07/06/2018 - Evaluation and reflection: Task 2 & Task 5 Exploratory Project

EvaluationMy project is a journey through experiments and materials, a gathering of mini explorations that link together like branches of a tree. Without the need for a defined outcome, the Exploratory project was the perfect opportunity to 'play' and work inside different disciplines without judgement or expectation. The ideal space to dip into techniques to expand my horizons. Next, I would like to hone into one thing and exhaust it, explore it as far as I can.Takeaways: okay to be multidisciplinary, try things out, use the opportunity to experiment.What pushed me? fear of failure, excitement in techniques.Alongside wanting to do well and push my practice I was urged on by my own excitement in the processes and outcomes of each of the experiments. When something became stuck or didn't offer an immediate resoltion I was able too to put it down and move on to another area of the project.Sculpture: not yet comfortable & resisted so didn't see it through. The use of the laser cutter and unfamiliar materials seemed to be a step too far for me, I wasn't able to progress in this area as much as I would have liked.Books: materiality - only just touched on material exploration. In Tutor and Peer critiques, the books were received relatively well, there was interest in them as books and as art objects once sealed with paint, however, the materiality was questioned. I began to experiment with paper making but was not able to explore bookmaking with my own paper on the timescale.Scale: I resisted large scale for fear of not completing & challenging timescale - wanted to get the most out of the project. Again the personal issue of fear of failure held me back here, I did not want to start a large piece that showed slow progress for a project that was about exploring. I wanted to use the time as effectively as possible, so maintained smaller works to allow for more outcomes, I wanted quantity in this instance.Could push materials further - explore the stitched paper & its delicacy. The use of handmade paper and how the stitch interacts with it.Digital: needing to acquire new skills, self-taught studio set up, lighting, stop-go, adobe premier - I taught myself basic video creation and editing skills during this project which was fun and quite fulfilling. I am happy with the test videos I have created, I think there is more scope for using video as a medium to record performance.My expectations of making and the resistance to outsource - laser cutter or manufacturing - I am a traditionalist at heart and find it difficult to put value into concepts rather than material so if the work is created by other on my behalf I am challenged by this. I would like to place this directly into the work, consider if I can create work that requires the audience to do the 'making'.Destruction of work: - removal of 'precious' feelings towards work and seeing it all for what it is. Unpicking work became a piece in itself and the outcome was aesthetically pleasing. I absolutely loved this aspect of the work, both the dipping of the books and the unpicking of the textiles that was filmed. It was liberating to not feel chained to a final piece, to allow them to evolve into something more and something else.Overall the risk-taking aspect was the most profound takeaway from this project. I wish to make work and to destroy it, or evolve it with another process.The submission:It feels so small. It's tough to really pull your work into a small sendable package for assessment. To work out how you might be able to tell you story/express your thoughts in a succinct manner in a few pieces.It was however also quite cathartic and liberating to find that I could express my work in a minimal way.

