'Deep in a dream...'

The current brief that I have been working on since the beginning of the course was based around 'Natural and Manmade'. This body of work is to be handed in soon so I have been busy working on creating samples. At the moment I am rather enjoying working with dissolvable fabric and trapping scarp fabric and threads together using this process.

As a result I have created these two samples - both based on the fairytales more than natural and manmade - but I'm really pleased with them.

'He thought she looked nice...'

Evil Witch.
Ink and Bleach.

Little Red Riding Hood.
Mixed Media.

Today we had a workshop held by an illustration lecturer, she read out fairytales and we were to draw whilst we were listening. I absolutely loved this exercise and decided to continue it whilst I was at home.

Little Red Riding Hood is one of my favourite 'Fairytales' and so I chose to do this one a home, the mixed media image above is just one of many sketchbook pages I produced.

'Let us part, ere the season of passion forget us,..'

So I start UWIC in September doing a degree in Textiles for Fashion and Interiors! But first they have sent me a summer project to do. They have given me a list of words and I am to draw or paint or generally give a response to this word.

For example they gave me the word 'Him' and so I decided to draw a male hand using a biro.

Below is my response to the word 'Fauna' I drew a bird on a branch using pencil, and an analytical approach to the drawing.

'Make you feel my love...'

 

The top image here shows three samples mounted onto one board. The board presents a collection of ideas on how to combine various materials as well as different text. I was also experimenting with colour, trying to finalize a colour palette for my final pieces.



 

 

Again the top image shows a board with three varying samples presented on it. I was partiularly enjoying the use of handmade felt in neutral colours. Especially the two samples which have been pictured above.

This was a sample that was displayed on its own; it was created by using both machine stitch and hand embroidery into handmade felt. I particularly like how I left the threads hanging; I felt it created a worn or aged look to the sample.

'Everytime we say goodbye...'

This a4 piece was constructed from a combination of tea stained scrim, paint and tracing paper and then mounted onto card to give support.

I wanted to create something simple but that implied romance, which I think I succeeded in due to the use of text.

I made two, to be displayed next to each other. I used the same processes but had slight differences to experiment with the possibility of a series.

Below are some photographs of certain sections to give an idea of the texture of the piece and the text used.

'Let me give my love to you...'

So it's all over, the exhibition has been taken down and I got my grade which I am really happy with. It's on to the next chapter of my life but first it's time to enjoy the summer!

I managed to get some photos of the supporting work that I displayed alongside my final piece for my exhibition. I'm gonna do a few posts about them so I can talk about each one individually.

Geraldine Kirkham Age 7
A1. Gouache Paints.

Unknown Relatives
A1. Fine Liner and Water.

Unkown Woman
A3. Mixed Media

'Memories that fade like photographs...'

 So my FMP has been handed in and my exhibition has been set up. I'm really happy with my final outcome; however I haven't been able to get a photograph of my exhibition space.

My final piece ended up being a skirt I made out of wire and tissue paper, and then pinned in random places over the skirt were 'medals' that I had made.

After researching into great detail various aspects of my family history I decided to focus my FMP on my Grandparents, their love, the war, my Grandad as a naval soldier, and their lives together.

Below are 12 of the 24 medals that I made and the show the different materials and methods I used and they evaluate aspects of my Grandparents lives.

 

 

These first three are provide information on my Grandad, and the role he played in the Second World War.

These three examples introduce my Grandparents as a couple - Lilian and Thomas Kirkham.

  

These three a plain samples where I only used hand embroidery to experiment with mark making. I think they express the possibility of where I could develop these medals.

  

In these three samples I used imagery, daes and phrases to illustrate the war and how it was a big part of my Grandparents lives, not just as a couple but the general impact on them and their community.

'Bye, bye love...'

  

This is a painting a I did during my reaserch for my FMP, it was taken from a black and white photograph of my Grandmother sat infront of a brick wall.

To add texture to the painting I used pieces of old book pages in the background of the brick wall before painting over it using watercolours. I then painted my Grandmother in black and white acrylics, making sure she stood out.

'She waits in the late twilight...'

This, and 3 others, were the result of a side project from my FMP. Still relating to my family I created four framed textile pieces which combined old family photos and textiles processes. This photograph  is of my great grandmother and her three sisters, it is dated 1922.

This decoration is made of a single circle of old book page, a single circle of hand-made felt and then three buttons sewn on to finish it. I think this would actually look lovely as a broach or a decoration for hand-made cards etc.

The colours could be made to preference, and the book page could be chosen for a meaningful reason or if they have no preference just any book page could be used.

To uncover the past...

These are some of my sketchbook pages from my FMP on my Foundation course, I've been using my family as my source of inspiration. They have given me so many paths to choose from and develop I am finding myself struggling to narrow it all down and find a focal point.
The top two images are of a panting I did of my mother, it was copied from a photograph of her on her First Holy Communion and one of my favourites so far.

'United in love for all eternity...'

As promised some images of my final pieces from the Swan Lake project.

'The very idea of a faithful love...'

Odette is an enchanted princess under a spell of the evil sorcerer Von Rothbart; she has been transformed into a swan by day and can only regain her human form at night. She has many companions under the same spell, who have made her their queen, hence her title "The Swan Queen."

As a side project from the ballet inspired coret I look in detail at the famous ballet 'Swan Lake' and allowed it to influence a minor project.

The brief was to create a sketchbook and a final piece exploring a theme of my choice and developing a brief from a previous fine art lesson.

I chose to develop a brief where I was to use cardoard a base and then manipulate it paint it rip it, add to it to create a piece of art work.

So I began creating sketchbook pages, developing a colour palette and then finally creating 3 final pieces on a small scale (I will add photographs of my final pieces when I can)

'Every Prince has got to have his Swan...'

My final piece for the corset project! And I love it!

Made purposefully not to be worn but to be mounted, as if it was part of a genuine ballet costume put on display.

I decided to combine various aspects of the two samples I blogged about on a previous post. I used the embellisher to attach a fine white silk to a calico base which gave a beautiful feminine, delicate look to it. I then used the straight stitch on the sewing machine to mark out various lines, trapping threads between the calico/silk and a third layer of fabric.

I then followed the rest of the process before constructing the final corset and mounting it.

'The art of sacrifice and love...'

Select area or above sample.

These are two samples that I have created so far for the corset project. They are both in the shape of a corset front panel so it is easier to imagine the final outcome (I find it helps to evaluate the samples better as well).

The first sample uses free machine embroidery, straight stitch machine embroidery, loose threads and a seam ripper to create a worn look. This links well with the vintage ballet costumes as they have become threadbare in places and show signs of ageing.

The second sample uses an embellisher to create a wonderful texture; I have then free machined the text down the left hand side.

I am happy with both but I think my preference is the first sample. This is because of the techniques used and the aesthetic qualities.