The end of the beginning

I knew learning Mathematics at school must be useful, *10 years later*  knowledge applied at last.

I————I

Segments – the part of a line or of a length of something between two points
(https://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/segment)
I would have never guessed my work would become so technical and mathematical knowing the subject was my least favourite at school.

The day I threw my math student’s book on the floor was when I accepted the fact I need to put extra effort and treat maths as an exercise for the mind instead of searching for places the knowledge is being applied. This is the reason I feel surprised to discover I haven’t only acquired  the knowledge but  have subconsciously kept applying it in my art practice.

This week I went to the studio with two different, single coloured and in fact, both found balls of yarn. I have a special attitude toward free items, aren’t they the best?… But I do believe, nothing ever is free.

I have captured a lapse in time of mine and Melisa Novotna’s practice. I found it particularly interesting to see the dynamics of installing and painting side by side. I did not feel the need to draw and preferred to test  how the yarns look in our studio space. This play lead to an installation I finished the next day which was also dedicated to drawing and model making.

link to time-lapse https://vimeo.com/640342935

Stepping back multiple times to observe is a very important part of my installing process. I find myself pleased after achieving ‘symmetrical enough’ results as I sit down. ‘Untiled 28’ is an ensemble of segments in turquoise and pink. My brain compensates the missing third side and plays the game how many  triangles I can find- 16. I feel tempted to put a stimulating sign “How many triangles can you find?” without giving an answer but put the viewer in a position of a personal perceptional awareness and emphasize on the fact we each see as much as our capacity lets us in the particular time.

Model making was not as easy and fun as I thought. It is hard to overlay and tape the work, especially I have done it in full scale first. I was anxious I would spend too much time on painting the box in order to make it realistic when my aim in the first place was to experiment. Drawing, testing colours and adding yarn on paper I found more successful. Expanding the scale might be a good step in the future.

I came to the conclusion that I am not ready to create installations from models but the opposite. Models are not as exciting as the full scale installation related to a specific space that becomes a place after my work ‘moves in’. I want my works to be installed in different places appearing slightly different each time which is in contrast to my old works that currently only exist as photographs. Eva Hesse’s works and process are my source of inspiration I am planning to unpack in a separate post.

Working with a ready-made cardboard box was difficult as it is not a transmittable space and it adds more work no matter if I do a model of a random space first and then adjust 1×1  installation. A model that replicates a space to document the work makes more sense to me.

This process drew my attention to the importance of the space in terms of colours of the walls, floor and sealing as well as the materials I am using.

Which comes first the yarn or the space?

I have worked mainly in white spaces and have been choosing yarn to fit it, meaning having white bits or being in contrast. Two or more single coloured yarns contribute to a better visual depth.

Possibilities for future works< undertake proper measurements and write instructions. Look at relevant examples of Sol Lewitt as well as the letter he wrote ”Advice on Self-Doubt, Overcoming Creative Block, and Being an Artist” to Eva Hesse in 1965.

There is a life read by Benedict Cumberebatch on YouTube which is very pleasing as I comprehend sound better, especially after doing some reading and writing is the best end of a productive day at the library!

here is the link>

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VnSMIgsPj5M&t=11s

Drawing is having a visual impact as well as being a tool in conversation. It can be a way to interact and communicate in a personal language that makes perfect sense to its author.

This workshop emphasized on the many possible ways to express one’s thoughts. I do so equally through a combination of written English language and representations. Verbal expression is my element which drawing supports by illustrating, weather there is a interlocutor or not. I noticed I proceed drawing in colour rather than monochrome. It was important to become more aware of my abilities and preferences to rely on them more consciously.

I made a quick 3d paper and masking tape model as another way to present my idea in detail. The paper and tape human figure is an important contribution to the models that provides my viewing suggestions.

Conversations overt it led to > Plans

•  ready- made cardboard boxes or alternative packaging model materials
• installation of models
•  mirrors implied
•  commercial string coloured by me
• play in Photoshop

I feel that creating models will give me more freedom to experiment with scale, colour and contents as opposed to installing in full scale. Looking at my old method of picking a space first and developing an installation has now become extremely limiting. Experiments with models could get me through many more ideas by lifting my imagination skills and knowledge to a higher level.

I feel in a very familiar stage of existence in terms of my studio practice. The place in between work that has been  formed already, work still as an idea and some remaining results form experiments. All is data in contained of photographs, notes, drawings… and now? This is the time where I decide what to do with it and frankly, I am not certain yet.

Something I would like to talk about is the more intensive drawing I overtook for the past week, considering it used to be nearly none. Big variety of materials has always been sitting in my messy art corner and I am very glad the time has come. Crayons, chalk, pens, pencils are all in use now.

Fear used to be part of my associations to drawing but I am happy to say that I am drawing and finally see the value of it. It stimulates me, boosts my visualization and helps me stayed focused.

Scanning my drawings directly to my one drive has also unlocked the use of photoshop for small touches that I used to avoid at all means. Again, because of the same assumptions I had for drawing. That it is only for somebody who has skills, somebody who uses it/does it all the time and not like me who feels like is wasting the source’s capacity.

Seeing the progress and overcoming these  issues I have been having for a long time is very freeing and prove for me that no matter how difficult and impossible it seems, I am capable and will keep pushing further.

I have chosen to work at the front garden of the house I stayed at during the summer of 2021.

After a good hour spend sat down, observing and sketching I captured the process in time-lapse. Both have not been been part of my method so far, I found them successful. Starting the analysis before installing and spectating a video of the act gave me a new perspective of my creative process.

Time lapse videos links >

video 1 https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/592194184
video 2 https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/592195480

’61 High Street’ is an exploration of temporality through contrast taking place in an outdoor space where man made fence, garden furniture, a willow tree and bushes exist. What I found that excites me more is working on the edge of destruction (with a Table that can be moved, branch that can be cut) oppose to the less likelihood and stability of the fence and the tree.

I still need to work on producing better quality documentation images based on before and after. At the time I did not take into account the difficult angles required to document the work. Considering that, the images attached here are as good as it was possible. Better selection of the site is needed as well as more conscious decisions after testing ideas on paper, selecting and forming aims for installment.

I see progress and am planning to explore and include printed photographs to my installations.