Exploratory Project - Wk 12 - extended - Video

Video works:I created several video works for the project. One was a Stop-Go Animation,[vimeo 273833616 w=640 h=360]516748 K VennerWoodbridge Video Fractured Foam from Katie Venner-Woodbridge on Vimeo.I did not create a storyboard or plan for this. I cut up some foam that was supplied by a friend and set about creating a small sequence. I wanted to explore order and chaos in a very simplified format that would still maintain the air of my work. By looping the video it reflects the daily routines and repetitions that I am so fond of and displays the way they ebb and flow. In hindsight, the material was not great and moved very easily if there was a breeze etc. I would also make a storyboard next time to make sure that the piece flowed steadily and developed into a more choreographed piece.After a tutorial with Kimberley Foster, we discussed the temporaryness of the drop collage pieces and I decided I would turn them into a performance and record it.[vimeo 273836648 w=640 h=360]516748 K VennerWoodbridge Video Performance Drop Collage sml from Katie Venner-Woodbridge on Vimeo.This piece as has a timelapse but I couldn't get the file to edit properly. I watched it on the camera and it felt so rushed I was happy to keep the real-time video. The element of sweeping the pieces away and starting afresh is cleansing, like a good night sleep. If the pieces don't land favourable, sweep them away and drop them again. Having chance play a role through the act of dropping also brings another element of chaos into the work. I would like to take this to a larger audience and allow participants to create the work and ask their reactions, so if they feel the need to stop when they have a favourable layout etc.Lastly, I created a large Performance piece, this was after speaking to Les Bicknell and his suggestion of making a systematic piece. It had also come up in a previous group critique. I set about planning pieces and drew out a 4x4 (5cm each so 20cm x 20cm) square on a piece of cloth. I then set up a filming area and proceeded to set a timer for 10 minutes and an alarm to remind myself to do the task daily. I tested the fabric would work first on a scrap.   I proceeded to punch embroider everyday for 10mins inside on of the squares, a couple of the day I didn't finish, the rest I had to stitch over as I was faster than expected. Once I had done the first 16days I began to unpick the work. This did not need a timer. I systematically unpicked each square carefully bundling up the yarn for display afterwards. This is in honour of Hassan Sharif's piece "Cotton" pictured below. Which is a video installation alongside the artefact of the lump of cotton her created.

Hassan Sharif, Cotton (still), 2013. Cotton and single-channel HD video, silent, 20 x 67 x 46 cm, 8 minutes 26 seconds. Courtesy Estate of Hassan Sharif and Gallery Isabelle van den Eynde, Dubai. http://sharjahart.org/press/sharjah-art-foundation-presents-landamrk-hassan-sharif-retrospective-i

   The video would be displayed alongside the artefacts and played on a loop. It is 3:36 hr: mins long. I chose to leave it like this as the point of the use of the techniques was its rhythmic movement and sound. It is tedious to watch, mirroring the common thought fo the 'daily grind' but in its sum creates a textile piece. As the chaos ensues ans it comes apart a different, perhaps more aesthetically pleasing textiles arises.[vimeo 273833967 w=640 h=360]516748 K VennerWoodbridge Video Performance deConstruct from Katie Venner-Woodbridge on Vimeo. 

Exploratory Project - Wk 11 - 29/04/2018- 05/05/2018 - paper making

Moving through the materiality criticisms of my handmade books I decided to make paper at home. I had to create my own equipment as I could not find any in the area to purchase and to buy it was expensive with long delivery times.My initial batches were coarse and grey as I was using a substandard blender and the paper had a lot of printer ink on it. It was also heavily textured due to the fabric I was using to place it on. I replaced that and fixed the other teething problem and created some almost white paper. I was trying to maintain an element of transparency but this proved to be very difficult with the paper tearing and breaking up.  Once I dry I did some ink experiments with the pieces. Because the paper doesn't go through any finishing processes it is absorbent and allows the ink to bleed through. I think this could be made a feature but where it absorbs too much ink it very quickly disintegrates.  I next used threads in the process of papermaking, laying them on and in the paper solution as I was creating the sheets. This relies on the paper fibres to hold the thread in place and is not the most secure way of doing it. After a short time, the threads began to come away from the paper. I also sandwiched the threads between sheets but this rendered the paper very thick and the threads not as visible.   I do really find something pleasing about the piece that created holes, this unperfect aspect in an art form that prides itself on perfection moves me back into the thinking of chaos and order.I did stitch a piece but it doesn't photograph well, this is a piece of Japanese paper that was also stitched. It holds the threads well whereas my handmade paper tore quickly and I abandoned stitching it further to save the piece. Perhaps the next point would be to continue until is does destroy itself and see what happens.  

