Work on the zebra fish roof
plate project continues. This time the focus was on restriction and rotation.
Holding and manipulating the structures within a framing device changes how the
forces connect and dissipate within it, allowing the ability to focus on
specific aspects of the structure. The work for Double Elephant
this week went well - the session was all about audience(s), recognising and
developing your relationship to them. Working with the Miro board between the
sessions provides a space to share the work created and then develop dialogues
around the student’s practice. Not quite the same as sticking the work on a
wall but a digital version of that with its own inherent strengths. Synthetic Anatomy at Kings was interesting as always. The team is so generous with their
time and knowledge, the discussions over lunch after the workshops are always
full of new ways of thinking. The session looked at and used textile narratives
to explore comparative ideas around and within the body. Developing textile
stories that illuminate our understanding of the anatomy we inhabit. This will
inform their thinking when presenting their table displays that will contain
the narrative of their projects and the 3D prints that are at the center of
their investigation. Work on the zebra fish roof plate project continues. This
time the focus was on restriction and rotation. Holding and manipulating the
structures within a framing device changes how the forces connect and dissipate
within it, allowing the ability to focus on specific aspects of the structure.
Popped into White Cube, Masons Yard. The show by Isamu Noguchi is
very beautiful. The ceiling piece in the main space has a stunning rhythmic
line, using industrial materials and processes in clever ways. I last saw his
work at the foundation in New York in his name, a contemplative, stunning space
in the middle an area that was part industrial estate with Costco as neighbors.
A small slice of calm occupying a corner of a busy city. https://www.noguchi.org/ Onto screens -
working my way through Chloe, a dark, tragic tale that keeps you
constantly on edge, you may never trust digital strangers again! The
Photograph was a very still film, lots of breathless, endless looking at
each other over a jazz soundtrack. Nightmare Alley was sublime, the
lighting was superb, every time Kate Blanchett was on screen she was lit
like a star of stage and screen from the 50's. The references were thick and
fast, repeated viewing is essential. The story is truly harrowing yet there is
a message of redemption in there.
Looking forward to working with people who have signed up for
a series of workshops I’m running online for Double Elephant Print Studio based
in Exeter. The course is title Influence and Connection - An online
course to support artists’ reflection and practice. The requisite
number of people have signed up for it to be viable but if anybody is
interested there is the possibility of joining in – check out their website https://www.doubleelephant.org.uk/courses
Its 4 sessions that will explore the
lateral thinking, problem solving I have been developing over the past 10 years
that started with my Post
graduate Certificate in Learning and Teaching where I focused my research on
reflective thinking, introducing it to the Textile design Course at NUA. I’m working
on a commission for the new space created in the Science Gallery at London
Bridge – the space is being re-imagined as a well-being space for students and I’ve
been devising activities, creating graphics, instructions, and workshops. It’s
interesting to use some of the folding techniques I’ve been exploring alongside
the work I developed for care homes and libraries. Before Christmas I had a
quick visit to Laurence Edwards foundry in Halesworth to develop the ongoing
series of film/projection work. These are just some screen grabs but show the
idea. Onto screens – The Lost Daughter – endless sadness, Humans –
The grief of family, The Matrix Resurrections – realities reinvented, Don’t Look Up
– too real, The Last Train to Christmas – disturbingly clever.
