Week 17
BA3b Reflective journal
Mon 29th Jan- 04th Feb
This week I have been very ill and so went back home for the week to try and get over the worst this hasn’t worked but I can’t miss any more time welding so I had best push on next week. Despite all this I have been given time to sit down research and really think about my practice, thus I have come to a realisation about my work.
I have been so blindly focused on this one creature which has dominated my practice these past 12 months that I have lost sight of my true practice; I always explain that my practice is a tableau of unsightly worlds and organisms which embody the dark aspects of the human condition. And in truth for at least a year now my practice has been a devoted creation of a single being not a series not a menagerie an individual. Which is not what I want, therefore now that my vision is about to be realised in the sculptural work I aim to submit for my degree show I am hoping that I will soon have time to start realising and creating other work to start to bring the vast collection of worlds and beings inside my head into the physical world to show audiences and emphasise to them glaring issues I identify within the human condition which simply gets dismissed within a contemporary setting.
I’m now interested in also creating the cities and land masses on which these beings I create inhabit, a bit like terraforming the worlds of my mind! Similar to the works of artists like H R Giger, Charles Avery and Ilya and Emilia Kabakov. I don’t know why I am suddenly interested in creating the settlements for these beings as I have never really been too interested in architecture. However I am starting to allow the mass of ideas in my head to begin spilling out from what containments I put in place, I am fully devoting my life to my practice, as I believe if I continue to do what I love as a life choice I will never “work” a day in my life!
Creating creatures such as the Alpha and great maned wolf is more conceptual work I feel, I need to give them context to make them relevant to the Contemporary art scene. In relation to the contextual side of my practice I am interested in also starting to write relevant pieces of written work.
Therefore I have been re visiting influential figures, beings which have been created in such a way that fascinates me.
Frankenstein’s creature, David 8
Both these figures have been created by humans both are fictional, one was created from biological material the other is an android both are superior to humans in their own right, both have grown to loath humanity over the course of their lives. However only one truly acts upon this hate, David embraces his superiority believing himself to be the creator believing that he has transcended from the state of creation. Alternatively Frankenstein’s creature views himself as an outsider a being with no purpose, place or community. A drifter naturally superior yet socially outcast living a solitary life waiting to be joined by more of his kind or to die a meaningful death, a creature without a place or friend in the world. Poetic a creature doomed to live forever yet forever lonely.
Caesar
Caesar is an advanced chimpanzee who instantly is perceived as an advanced being due to his bipedal stance however what sets him apart quickly from the rest of the cast is his rapid domestication of horses and competent riding skills.
Kong
Revered as a god, the sheer colossal scale on which this carnation of the titular figure has been perceived gives the being its superior status. Therefore using the scale of the work is essential, although mine is roughly 13ft tall not 100 it should be intimidating enough to make the audience feel an unease around the sculpture.
The shape of water, mere man
This is an intriguing character as it is shown to possess human like emotions and intellect, and whereas we are shown the fish man as a deadly being it is only shown to be a threat when it is needlessly and brutally tortured by the government agents on sight. When it finally escapes it reveals its true loving nature. However when you look at the being Del Toro insisted that it be fish like but attractive to women as well.
Alien
It was designed as a perfect being something that can endure anything and thrive in any conditions. However it is only perfect when we view it from the stance of survival, as when it is all considered it is not a complex being it is a simple survivor intent only on surviving, eating, reproducing. It isn’t interested in studying its surroundings, it isn’t curious or sentimental. Therefore it is a superior being but only on a physical level.
Engineers
Unlike the aliens from the same franchise, these are beings which are shown as vastly superior to ourselves and are implied to be our creators. However instantly we see that these beings are at least twice the size of an average human. Another interesting factor is that these beings are completely hairless, whether this is an actual detail from their genes or just a haircut for space travel is unknown, but for some reason this just makes them look pure and cleaner than humans.
Other than plotting and reconsidering the future of my practice I have not done a whole lot this week, at least nothing beneficial enough to reflect upon, furthermore due to going home from being ill I have not been able to take a studio photo despite having access again to it. It is strange how much I have noticed the absence of my studio these past couple of weeks. I want a fresh start in my space therefore first thing next week I want to strip the floor clean of plaster and get rid of the 5ft figure which I consider a failed sketch.
