Moving Image Workshop

Film and moving image is becoming more and more popular with designers and companies today, who are using it to promote their products to a worldwide audience using the internet. I particularly like the simple but effective results of the Olympus Pen video that we watched. We were inducted into how to use the video camera and create a short film. In our group of 4 we filmed a short stop and start clip of a girl weaving in the weave room, using a varity of shots including a long shot and a close up. I will try and incorporate a short film into my project using my work and see what results I get.

My work...

After my visit to the Cube Gallery, my work has been focused a lot more at looking at maps and the details and patterns found within them. I have been looking at different maps of Manchester and the different styles that are produced. Getting lost in the alleys in Marrakech reminded me of some of the really detailed maps as you didn’t know where one line would lead you from first looking at the maps. I have combined these details with the vibrant colours of Morocco. The idea of a making a map/maze within the new building could be interesting and here are some of my drawings so far. My ideas often lead back to maps, but I think this is often because it can help me dream of being in another country that's far away and exotic where I can escape 'normal' life!

I also went back to Special Collections in the library after our induction there. I found it fascinating to be able to see so many many historic and beautiful hand made books. I found two books on Morocco, both of which had colourful illustrations that represented the vibrant atmosphere of the country. 

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!

CUBE Gallery- Alix Dessain

Richard Brooks, a lecturer in Architect, came in to talk to us about the new art school but more specifically about the 4 internal concrete pillars within the building. Rather than being 4 plain pillars they have been moulded with a floral pattern, designed by former Manchester School of Art pupil Lewis Day. By adding the floral pattern the harshness of the grey concrete has been softened and makes the pillars look a lot more attractive and interesting and I’m looking forward to being able to see the pillars myself. It was interesting seeing what is usually considered a very industrial material being used in such a way to give it a softer and more textural look.  

He also spoke about the current exhibition at the Cube Gallery ‘Infra_MANC’ which looks at the post war development of the infrastructure in the city.  I went to see this exhibition and really enjoyed it as I was able to look into the geographical history of the city. I was intrigued by the underground system that is in the city and has made me want to explore this more and incorporate it into my project. The underground world of Manchester that many people don’t know about or even know exists reminded me of the mystery of the alleyways in Marrakech where people don’t know what is around the next corner or what lies on the other side of the alley walls.

Here are a few pictures of detailed maps with patterns and colours that I found interesting and appealed to me.

 

See the full gallery on Posterous

ARRIVALS TASK- Alix Dessain

To begin the project we were asked to imagine arrving at a place. I decided to look at arriving in Marrakech, Morocco, as when I visited the country last summer there was such a stark contrast to England that I felt and saw as soon as I stepped off the plane, despite only being 3 hours away on the plane.  The biggest difference to me was the colour, arriving from a drab and grey England to a city full of warm shades of oranges, yellows and red was refreshing and gave the city an striking look immediately.

I loved the hustle and bustle that is seen along the street and the alleys within the medina. Anywhere you walk down there is some sort of activity happening, whether its children playing outside their homes, cats running around, a donkey cart pulling oranges along, a motorbike about to run you over, men rushing to the mosque at prayer call, there is always something going in and even late into the night there was still constant activity going on in the alleys.

But this is in complete  contrast to when you enter a riad, a traditional Moroccan house with an internal open-air courtyard. What appears to be a dull, ordinary looking and often suspicious door off a winding alley of the medina opens up into a tranquil surrounding that feels a million miles away from the chaos outside.  Once inside, you feel very calm and content being surrounded by gorgeous coloured tiles, lanterns hanging everywhere and amazing rugs and textiles scattered on the floor. The noise from the alleys and streets is completely hidden and the only sound you can hear from the outside world is the mosque calling the Moroccans to prayer which is heard several times a day from one of the numerous mosques found within the medinas walls. From the rooftop, you can see across all of the roof tops within the medina and the towers of the mosques.

Marrakesh was such an exciting place to spend time in, there was so much to look at and admire when I was wandering through the souks and streets that I want to revisit my time here and wish that I was still there!

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.

Self Evaluation of Sampling Unit

Overall I have definitely enjoyed this unit a lot more than the origins and I feel that this is reflected in my work. I think that this is mainly down to my workshop options that I have chosen, machine embroidery and print. I have enjoyed these workshops as they allow me to let my work be a lot more pattern based with a greater focus on colour and texture, all of which are elements of textiles that I particularly enjoy.

I found machine embroidery really interesting. Having only used a basic embroidery foot previously, being able to use a greater range of feet to produce more interesting results was enjoyable. This is definitely a technique that I would like to continue using and experiment more with. I equally enjoyed print as a medium, as once I has finalised my design, there was so much that could be done with just my one design, such as repeat, blocking out, stencilling, foil, flock etc. I hope I will carry this technique on and keep exploring all the possible results that can be achieved.

