Week 12-13 Migrate

There are many definitions to this word, whether it is literally taking an object and moving it to a different location, metaphorphisis - changing shape and form, mutation or reinvention. The first thing I thought of when given this brief was changing the concept of an object by removing it from its original use and putting it in a different context to change its meaning or purpose. Therefore, I began collecting objects and making changes to them to change their concept for my installation. I took a bicycle wheel from its original use and covered it with black lace, making it into an aesthetic instead of a functional object. Then a gravy boat with blue velvet, medicine boxes taken apart and put together again and onion peels dipped in wax, which created beautiful silhouette shapes. 

The following studio class, we did figurative drawing which I most enjoyed doing. We took turns being the model which we drew from, while two of us dressed this person using the clothing we had with us. Some of these outfits looked outrageous and interesting, which produced interesting silhouette shapes when we drew from them. The most important thing in our drawings should be the quality of line and the silhouette, not focusing on sketchy lines and shading or any other visual information. 

Using these drawings, we photocopied them and blown them up into much larger proportions, as well as colour inverted them so that a large proportion of our drawings are black with a simple white line that outlines the silhouette of the figure. With these photocopies, we cut and mutated them, putting together very simplistic shapes, the purpose was to reinvent and mutate the silhouette. We continued experimenting by making slits in the shapes and twisting it around to mutate and reinvent its form and shape. This can represent garments that can be altered - slits that aren't meant to be there which challenge and push boundaries of proportion.

Fashion Textiles Week 10-11 Overwhelm

Given this title as our new brief, we began looking for objects around us that are overwhelming and 'over the top'. We were required to bring in these objects to create an installation. Initially, l used 'burlesque and showgirl' as my concept as my objects were dramatic, brightly coloured and feathery. Our installations consisted of a background and a foreground, in relation to our concept.  The purpose of this installation was so that we could collect enough visual information to allow our work to develop by generating ideas from it. This was the problem with my installation. My objects were not solid enough to draw from and did not provide enough visual information, which led me to run out of ideas fairly quickly and I was stuck.

Of course then, it was probably a better option to change my concept. Therefore, I was suggested to consider using the idea of flight as my concept. We had been experimenting with some wet media as well, such as using ink, paint and monoprinting, which produced ideas that also suggested flight or random placement. Eventually, my concept changed to the idea of displacing and replacing. Experimenting with monoprint, I cut out simplistic shapes from these prints and replaced with the overloading of stripe or stitch. I also introduced a little colour with the use of light blue against grey, black or white. I had also photocopied some of these and stitched over them.

During my crit, I presented with a wide range of ideas after struggling on my first week. Although I could have developed by using a wider variety of shapes and colour palette, again because there was insufficient visual information provided by my installation.

Fashion Textiles

After completing the eight weeks of rotations, I now have to decide which rotation I would like to specialize in. This is a very hard decision as each rotation is so different and each offers such different approaches to art and design. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time doing this Chelsea Foundation program so far and having completed these rotations, I am finally able to decide which rotation appeals to me the most.

Fashion Textiles is my first choice of subject as this was the rotation that I thoroughly enjoyed the most. During this rotation, I learnt a lot through drawing and experimentation, by looking at objects and the environment around us, manipulating them by compressing and expanding, which encourages us to look at these objects in a completely different way. Although all of these rotations show equal importance between drawing, making and research, I realize that Fashion Textiles is useful as not only does it apply to the fashion industry, but also to architecture and interior design, which are areas that I also show interest in, as it also encourages me to think about how form can work with function.  During the crit, it was fascinating to see what different end products people in my group have come up with, as each one was so unique, with a different concept behind them and I found it extremely useful to discuss our works with each other to see how we can develop further.

I am quite interested in experimenting with the different types of materials that are both new and unconventional, which encourage imagination and reinvention. During this rotation, I experimented with materials I found from the hardware store, materials that you would not normally use for making clothing. I experimented with these, cutting them up, bending them and painted over them to reinvent their surface textures.

