Thursday 16 February 2012

Monday 13 February 2012

Mapping the Body_______3

Drawing attention to the knees. Aided by fashion. 


The Hooker Boot - over the knee boots made famous by Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman. Purpose to provide padding to hookers knees whilst pleasuring men.


Taylor Momsen as always looking like a tramp...sexy... dirty... or both?


Knee High Socks - heavily related to the obedient and 'innocent' school girl image. 



The knee seems to carry a 'femme fatal' image. Fashion helps to ruin the strong independent woman of the 21st centuary. Instead it shouts 'Hello Boys....Im here to serve'. 




Mapping the Body_______2

How do we view knees? ...Sexy? Seductive? Saucy?


I looked into female role models of the past and present and its ALL about the knees!!








The poses of these women are playful and suggestive. The knees are a focal point within the image. They act as a guard to their most intimate parts. Knees are therefore a tease ...a reminder that approval for admittance is required. 

Mapping the Body_______

New Project :D I choose the Knee at random. I've been researching the knee for over a week now. Something that has really interested me is the nerves/veins within the knee. 



All of the veins gather at the centre point of the knee. They remind me of a collection of main roads entering a city and joining in a mass around the outskirts of the city. 


The knee is a hub of activity. A central point in our ability to move and aids or impedes our ability to go about our daily activities. Similar to he function of main roads within a bustling city centre. 


Wednesday 8 February 2012

The ABC Project________

Q - I give in. Been searching for half an hour and can not find anything. 






R


RITA BEY YU LIN









RALLOU KATSARI












REGINE SCHWARZER






Monday 6 February 2012

Sunday 5 February 2012

Term 1: THE REVIEW/CRITIC _______

This week I have been gathering all of my work from Term 1 and preparing it for my Formative Review. 

Here is a picture of my little display:


I really enjoyed putting my display together. It almost felt professional haha....long wayyy off :) So, with Term 1 being assessed it has provided me with an opportunity to take stock of what I have achieved/learnt thus far.  Here goes...my honest and frank critic :/ eK! 



Signs, Symbols and Stories

This was my favourite project. I loved the brief and was thoroughly engrossed in my theme. I learnt that I have very strong research techniques and am able to challenge myself into a more diverse way of thinking i.e. interoperating the brief into more of a symbolic resolution than physical traits. Also, I learned that I am like a dog with a bone when it comes to something I like. I just keep going and going. In future, when I become excited about a project I feel it would be beneficial to take regular intervals to stop and concentrate on the direction the project is heading and what direction I want it to take.  This would ensure that I spent the majority of my time developing areas that were the strongest. Therefore, increasing my productivity in my development stage. 

All-in-all I am very pleased with my outcome for this project. I do not see it as a finished article and I am all most certain that I will revisit it in the future. To be cont... :)


X-School Project

Ah the lovely X-School Project. Esh... where to start. Lets start with the positive. I was challenged into working with a variety of different breads of Art students. It was interesting to meet people from different specialisms. It became an affirmation that I had chosen the right course. Each course has a certain type of folk that are attracted to it...lets just say I couldn't wait to be back at Skypark safe and sound with my fellow jewellers. I enjoyed the overall point in the project i.e. for us to think about our own artistic ethics. It made me think about how I want to practice once I graduate and how I view Art. I think art should be for everyone to enjoy. Hence, why I feel I would be more suited to a career in High St Jewellery, or community arts etc... I do not wish to be a gallery artist where the rich come to splash there cash. I want my designs to reach a much wider audience. It is important to learn these things now in order to aim/direct my designs to a particular audience. 

The negatives hmmm can I be frank? I personally do not feel that the project was delivered to the best of its ability. I understand FoCI had made changes this year i.e. instead of the group creating an object together, everyone makes an individual object. The group activity was to come up with a rationale. Lecturers were asking why no-one was using the space provided and simply it was much easier for us all to separate to make our pieces in our own workshops and then come together for the rationale. I think by taking away the group object it has provided a huge whole in the "group" mentality of the project. Also, no-one students and lecturers seemed to know what the outcome/criteria was meant to be. This lead to a lot of aimless discussions and very confused, stressed first year students. 

One thing that really annoyed me about this project was the grading system. It DID NOT state anywhere in the brief that the object created would have to be self explanatory. I received an overall grade - B2. The comment was,

"This wearable object suggests making connections, but the meaning is very subjective and open to mis-interpretation."

My object was meant to be subjective and open to and individuals interpretation. as far as I am concerned there was no right or wrong interpretation of my object. It was what anyone wanted it to mean, therefore impossible to be miss-interpretated. 

Most of the objects chosen to exhibit were books. Spoon fed art! If that is what they wanted, they should have stated it. The grading system should have been a PASS or FAIL. I hope FoCI ask for feedback as the idea of the project was good but delivery was poor. 

Overall feeling of this project...Glad it did it but never EVER want to do it again!


The Medal Project

The medal project was our first introduction to a live project. It gave the project a direct purpose and with the opportunity to win, it really up't everyone's game. We received a lecture via the British Arts Medal Society. It was really insightful and showed us how sought after art medals are. This is definitely a market that jewellers could tap into. 

