Feedback from Critical Analysis Draft 18/03

Paintings:

• Objectness - Robert Ryman - JSTOR (in October)
• Minimalism - Donald Judd and Frank Stella - interview with Bruce Glaser.

(The above was in relation to what I had wrote in my critical analysis about past work)


I got told quite a few artists to look at, who relate really well to my studio practice!

• Paintings of George Shaw
• Paul Seawright
• Paddy Jolley
• Rebecca Trost
• Inger Lise Hansen
• Edward Burtynsky
• Terence Koh

Comments & advice from Graham:

• "Throw away" material (paper) interesting - maybe crumple up and place on floor - print multiples - replication - mirrors technology - throw away represents "useless-ness" of outdated technology and machinery - post industrial.
• When talking about "darkness" in my work - don't be too literal with "meanings" of black and white.

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I definitely found this feedback with Graham really useful, as I am more confident about talking about my studio practice, as this is something that I was not really comfortable with before. (I will post my critical analysis when it is finished) Also as well as gaining confidence through feedback, I have got some more ideas of how to develop my work further, as I was struggling with the development process.

Post industrial society.

My work has now become more focused on the decline of institutions, rather than mental health, as I am more interested in the decline of the institution.
Graham suggested to look at post-industrial society and it's meaning, as I was not clear about my ideas toward my work in the critical analysis.

Meaning: Of or relating to a period in the development of an economy or nation in which the relative importance of manufacturing lessens and that of services, information and research grows.

In sociology: Characteristics of, or relating to, or denoting work or a society that is no longer based on heavy industry.

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I definitely think that I will carry on focusing on the decline of the institution and the post-industrial society within my studio practice, as I feel that it has more scope and relates to my subjects better.

Pak Sheung Chuen & Kohei Yoshiyuki

As I have been looking at ways to develop my work in the dark space. I have decided to start looking more into the ways which I could light the room, or using minimal lighting. I am also interested in the experience of the viewer.
I remember going to the Liverpool biennial in 2012 and seeing the work of Pak Sheung Chuen. The work was set in a completely darkened room, and you could only see the content of the room by the flash of your camera going off, revealing a room filled with framed photographs on flowered wallpaper. The whole time you were in the room, a recording of the Muezzin was playing. When you look at the pictures in the room, thry are nothing particularly special, they just resemble typical holiday snapshots. It was for me, the explaination of the piece which really made it come to life. Chuen went on a holiday to Malaysia and the whole time he was there he wore a blindfold, relying on his other senses to take over and experience another country in a whole different way, he took numerous photographs to view when he came back from his visit, so is the experience the viewer has when walking into the exhibition directly related to his time in Malaysia, with the viewer also being 'blind' and not being able to view properly what was in the room until they walk out of it. Also is the viewer's experience also more relevant than the images shown in the darkened room.

I also remember seeing the work of Kohei Yoshiyuki's "Park" series, which was also shown in the Liverpool Biennial. It is also shown in a darkened room, and as you are entering you are given a torch to view the images of people having "relations" with one and other which Yoshiyuki took around several parks in Tokyo. 

The experience of the viewer in both of the above pieces are key to the work. Maybe because of the involvement they have with the work i.e. walking around Pak Sheung Chuen's exhibition with a camera and Kohei Yoshiyuki's with a torch.
This is definitely something that I could try out with my exhibition piece before the end of the year show on how to develop the viewer experience.

Test exhibition Feedback

Today, we received some feedback from Michael Day for the test exhibition and presentation. It was as follows:

"Reasonable account of the work. Nervous at first but made it through the start of the presentation and began to talk confidently one you got in to your flow. Trajectory of the development of the work was described but not analysed in great detail: the reasons for working on or with photos could be explaimed in more depth (photos as evidence, vs histories that are subjective and malleable). The working through of trauma wasn't mentioned, but thr relationship of the work to institutions was. Much potential in the new work, all arising from the confident staging of the work in the space. Consider the space as part of the work: scale up, , scale to match the bricks, light differently (torches, flashes, interittent light sources). Stage in constructed space  that's like a corridor but doesn't go anywhere. Consider focal points of the space. Choose specific strongest images to work with. Image + space = user experience."

I have highlighted what I think are the most important points from my feedback. I am really happy with the feedback I received as I felt that I did not do so good. This has made me feel definitely more confident with my work and how to take it further.

Again - lots of things to experiment with!!

Developing work further after feedback crit

I have became more interested in the experience of the viewer since my feedback crit. It is something relatively new to me, so I will be taking out some books on installation art, as some comments I received were on about installation.

I quickly tested out some more work after the feedback crit. I went along with the idea of using objects on the floor of the dark room, however I only used a very small amount of bark on the floor - bit of a mistake, as I didn't really receive any comments on that part. When I test the work out further I will buy some gravel to lay out on the floor in the space - in attempt to reflect the textures on the photographs/images shown.

I also removed all source of light from the room, something which Michael suggested, and just had a gap in the curtain. I received comments that the photographs look even more "eerie". Also comments that you have to look even closer into the images to see what they are - as I used the images with altered contrasts and brightness, and you could not really tell what they were in the dark.

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I feel like I didn't do as well in the student-led crit group. I feel like I did not develop my work enough and feel quite let down by myself. When I get the opportunity to use the gallery space again, I will try out even more possibilities for further work. And there is a lot that I can try out in my own studio space whilst I am waiting. Hopefully I will be able to sign myself up for a tutorial soon.

Altering contrast.

One thing that was suggested to me was to play about with the contrast of the images which I use. I decided to print off quite a few pictures with the contrast turned down, and they turned out pretty pleasing. I will definitely use these within the dark room, and maybe paint on top of them, like Michael suggested.