Before doing this rotation, I never thought I would choose to specialize in Fashion Textiles, as I have always thought of myself as a Fine artist. However, completing the Fashion Textiles rotation has given me a new insight to the subject. It was not at all as I have expected, and I really enjoyed working with the topic of 'Compress and Expand'. Given this brief, I loved working with new materials and have particularly enjoyed how we were encouraged to manipulate our designs, to push further and embrace the 'happy mistakes', which made me feel confident with my work. I was struggling at first as the idea of a concept  confused me, but after further developing my ideas and experimenting with different designs, the concept came to me naturally instead of having to search for it. Having done History of Art as an A Level, I have learnt about different types of architecture from many different periods. My designs reminded me  of organic forms that are seen on modern architecture such as the 'Guggenheim Museum' and the Sydney Opera House, therefore I chose this theme as my concept. 

Although I will be studying History of Art after this foundation year, I would really love to be given the opportunity continue developing my creativity before going on to study the more theoretical and historical aspect of art, and I am quite certain that Fashion Textiles is the right area of choice for me.

WEEK#7&8 FINE ART

During the first couple of days of doing Fine Art, we did a lot of quick drawings in the studio, where four installations were set up. Each of us brought in an object which we placed on the installations, and we were encouraged to draw each of these installations by moving around them. Initially, my drawings were quite precise and controlled, which I realized then lacks a sense of dynamism and became much of a bore. I then changed my way of drawing into a sketchier, looser style which introduced dynamism into my drawings. I also moved around the four installations a lot, allowing me to complete a variety of drawings, mainly using charcoal and pencil.


On Tuesday and Wednesday, we were told to explore the city and take a series of sequential photographs of the busy and dynamic streets, where things are constantly moving around us. Oxford Circus being my destination of choice, I stood at a crossroad and took sequential photographs of moving buses, cars and people crossing the streets, using a streetlight as my point of focus - which was the only thing that stayed constantly still in all my photographs. I also did a few quick drawings there, although I thought this was difficult as things were moving by so quickly, therefore continued at home to draw from some of my photographs.
On the same day, I also visited the "Move" exhibition at the Hayward Gallery, which I found very different to any other gallery as this explores the relationship between art and dance, using sculptures or installations to guide sequences of movement. Here, I saw multiples of very interesting installations that required the participation of the viewer, such as to go inside it or walk through it, as well as dancers and choreography which made the exhibition seem full of life and movement.


We began drawing specific objects from the installations onto acetate with a permanent marker. Each of these objects have to be drawn three times from different angles and all together we each had 15 drawings. With these acetate drawings, we were encouraged to play around and experiment with them using our images taken from the previous days. Putting the images together, I used white acrylic paint to block out parts of the images which I wanted to remove and scanned them onto my computer to make a short animation. However, I'm not very pleased with this animation as the images put together don't look like they are moving but instead look like still shots to me...


During our last week, I took lots of photos from Portobello market of objects and places that interest me. Most of my photos are very colourful images of prints, patterns and objects, as well as vintage jewellry and decorations. I began experimenting with these photos by drawing from them and cutting them up, but what I want to focus on most was COLOUR. I began using watercolour and acrylic to paint objects, using colour non-descriptively in a more abstract sense.

WEEK#5 & 6 Fashion Textiles - Compress & Expand

On our first couple of days doing fashion textiles, we mainly did a lot of drawing and photographing. Collecting objects that can be manipulated by compressing and expanding, such as cans, bottles, balloons and rubber bands, we made models and drew from them. We experimented using different drawing materials, using different weights of line with the use of graphite, ink, marker etc. The main importance of these drawing exercises was composition and how we choose to place our drawings on a sheet of paper. Scale, weight of line, angle and placement were encouraged to be considered in our drawings.