I really liked my 'injection of nature' medal. However, I was unable to be cast into bronze because I had used a combination of clay and wax. I have learnt that when lost wax casting I really have two briefs to adhere too i.e. the brief from BAMS but also the limitations and requirements to cast successfully. Casting is more of a manufacturer method therefore pieces have to be designed with that in mind. Lesson learned! Must research the making process before finalising a design. But gutted my medal didn't cast. The silver lining is that I really enjoyed gathering my source material for this brief and I feel it could come in handy in the future.


49 Project 

Hmmmmm This was a Love/Hate project. Hated doing it but loved the outcome. I think I struggled with the repetitiveness and volume of work required. To create 49 pieces that were worthy of being put on show were a test and struggle. Most of my development stages are duds and never see the light of day. This project was kind of like displaying worst 'n' all. However, it made me re-think and observe drawings that I would usually dismiss. This proved very helpful as there was always some aspect of the pieces that would interest me which I could take on to develop. I have learned not to be so judgemental of my own work. Everything has merit and the majority of the time it is the little mistakes that guide me to the outcome. 


Text in Form

I really enjoyed this project. I was a little exhausted of working in paper from the previous project. This is reflected in my piece. This project broadened my understanding of Book Art and also highlighted that paper is a popular material used in jewellery design. 

I felt like I hadn't produced as much work for this brief as I had for all of the previous. This unsettled me and I looked for ways to develop my piece more. However, I really liked it the way it was and felt by developing it more it was becoming more of a hinderance. I have learnt that sometimes less is more and I should be more confident about my work. Quantity does not out weigh quality so I should let my work come to a natural end. 


Overall thoughts on Term 1

I think we have grown and bonded as a strong group. Even though it is not the most riveting experience thus far, I feel that we are being equipped with a strong foundation in design process. This will set in good stead when we move into Second Year. 

I am really looking forward to being in the studio on a Thursday during Term 2. :D 




Friday 3 February 2012

London Babyyyyy: British Museum

We visited 'The tomb of the unknown craftsman' exhibition @ The British Museum. Honestly, usually I avoid these type of old artefact museums. I appreciate the craft, but it just does not do it for me.  However, this exhibition was a nice 'bite-size' introduction. 

I really liked the opening message;

"Do not look to hard for meaning here. I am not a historian, I am an artist. That is all you need to know" 


I think this prompted people to do the exact opposite. When I was observing people viewing the exhibition they were mostly deep in thought trying to find a meaning... a purpose... perhaps the point. I overheard long winded discussions via articulate mouths contemplating "the meaning". Perhaps this was Grayson Perry's intention????

The artefacts were the usual run of the mill types you would expect. What interested me most were the quotes from Grayson Perry (curator). One in particular was his take on Maps.

"Maps: We trust maps. Maps are meant to be a trustworthy diagram of reality. All maps though, contain some very human bias. They can emphasise desirable features and leave out the undesirible. I like maps of feeling, beliefs and the irrational. They use our trust of maps to persuade us that there might be some truth in their beauty." - Grayson Perry

I had never really thought about the trust we have for maps and how someone would be able to take advantage of this trust to direct us to something they deemed desirable. Therefore, indirectly influencing our lives. 

Our next projects title is: Mapping the body. I receive the brief on Monday but already I think I might choose this quote as inspiration for it, as long as it fits into the brief. 

I seen a book in the Museum shop that was really interesting: Personal Geographie and other maps of the imagination by Katherine Harmon. I didn't buy it at the time because I was skint. My student loan comes in soon, so I might just have to buy it for the sake of art! :D 





London Babyyyyy: The Serpentine Gallery

This gallery was my least favourite. The walk through the park to get to it was the most enjoyable part. There were videos on loop of close up of peoples mouths eating lolly pops and blowing bubbles. It was disgusting :( not my taste of Art.

The only part I liked was the thread display: 


The connection sections were beautifully intertwined. I think its intricacy and fragile quality is what attracted me to this display.      

London Babyyyyy: The V&A

The V&A was like walking into a pirates hidden treasure chest. It was an amazing timeline of the past and present. 

Designers that stood out to me were:


BARBARA PAGANIN



CAROLINE BROADHEAD



GIJS BAKKER



ALBERTO ZORZI



GIOVANNI CORVAJA








Thursday 2 February 2012

London Babyyyyy: Electrum

I found Electrum gallery much more innovative. The designers showcased  introduced different ways of wearing and making jewellery. This was my favourite gallery visit. 

E.G.
DAPHNE KRINOS

- Different ways to set some stones. 



FERNANDO JORGE

- uses organic shaped stones. His rings look as if they have energy like flowing water. 

TOM & JUTTA MUNSTEINER

- I love the way these gems are cut. 


More Electrum designers can be seen here.





London Babyyyyy: Contemporary A A

The CAA is a cute little gallery housing some decadent jewellery displays from the most up and coming jewellery designers in Britain. 



E.G. 
MARK NUELL 


- I love this! Wish I had a few grand to spare. It looks juicy! 




I managed to take a few pictures of the exhibition before I was told hat camera's were not aloud. I know they say that for copyright reasons but come on...clearly i'm a student and i'm just going to 'google' a picture of it later. 










You can have a look at their current exhibition and artists here