Between the eye and the object

Construction Project Day #10

I have decided not to include any text (other than this) for this blog post as I think the images give an indication as to how my thought process developed today.

Construction Project Day #9

As a development from Day 8, I have produced this work consisting of 3 flourescent stick-lights wrapped in primary coloured cellophane which stand on their corresponding coloured acrylic panel.

I would like to add to this work in terms of floor space covered and amount of lights used to test what it looks like and how much light is given off.

The bulbs were suspended from the ceiling by their power cords, the bulbs were not hung vertically (resembling designer lighting) or horizontally (as in my past works), instead an odd tension was created by hanging them at angles. This I preferred.

As you moved around the work the hue changed as did the formal arrangement and relationship between the lamps. The reflection in the glossy acrylic sheets below added another important dimension which was necessary within the work, doubling the amount of light given out.

Construction Project Day #8

I started the day by continuing to work on a paper based piece that I had started a previous day (Day 6). As the tip-ex dried on top of the photo paper it gradually started to peel away and come off. I documented this process, before tipping off all the tip-ex shards and revealing the photo of my light sculpture I had originally covered over.

I then moved on to create some sculptural work; as with previous works, I have used materials available to bm from in and around my studio. Mirrors, coloured acrylic sheets and sticklights feature heavily. Reflections, saturation, material quality and form are important elements within this particular piece.

I thought about all the little details of the piece and all the materials together. It is important to me that they work as a unit. I started to consider elements of certain materials that I had used that were ordinary, such as the white electrical cables (standard – not adapted by an artistic mind). So I thought about covering the cables in gold leaf and/or other reflective materials to work in harmony with my other material choices. I opted for gold glitter as I had it available in my studio – after all this is the aim of the project – to use materials that are handy.

Construction Project Day #7

Back to the drawing board… literally!

By using my photographs of pre-existing/past work and working on top of them, I have created ideas and/or proposals for new works. See if you can recognize any of the images or pieces?

In the image below I have used grey electrical tape to cover the fluorescent bulbs on the photograph, stopping where the cables start to appear.

For this second image, I covered my light-work Tempo with sticky mirror; this lead me to think about what the work may look like if I was to develop it further using additional materials like mirrors, etc.

In this third image, I tried to discover what my colour-behind-acrylic would look like if isolated in a white field or space. Taking a photograph of past work “Dispersion of White” and using white paint to edit out the cables and other visual distraction.

The forth and final image again takes the notion of covering over an original work to create something completely different. This time I took tip-ex to create the white puddle. The substance seemed to have a really interesting reaction to the photo paper and started to peel, an unexpected element to the work, but it does not upset me.

I aim to continue with this line of testing as well as taking the work back into spatial arrangements.

Construction Project Day #6

Do you remember the work I made for ‘On Brown & Violet Grounds’ at Piccadilly Place, Manchester last September called ‘Dispersion of White‘? On Day 6 I revisited this particular piece and attempted to expand on some of the ideas within it. ‘Dispersion of White’ opened up a dialogue between the work and the practice of painting.

I made a cylinder from a 50cm x 50cm sheet of thin frosted acrylic which I then encased several fluorescent lamps within. An area of this colourful assortment of fluorescent sticklights have therefore been hidden, allowing the hues to blend together in a painterly fashion and hiding the ugly end caps from view. The coloures bleed into each other without any clear delineation. The robust form of the sticklights stick out from the acrylic sheet, acknowledging the inner workings of the light construct.

As the viewer moves around the work, different combinations of colours can be seen, each view with its own intricate combinations.

Later in the day I moved the frosted cylinder up to the middle of the bulbs. I would like to try this again but with the whole length of the lamps covered. My only concern, and I don’t mind admitting this – is that aesthetically it works but it does remind me of a contemporary lighting/design feature. Back to the drawing board?

Finally, I ended the day by allowing four sheets of neon coloured acrylic panels to fall onto the floor near to the center of the vertical sculpture. The reflection of the lights differed (in colour) depending of when you stood in the studio.