Furthermore I have calculated how much the sculpture for the degree show has cost so far, and bare in mind so far all have done is weld half the armature and mould and cast several teeth and eyes. Despite this so far the work has accumulated a total cost of £121 which is within my estimates for a total cost at the conclusion of about £300.
Week 16
BA3b Reflective journal
Mon 15th Jan- 21st Jan
This has been a slow but productive week, as I had to skip several potential welding days due to being ill, however despite this I have managed to make descent progress on the sculpture. On the Monday I went to the mould room to see how the moulds had set and to poor the first of the eyes and teeth, I chose to use resin for the eyes due to its glass like aesthetic yet durable nature. Furthermore I chose to use resin tinted with black metal powder so that the teeth had the calcium appearance of resin yet the deep matte black look given by the powder. Because the head is already very heavy I wanted lightweight details, therefore the rein of the teeth and eyes also solves this issue.
Rather than making a jacket mould I had opted to save time by making a simple two piece silicon mould, this meant less material less time, but it also meant I had to be careful when pouring resin due to the week bond of both pieces of the mould, thus I had to bind them together with several elastic bands. Below I have attached images of the teeth and the eye, the teeth I must say worked out perfectly, and the chimneys that the resin was poured into have now formed the roots of the teeth. However the eye has not worked out due to an air pocket, therefore as I pour next one I will need to tilt the mould to release trapped air.
The teeth I will need to make several casts of along with several new teeth, mainly the front teeth and the fangs which will require another mould. It’s a shame that the resin takes several days to dry as I would like to produce these teeth ASAP so as to push on with the rest of the project. Furthermore outside of the mould room I have continued working on the armature. This week I have managed to create the detachment point at the waist and begin the torso. To create the connection point I have used rectangular 13mm tubes and 10mm steel rods so that the base 10mm rod of the torso will fit easily yet not rotate easily making for a simple and problem less connection. As when the sculpture is finished the torso will be bloody heavy so the easier it is to connect the two together the better.
A further issue of this week was that the gas replacements for the mig welder did not arrive until Friday evening therefore I had to learn and make do with using a stick welder which was an annoying task, as it was very different to using either a tig or mig welder. However I made do, although when the mig is up and running again I will reinforce the welds I made this week.
Besides the connection point I was also able to start the torso, at the centre I have welded a curve in 10mm with a parralel straight rod going down welded half way up the curve meeting at respective connection points. Off of this central structure the form of the torso will be added, hopefully little engineer for weight distribution will be needed on the torso as the legs will be taking the bulk of the weight, whilst the torso simply rests ontop. Therefore the lighter and less complicated the torso the better, furthermore out of this respect I will also make the arms detachable as well so that it is simpler to attach the torso onto the legs. Perhaps the head should be detachable, the only issue with this idea is that the neck will look sceptical due to the seem between head and neck.
To hide the seem as best as I could around the waist I have made a tailored waist shape to match that which is on the legs already so that torso and legs line up perfectly, and rest upon one another as well, so that gravity hides the seem.
Due to having to learn how to use the new welding method I was unable to make as much progress as I wished on the torso however just making the connection point meant I have made progress enough.
I find it quite interesting as it is at the moment these sculptural legs with this clean simple solitary curve sprouting from inside. Furthermore it is interesting to see the full height of the sculpture even though it is crouched it is taller than myself, roughly about seven foot tall.
Although it has always been my plan to cover the armature in plaster to create a surface like that of the head I have made, I was shown another potential finish to the sculpture by one of the workshop technicians. I was shown perhaps I could cover the form in a steal plate skin.
This would give an entirely different meaning to the work, and appearance, I could use the plates to either fill the gaps of the armature, or perhaps to emphasise these lines. What this would mean for my actual themes and context as regards my practice I am not sure, however I have been thinking that now I have the plaster head and the armature perhaps I could use several surface, starting at the head in plaster then heading down the body the upper half of the torso is steal plate below this the plates begin to getter further apart until by the upper thighs the plates are gone and the armature is all that is left.