Exploratory Project - Wk 10 - 22/04/2018- 28/04/2018 - Textile

Textile:I've decided to use these journal posts to bring all the elements of one branch of investigation together to keep it coherent and not seem all over the place.I have a strong textile background and have resisted working in textiles for a long time before starting this course due to bad critique experiences and my own self depreciation.It feels natural to me to work in fibre. The touch is comforting and the techniques are often repetitive and meditative. This is a strong presence in my work looking at routines and the mundane every day, the things that get overlooked.I've been considering how touch can evoke emotion for the contextual study and realised that for me touch plays a big part in self-soothing stress and also helping to understand how things work or are made, babies touch everything! Yet the arts tend to forbode touch, and this is something I am looking to consider in my work. Textile Artist Maxine Bristow talks about touch and how we interact with fabric in public places such as buses and trains.

http://www.maxinebristow.com/

Rug making is full of touch and normally trodden on in bare feet. Rugs have also been used to adore walls and demarcate areas. The process of Latchwork is a simple pull-through know made using a hook and canvas.Below the back can be seen, its relatively straight lines and the top is more chaotic. I am considering how this would work on a large scale where the height of the pile can be changed and the textures would highlight the geometric structure further.I also used crossstitch, and punch stitch to explore how these geometric can translate in to stitch.   I found them frustrating. I longed for density in these pieces either by layering transparent fabric over each other or by building up textures and stitch density. There is a long way to go with the textile aspect of this exploration.

24/04/2018 - Exploratory Project - Group Crits

Exploratory Project Crit Group PresentationSlides:Part 1: Books & objects Book - dipping, pages, closed

 

Part 2: paper collages for painted works

the need for painting - the feeling

Part 3: Structure

Paper structures - the upcoming experiments

paused due to material sourcing (laser cutter and acrylic)

Part 4: Stitched/Strung

Stitched pieces - the fabric experiments

Part 5: Text

Questions:

Scale - go big or go even smaller? Thinking chapman brothers mini scenes, minutiae, pulling the viewer in, OR larger scale, overwhelm, frustration, confusion.

These pieces feel linked, is there space for a performance piece? - would need a movement class, have a possible collab.

Responses:

How much engagement does the audience needs to have with the work?Touch them, and open them, etcHow do I want my audience/ how do people interact-expectations, Focus groups. Create a experience or being excessive-Inclusion of audiences/children etcDo they need to come together or exists separately?Separate-Individually paper collages– AmazingMovement– Gymnast/contortionist trying to getMinor chaos-the strings and the different intentionAre so the work as installation stringpiece and losing contortionist or gymnast or and using contortionists for gymnasts to move around the piece as performance all allowing audience to move around as personal performance.Audience through the work so do they make you work? Laser cut pieces for installation? Large-scale-room and Intel-Keep Separate works through of Videos.

Exploratory Project - Wk 9 - 15/04/2018- 21/04/2018 - Structures

Paper works and structures:Starting in a usual place for me with tracing paper images. I like the chaotic nature of layers and the translucent papers allow for quick plays and layouts.Starting to consider how I can give more form to the work, how to move from 2D to 3D so turned my attention to space. Initially filling in the surrounding space of the lines and layering for density.      I moved on to cutting these forms out and playing with the idea of layered collages to build up density that can be moved. The collages are not fixed and therefore have boundless configurations adding an element of temporary chaos to their organisation. A small breeze would change them, an event that's tiny causing a larger repercussion.   While dropping the pieces they began to entangle and build up into these half-collapsed forms. allowing for the consideration of 3D to leap off the page.    I moved forward by looking into the thickness of the line, the thinner the line, the more fragile the piece appears.       These pieces were created using a 1inch paint pen. The paper started to bend and curve with the ink. The structures are less intricate but have far more of a density to them, a presence.     Transfering these ideas back to stitch, I used card and the recommended influence of Fred Sandback to explore moving the lines into an installation. I created some maquettes. One has a base and a ceiling, the threads would be suspended from both, creating a web of vertical lines to walk in and out of.     The second was purely of suspension. Inspired by Hassan Sharifs hanging pieces that were seen at his retrospective, the thread would come down from the ceiling and amass on the floor, making it difficult to walk through the space.  In creating the piece and laying it down for photgraphy I was actually very drawn to it as a piece in its own right. The chaotic hanging threads shielding the geometric stitch design behind them.I went on to revisit the white piece and play with how that could become a small piece in its own right too. This was more of a struggle and moves back to the book work so I will look at how I can link the two.  As I was determined to at least try the 3D work I used modelling straws (from my teaching kit!) to tape up some simplified designs I created in Adobe Illustrator. They proved to be very poor quality and frustrating so rather than waste time with them I moved forward.  Lastly, I cut a piece from card, it is 50cm x 50cm and a laborious task. The issue once it was complete was that it was still a flat piece. Multiple pieces would have to be cut and slotted together but this didn't feel like the right route to go down.After this, I decided to forgo the laser cutter as this would have given more flat pieces. and I put the 3D work on hold for this project. I would like to investigate the ways sculpture can be subversive and involve the viewer in touch by creating something that looked hard and metallic but was actually plush and soft.

