Mend Exhibition

The mending project culminated in an exhibition of my classes work. It ran for three weeks from 28th May - 15th June 2014. I was really happy with the final display of my work. I decided to keep the composition looking random so that the negative space could be balanced out. It was challenging to affix the ceramic to the wall and I lost a few plates as a result the day before opening. However I managed to make new ones just in time. I'd like to thank Watt Space for accommodating us and my class mates for helping to make this possible. It is such a pleasure to have the opportunity to exhibit my work whilst I am overseas.

Painting Experiments

 have conducted a few experiments in my sketchbook of painting my face. I found myself really interested in my eye and I feel this could be an interesting subject to take further. I have avoiding painting my entire face as I feel zooming in on an area creates a more interesting subject.

 Next I want to research further into my own eyes and develop how expression and mood can be affected.

Jenny Saville

Jenny Saville's distinctive style developed through her self-consciousness and perception of herself. She exaggerates her body to look out of proportion and in her mind 'ugly'. I have always been an admirer of her work as I feel as though it is something we all relate to and feel about ourselves.

Freddie Robbins

Freddie Robbins
The Perfect Skins, 2007
machine knitted wool, metal rail
1800 × 800 × 100 mm

Installed at Vestlandske Kunstindustrimuseum, Bergen, Norway

“It’s not perfect, but who cares?” Well I do. I enjoy imperfection in you and yours but not in me and mine. I am very attracted to the imperfections, failings, and roughness of the material world. I enjoy the evidence of human hands, the inevitable wear and repair of objects. I love the obviously hand-made. But I suffer from being a perfectionist.'

Robbins has used knit here to create a second layer of skin. I like how they have been left un worn as though there is only a trace of the body remaining. This extension could also be seen as a restriction as the outline of the body only remains. If worn all personality would be lost and wearers would become the same body. It is almost like a discarded protective layer of skin

I love this concept of leaving a trace of the body behind. I want to explore knit further and how I can create a trace of skin through a knitted surface.

Colour Charts

In preparation for my machine samples, I have used two of my skin images to create a colour chart. This will help me to select appropriate yarn to create skin like surfaces on the knitting machine.

Skin

I began this project by examining my own skin. I want to look at how knit can be used to replicate the skin's surface.

I have taken some photographs of my foot, arm and hand. I am interested in the variation of tone and surface. I have also used photoshop to literally stretch a portion of my own skin. I will use this images as colour studies as well as inspiration for my knits.

I feel as though the colour pallet is going to be really key for this project. I want to utilise yarn correctly to enhance a skin like surface. Next I want to experiment with machine and hand knit using these images as a starting point.

Dove Campaign for Real Beauty

A theory of self perception has been put to the test by beauty company Dove. They got 7 women together to describe themselves to a sketch artist. After they described each other to the same sketch artist. The results are fantastic as each women underrated themselves hugely, picking and exaggerating their flaws.

State of mind has a lot to do with self perception. I am sure we can all relate to feeling better about ourselves once we are in a positive mood. Next I want to explore my own self perception and state of mind in order to paint myself in multiple ways.

19th Biennale of Sydney: You Imagine What You Desire

Some of the highlights of my day at the Sydney Biennale.

Museum Of Contemporary Art Australia

Hubert Czerepok Madness is Like Gravity 2012 Neon

This caught my eye because it is a quote from The Dark Knight. I like the use of this quote and the display that makes you feel a little mad when reading it.

Anne Lislegaard Oracles, Owls...Some Owls Never Sleep 2012-13 Animation 12mins

I loved these characters that seemed to react from one and other. I really enjoyed the eeriness to the piece and although it made me uncomfortable, I couldn't stop watching.

Roni Horn Ten Liquid Incidents 2010-12 Solid cast glass units

The delicate glass structures were filled with water and seemed to emulate bubbles to me. Great care had been taken to ensure these structures reflected the light from a roof light. The light bounced around the room creating a delicately calm atmosphere.

This wasn't part of the Biennale but I really enjoyed this starfish sculptor suspended over the stairway.

Jim Lambie Screamadelica 2004 Gafa Tape

The shear impact of the colour and line drew me in instantly. I felt as though I could never be bored in that room

Cockatoo Island

Cockatoo Island it self was a hugely inspiring place, a former convict prison and international shipping yard turned into a world heritage site. For the duration of the biennale it has been converted into area containing many unique installations.

