Upon completion of the first attempt at my neon sign I took some time to reflect. Over the last couple of days, I’ve taken the opportunity to discuss the piece with tutors and various other people. The more I’ve considered it, the more I feel certain that making the piece aesthetically satisfying in ALL lights is important. I’m imagining the miraculous but hypothetical event of someone considering paying hard-earned cash for the thing after being bowled over by its brilliance when exhibited! In that instance I feel it would be vital that the piece is a nice thing in all forms. Neat, tidy, tactile as well as visually pleasing.
This has brought me back to my thinking of using fishing wire and hidden holes to attach the light wire to the board. It’s also made me think seriously about transferring the whole thing onto a better board that can be worked on to give a better finish.
So today, this is what I started doing…….
Transfer to second board, chipboard and pencil, 2015, Hannah Maynard
After a hint from one of my fellow students I transferred the layout of the lettering onto a new piece of board. Although this one is still a bit rough around the edges like the last one, this one is more easily rescuable. In order to contain the lettering on the board with no bits hanging off the edges I took some measurements and scaled down the whole thing slightly. I managed to work quite quickly and draw the lettering to a standard I was pleased with.
Lettering temporarily fixed to second board, 2015, Hannah Maynard, neon strip lights and chip board
To save time, I fixed the light wire to the new board using tape. This allows me to see that the lettering works well and make any adjustments. I’ve also started a few tests with the fishing wire set up to make sure this method will keep the shape well enough.
I’m really pleased with myself for having taken the time to really consider the best way of going forward with this project. I find that I will often, all too easily rush projects just to see tangible results and end up with work that could be so much sleeker. I want this to be sleek and am looking forward to working on the details to get it that way. Watch this space.
