The Last Post

It took several days to plan, prepare and hang my exhibition for assessment.
I used a small studio in the Fine Art area, having asked Michael Wright for permission to use it.
Having painted the walls and prepared the boxes for mounting, i began hanging the silk panels.
I decided that they should form 'walls' to cause the viewer to walk a certain path that was quite narrow and 'hemmed in'
I hung the panels on fishing wire with magnetic hooks attached to the ceiling.

My sister came up to help me. She said that the panels needed to be lower as they were not 'In your face' enough. so we spent a long time cutting new lengths of line, getting up and down off a table to measure, adjust, attach and re-hang them.

I am very pleased with the final height as they do feel very close as you walk between them.

I wanted to create a sense of being overpowered by these menacing images full of unpleasant objects. 

The panels waft and flutter as you walk by them which adds an unsettling atmosphere too.

We then measured and marked an eye-line for the wall-mounted images.

I banged in some 6 inch nails , leaving 4 inches to attach the mounting boxes. I measured and made holes in the back of the boxes and pushed them onto the nails.

I then removed them and stuck the 4 images onto the fat surface of the boxes.

I mounted two wall images in the gap between the silk hangings, so that they would seem to hang there as you walk past the first hanging.

Here you can see the wall-mounted images places in the opening between the two silk hangings. You can also see that the centre of this wall image is at exactly my eye-level.

Once I had attached the box mounted images, I stuck two final images onto foam board and attached them to the walls either side of the doorway, hidden behind the silk screens. I hope it will cause a little surprise of discovery as the viewer walks round the space. it is to say "you can't get away from us, we will always be part of your life and will land on you when you don't expect us!'
Once everything was mounted, I thought it would be good to bring in a fan so that the panels seemed to move independently. I managed to drop the plug behind the stud wall and plug it in. Then I clipped it to the top of the wall panel at the back of the space. I am very pleased with the effect.

I have set out the little perspex boxes and the card index box on the plinth at the far end of the space. I hope they will create a 'draw' for the eye, so that the viewer catches sight of other images at the last minute, so they are suddenly 'there'. Wherever you stand in the space, there is a sense of being surrounded by work you can see or that is hidden. I wanted to create a feeling of not being quite relaxed, but slightly uneasy at all times.

I am happy with the final dissemination of my work as it looks good, the images are of high quality and I  have built the phenomenological sensation of dis-ease and malevolence  in the space. I also think the 'Seduction/ Repulsion' effect is there too.

I would like an enclosed space for the Final M.A Show in the Gallery in October to create this same sensation.

Final Feedback from Tutorial on 26.08.2014

I met with Peter Suchen, an artist and critic and Rebecca Thomas at Hatfield house for a final Tutorial.

With Peter, I discussed my artist's statement, and apart from a question about first or third person, he felt it was clear and concise and expressed everything a viewer would need to understand and appreciate my exhibition. He though that the way I planned to set out the room would create a fitting sense of being 'overpowered' and 'unsettled' by the work. Peter suggested that I mat be trying to include too many separate images, so I will think carefully about that factor when I put them up.

We discussed how in the future, I would like to start selling images and he felt that in the right galleries, they would sell. I felt quite content after this meeting that I had done as much preparation as I needed to and that I had made sound aesthetic choices. I am glad that I got more images printed than I will need, so I have a variety to select from. I cannot make those decisions until I start putting the work in place and see how they look together.

With Rebecca, I discussed the assessment criteria and LOM to make sure I had interpreted them correctly. It was reassuring that we reached similar understandings. Rebecca was able to make additional suggestions that were useful. The main input I got from this tutorial was a confirmation of my  drive to constantly improve, refine and push forward my original ideas from the proposal stage, right up to now. I feel confident about the quality of my work and its appeal and effect on others. I think I have achieved what I planned and suggested in my proposal.
I have not included sound effects or an overlay of film because that proved too complex and time-consuming in the given time scale. I adapted the planned idea of a  'Cabinet of Curiosities',  by collecting together the objects used; documenting, explaining and displaying them in little boxes.
I am also planning to make silk scarves with my designs in the future, and Rebecca felt this medium would work well.
Overall, I am content that I have worked very hard over the M.A course. I have been able to maintain a high work rate, producing complex intricate images, despite many distractions and problems. I have completed all assignments on time and to the best of my ability and am able to look back with pride on what I have achieved.

