Maquettes 2

I have been focusing on mainly one aspect of my model making for the last while. I like the idea of making objects in my attempt to convey a sense of protection and care. The original model I made came from the idea of putting something up high, out of reach on a shelf. I have been experimenting with shapes and arrangement to get a sense of vulnerability into the pieces, and see how I can make them get the ideas across clearer.

Maquettes

I had been working around the idea of repairs for some time, and I found when I looked back over my research, that the objects themselves seemed to be getting in my way. I find the care that people give to very ordinary, unimportant objects fascinating, and I want to try and express that in my work. People pack pictures and postcards away in boxes so they don't become damaged, precious tableware goes in a display case or up on a very high shelf, an old coat that seems very ordinay is repaired instead of buying a new one. Objects serve as symbols and reminders of people, places and memories and we care for them accordingly, making sure they don't become broken or lost, and finding or fixing them when they do.
It is this feeling of care and protection of a small, non-essential item that is the most interesting point of my research, and I am attempting to express that. By taking the specific objects out of the story, and working with simpler, more abstract shapes I find that the feeling comes across more, instead of the viewer becoming distracted by why each object specifically was chosen. I have been playing around with different ideas to see how best to get this across.


                                   

I'm looking at the scale and thickness of the shapes aswell, a thick wall can denote something very different from a paper thin one; as can scale and repitition. There is a lot more experimenting to be done, and I think I could get some great results if I really push this far enough.

Repairs 2

Since my last post I have moved on quite a lot in my project. I reviewed my work to date, and I felt that although the reassembled toys were interesting, they didn't really get the point I wanted across, and their main factor was in shock value rather than repairing things. I felt that the ceramic pieces had more to them, so I tried to keep reassembling them, trying to see how much I could do with the different shapes of the broken crockery.

It seemed a little bit unsure, and lacking direction, so I looked at these models and tried to re-asses my project, and what I was trying to say with it. I realised that what I was trying to get across from this breaking and assembling of objects was the importance that people place in very every-day, mundane objects. Something that is a gift or has a memory attached to it will be treasured in a way more expensive items may not. I hope to research this idea more and find a way to show how people can treasure very simple, ordinary items.

I started thinking about ways to try and convey this idea of ordinary things becoming very important, and I looked into the historical aspects of this. I noted how japanese culture respects the ordinary, and how they find beauty in the most simple, functional vessels for their tea ceremonys. I don't want to use this directly in my project as it is full of so much history that I really don't have the knowledge to comment on, but I liked that idea of beauty in functionality; and wanted to try and apply it to a more western, modern culture. I decided upon looking at a plastic cup, as it is entirely functional and no part of it is intended to do anything other than act as a temporary vessel. I have started investigating how to create a sense of importance when you look at this object, and think exploring this path more could lead to some really interesting results.

By changing the environment, size, or material the cup is made from it says something very different than if it is sitting in a dispenser, and I want to find a way to use this in my work to show how important the humble things can be. 

Repair

 I've started my project for final year now, a little bit scary but it's keeping me busy at least! I've always been fascinated with repaired items, especially when the repairs stand out, it sort of illustrates their story, and leaves you wondering why they were repaired, or how they came to be damaged etc. At first I collected an image bank of repaired items, to try and illustrate why I feel that they are visually appealing.

I also started looking at other artists and designers who repair and re-use materials, to help me see how I could incorporate this idea into my work like Vik Gramacho, who used the rubbish from the Jardim Gramacho dump to create images of the people who work there

I wasn't sure how to continue my research; I had a bank of images and wasn't sure how to get away from just taking pictures; so then I decided to make my own repairs. I bought a china doll and dropped her from a window, then stuck her back together to go through the entire process of breaking and repairing something, piece by piece.

This gave me a whole new set of ideas to explore, playing with the concept of repairing something, and now I have started to mix up my repairs, making do with other objects or repairing things 'incorrectly' to see how it can change people's perception of the objects.

Finished Work

I finally got all my work fired and glazed. I'm quite pleased with the individual pieces, though I think I prefer the white glaze to the sandy colour, as it smooths over the bumps better, whereas the sandy one seems to highlight the imperfections. I knew that since I was hand modelling each piece I wouldn't be able to get them absolutely perfect, but I wasn't sure whether to make a feature out of the lines and bumps on the surface or to try and disguise them. Overall, although I think the sandy glaze is more natural, and does have a sort of bony feel to it I prefer the white glaze. It's simpler, and in my opinion makes you pay more attention to the shape of the piece.

 Building the pieces up together is quite tricky. I didn't make them match perfectly so that the structure would be ratehr unstable and fragile, and convey the weak element of the spine; but it does also make building the piece up for display a little trickier! I like the interactvie element to it though, and it is something I would like to work more on.

Overall I am happy with this piece, but I think I could work more on the overall structure of the individual units, to make them look more fragile, and also on how they fit together, to see if I could push this stacking element into something more stimulating.

Final Project

I have been working on the shapes which I decided on to illustrate my ideas on the spine. The first pieces I made were a little too flat when you stacked them up on top of each other, so I tried to twist the shapes more, and make each one individual so they brought a different element to the piece. I still have to finalise the type of glaze I want to use. There is a certain amount of lines left on the surface of each piece, even though I smooth and sand them before firing. I don't know whether to try to cover this with a white glaze, or highlight it to make the pieces look more like bones. I have some small test pieces in the kiln at the moment, so when they come out I will have a better idea of what I want to do with them.