Floor Plan

Here is a look at the floor plan that I created to show where I want everything to be: cameras, tables, chairs and people.

This will help to show where I want everything and hopefully mean that the day runs a lot smoother.

Post cards

Here's some of the investigations that I have done into post cards. The thing that I'm worried about is the size as postcards tend to be a certain size. However the pictures that I use might end up to cramped or busy which I don't want. Although increasing the size might make it less obvious that they are postcards.

Body Casting

This week we learned how to do body cast in Allison's class, which was soooo much fun. Amy and I worked together for this and we did each others hands, they turned out really creepy look because of all the details and the fact they are pale white.

So if you're interested here's how you do it:
Equipment: Alginate, water, vaseline, mod-roc, paint brush, plaster (power) and something to stir with.

• Start by adding 50g of alginate power to every 100ml of water and mix them into a gloopy paste (try not to get any air bubbles in it.
• Pour it on to the hand and make sure to cover the whole thing.
• Then leave it to dry, you'll know it's dry once it's went bouncing and doesn't change shape.
• Once it's dry cover it with a thick layer of mod-roc.
• Once that's dry peel of both the mod-roc and the alginate to revel to mild.
• The block up any gaps or holes where the plaster could leak from (just use more mod-roc for this).
• Mix up some plaster and fill it up (make sure that there is no airs, so tap the mould)!
• Once dry remove from the mould
• Then bask in the glory that is a creepy mould of your own hand!

Essay

For my essay I'm going to look into the Miners' Strike of the 80s. My Grandad was a miner and the 80s is an era that I've always been fascinated with, the music, culture, fashion. So I want to look at how that culture has influenced the way we are today and the impact that it had at the time.

Weirdly ok

So this week we have been talking a lot about our pathway and where we want our careers, lives and such to go. Now this time last year I remember be so scared that I didn't know what I was doing or what I wanted for myself but over the past few months I think I may have figured it out. Maybe. Sort of. I want to look a keeping my work personal, from all the different projects that we have been doing  I've found the ones that I can make a personal connection to are the ones that I like the best. I've also found out that I really taking photos, I don't think I want to be a photographer but I like doing something with the pictures, I like that they are an instant way of recording a moment (that sounds really cheesy). So I'm a fair bit happier than I was this time last year.
For project work I've just been scribbling some ideas in my sketchbook and continuing with clay in the workshop, should be finished mines soon.

A Look at my Sketchbook!

The 22nd of September

I'm really glad that I'm not at college today. Today marks the 5 year anniversary of my Dad's diagnoses of Huntington's Disease and the 3 year anniversary of my Grandad's death. Thankfully I've never had to go to college yet on this day and I'm glad because whilst I've had crap day there, there is just something about this date that makes me feel uneasy. It's like today is the day that my family and I aren't allowed to succeed, it's the day that anything and everything goes wrong, the day that no one else seems to understand why I don't want to talk.
Normally when I feel like this I do something to take my mind off it but on this day it just doesn't feel right, like enjoying myself would be an insult to my family. So I sit and think, and think, and think to point it's a song's stuck on repeat. Pretty sure all this isn't helping my lack of ideas for this project, but all I want to do is sleep, sleep and wake up to everything being on, everything being easy. I'm not stupid I know that's not happening, nothing just becomes easy overnight.