(Just a quick snap to show the differences when I have altered the contrast in the images)

 

 

I am also really keen on still using the photocopy paper to print the images on to, as they definitely have an ephemeral quality to them.

 

Just now figuring out a way of how I can test my work out further.

 

 

 

Feedback crit for test exhibition.

The feedback crit went reallywell and there were quite a few positive points about my work. Below are some notes I made during the crit:

• The feeling of claustrophobia is definitely coming across in my work.
• The space I used looks like a corridor and leads to nowhere - dead end. Reflects obsolete places I was talking about in my presentation.
•  The factory has no purpose - not doing anything - relates to the space as it is not usually a space which is used, also relatesas the space leads you around the images - redundant spaces.
• Develop the idea of the corridor that leads to nowhere - possibilities of making my own corridor.
• Black and white insinuates something that is left abandones - especially where the black in the images blends into the blackness of the walls. 
• Eerie situation.
• Images about documentation - grainy - eerie.
• Commented on the dark space next to where I am working - someone thought that it related to my work, as there are things just thrown in there, however this was not my intention - be aware of the spaces used around me.
• Comments on the photocopy paper - cheap paper - throw away/disposable. Also relatable to the factory pictured.
• Play about with lighting - the lighting used didnt really work with the images I used.
• The space is definitely significant to my work - need to think of how I can take this further.
• How much response is to the space I've used and how much is to the images I've used.
• Window - focal point.

Things to test further before the student-led crits on 06/03

• Play with lighting.
• Adjust lighting so you can't see the floor.
• Maybe use no lighting at all? - mundane - gap in the curtain as main source of light? Dimmer light as source of light?
• Think of sizing of images and positioning of images. (The way I positioned them looked quite odd against the size of the bricks in the room.
• Could do one picture per brick.
• Think of installation - put things on floor - work with the space.
• Painting on photographs would work well in the dark room - maybe not be able to tell they have been painted on - could make them really eerie.
• Play about with contrast on black and white photographs and display them in the dark room.
• Visual and spacial experiences - work on getting it right.
• Try presenting images differently - more rigid layout - or the opposite more "messy/irregular" layout.
• Think about the quantity of images used.
• Try scaling up images on illustrator to make images the same size as the walls.

I am quite pleased with the feedback that I received as I was really unsure if I was getting my point across within my work. The feedback was mostly positive, the only negative things being the positioning/lighting of the images, and the disused dark space which is behind the space I am using, as I did not block it off.

There is definitely a lot to go on that I can try out before the student-led crit groups on Thursday. My favourite ideas being putting objects on the floor such as gravel, with dimmed lighting for experience of the viewers. Also I am leaning toward the idea of putting images on each brick in the room. 

Trip to Thomas Bolton factory

Today, I went to the Thomas Bolton factory in Froghall to take some internal shots of the disused factory. I got some really interesting shots, which I could possibly use in my studio practice after the feedback crit.
Some of my favourite images from the outing are shown below:

 

Above are only a handful of the photographs that I took. This time I decided to focus more on the mechanisms and machinery that was once used but now forgotten and slowly decaying away.

 

I will definitely be taking yet another trip up to the factory within the next couple of weeks to take some more photographs, on advice taken from my feedback crit group.

 

Cyanotype Workshop

Today, I went along to the Cyanotype workshop. I had been really looking forward to this since I found out about it in my tutorial with Michael Day last week.

Here are some things which I learned in the workshop:

Science:
The process of cyanotype printing uses two chemicals, these are:
- Ferric ammonium citrate (green)
- Potassium ferricyanide

They result in a photo-sensitive solution when dissolved in water, which is used to coat a material such as paper or fabric. An image can be produced by exposing it to a source of UV light (such as sunlight) "The UV light reduces the iron(III) to iron(II). This is followed by a complex reaction of the iron(II) complex with ferricyanide. The result is an insoluble blue dye (ferric ferricyanide) known as Prussian Blue. The developing of the picture takes place by flushing it with flowing water. The water-soluble iron(II) salts are washed away, while the non-water-soluble Prussian Blue remains in the paper. This is what gives the picture its typical blue colour"

Although this process sounds quite complicated, Heidi said that the most difficult part of the process is mixing the chemicals correctly, with health and safety in mind! I found it really interesting learning about the chemicals used and what the irons do, and how it gives off the vivid blue colour.

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To make a cyanotype print you can:
- Place objects directly onto the paper
- Draw/paint on to acetate or cellophane
- Use medium or large format negatives

I was initially under the illusion that you could only print on photographic paper, and it would come out looking like a photograph. There is a lot which you can do with the cyanotype, as there are hardly any limits. And I really didn't expect that you would be able to use objects such as flowers to make a print of, and even your own drawings. I am really looking forward to trying out this printing within my studio practice.

Below is a picture I took of the examples shown at the workshop:

Update on test exhibition installation

So the way I had put up my LED lights did not work at all! I went in to hang up my proper images for the test exhibition on Friday, and both lights had fallen down. I had to rethink where to put the lights as they would not stick up in the corner of the room without falling down!

As you can see from the image above, I have decided to put a light on the floor at the far end of the room. There is also a light above as you walk in to the room, which points in the direction of the light shown on the image.

After I changed the lights about, I have realised that it gives off a better effect than the lights in the corners of the room pointing in the direction of the middle of the room. The way the dark room is lit up now, it definitely gives off a better effect, and is something that I am glad happened - a happy mistake!

 

I am really looking forward to the feedback crit tomorrow to see how people perceive my work, and if it is finally doing the job which I want it to do.