Central Saint Martins, UAL

I wasn’t able to attach all images to previous blog entry, so here are the last two:

Busy, busy, busy…… why are the days feeling shorter and the weeks quicker???

Since my last update I have been vigorously painting my 6 chosen portraits, I had a clear week before receiving feedback on my dissertation draft and in anticipation of feedback that leads to lots of work I decided to get on and do as much as I could – resulting in lots of late nights and putting life on hold. But I succeeded. The paintings aren’t finished, but they are all now at a point in the making process where the idea of the series can be seen and reflected on. Also they are in a position now where I can hopefully use them in my portfolios for MA applications.

On this note I have been going to open days and think I’m settled on where I shall apply.

Painting them was fun and I learnt a lot about the different material supports and grounds I’ve chosen, I’ve made a few mistakes but that’s what this term is for, trying stuff out to see what works, and what doesn’t.

I’ve also had my dissertation feedback in the last few days, it went well, I’ve been given lots of notes, references and encouragement, although my idea of handing it in as a sound piece has been curtailed – they won’t have time to listen and it would only be ‘in addition’ as it must be handed in in written/printed format. I have a mind to create it anyway as part of my work. So, yep, as suspected I have lots of work to do, and fast running out of time….

Took a break too and been to some exhibitions: (1)Glenn Brown (I went to a talk at the RA and then the exhibition at the Gagosian Gallery) I have seen lots of photo’s of his work but never any in the flesh – really amazed at how flat they are, expected great swathes of impasto!; (2)”We’re Moving”, alumini show at RCA; Frank Auerbach at the Courtauld – this was lots of impasto; (3)”Passing thoughts and making plans” group show at the Jerwood space – been encouraged to see Alex Katz work.

I have a friend arriving tomorrow, she was my studio partner whilst I was on exchange in Zurich last year, she’s currently on exchange herself in Edinburgh, promised to show her round London, so a busy weekend ahead. More exhibitions!

Laters!

PS I’m only attaching images of where my works are up to now rather than lots of intermediary steps, no time and no room…

What another busy week I’ve just had. Made lots of decisions about my work and started some new paintings. Intend six at present, two groups of three – people I know and people I don’t know.

I had a good chat with a tutor from last year about an MA option, it kind of turned into a tutorial and I was reminded of some important aspects of my work that I really have been taking for granted and I should probably be emphasizing more.

The fact that I make numerous decisions before I even get the paintbrush to the canvas, that my work is about multiples, differences and commonalities. I always start from a photograph, a group of photographs, I carefully decide on surface, size, and medium. I examine the photos, work out what links are there and decide on where to crop them. There is always repetition, multiples, rarely a one painting.

I look at how a group comes together and how the individual fits into the group.

I also had an academic tutorial and this newfound insight helped my current tutor understand my work more, we have both moved our thinking on. Amazing the feeling you get when the light bulb goes on :O)

Some more images of painting progress attached.

Radio silence again I know…been really busy though and so much has happened since last post I don’t know where to start and know I’ll probably miss lots. Thats the trouble with leaving it so long, you lose the thread of what you were talking about and some things become irrelevant.

Firstly I went straight off after last update to take part in a crazy mountain marathon, have done for a few years now. Though this is first time I’ve partnered my husband. You have to do it in two’s, its an orienteering two-day event. Anyway I had a blast, even with the least training I’ve ever put in and came back really refreshed – albeit more than a little sore.

Then with some sign-up tutorials I had a few days of career type stuff mixed in with my current surface prep work (support building). A chat with a careers woman from an internal unit we have called ECCA, helps you work out ‘what next’ and how to get there. We also had some tutors in from the local MA courses: Goldsmiths, RCA, Camberwell, our own CSM. A mind-pondering week all said and done.

The tutorials went well, gave me lots to think about in terms of how others interpret my work and how I intend them to be interpreted – does it matter if these differ…. I did get a renewed enthusiasm to work on some animations I have on the back burner, from photo’s taken as part of last years work.

Then comes the bit where I fell off the radar for almost a week. It’s not like I wasn’t in a good place with my dissertation, I was in terms of actual writing – a full length draft. But I had no title, no story to tell, no argument to have… and this bothered me. So I dug in and tried to figure it out.

What I’ve come up with I hope will go down well. My title is “portraits are murder”. Once I had that I decided to experiment with some creative writing, I re-wrote the whole lot in the fashion of a film noir cop doing a voice over, talking us through his case notes. The images all reside in the appendix as case files and the writing font is that of an old type-writer. I really enjoyed it and even went to lengths of handing in an example voice recording, it would be good to submit final version like this.

The actual text itself is about our sense of ‘self’ and how each time you see an image of yourself, your existing perception is killed off and replaced. Artists work I am discussing are from Cindy Sherman, Gerhard Richter and Boo Ritson. I have worked really hard on it and hope that the tutors feedback is positive, that they see enough theory within it. Its got to get some brownie points for creativity at least.

It’s late Thursday night, another week has whizzed by. It’s been a good one though. I haven’t quite achieved everything on my schedule, but there’s progress – I actually have a schedule! I have been good, keeping my diary/sketchbook up-to-date and in it I have made quite a few decisions regarding achievements I hope to accomplish this term. I’m not too worried at the moment though cause I’ve kind of set it out in two week chunks based on the 1st two weeks of term and what I managed to do. This is the end of week one of two, and although I haven’t got as far as I’d hoped there are other additional snippets to add that I have learnt about and done that I hadn’t planned or anticipated.

Like, I hadn’t realised how complicated it was to make a linen support, or that an expandable stretcher was needed – well best to use anyway.

So, yes I have been in the depths of our workshops a lot, building myself 4 stretchers, 2 for canvas, and 2 were for linen… with the help of the painting technician we’ve tried to stretch one linen on my home-made stretchers but looking at it today I’m not hopeful, it’s looking a bit baggy. I’ve also bought a piece of perspex and ordered some aluminium. I just need to sort out exactly what portraits I’m painting and finish preparing surfaces and I’ll be off the starting blocks. Oh and next week’s treat is making rabbit-skin glue.

My main plan for my body of work this term is to keep all variables fixed except surface and medium of which I’m experimenting with. I keep dithering about just using the same portrait too, but I think it’ll be rather boring if I do, so I’m going to use different ones, that way I can push myself even further.

I’ve also been taking photo’s unnoticed on the tube and noticed but anonymously in the street. I’m sure that with these and some of fellow students again, I’ll have lots to choose from.

We’ve been having dissertation presentation tutorials this week too. Mine was today. It went pretty ok. I planned to record the input I got, but in the heat of the moment I forgot to and couldn’t very well part way through, it would have been rude then. I like to write notes during the sessions, but if I do that on my own turn I miss what’s being said next. I often come away overwhelmed and forget details, so this is why I thought recording it might have helped! Never mind.

I did get some good suggestions so hopefully when I follow them up I’ll be able to crack on and get a good draft handed in in two weeks.

In and around all this I made more progress on my paintings, finishing them all, for now at least.

Oh, and I’m trying to find more studio space!!!! It was inevitable I guess.