Above I have made a sketch of how this could potentially look, although its nothing like what I planned, however I am intrigued in the potential outcome that I could make. Despite this when making this sketch I drew it holding something which gives purpose to its crouched position as if it is studying something which shows its interest in its surroundings.
Week 15
BA3b Reflective journal
Mon 15th Jan- 21st Jan
This was the first week of the final unit, which was an odd feeling as I am eager to press on with my practice to use these last weeks as much as possible and yet I’m shiting myself about the next step I’m certain I want to carry on my studies with a MA but I am worried about how to fund it, how to move on after it.
Despite this I have made headway with my degree show work this work, as I have been planning for the majority of BA3a I have decided to construct a sculpture of a humanoid hybrid being superior to humans possibly somewhere between 3 and 5 metres depending on posture. However as it was the start of a brand new unit I felt it beneficial to stop myself and truly consider the thematic context of my work and its purpose within the art world.
I have been reassessing the benefits or rather the purpose of my work. I have come to believe that it in fact is a potentially far more significant sculpture that I intend to create than I first considered, rather than a mere reflection of human taboo, and our objectification of beasts, I believe that this in fact questions prejudice and stereotypes within our society. At the dawn of the 20th C it was widely believed that the “Savage” tribes men of the Amazon rainforest were primitive less intelligent than the white man, yet of course this is bullshit. At the time controversial discoveries of pottery, roads and agriculture within Amazonia proved to the rich upper classes of English society that they were not superior. And yet to this day we find that higher class rich pricks in certain branches of society do still consider themselves intellectually superior, furthermore racism is still rampant across the globe, and I am not vain or foolish enough to suggest my work could make a change to racism or even effect it but it may highlight it. As at a time when it would seem society has difficulty seeing humans as equal, what if I could successfully portray a beast’s form as intellectual and maybe even superior? Maybe by doing so I would question how we judge intelligence or equality.
Moving forward, this week I have started sculpting my creature, using the dimensions of the large scale charcoal drawing from week 4, I have begun to construct the steel rod armature that will act as the skeleton of the sculpture, I intended to only get a leg finished this week, however as I have hit the ground running I have been able to finish the majority of both legs and in fact began moulding the teeth and eyes for the being.
To make the armature I planned to use a lot of steel more than necessary so that it may with stand the weight of the sculpture which will undoubtedly be excessive. To ensure that it takes the weight I used a single length of 10mm steel rod to shape a stick man like basis for the legs. Initially I wanted the being to be standing bipedal with a cane however when I found that the crotch therefore would be 7ft off the ground, I adapted dropping the being into a crouch as if it is studying the land before continuing, making a more dynamic stance, and also conveying the beings interest in its surroundings, as it is not merely a being that survives, this is like humans a being who shows interest who wants to understand and collect. Thus this was an unexpected but greatly beneficial accident. I then used 6mm rod for the remaining armature, first building weight bearing and distributing triangles, and pyramids around the ankles, knees, and thighs so that the weight would be perfectly funnelled to the feet and the knee which is resting on the ground. After this was satisfactory I began forming the shape of the being using accurately shaped 6mm rods on the exterior, before finishing the armature at the waistline with a horizontal circle; the purpose of which is so that when I start creating the torso I have a detach, reattach point at the waist, so that I may separate the two halves, for transport and storage.
Furthermore this week, on the odd occasion I couldn’t get into the welding booth, I spent my time making silicon moulds for the teeth which I have so far made and the eyes. Which all need to be made from rein therefore silicon was the only option for the moulds. The eyes shall be made from half globes with small dimples on the back into which I will later paint the iris and pupil with flecks of gold leaf as extra details as I discussed in previous weeks. The teeth I finally chose to cast in resin with a black pigment because, with the glossy surface of the resin the teeth will be given a calcium like appearance making them indeed more realistic. The eyes however will be the most striking part of the sculpture as the only source of real colour, therefore I want them to be blazing with warm colours, and the flecks of gold leaf are intended to give the work a sense of regality or divinity elevating it above humans.
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