I was pleased to be able to find some help in the studio on Thursday to make a body cast of myself. The charity shop swimming costume was a tad unflattering, but then I think I would have felt vulnerable and flabby in anything really.
The process was strangely reminiscent of a full immersion baptism, making it also partly a performance piece, albeit for an audience of only the four helpers.
I asked them to press me into the foam mattress I was lying on while the plastery fabric underneath me set. This was to give a good impression on the back of the cast. Getting me off whilst not cracking the set cast was a challenge, and my hair not covered by the bathing cap was firmly embedded in the plaster. One of the helpers started cutting it off until he began to cut too near my skin, and I asked him politely to stop. Or something like that. I ripped the rest out myself, control is everything where pain is concerned, and the hair does make an authentic touch in the cast.
The top side looks rather strange, as of course I knew from experience it would…..strange small head and pegs for feet (the heels). Quite doll like in fact. The back is much better, as I found out today, although no photos yet of that.
Also continuing on with making slide show type movies in a stop frame animation style, in order to get a really interesting projection for the back of the cast.
Starting to think of where everything will go in the show, how much to put on the walls, what photos to print and show….decisions which all feel crucial now, but may not in the end matter too much. Sence of inadequacy for the task ahead, along with great excitement and anticipation.
