madness in art form. I enjoyed this brief as I felt like I had freedom with my work. The  idea of madness let me have free reign over all my work, I had no pattern to stick to and no structure to stay by.