We then moved on to experimenting with manipulation of our photographs, using these words as a guide - cut, fold & slide, detach & reattach, displace & replace, deface. It was interesting to see what some creative ideas people have come up with by introducing foreign materials into their photographs, and the use of scratching, folding, cutting and sewing. My images were of a crushing Coke can - and I must admit, they were quite boring images and I should've looked for something more interesting to photograph. However, I managed to make them look more interesting by scratching off the COKE signs and replacing them with newspaper, cut sections off and hanging them using thread, sewing into and drawing onto them. It was quite an enjoyable experience as we were encouraged to use our creativity by exploring different possibilities to manipulate these photographs.
Instead of developing further with the images themselves, we focused more on the shape these manipulations produced. I folded my images in a way that they produced interesting folded patterns, and when combined in multiples created beautiful pleat-like designs. I photographed this and developed further using different weights of material and different types of paper such as acetate, brown paper and tracing paper. I also enlarged the scale and manipulated the design further as I developed.

What I enjoyed doing most in this project was creating 3D structural ideas using the scanned images of our manipulations, by cutting a line into it, sticking its four corners to the wall and manipulating them by twisting, turning and folding it in a variety of ways. The scanned images themselves on the model contributed to their structures as they created an extraordinary colour effect with its soft greys and browns.

This was what helped me think of a concept for my project, as these manipulations reminded me of organic forms and soft curves that modern architects have begun introducing to their structures, contrasting in the idea of manufacture and industry with its use of material and the idea of nature with organic forms. Architects such as Le Corbusier and Frank Lloyd Wright designed structures which 'grew from their environments'. They think that it is important for structures to link with their surroundings and for the interior to link with nature, such as FLW's "Falling Water", which was made using stone and concrete, yet corresponds so well with its natural surroundings, with its protruding and recessing forms and cantilevers hovering over the falling water in the river below.



I then looked for materials that would fit in with my concept - materials that could represent manufacture and industrialisation, and that is not conventional and common. Looking in hardware stores and Shepherd's Bush Market, I finally found a type of material that was made of soft plastic, in which its surface texture mimics that of metal and marble flooring. Using these materials, I reinvented their appearance by painting over them using white paint and then scratching marks into them, giving them an unrefined modernistic appearance. I then proceeded to create two structures that contain organic curved forms, held together by pushing nails into them. 

WEEK#4 3D Spacial Design - Modular Forms

After creating our installation, photographing and drawing it, we continued to explore 3D spaces by drawing spaces in association with words that we were given - boundary, edge, line, contour, junction, joint, etc... With these words as a guidance, we explored drawing as a means of documenting, measuring, recording and observing.  

On the second week, we each brought in a range of materials such as newspaper, cocktail sticks, disposable objects, electrical tape etc. Using only 3 of these materials, we had to place these materials together to create a 3D object. I found this exercise quite enjoyable as this gave us the opportunity to experiment with different ways to put together these materials, thinking of ideas which spontaneously lead to the next, in some ways like a jigsaw puzzle. With my materials, I first created 3 objects - one made using a coke can, a safety pin and a clip, the second made using a spoon, paper and electrical tape, and finally the last one made using a plastic cup, a toothpick and string...

 ... Then another two in association with our drawings and photographs.

After creating these models, we each selected one of our collection of models, of which we duplicated 10 times to create modular forms. We explored 3D ideas through these models exploring repetitive forms building up to a final idea. The final 3 outcomes must be a structure to... walk through but not a building, support a human body but not a chair, and to contain a small object but not a box. Working with our models, this project really encourages us to use our creativity to design a unique structure by trying out many different possibilities and documenting these ideas.

However, with my initial model it was quite hard for me to find different ways of representing these three structures. Therefore, I decided to use another one of my models, which is simplified so that it is constructed only out of toothpicks, grey card and newspaper. I thought this was a good model to create modular forms as it has a lot of vertical and horizontal repetitions within the structure itself. When placing multiples of this model together, I was able to create bridges, walkways, supports as my structure to walk through, contain an object, and support a human body. 

These are my final images... The scale is represented by placing an object or a person in the image, their size in relation to the structure.

We were told to work with our sketchbooks and not in it. Therefore I chose to represent my sketchbook as an unfolding strip of drawings and photos, which unfolds in all four directions, expanding upwards to reach the ceiling, downwards to meet the floor and outwards to cover the studio walls, covering a large amount of surface area of the room.