Mikala Dwyer Smoking, Drinking Garden 2006 mixed media installation

I loved this use of space and air. The structures floated around the room looking weightless. They also became very interesting to photograph as well as mesmerising to watch.

Eva Koch I am the River 2012

Many critiqued this piece saying, 'why don't you go to an actual waterfall?' I however found it enchanting in the huge warehouse. Standing alone making a monstrous noise, of galloping horses. The juxtaposition of the sound of horses and the visual of a waterfall meant that it wasn't just a waterfall I was looking at. 

Some Images of Cockatoo Island

Ben Quilty

Ben Quilty Smashed 2009

This self portrait on Ben Quilty was completed after drinking a few beers. This lead Quilty to interpret himself differently as his state of mind is altered. I love how the marks become less constructed. I find the mirrored effect interesting too, as a viewer we don't know which one to believe to be the original perception of himself.

Here is another example of Quilty's work that examines our mood and perception is this series. Here he has painted many faces extending and exaggerating their faces. Mostly comprised of self portraiture, he exaggerates elements of his own face which shows his self-conciousness and insecurities.

Self perception is an interesting concept that I am keen to explore further.

Rebecca Horn - Finger Gloves

Rebecca Horn is a German sculpture and film maker who is inspired by the body and surrounding environments. Finger Gloves is project which explores ideas of touch and sensory awareness. Fingers are an important part of the body that is easily taken for granted. 

When wearing any sort of gloves, the wearer often feels a loss of the sense of touch and the implication of surviving without this sense is heightened. Horn's use of elongated fingers means that picking up distant objects is easier, but there is a big lack of control over what is picked up. 

I feel like I can use these ideas of distance and restriction when exploring knit in relation to an extension of the body. I want to investigate creating my own version of finger gloves and see how this impacts on my movements.

Extending the Body / Stretching the Skin

The second half of my fibres unit in Australia is titled Extending the Body / Stretching the Skin. This project will consider the potential extension of the body's envelope and consider how fabrics may interface with the body and appear to imitate skin.

My initial thoughts

• Knitted surface is something that I may investigate in terms of skin and surface
• Clothes can be seen to be an extension of our own skin and look almost shell like without a body filling in the negative space
• Latex could be used as a skin like surface
• Stockings/tights become a second layer of skin and are often coloured to look/improve our own skin
• Reptiles shed skin in replace for a new one, why and how does this process occur?
• vintage pattern pieces - imitate skin

Here are some of my favourite examples of artist research from the initial presentation by my tutor.

I want to explore how these themes and ideas can be used within my own work.

Freddie Robbins The Perfect Skins 2007

Trace of skin left behind through knitted surface

Rebecca Horn Finger Gloves 1993

Extension of finger, alters sense of touch and use of fingers

Tracey Emin Everyone I have ever slept with 1995 

Using the tent as an extension of own body. Personification of tent as body.

Yoan Capote Casados 2004

Extended shoe that becomes impractical.

Image and Interpretation

For the next painting project, we have been instructed to paint a large scale piece.

• It has to be divided into 3 parts so the total area reaches 1.5mx1.2m
• All components of the piece must be stylistic reinterpretations of exactly the same form
• Each part is open to reinterpretation 
• The aim is an interpretation of an image as a visual text and its reinterpretation as visual subtext made manifest through their junta-positions together
• conceptually, the project is concerned with seeing the philosophical, metaphoric and or poetic layers of meaning and substance beneath any superficial narrative and reading of the depiction of for example still life forms in a painting
• The final work needs to be viewed as one

This project begins with confusion. It has taken me some time o get my head around what I am expected to produce. 

Rene Magritte The Treachery of Images 1929

Magritte's painting The Treachery of Images is an example of what I am expected to produce. This work shows a pipe then underneath is the text, 'this is not a pipe' because it is a painting of a pipe. The subject has been portrayed in two ways here, through text and image. I need to conduct research in order to figure out how I can approach this subject. My initial thoughts are that I want to use the human form as a subject as i feel this can be portrayed in a variety of ways to reflect emotion and state of mind.