18/04/2018 - Text: poetry

Using Skillshare online teaching website, took course: Poetry 1: intro to making poems-led by Cameron Conaway - PoetHe asks 'What is a poet?' - Something tangible and inside, Write to make the small large, the minutiae of everyday to make it mean something. This really struck a chord with me, I have always kept private books with poems in, just something I have done since school, I had a wonderful english literature teacher that encouraged e to write for fun and I carried on.His first task is to find a Theme -  Something physically close to us, or that stirs emotions,  or that we are interested in learning more about. The activity is call 'Action 10' which is  10 minutes long, 5 minutes sitting meditation, followed by 5 minutes free writing, No filter, no editing, no stopping, no self censoring; just continuous typing or writing.Second is 'Finding your thread' - the part of us tethered to our theme.Action 10-10 minutes right as we sit. Write about what matters or care about the same.Small noticing: Detail, Minutely organised particles, a bright particular star, bubbles in the dishwasher, The Billboard, The light on grapefruit. Procrastination has a purpose. It allows you to absorb the small noticing marinate on it, perkily. Adam Grant-Commit.Action 10 five minutes sitting meditation with notebook small notice things five minutes free writing look at notes and free right.MY WORK:ThemeContinuous writing - 5 minutesWindow, grid, tree, chaos, framed, captured by window frame, cat peers out, restricted, watching, lines of houses, neighbours house, pipes, Windows, Doors, Wall, horizontal, vertical, window curtain, screen, bookcase, bench, rugs, tiles, doorway, fridge, door, fan, me, door, walls, tiles, grout, Lines, paralleled, straight, orders, recline, linear, tidy, confined, Beautiful, completed, complete, fractured, snapshots, vignettes, Moments, frames, cropped, cutoff, removed, connected, perceptions, perspectives, paralleled, reflect, actions, reflective, fractured, reflections, disjointed, imperfect.ThreadContinuous writing - 10minsportals, boundaries, screens/frames, vignettes, encased snapshot of something, an edit, a consumable piece of a whole, a glimpse. how I manage my thoughts, breaking things down into pieces. making them fractured to be consumed, the segments of an orange make it more palatable, a slice, a serving. With so much on offer, so many options it provides a limit, a restriction - to keep things from running off, to maintain control. the media and its edits, the control of information available and that which is not. you only know what you know. the comfort of knowledge. the discomfort of the unknown, the unpredictable - health, happiness, the unpredictability of life - OCD & Anxiety - cause and effect - relinquishing control - carelessness, responsibility, comfort of routine / discomfort of unpredictability - can you find comfort in the unpredictability? Small Noticing's - detailsPlanting a garden is to believe in tomorrowthe stillness of the windowthe leaves twinkling in the sunlightthe silence of the scenethe rumble of the washing machinethe frame containing the leaves that disappear beyond its edges of viewVertical edges, horizontal binds, shadows and bricks, reflectingthe containment of the busy window within the windowthe cropped visuals of vases through embroidery hoopsthe lack of associated soundthe buzz of the fridgethe twinkle of the cat water fountainthe whirls and clashes of the washing machinethe twitters and squarks of birdsthe buzz of an irritating flythe rise & fall, ripple of the sail shade, silentthe jostle of the jasminethe bamboo windchim renders silent by the glazing POEMS:windchime Glass renders it silent,Its movements make sweet music.Its song remains unshared until someone, the window, opens. window portals,boundaries,encased snapshots,  an edit. a consumable fragment,a glimpse, palatable.  calm jasmine jostlesleaves fold I watch steel and glass containassuaged by structure the wind blows but not here 

