Locating- Coralie Bonnet

I have been looking at artists who combine textiles and wood and I discovered the work of Coralie Bonnet. She stitches into a variety of surfaces including ceramic and wood using a range of stitches. I like how she transforms a flat surface into something that is far more textural and tactile. I also like the repetition used as it brings the piece together.

 

Locating- Christo and Jeanne-Claude

I have looked at the work of Christo and Jeanne-Claude as the scale of their work varies dramatically. Although the final pieces of their work are on a huge scale, their preparatory studies which they then sell to fund the larger projects are on a far smaller scale, such as drawings and layout plans. This variety of scale is something I need to pay attention to as the Geoffrey Manton building is on a large scale but I will have to scale down my ideas for the Urban Outfitters brief. I like the idea of using my  samples as a finish piece, which in effect is what Christo and Jeanne-Claude do.

 Drawing and plans of how their envisage the 'Surrounded Islands' project to look like.

  Final outcome of 'Surrounded Islands' project in Miami where 11 islands were surrounded by pink floating woven polypropylene fabric. 

Locating- Artist Inspiration

I am working with the idea of designing a piece that will be interiors based. I want to carry on my ideas from the last project but take these further, by finding a way to take thread off a surface.I have looked at artists whose work is focused on thread and how it can be manipulated and translated. Thread is material that everyone can relate to but when put in these contexts in completely changes what most people see thread as, a practical material. The artists are also showing their work in interiors, either in a public space or a gallery. 

Gabriel Dawes is a Mexican artist who creates large scale thread installations and challenges the perceptions of gender roles. A a child he was forbidden to explore the medium of textiles and embroidery. The large scale and geometric outcome of his pieces almost make it appear as though it is not thread he is using but rather 'drawing in the air'. The idea of a what is a line and how can in be shown is space is something I will explore further. 

Amanda McCavour- By using dissolvable fabric a very delicate and translucent surface is created. I like how by using multiples of the same organic shape will create a far more interesting and dramatic piece. The idea of starting with one and using it in multiples to create a larger piece is something that I would like to explore. 

Anne Lindberg thread sculptures redefine the spaces in which they are installed. The space and the architecture plays a large part in the process of creating the pieces. I will need to pay specific attention to the space inside Geoffrey Manton as it is a site specific brief. 

Artist Research

From producing samples, I am considering where my work could be seen. My pieces are starting to take the form of a wall piece to be shown in interiors or as an installation. The main context behind it is that it will be shown on a wall. I discovered the work of the the Bouroullec Brothers and I love their very simple but effective designs. The piece that caught my eye the most was their piece called 'Algue', which is used as either a room divider or a decorative piece for the walls.  Algae shaped plastic components are joined together in any shape to make the required design. The natural shapes that are formed could be translated into my work and the idea of being placed on a wall or across multiple walls is a concept that I would like to explore further with my work. 

For unit X I looked at the work of Mia Pearlman and I have been drawn back to her stunning paper cut outs. I love the very natural and free flowing feel of her pieces and the way she hangs her pieces as they drape from wall to wall and onto the ceiling. 

The First Cut Exhibition

I visited the newly opened exhibition, the First Cut, at Manchester Art Gallery and I was inspired and amazed at the intricacy of a lot of the work. One of my favourite pieces was by Noriko Ambe who cut hundreds of layers of paper to create an undulating surfacing, reminding me of a topography map.  She cuts each piece of paper by hand so that no line is perfect and to achieve subtle differences in each layer representing that nature is in no way flawless.  I like this organic approach that I feel I can apply to my work and let the tools I am working with direct my work, rather than trying to make my pieces appear precise and accurate.

I also had the chance to see Mia Pearlman’s work in the flesh. I love her large scale, free flowing paper cut outs. The shadows produced are amazing and when light shines through the overall effect becomes even more vivid. I especially like how her pieces are not restricted to one wall, but are often spread across the ceiling creating a much more atmospheric look.