Feeling a bit Overwhelmed

So after our trip to Edinburgh everyone seems to have all these great ideas, but haven't got a clue what I'm going to do. Every time I look at my sketchbook I just get more confused than when I started with it, I've done all the pages that seem quite random, disjointed and almost pointless. Probably because there isn't a point to them. I'm hoping that next week once we hand in our PLP's I'll be able to get a better grip on things.
The actual week it's self hasn't been too bad. On Wednesday we started our armatures for our casting process, mines doesn't really seem like much at the minute but I'm hoping that as the process goes on I'll be able to create something that I'm happy with. It was quite enjoyable getting to actually make something though, using wood, scrunched up paper and chicken wire. I think it helped me get a few things off my mind, just talking about different things with everyone but nothing to serious. In the afternoon we continued with our sketchbook work so I disappeared off to the library in the vain hope of being inspired. It didn't really happen.
Thursday was quite good we watch watch a creative documentary about a guy who filmed only inside a lift for a few weeks, it was really interesting and gave me a few ideas that maybe I'd like to create a video for this project. Video/Film is something I've always liked the idea of but never really had the chance to explore as much as I would've liked, so maybe this is my chance? Later I was researching artists who's work is based on Edinburgh and whilst I found a fair few I didm;t find anything that jumped out at me, nothing that I thought "I want to do that " so I think instead of looking only at artist whose work relates to this project. I'm going to just look at artists who inspire and look at why they inspire rather how I can use there influence in my work, as that way I should find a pattern and hopefully that pattern will help me find my pathway.
Friday we did some printing in the morning: printing is something that I've always enjoyed and it's been quite fun learning new techniques in this class. The afternoon was quite different from our usually lectures. We worked as a focus group as to design Scotland's new superhero? It was a strange task to undertake but it was quite fun, possible controversial after the Independence vote the day before, it was really intriguing to hear everyone's ideas on what Scottish-ness is and how it should be portrayed. I quickly realised that I did a lot of 'typical Scottish' things that the others didn't which was strange.

Some Sketchbook pages

These are some of the first drawings that I didn't after coming back from Edinburgh. I was really inspired by the architecture of the city.

Edinburgh Trip

Today we all made our way into Edinburgh, it wasn't as stressful as I thought it would be (I get quite worried about travelling) and it was nice to be able to spend the day with my classmates not in a classroom.
It was quite a busy day, we went to Mary King's Close, went on the tour, wander the streets, down to Greyfriars and saw Yoda and some stromtroopers. Although the aim was to help us narrow down what we wanted to look at I feel it has done the opposite for me I feel there are now too many options in my head, so I think I'll take some more trips back myself to see if I can get a clearer idea.
Here's some pictures from the day.

Week 2

Since we're off Monday and Tuesday I used those days to just get a bit more done in my sketchbook but the problem is that I can't really seem to find an answer for what I want to do with the Edinburgh brief. Hopefully when we go on Friday I'll have a better idea.

First Week back!

Well starting this week off, I haven't slept much so having to get up at 9am on Wednesday I was like a little zombie. Wednesday was a good day mostly filled with information and we didn't start doing much, we got our brief (the Edinburgh one) and discussed our other classes.
Thursday wasn't much different just starting research for the Edinburgh brief. However on Thursday mornings we have a new class, a video class which seems really interesting so hopefully that'll be good. The afternoon was more research
Friday in the morning we have painting which I think I'm really going to enjoy, haven't had a chance to paint as much as I would've liked so it'll be good to get back into the habit. In the afternoon we have contextual studies again and we are looking at knowledge and power, not sure what we're going to do with that but it seems like it'll be interesting.
I hoping that this year goes better than last year, I want to try my best and make sure that I speak up when I don't know what I'm doing.

Some pictures of Transformation project

New final piece

As I had to re-do my final piece for pathways, I decided to take it in a different direction. I wanted to create a piece that looked like a doctors chart or a patient file. I made 12 different sheets that represented my journey to accepting my Dad's illness. I made thought was that their is 12 months in a year, although he was diagnosed in 2009, I was going to do 14 or 15 as that was the age I was when he was first getting tested.

Close ups of final piece for Pathways

I made several different sheets to show my journey from my Father's diagnosis till now.

Transformation New Final Piece

So, as I had to re-do my final piece for Transformation I decided that I didn't want to change it up too much as I didn't want it to look completely different to the rest of my work. So I decided to create 3 smaller collages (A4) to show the transformation, change from a more natural Britain to the industrial revolution to present day. I preferred having 3 separate pieces as I feel it was easier to show what I wanted and it was easier to represent the changes I've been researching.

Also I'm happy with how the colours blend together but show the progression, it starts off mostly bus and greens then to greys and browns then to more black.

Results - Doom's Day

So today I got my results, and they both were and weren't what I expected. I've failed two of the modules (Pathways and Transformation). I've go in and re-do some work on them, but I'm going to use this set back as a way of building myself up so that I can improve.

Working, working, working!

Been busy this week creating prints and stencils for my new final piece! I'm really happy with how it's coming along, I love the bright colours. The only thing is I need to make sure all the colours actually represent something and aren't just here for the sake of it.