26/03/2018 - Exploratory project - revised outline with notes.

1. What are your starting points? – be specific
   • What am I thinking about? The fundamentals of the Everyday - to date practice has addressed a concern for the decay of social decorum and the prevalence of neglect for the Everyday. - systematic disintegration leading to encasing the chaos in a confined space. Lefebvre, Rhythmanalysis creates a science of analysing daily rhythms,  inherent in my work. control, space, confinement, touch, personal space, routine, space of routine, repetition, chaos, fragmentation...
2. What are you curious about?
   • What am I reading, what is drawing me in? What artists am I curious about? What materials am I curious about? What techniques do I want to explore? Time and consumption of time in routine.  Negotiation of routine, time, place. The chaos of routine, how routines are shaped, deconstructed and reconstructed. Textiles and routine, domesticity, the sense of touch and everyday life, pattern, repetition and fracturing/fragmenting. Books, layers, lines, disruption, neutrality, binary, repetition, paper, paint, wet, dry, encrusted, texture, touch, comfort, weight/wait, time passing. fabric, stitch, fragility, density, opacity, fibre, cloth, natural/degradable, dissolvable...
3. What strategies will you adopt?
   • How Am I going to do this? Be structured and methodical, keeps clear notes - use the work to document the work. ROUTINE. Keep to the timeline, reference it regularly, make a time planner to map out slots during the weeks to accommodate each task for the course and other commitments. Photograph, document, upload, repeat... 
4. What are your personal risks?
   • What scares me? Is it practical risks, theoretical risks or personal/private risks? This scares me... being distracted. Not producing enough, not understanding or misinterpreting the task or feedback. Underachieving, I know what I am capable of but seem to hold myself back, becoming self-critical and apprehensive until I give up as it feels like the safest option. Comparison scares me, wanting to achieve and understand things in the manner of my peers.
   • What challenges do you anticipate? Time, organisation, overwhelm, distraction, feelings of impostorism, insecurity, comparison, fear.  