New Learning over the FMP Process(500 wds)

When I embarked on the Final Major project, I was still learning by experimentation and making mistakes. I enjoyed working in the darkroom, getting 'lost' for hours with experimental processes. I would get so excited, I would just rush forward, without thinking about my desired outcome or bothering to record the process for future reference. Now I am much better organised and have learnt to curb my enthusiasm long enough to write details of exposure time, filters and Fstops on the back of each image.
In this way I am able to repeat effects I like. I have definitely taught myself to think ahead to what I want to produce and how it will meet set assessment criteria. I regularly refer to my initial Gannt Chart for the FMP and check that I am on track with the weekly schedule. I think I have become a more professional practitioner.
I started the M.A course with very little knowledge or skill in digital processes. I was thinking in analogue and 'hands-on' manner and trying to translate that into digital processes.

I was very lucky to be working with Creative Arts students, who were all very generous with their time and expertise when I got stuck on something. As I work with dyslexic students, they are excellent at explaining new techniques to a slow learner like me! They knew exactly how important it was to allow me to learn the new skill with my hands on the keyboard, with them talking to me. That must make me a combination of a Kinaesthetic and auditory learner. I recorded instructions on my phone and wrote them up afterwards, so I have my own 'crib sheets.' They give me confidence.

I also loved regularly sharing work, and having discussions about theories, new artists and ideas with my students, friends and peers. This proved a rich and valuable learning experience. We were able to inspire each other, give useful feedback and make new suggestions.
Examples of posts from my blog about new learning:

Printing onto silk
Clone stamp
Holger Putin Tutorial
Polygon tool
Flipping horizontal and Vertical
Hanging and wall mounting
responding to work of others

If I were to analyse my learning processes:

I LOOK at work of other artists--- and try to RECREATE it in a new way, learning the necessary skills.

I READ about theories, or the thoughts and practises of other practitioners

---and try to EXPRESS my own interpretation using similar techniques and processes.

I FEEL  an emotional response to what I see or read --- and try to represent or evoke that same feeling in my work, experimenting with new methodologies and testing it out on others.

Over all, I have taught myself to work in a more structured, efficient  way, recording techniques, ideas and people as I go along. I feel I have learnt a lot about how I learn best and what had obstructed my learning process in the past. I try hard now to follow the new structures I have put in place.

Creative Decision Making over the FMP Process (500 wds)

Creative Decision Making

Several key theories underpin the creative decision making for my Final Major Project.
I have built on my understanding of Julia Kristeva’s theory of the Abject (Kristeva, 1982). In an attempt to interpret what we find abject as humans, I have developed my own personal response. I studied artists who used the abject in their work in order to make a serious point or relay a message.
The idea that there were common global elicitors of disgust also fed into my work and influenced decisions I made. (Rozin Et al.1994)
I wanted to refer to the idea of 'Aura’ surrounding an original piece of art due to the touch of the artist, first suggested by Walter Benjamin (Benjamin, 1969). So chose to print onto silk, then prepare the fabric for hanging, which involved a lot of hands-on input from me, ensuring my work had an aura of its own. I was also influenced by the idea of an image having a ‘Punctum’ described by Rowland Barthes (1981) as something within a photographic image, which caught and held the viewer’s eye making an almost physical, emotional connection. Through the selection and combination of shapes, colours and composition, I tried to create an image that drew the eyes to a central ‘void’, point of focus or vanishing point which became the initial ‘punctum’ of the image.
I chose to create symmetrical pieces from several manipulated sections, partly to mask the nature of the objects I was using and partly again to draw the eye. It seems that balanced proportions are pleasing to humans and are present in the creative arts of most cultures and eras. (Hahn, 1998)
I made creative choices based on my study of Old Dutch Masters’ still life paintings of flowers, fruit, insects and skulls from the 17th Century such as Willem Kalf and Jan Davidsz de Heem.
I incorporated their theme of the transience of beauty; giving way to decay and death as represented by the creeping insect and skull symbolism.
I researched other artists in the field of photography in order to better understand and create work that caused a ‘Seduction/Repulsion’ effect.
The use of bright colours, simple symmetrical design and balanced composition in the work of Gilbert and George (1994,2014) have a mesmeric effect on the viewer, holding the attention much like a stained glass window in a church. It is not until closer, more detailed study that you realise there are quite unsettling objects and messages in the images. I chose to produce work with a serious message cloaked in a seductive first impression.
Many artists have used their art as a form of therapy. This has influenced the creative decision making in my Final Major Project. Artists such as Louise Bourgeois, Cindy Sherman, Tracy Emin and Yayio Kusama have all used personal experiences to inform and shape their work. Making the choice to use personal material, I too have added deeper meaning and weight. The psychology of ‘facing your demons’ described as ‘Acceptance and Commitment Therapy’ (Harris, 2014) also influenced the decision to represent all my ‘demons’ symbolically.
As a result of the creative decisions I have made concerning dissemination for exhibition, I have produced work that is glossy and attractive. The silk hangings are positioned in such a way that they move and flutter close to the viewer, making the experience haptic and sensual. The glossy paper images are slightly hidden, in a restricted space, so have to be sought out for closer consideration. The symbolic objects within the images then reveal themselves, causing a jolt. The aim is to share something of the shock and distress of some of my life experiences.