WEEK#3 Seminar

Gregory Crewdson's Photo Alchemy

Crewdson has reinvented the idea of photography by using film techniques to stage pictures. Instead of just photographing a scene, he creates and stages the scene. I find Crewdson's photography extremely alluring as there is always a sense of mystery, darkness and ghostliness to them. These scenes often occur in ordinary settings but there is always something unsettling or out of place depicted. 

This photo depicts a woman floating in a flooded living room. It appears to be a small house with contemporary furniture and a staircase leading upstairs - what seems to be an ordinary interior setting, except that it is flooded with water. The woman floating lifelessly on the water gives the painting a haunted feeling, forcing the viewer to question what had happened before and after this scene. It was this moment that hovers between before and after that interests Crewdson. Each photo is polished and technically perfect but still somewhat undone, and this gap is filled by the viewer's imagination. The ultimate meaning still remains a mystery as each person has a different interpretation to the same image.

There is very little that is actually happening in these pictures. There is a very small narrative as photography has a much smaller narrative capacity than that from other literary forms. It depicts an isolated frozen moment, which limits him to choose only one moment to convey a narrative arc. What makes the picture powerful is that that moment is transformed by light and colour. The lighting is theatrical, colours are vivid and unreal, contributing to the drama and mystery of the painting.

Ways of Seeing Chapter #1 by John Berger

When we take a snapshot, we are detaching an appearance from its place and time and preserving it. I found it interesting how the author spoke of how each image embodies a way of seeing. The composition of a photograph describes and reflects the angle in which the photographer was standing while this photo was taken, and what he/she has chosen to capture within the frame of the image, selecting that sight from an infinity of possibilities. Images were first used to capture and preserve a moment, later it showed how something or someone had once looked. Eventually, an image became a record or a reflection of how the image maker saw the subject as the interest in Humanism and the importance of the individual began to rise. 

Images are powerful communicators, stronger than literature as there are things we cannot describe that images can illustrate. The power that these images have also mystifies viewers rather than to clarify. It is impossible for us to know exactly the history behind a painting, the artist is really the only one who knows exactly what was happening at the time the painting was made. The way other people look at it is never the same, as they are affected by learnt assumptions about art and make their own conclusions as supposed to the truth. 

The invention of the camera was an enormous breakthrough and has manipulated the way we see art today. It destroyed the idea that images were timeless. We are now able to reproduce art and almost anyone is able to view it, not solely for the eyes of the elite as it was in the past. The invention of the camera has allowed art to be brought into the homes of the viewer through printing and reproduction, thus modifying its entire meaning. Reproduction has also destroyed the idea of uniqueness and authenticity. Instead of the viewer having to travel to see a piece of art, the image travels to the viewer via technology, images that are printed on postcards, t-shirts and posters. Because of reproduction, arts value has been placed aesthetically on a different level than before. For the first time, art has become available, valueless and free. They have entered the mainstream of life and no longer have power in themselves.

Because of reproduction, we no longer look at art for its unique meaning, but for what it uniquely is.. The market value and popularity of an art piece change the way we see it. As a result, we fail to look at it innocently as well as to make our own judgements as we are made to conform to how the public sees it because of its fame.  Its market price is said to be a reflection of its spiritual value, and it becomes an object for which its value depends on its rarity, not its symbolism.

WEEK#3 3D Spacial Design & Rachel Whiteread exhibition

On the first day, we were put into groups of six and together we made a 3D map of the countries we each came from in relation to each other. We used string and were encouraged to make use of the environment around us such as the studio space and the protruding and recessing forms of the room. Our group included two people from Belgium, one from England, one from Scotland, one from Turkey and I, from Hong Kong. 

