Taster of the end product...

The work has definitely progressed over the past several months and I am really enjoying where it is naturally taking me. It feels very organic and it has been the most engaging yet.

 I intend to carry on with the drawing, and 3D for the time being and I will entwine the two in the end result as they both feed each other. Here is a taste of what I intend to pursue for my show...

Paintings

I have wanted to experiment with a mixture of 3D on 2D large scale paintings, I am very interested in tonal qualities and creating modern patterns inspired by nature and what i have been exploring. I have decided it is not the right time at the moment however as I want to keep the ball rolling with the areas of my practice I already have going. Although I may not delve into this a great deal I feel it is something I must try at some point.

The white boards were an experiment with base tone and texture ideas and the blue work was from earlier in the summer. Watch this space for more later in the year...

In the Aquarium

The fragments also quite closely resemble coral like forms and this has opened up a whole new area in the drawing side of things, as well as inspiring how I imagine their potential layout and display further down the line. I am a bit worried if this has relevance as such but again, the work has been going its own way over the past several weeks so for the moment at least; I am going to let it lead me…

I have discovered some amazing images that have set my creativity wild just recently but due to licencing Im afraid I cant share. A book to seek out if you are intreaged however: Oceanic Wilderness by Roger Steene, definately one for the bookshelf guys! 

              

                                          Images of work to come…watch this space!!!

Fragments

 I have certainly gone more abstract now, making often very small fragments from paper mache. Although you cannot really tell what they are, they are actually moulded around a glass manikin head used for the previous adornments from over summer. The underlining idea is still important to me even though at the moment the work has taken its own path but at this stage I am actually quite enjoying this. They do however; slightly resemble shed skins, which in reference to the underlined metamorphosis idea is surprisingly relevant.

I have brought back the colour and have indeed found it works far better small, allowing for the vibrancy without being intruding…

Black and White

I was advised to carry on with the 3D work by my course tutor but in a much more abstract way. I was not sure at first, as I wanted what I was trying to say to be quite clear to the viewer, or so I thought at this stage. I didn’t want to get lost or sidetracked but on the other hand, did realise I needed to develop and explore more. The less literal of the adornments did work the best and I was interested to see where it would take me.

It was also said that I should take away the colour and try both drawing and making in just black and white. As someone who loves to work with colour I was a bit worried about this but it has definitely helped me a great deal in terms of the standard of my drawings and the experimentation with the 3D as well, focusing a lot more on pattern and tone. My work has definitely gained more sophistication due to this.

                                                                       

I have become quite obsessed with pattern through retracting colour and it has definitely improved the quality and standard of my work. It was an important element of my practice before but I really do wish to pursue this area a lot further and it will be very apparent in the final outcome.

Sometimes a broad and unlimited pallet can overwhelm and speak a different visual language. I will be reintroducing it at some point but in a far more controlled way, quite possibly on a much smaller scale…

Moment of clarity

So, what do Venetian masks, butterflies, and reptiles have in common I thought. I knew there was a link somewhere but as I was enjoying my work so much, I didn’t think about it all that often. In previous years the meaning behind my work has not been a particularly my strong point or focus, the process and aesthetic qualities were more important to me. I wanted to at least start with a good idea behind my work before I went any further this time, as it would be the key to keeping the year long project alive and give my work room to progress and change.

Identity…

Each of the areas are very much related to being able to become something else, to change into another character or being.

• Venetian Mask: Disguise allows the wearer to conceal their everyday personas, and can release the ‘inner self’ or hidden personality.

• Butterflies: Metamorphosis, a physical transformation

• Reptiles: Camouflage, an escape or chance to be released from the normal state. Shed skins are also another link; letting go or the old self and starting fresh.

Reptiles

Around the same time I also came across a book of my Grandads with very inspiring images of rainforest creatures. The reptiles especially stood out to me with their very textured skins and markings. I knew I somehow had to incorporate this as well but again, how were all these things relating?

Butterflies

Along with these ‘headdresses’ I was also very intrigued by a collection of framed butterflies we have at home, not so much the forms but the patterns they had. I wasn’t sure how it linked into my 3D work at this time but it was just something I felt I needed to do and could maybe use later on...