Bibliography

Barthes, R. (1981) ‘Camera Lucida-Reflections on Photography’
New York: Hill and Wang


Benjamin, Walter, (1969) ‘The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction.’ In Illuminations, New York: Schocken Books) 221.


Gilbert and George
‘Naked Shit Pictures’ (1994)Available at: ‪www.southlondongallery.org/page/gilbert-george-the-naked.‬..‬‬‬
‘Scapegoating Pictures for London’(2014) Available at:
‪whitecube.com/exhibitions/gilbert_george_scapegoating..‬[ both accessed 8 August 2014]‬‬‬

Haidt Et al (1994)  ‘Individual Differences in Sensitivity: A Scale Sampling Seven Domains of Disgust Elicitors’  Journal of Personality and individual Differences
 (4. 16.)

Hahn, W. (1998) ‘Symmetry as a Developmental Principle in Nature and Art’ Germany: Art & Science Research Institute.

Harris, R. (2014) ‘Embracing your demons: an overview of acceptance and commitment Theory’ Available at: actskills.com/articles/embracing-your-demons-an-overview..‬[accessed 20. August 2014]

Kristeva, J. (1982) ‘Powers of Horror: An essay on Abjection’ Leon, S. Roudiez (Translator) New York: Columbia University Press

Rozin, P., Haidt, J., & McCauley, C. R. (2008). Disgust. In M. Lewis, J. M. Haviland-Jones & L. F. Barrett (Eds.), Handbook of emotions, 3rd ed. (pp. 757-776). New York: Guilford

More Planning and Preparation

I am in the studio again thinking about how to show my work. I have decided to print another two fabric hangings so that the viewer feels a little overawed and intimidated (hopefully)

 I measured the studio and am thinking about how to make the most impact with the space I have.

I am going to create a corridor down the centre of the room, using the hangings as 'false walls'.
I will then place an image behind each hanging so that you have to walk behind it to see the image.
I may place a third image on each side wall, in the gap between the hangings. That will draw the viewer towards it and make them aware of the images hidden behind. I hope to evoke the feeling that  I cannot escape my shit, and that it is always there, hidden in the background, waiting to come crashing into my life again.

I have also been painting cardboard boxes that I want to use to mount some of the paper images on.
I am also painting the walls and plinth ...

Once these are dry, I will experiment by sticking the image to the largest side and attaching the box to the wall. I want to give the impression of the images 'hanging' in the same way as the fabric.

Reflection and Evaluation Workshop 13/08/14

The M.A Media group had a workshop with Ian Willcock about  our preparation for the final assignment of our course of study today.

Today we looked in more detail at the assessment criteria and details of the brief. As well as a powerpoint presentation, Ian organised pair and group sessions which really helped to involve me actively in discussing the objectives, thinking about them, and finding solutions. The whole session suited the way I learn, as it was fast-paced and divided into several different tasks and formats.

I need to prepare a presentation evaluating my final project by 2nd September, have my work up in the studio for assessment,  and make sure I have completed my blog according to specified requirements  by 16.00 on Wednesday 3rd September.
I also have to include two 500 word posts in my blog:
 one reflecting on my creative decision making,
 and the other on the process of learning new skills during the course of my Final Major Project.