We decided to put together a cluster of chairs, held together by masking tape, as the landmark of Chelsea - representing the creative and artistic, at the same time messy and busy environment. We used different coloured string to represent means of transport such as by flight or train and measured the distance of each country from Chelsea and in relation to each other. For example, the distance from HK to London is 5995 miles, whereas from Turkey to London it is 1764 miles, therefore the string we used to represent the distance from HK to London is 5 times longer than the string used to represent the distance between Turkey and London. At the end of each string we attached an object we brought in that represents our country.

I really enjoyed working on this installation as it involves actually having to move around the studio, thinking about ideas and ways of representation as a group and making use of objects and spaces in the area. 

We then had to draw the installation we created onto an A1 piece of paper, which was folded 8 times. In each square is a drawing of the same installation but from different perspectives, scale and distance, although each of these squares have to link with the next one. 

I thought this was a really good way of drawing because it encourages studying different aspects of the installation instead of focusing on one viewpoint, in result the drawing looks quite 3 dimensional itself.

Rachel Whiteread at Tate Britain

Rachel Whiteread is known for her sculptural casts of the spaces in or around familiar domestic objects. This exhibition presents her equally important work that lead up to these sculptural casts - her initial drawings and sketches of ideas. By looking at these drawings, we are more able to understand the thoughts and experimentation of an artist, at the same time explore many of the themes that are shared: notions of absence and loss, void and precense, and the subtle observation of human traces in everyday life. 

These drawings also contribute to what we are studying at the moment as we can study the use of perspective, space, composition and architectural features. These are some of the drawings presented at the exhibition that I found quite interesting.

WEEK#2 Tate Modern - EXPOSED exhibition

This exhibition examines the invasive act of photography and challenges common ideas of privacy and propriety. It 'explores how our definitions of respect, vulnerability and security have shifted over time, altering our understanding of what it means to look and be looked at'.

"The Unseen Photographer"

This first section shows us how photography can reveal a person's unawareness of being watched or looked at when they have their guard down.

Walker Evans's "Subway Passengers" were taken on NYC underground trains to record the natural, unaware faces of the people around him. 

Some of the 20th century's most important photographers exploit the camera's ability to create images without the knowledge of some of their subjects. Artists such as Henri Cartier-Bresson photographed people from above which produces great visual effects, while others such as Lee Friedlander and Harry Calahan take photographs from behind the unaware subject.

Hyeres, France 1932 - Henri Cartier-Bresson

NYC 1966 - Lee Friedlander

Celebrity and the Public Gaze

Portable cameras and faster shutter speeds created opportunities for capturing the subjects off-guard. Photographers are more able to capture famous subjects in their embarrassing and private moments.

Ron Galella - one of the most notorious paparazzi, devoted to the image taking of celebrities for publication in the press.

Voyeurism & Desire

Sexual or erotic images have been made throughout the history of photography. Many of these images consist of subjects depicting illicit and intimate acts. These images seem to position the viewer in the role of an intruder. These photographs encourage the viewer to question who was looking and why and whether we should collude with, or reject this point of view. 

"Self Portrait with Wife June and Model" by Helmut Newton

In contrast to Newton's polished images, the images of Mirozlav Tichy have a grainy, blurry quality (similar to a charcoal drawing) which gives a home-made feel, preserving the frisson of their production. He stalked the streets and swimming baths of his home town with a home-made camera.

Witnessing Violence

The photographs in this section show witness and documentation of violent events and deaths by unnatural causes, shocking the viewer by allowing us to witness the suffering of the victim.

Weegee's photographs of curious bystanders in NYC depict their morbid fascination with death by unnatural causes. These photographs raise questions about the ethics of depicting the moment of death.

"Dead Man Lying on a Garage Ramp" by Letizia Battaglia

This image was particularly striking and makes the viewer question who this man is and what had happened to him. The quality of his body has a grim fascination, his limbs still and lifeless and blood pooling around his head. He is lying face down on the ground, which further encourages the viewer to question his identity. 

Surveillance

The surveillance camera has been used for security purposes. Techniques of surveillance are closely linked to the developments in photographic technology, from surveillance cameras at street corners and shops to wed-based tools such as satellite technology.

"Isolation Room CBP" 2005 - Richard Ross