Frieze art fair was completely mad. There was so much to see… I woke up the next day with what felt like an art hangover. I’m really glad I went to have a look, and there were several works that really inspired me (and many, many more that left me completely baffled!). I enjoyed just milling around, dipping in and out of the spaces that caught my attention, and so for me it was totally worth it (although the amount of money that some people have to spend was an eye opener too).
I feel like my ideas for practical work are changing all the time and I don’t have enough time to try them all out… I guess this is a case of being more selective about which paths to go down.
My ideas regarding memories have evolved into an exploration of what happens to thoughts and memories after death; this has led to looking at the cycle of life (this is where the “cells” animation comes in) and an interest in microcosmic/macrocosmic structures.
I’ve been pretty busy collecting things; I picked up some great vintage books from Oxfam (a 1940s midwifery handbook and some gorgeous illustrated children’s books) and have been rummaging through my mum’s box of old photographs for some image sources. I’ve ordered a microscope, which I am hoping to use to enlarge things (obviously!) for using as starting points for some drawings (I’m hoping it works ok… it’s only a children’s ‘toy’ one – I thought my boys could have it when I’ve done!). I’ve also bought an old ‘View Master’ off eBay, which I plan on making some reels for, using my own drawings – I thought this would be an intimate, novel way for the viewers to look at my work. It’s probably been done before, but nevermind. I like its instant connection to childhood, and how the viewer is completely visually immersed in the image. Also, potentially, it could be like a really slowed down version of the stop motion animation I’ve been working on. I’ve found a website that shows you how to make your own DIY reels so I’ll be having a go at that!
In my mind, I am still planing on creating the layered structures that I discussed in my first post – I am just working on the individual layers at the moment. The plan is for it to all come together in the one structure. Not sure how yet.
