This week:
- made a plinth and collected three plinths from first and second years – I have also emailed Andy Harbert to see if I can get some of the plinths from wellington terrace
- embossed quotes for the book
- finished large water drawing
- started new quote drawing
- catalogue form (incl. photographing work, writing artist statement, choosing and titling pieces etc)
- completely measured out the space we have for the degree show – started planning for various possibilities of where things can go e.g. concertina book on a shelf along the main board wall
- tutorial (notes below)
- started work on the degree show catalogue (making templates in InDesign etc)
- continued work on the book – started assembling some of the pages
- returned to volunteering at Newlyn
This week the focus has very much been on making full use of the workshops before they shut for Easter, hence the embossing and plinth-making. As such, it also was mainly focused on the practicalities of the degree show: plinths, cabinets, shelves, hanging, taking measurements etc. While this has all been hugely useful, and I hope will stand me in good stead for set-up when it comes around, I need to ensure I don’t lose sight of the work itself.
This week I completed my large drawing – one metre square of mark-making (double sided) which was then soaked in water. Due to the size of the piece it actually came apart when removed from the water, pulled apart by its own weight, which was not something I had intended to happen. However, upon reflection the most successful piece (of the three it split into) is a small section from the middle as it loses any sense of its prior rectangular form – it becomes completely detached, a found fragment like the rest of my gathered pieces. I am unsure exactly how this would be best displayed; I had initially planned for the piece to be hung in space, but now it is in three separate pieces I wonder if they would perhaps be best on the wall, and even just the one smaller middle piece? Although there is something quite nice about the larger pieces as they currently are in the studio, just haphazardly propped/sagging against a wall. This week I would therefore like to experiment further with making these fragmented, non-oblong pieces.
It was also pointed out to me that, despite the creases in the paper, it isn’t actually obvious the drawings have been soaked in water, as opposed to just crumpled. This is something I could simply address with media labels/accompanying text, but again I would like to at least try and make more obvious, even if I do opt for the more subtle text approach in the end. One option might be to not entirely soak the paper in water, but instead to let water move across the surface, possibly moving the graphite with it (this would be better I imagine with cheaper paper and softer graphite). I could even try introducing other materials (mud, sand etc) just as remnants to allude to watery interactions. However, it may be that in the end some accompanying text, and the watery themes of much of the rest of the items in my exhibition, will give the paper the subtle context it needs to allude to its watery past.
In terms of my tutorial, a lot of it was spent assessing the various display options for the degree show. I’ve managed to get hold of a cabinet Izzy and I can use, however it is far from ideal in its aesthetics; ideally we’d like a table cabinet, similar to the one we’ve used in the library, but failing that we are considering a standing cabinet, like the one we’ve acquired. However, the one we have is perhaps a little too clinical – all metal and glass – as opposed to a more archival, curiosity-cabinet style. It’s difficult to know exactly what to do as I’ve already put a lot of energy into trying to find a cabinet, and I feel like there comes a point where it’s better to look for other options. As it stands I’ll put a few more call-outs for cabinets (social media, Penryn campus etc), and then if those are unsuccessful I think we’ll try the cabinet we have in the space, but also ensure we have lots of plinths (including a large table-style plinth which could mimic the table display case) as back-ups.
So, in all, this week I would like to focus as much as possible on making work, and particularly the drawings/paper works as I feel these are the ones I haven’t quite resolved yet. It would also be good to start thinking about writing – both some text to accompany the exhibition, and starting to think about the self-evaluation form – so that I can potentially start writing the week after, in preparation for the set-up itself.
Next week:
- collect other plinths from other first and second years
- London show form
- continue working on the book – some thing drawings, experimenting with incorporating glaze/slip/clay onto paper, research page on plastioglomerate
- email Megan about big table plinth
- pick up batch from Poly and drop new batch off (they have been having some kiln issues hence I was unable to do this last week)
- water drawings: try a non-rectangular piece (soak for a lot longer?), one with water simply moving across the surface, the quote drawing (make this a bit more weathered somehow?), one with growing spindly tentacles like the lattice piece
Anna Harris 