To begin with I found it difficult to separate out these two elements as I tend to combine them. When I learn something new, I want to experiment by taking my work in a different direction. Alternatively,   when I want to try  something that I have seen at an exhibition, I seek out the skills necessary to do it.

Reflection and Evaluation
Reflection is a very personal process which questions what I have done, how it made me feel, what I was good or bad at and how I might have done things differently. This questioning process should lead me to be a more self-aware practitioner.
Evaluation is a far more academic, structured and objective process. I need to establish justifiable criteria to apply to my artefact and do so with reference to underpinning research and evidence to support my judgements.

The pair activity was in the form of an interview about each other's work. The questions I chose to ask were 'stepping off points' which lead to an interesting discussion. It was interesting to see the passion and excitement generated by talking about our own work.

My most fruitful questions were:

What or who was the inspiration for your work?

What was the most difficult part?

What was the message you were trying to express?

Do you think it 'works'?

When we shared questions with another pair, and then heard from the other groups, I realised that I had not looked ahead at the end purpose of this exercise,  and geared my  questions towards the assignment criteria. I had not included questions about documentation and time management, feedback and how you used it, new skills learnt and creative decision making.
My original questions were more about reflection.

I realised that once I had established a full range of suitable questions, they could form the 'bones'  of my written reflection and evaluation.

As a result of this workshop I have set myself several tasks:

1. Look back through my blog posts and make notes under:

a) Creative Decision Making

b) New Learning

c) Placing my work at the forefront

2. Check the Assessment criteria,  make sureI know the requirements,
 then tick them off as they are met

3. Start thinking about criteria I will use to evaluate my own work

4. Begin to plan my presentation

I usually make these kind of 'To Do' lists in my note book, but felt it was important to evidence this aspect of my own methodology and management of time and tasks in a blog post that can be used as an example for two of the learning outcomes 'manage self….' and '..make good use of time and resources…'

Wall Mounting Considerations

I would like to mount the paper images on the walls of the studio with as little around them to distract the audience as possible. So, no frame or border, or obvious sign of fixing to the wall.

I saw some very big pieces of work in the Chapman Lounge, in the main Building of College Lane,  which were mounted onto blocks of wood about 5 centimetres deep. The work was bigger than the mount behind, so it seemed to 'float' off the wall. A similar construction for my work would almost push the image towards the audience more, creating an unsettling sense of proximity and perhaps intimidation.

There is about 3 c. m of 'overhang' on each edge of the work, so the means of mounting and attachment to the wall are not visible.
The work had no details with it so I cannot credit the artist here.

I found an A3 paper box, and experimented with it as a form of attachment for an A2 image.

I quite like the effect here as from front-on the image is suspended at eye level. The parts of the image that are not supported by the backing box may bend or warp slightly, so I ay have to think about building little struts attached to the box that add rigidity to the whole of the image.

A some angles, the box behind the image will be visible, if only glanced as the viewer is moving round the room. so the finish and quality of the surface will need to be more uniform and look solid. I could make it firmer by attaching wide tape round every side, then paint it with white emulsion so that it disappears into the white wall in the background.

These images also highlight the added problem of light bouncing off the glossy surface of the image causing the detail to be distorted or blocked out. I may be able to soften or diffuse the light source in some ay to prevent this effect.

When the image is viewed from directly in front, there is no light flare on the surface. I like the simplicity of this method of mounting.

I found some A3 storage boxes that were being thrown away, so I was able to have 10 of them. They are more substantial than the one featured above, and once painted may form a perfect, rigid support and mount for the paper images.

The depth is about 7 c.m so the 'floating' effect will be even more prominent.

I will probably have to glue all the sides together to ensure the support remains rigid. Then I will paint them with white emulsion. It is very important that the images are all suspended at exactly the same height. I want to create a sense of 'order' and 'control' just as I have within the images themselves. I think two screws fixed just smaller than the width of the top edge of the box would enable me to push the box mount onto the screws, then they will be invisible. 

I have researched the average eye-level height of men and women which is 160 c.m. (www.google.uk) I will temporarily attach an image at the height and get some feedback from peers.