1. Outline:
   • Week 1 Feb 18th Complete Mapping the territory, print large scale mindmap to work in to, use to outline concepts, generate ideas and moving forward. Produce outline plan first draft, produce some experiments regarding initial thoughts from current practice.  - Done!
   • Week 2 Feb 25th Begin research reading and gathering, use Textile reader (Hemmings, 2012) and Everyday Reader (Highmore, 2002); texts related to touch, histories, colonialism, colour, routine, textile usage. Explore artists already working on my exploration (also links to contextual study).  Continue production experiments, break the process down and source materials. - Done!
   • Week 3 Mar 4th  Reflect on current production, note relationship to readings, additional areas to explore or possible changes in direction etc.  - reflection happened but not as productive as I wanted to be. Focused on Contextual Study.
   • Week 4 Mar 11th Continue with production, once each moment of production is 'completed' as such, reflect immediately to stay on top and also revisit and compare with previous productions - Mon 12 Mar: Tutorial AR  - Production stopped. Life happened. Frustrating. the tutorial was helpful but quick and felt rushed which didn't help when everything is feeling so rushed at the moment.
   • Week 5 Mar 18th Be aware of burn out or possible stopping points, challenge with an activity from the list provided to move work into another dimension/area/scale/technique. Mon 19 Mar: Tutorial DK  ART WEEK DUBAI  - the challenge of balancing activity and work. Home balance has been difficult and pressing needs for employment have taken time away from activity. Tutorial with DK, really helpful, clarified points for productions.
   • Week 6 Mar 25th Production, again being aware of reflection and managing the other course commitments, refer to course-mates for progress and feedback, communicate strengths and weaknesses and possible areas for consultation Mon 26 Mar: Exploratory Project - Challenges and Learnings - Seminar  THE PLAN FOR THIS WEEK: 
   • How to create chaos? what are chaos and define terms?
   • feedback from DK was to follow my instinct and move into 3D. To show evolution and progress must remember to do all the stages. 
   • stage 1 - continue tracings - black out edges leaving the connected space - use black lines on paper and grey to select space. 'space awareness'
   • stage 2 - cut out the grey space in another series, overlay and photograph. - collage effect. 
   • stage 3 - using card cut the lines out completely  - make into mini 3D pieces that can be photographed. 
   • stage 3A - 3D in a 2D plane - velvet flocking, DeVore fabric, raised textiles, the density of stitch, padding, puff paints, 
   • stage 4 - layer card to make 'square' or block pieces/forms - glue together
   • stage 5 - consider scale and enlarge - possibly using boxes instead (foil wrap box is a good size. 
   • stage 6 - consider materials - subversiveness - thinking textiles, soft sculpture - foam and felt - stitched - embroideries - stuffed. 
   • YES, THIS IS PRESCRIPTIVE BUT IF I WANT A COHERENT PROJECT I NEED STRUCTURE. I APPROACH ART LIKE SCIENCE AND MY STEPS NEED TO BE PLANNED SO THAT I DON'T MISS THINGS OUT AS I AM OFTEN CRITICISED FOR 'MISSING LINKS'. WITHIN THIS STRUCTURE I AM FLEXIBLE AND WILL REVISIT AS AND WHEN NECESSARY. HAPPY ACCIDENTS ARE A WONDERFUL PART OF BEING AN ARTIST. 
   • Week 7 Apr 1st HALF WAY POINT good time to review the current body of work, what is successful and what isn't. Can anything be 'rescued' or needs to be cast off? is it fulfilling the initial concept and ideas? Does it need to? Has it produced new ways of thinking? Changed direction? What unexpected things have emerged? Have I challenged myself? Does this still feel safe? How can I take even more risks? Prepare for making day. Create a list of questions to pose to the group for structured and meaningful feedback. Sat 7th Apr: Making Day 
   • Week 8 Apr 8th Production, again being aware of reflection and managing the other course commitments, move forward using findings and feedback from making day. 
   • Week 9 Apr 15th Production, utilise activities list if stuck or needing an extra challenge. Prepare for Group crit next week. 
   • Week 10 Apr 22nd Production, self-reflection and future planning. Prepare for a tutorial with AR next week Mon 23 Apr: Group Crits 1/2 cohort 
   • Week 11 Apr 29th Production, again being aware of reflection and managing the other course commitments, move work forward using critique from tutorial  Mon 30 Apr: Tutorial AR  
   • Week 12 May 6th Reflection and assessment of progress, prepare for group evaluation, clarify thoughts and findings, plan for future development of practice Finish: 11 May: upload images by 24.00 for group evaluation and seminar on 14 May  
   • Week 13 May 13th  Deadlines for contextual study and PPP, thinking about submitting work for assessment, evaluate progress and outcomes. Mon 14 May: Exploratory Project Seminar/evaluation - Mon 4 Jun: DEADLINE FOR PRACTICAL WORK SUBMISSION - End of unit review AR/CW 
2. Meet in a small group at least twice throughout the project. MZ, RF, KVW - GCC collective (although that is an actual collective that exists so may need a new name!)