I have enjoyed looking at aerial photography as my source of inspiration. The world looks so different from up above, an angle we don’t usually think about when thinking of a certain place. When researching I found many images of amazing aerial view photos taken all over the world, showing incredible natural patterns, textures and colours.

Although I am reasonably happy with the outcome of my samples, there are a number of things that I would do or change if I had more time to develop my project. I would have incorporated colour a lot more into my work as I enjoy working with colour, but in this project my palette was too obvious (green for the countryside and grey for the city). By having such a literal colour palette I felt as though I limited myself with the results that I could achieve from my samples. I would also vary the scale a lot more, as I have tended to stick to small samples, with just the odd sample that is a little bigger.  My research could have been more extensive as well; I could have looked at a lot more varying scales of aerial photography that were personal to me. However this could be said for any project as research can be endless as there are so many strands a project could go on. But I hope I will be able to incorporate my interest in aerial photography into futures projects and look at different aspects of it to inspire my work.

Samplings Unit Review

Initially when I was first given the brief I was a little confused as the project seemed very open to me and I didn’t quite know where to begin. But after reading through the brief a few times I decided that I just had to choose two words and start drawing and researching. To begin with I chose linear and nonlinear as I thought this would provide a good contrast in my work, however as the project has progressed my work has developed and subsequently so have my words. For the workshops, I decided to do machine embroidery because I had a small amount of experience of using machines but after seeing others work, from the origins unit, I saw the potential the machines have so I wanted to explore and discover them more.

From looking at my work and my previous

work from this year, I think one of the main aspects that has improved is my drawing, as at the beginning of the year I drew very literally and drew what I saw, but after the drawing workshops last term I realised that often the more interesting drawings are those that look beyond the subject and concentrate on mark making. I could improve my project by paying more attention to my samples and making them different and exploring a range of techniques and combining methods, rather than concentrating on just one. Trying to decide which samples to progress has sometimes been hard , but I have looked at my samples as a whole and the ones that initially stood out to me I have tried to progress, whilst still bearing the project and my sketchbook work in mind and what is relevant to prgressing my ideas.

 

My sketchbook has been more useful to me for this unit than for the Origins unit, as I feel that my drawings are more relevant and I find it easier to link my ideas to my work. It has also been to good as it has allowed to me be able to reflect more easily on my work. My contextual references have also helped me by giving me ideas of how to develop my ideas further. From looking at others work it has inspired me to try out different techniques as well as helping me to keep my project moving forward and trying new ideas out.

If I was to start the project again, I would have changed the words I initially chose as I think this limited me at the beginning of the project. I would also try to spend more time in the machine room experimenting. From doing this project I have realised that drawing is crucial to the project, I have never been the biggest fan of drawing but I have realised that it is essential to my work and I have started to enjoy it more and like discovering new ways and styles of drawing.

Sketchbook Review- Origins

For the origins unit I decided to investigate Chinatown in Manchester. First of all, I went to Chinatown, wandered round and got a feeling for the place. I then took some photos and did some quick sketches of the buildings and the space around me.  Looking back I don’t like these initial sketches as they are very literal and there are not many interesting details in them.  I then found ‘Wing Fat Supermarket’ which was full of amazing looking food and all of the packaging of the tins and cans were very bright and I wanted to see explore thses further and see what was inside of them.

At first I was not keen on starting as I just had a big blank sketchbook which looked too pristine to ruin. But once I started to put pen to paper, I enjoyed adding to the sketchbook and seeing my work develop and exploring more about Chinatown.  I was also not the biggest fan of showing others my work in my tutorials, and it still is my favourite thing to do. But since the first few weeks I have not minded so much showing and talking about my work to the tutorial group.

I much prefer my drawing and research found from the supermarket and food as it much more pattern based and not so literal and it has been easier to apply my drawings to my chosen workshops, hand processes and dye.  I think that the drawing workshops have helped me with this as they have shown me that often the more interesting drawings are when the obvious is not drawn but the unknown is explored, which people often don’t notice at first.  Also the different techniques that we have been taught have inspired to draw in a different way, such as blind drawing and focusing on the negative and positive space.

From looking through my sketchbook, it is clear that I need to add more contextual references and look at the work of other artists working in the same media as me. By doing this it will help inspire my work and show new ways in which I could work, as well as helping to show me what is relevant and on trend at the moment.  From looking at others sketchbook, I would like to add more drawings and markmakings of the work that I have already done to my sketchbook, as well as using a greater range of materials and mediums.

My Dog....

Here is my dog I made for the summer project using maps and fabric.