Evaluation

In this project, I wanted to challenge myself into experimenting with as many different media as possible, as in the past, I have only really produced work in traditional medium such as painting, drawing and photography.  I also wanted to maturely develop existing subjects that have influenced my personal life and inevitably, my art work over the last few years.

I initially set out with theme’s and some ideas of what I wanted to achieve, and haven’t overly swayed from these throughout the project. Knowing roughly which direction I wanted to go in, in the way of theme’s, I began undertaking research into artists; some I have revisited from past projects, and some I have discovered along the way.  I have always been interested in feminist art and the way women think, and high’s and lo’s in personal relationships have a total affect on the concept of my art. Artists’ such as Tracey Emin and Louise Bourgeois use art to portray a free-spoken way of thinking and explaining things.  I have also looked in to artists that use text, conceptual art, installations and film- in particular, work that is frank and makes the viewer feel uncomfortable ‘invading’ ones privacy.   

After researching in depth into Louise Bourgeois work and connecting with it, it inspired me to create an installation based upon a quote she said in a documentary I watched- “It is necessary to recreate the past, in order to get rid of it.” I do this in my own work; repeat processes in order to forget about the problem or memory. As my sketchbook is where I do most of my work, I am constantly flicking through and looking at the same pages almost every day, so in a way, the pages are 'worked to death' and the topic on the page becomes boring and something I don't want to remember anymore. The 'cell'/installation becomes one place I could put each memory into, instead of scattered around in my mind. At this point, I anticipated my final piece to be an installation. After watching the documentary, it gave me ideas for how I wanted my installation to look after seeing the 'Cell' installations Louise Bourgeois made.

Earlier on in the course, I visited the Rosa Barba exhibition, ‘Subject to Constant Change’ at the ‘Cornerhouse’ gallery in Manchester. This influenced me greatly into making a scratch-film, even before FMP.  I loved the simplicity of the way it was projected onto a white wall, the fact that it was hand-written and an instant, direct process, as this is the way I like to work.

After several different plans and ideas, as a result of artist research and gallery visits, I eventually drew out a plan of the idea I had in my mind of what I wanted my installation to look like, which had 2 main elements; sound and film. I sifted through ideas of materials I could use to make my installation out of, including my initial aim of finding or constructing a metal cage such as a supermarket ‘roll’ cage. I quickly identified that this idea wasn’t going to be possible as I asked around at several supermarkets to see if I could borrow a cage. I then had a tutorial with one of my tutors and discussed the possibility of buying separate pieces of metal grid and piecing them together. Unfortunately, because of lack of funds, this could not be possible either.

We then talked about using wood instead of metal. I quite liked the idea, although I didn’t think it would look as visually appealing as a metal cage. With this viable idea in mind, I carried on with making the different pieces of work that would go in and on the cage, as I thought this was a better use of my time while I think about the materials for my cage.

I started recording sounds and making audio samples. I also made a scratch-film and added the sound to it and experimented with editing.

Additionally, I wanted something else other than film and sound and wanted to incorporate the work I have done in my sketchbook. Before FMP, I enlarged the work to A1 which worked better than the size of the sketchbook. I decided I wanted to use this method, so I ordered two frames for the prints.

One of the biggest influences I had regarding my installation was a visit to a local gallery called Howarth Art Gallery. An installation that was exhibited influenced me further to think about more simplistic ideas that were a lot more realistic in the time scale I had. I liked the idea of using cellophane and light and took these ideas into careful consideration.

As time was passing by, I was worried about how my installation was going to look, and more importantly, what I was going to make it out of and how I was going to construct it! I had another tutorial with my tutor, and I mentioned the installation I saw at Howarth Art Gallery and he liked the ideas I thought about. He suggested the idea of using boards to construct a shape which I could put my film and sound into.  We experimented with different shapes, and quickly identified that a triangular shape which was both practical and interesting, was going to be best.  After advice from a media tutor, he suggested I used a special screening material to project my film on to instead of using cellophane, so that it would be much more clear and professional; and this worked well.

Over this time, I was also constructing the space with my peers for the whole exhibition, which was challenging at times, but as a group, we managed to help each other and succeed. Everything in my installation was put together- the film was projected inside the installation, the sound worked perfectly well with the film and the prints were hung on the walls next to it.

I was really happy with the results of my installation, and feel I surpassed my expectations of how professional my work would look and the standard of it; giving that I had never made a film or sound piece before. Using different and new media has excited me in this project, and also for the future. I have been very pleased with the high standard of the exhibition overall and it has been exciting and intense working to such a professional level and I have learnt a lot in the entire process of the course.   

I have enjoyed keeping a blog of my progress and entering information in to it, as and when. I feel it helped me efficiently keep track of my thoughts and ideas, and I thought it was more appropriate for the media (film, sound, etc.) I was using in my project. I did, however, keep a summarised plan on paper that I was given by my tutors to keep me on track when I didn’t have access to my blog.        

I feel I have been efficient enough and used my time wisely in this project, but things take time and don’t always work out how and when they are supposed to when relying on other people’s help. I have also struggled financially through FMP, and if I had more money, then I would have been able to purchase materials to build my installation as I planned, and have a more professional looking structure.