Inspiration

I find the work of Ingrid Calame interesting; she simply traces found marks and enlarges them to produce an interesting piece of art. The way that when made into the final pieces they do not look like the marks, but something a lot more abstract appeals to me and is something that I would like try to  bring into my work.  I also like the layering and the simplicity of the line, a quality that could be translated into embroidery in many ways. 

Mia Pearlman

Having just changed my idea for my final proposal, I saw that Hannah had posted about the artist american Mia Pearlman on the group blog and I really like her work. I feel that it is along the lines of how I envisage my final piece to look if it was to be made. Her paper installations have a similar look to my work in that it is very sculptural and plays with form and I like the draping look to it whilst still being a solid structure. I love how they go from wall to ceiling and onto the floor, something that I will consider for my piece and think could look could in the new building where the walls are very high,a sculptural piece could help to close the space down and make it feel more intimate in areas. 

Room Divider

I have done some more research, as I have decided that it is a room divider that I’d like to propose. I have decided upon this over a blind as I feel that as the new building is so open plan that to be able to make it feel more intimate when need will be very beneficial while still having the feeling of space.

Here are a few more images that are helping me to design and think of ideas for a new room divider. I have chosen these because they split a room up, but are not solid walls which ensures the feeling of space is maintained while still adding the feeling of closing the room down to a smaller space. 

I really like the simple graphic pattern created by this room divider by Apartment Therapy, which has been made using old painted vinyls.  

'MOLO' have created a room divider with a honeycomb design that can be easily moved and  stretched up to  4.5 metres. I like the innovative use of cardboard that has been developed to created a simple but elegant design. 

This wall divider, by 'The Brick House' , made using rope cleverly splits the room in two while still keeping the room as one.

Bloomming Design Studio

I have found a company that makes interesting wall dividers amongst other products such as vases, clocks and tables. Bloomming is a Dutch design studio who have created a stainless steel blind/ wall divider whereby the diamond shaped components can be moved and tilted to created varying patterns and allowing patterns to be created by the shadows. I really like this idea as it allows you to change the design and allow different amount of lights to penetrate through. I want to see if I can do something with my ideas to achieve a changing pattern or let different shadows be created. 

Inspiration....

I have been looking at artists and designers to inspire my work and help to visualise my ideas on a larger scale.  I have been thinking more about creating a wall or a room divider, as the space is open plan to be able to divide it up with a temporary structure could prove useful.  From my drawings, my ideas could be translated well to create a wall.

I like how Christoph Niemann has translated the colours of the New York Subway map into a colour bathroom design.

These 3D wall dividers by Mike and Maaike remind me of my original drawings using the coloured masking tape, but they also remind me of lines found on maps, in particular the Manchester tram map. I like how it is not all one solid block and that you can see through it as well as the combination of colours

Brendan Dawes

I went to the talk by Brendan Dawes that made me realise the importance of technology in the art and design world today. Although I am not very good at all with technology it made me realise that it is crucial to artists and designers work today, as it such an important tool for marketing and taking your work forward. From having his blog and showing his work on it, he was approached by the Musuem of Modern Art in New York, and subsequently his piece was bought and displayed in the gallery.  In his work he often took the simplest and most humble things and made them into pieces of art, such as his piece on paperclips.  This talk showed me that to succeed in your field, you need to out your work out there and show it to others, something that I now need to start doing!

DAVE HASLAM

This week we started our new unit, Unit X. As part of the unit there are a number of talks that have been put on, one of them was by Dave Haslam, a Dj from Manchester.

Although I had never heard of Dave Haslam and knew nothing about him, his talk last Tuesday was interesting. He talked about the famous music scene in Manchester and about the ‘unknown and secret’ Manchester. Some of the venues he mentioned, such as the Kraak Gallery in the Northern Quarter, have made me want to go out and explore the smaller independent places that can be found here.  I knew Manchester was famous for its music scene and that countless bands started out in the city, but I never knew that there were so many musicians that were established here such as Joy Division, The Chemical Brothers and Doves.