Assignment 3 - 500 word overview

500 Word Overview of Assignment 3

I felt that in reviewing my workshop pieces was really necessary to understand how lighting and touch is so important. Wire becomes pliable when knitted, stitching becomes strong and rigid when glued. 

In this assignment I felt myself delving in to lots of different ways of working, not very methodically but whilst that was a concern at first once my finished samples started to take shape I felt more confident.

I felt I needed to keep researching and reviewing the artists and how they felt about the fabrics. Initially some of my sketches didn’t seem to work any further than being drawings so I moved on to new ideas. 

I really liked the depth of the blue glass photograph, layers upon layers of soft gentle colour. I feel that before I go in to a fabric sample, I need to look at the image and paint my interpretation of it. By doing this I can work out how the design might fit together. It also helps me pull out the elements I want to use in my final design.

The Shard May 2012

However, the best, clearest example of samples is Reference 3, The Shard. I had seen the building nine months ago and when we visited London in May it stood out like a beacon against the blue sky. Having looked at the grid effect in the workshops I thought it would be fun to see how I could follow through and make final samples.

I really like using layering and cut away fabric so this was my initial starting point, with layers of fabric sewn into shapes, the sections of the building start to show where the reflection of the light is. On my final pieces I have added brief descriptions of how I developed them, so when I review what I have done at the end of the course I can develop or use the ideas from them.

I really liked using unusual substrates to weave within the workshops, I wandered around the house finding odd things to use. From speaker leads to aluminium foil it was interesting to see how they worked together with more conventional materials.

In different light the pieces can take on very different looks. I used indoor, spotlight, yellow light, white light and then outdoor, clipping samples to the washing line. I hadn’t expected the different lighting to create such different effects.

When I wanted to show glass I felt organdie was a great fabric for this, it is easy to work with and I like the fraying when it is cut to give a softness to the piece.

Lutrador was something I had never worked with and I played around with it in the workshop not really knowing how I would use it. I personally think painting strong colours on it works the best to give its own personality. I have also used it for more than just a background as it’s matt qualities are good in shadow work.

First sample with dissolving fabric

My initial sewing on dissolving fabric was successful but I really struggled to achieve the best from it. I realised one of the best things to do was to blend it with other fabrics. I had never used this before but I can see how it would make excellent panels in more detailed pieces. However my technique needs improving before I would be confident to go beyond these pieces.

I wasn’t sure what I would achieve from these final pieces but I feel more confident in understanding how the different techniques work and how to display them. At first I hadn’t a clue about how I would send them but mounting them has meant that I myself can keep reviewing them and even changing the backgrounds over.

I would like to develop more 3D ideas and have had a think about these in my small sketch book. It seems quite a challenge to do something 3D but it means light could capture  the piece in different ways. It is interesting how soft pliable fabric sewn together and appliquéd over one another create a strong piece. No longer are individual fabrics soft but they become static and powerful.

This is especially evident in machine sewing. With hand sewing the strength of the thread rather than the fabric dominates. I tried some knitting on my Shard piece (Ref 3) but whilst the colours were good the threads were wrong. They were too soft and folded in to one another. So knitting with wire at different intervals may have helped define the panels.

weaving clipped to a washing line

At first the revealing and concealing element was difficult as it was easier to look at reflections and get focused on them, but once I had pegged my workshop pieces to the washing line I started to understand their qualities. I have shown this with the woven raffia piece as a sample and in my A3 sketchpad. It is very interesting how lit differently the different substrates become predominant, or stronger in daylight, the raffia looks very strong, almost like willow. In reality it is a much weaker material.

Overall I felt this project was a real challenge and struggled in places but it made me review and relook at the work I was doing. If something wasn’t working I tried different approaches. I really liked reviewing the workshop pieces to make me thing about what I had created. I was very confused about how many samples I had to complete but I hope I have done what the assignment specified and more. If I had an idea for a sample I just kept going with it to see how it turned out.