So in researching into identity I've had a thought about relating the body to natural organisms such as plants and flowers. Our bodies inside and out are just like flowers in that we all grow and form differently and individually. But also in order to flourish we need to nurture and love and appreciate our bodies in the way we would look after a flower.

Also, in researching more into flowers I've discovered that each plant life has its own definition and meaning, mostly which are also considered characteristic qualities. So for example, a yellow rose represents jealousy or infedelity. The flowers could work well as a way to interject my concept of identity into each individual work. I want to use studies of the body, however by using the exterior it could encourage people to judge my artwork by the appearance of the body and I want to prevent that. I want to promote individuality to portray our identity as the beautiful aspect of our being and not our shape looks or weight. Therefore I've considered drawings of the inside of the body such as the muscles and skeletal structure. This would again symbolise that beauty lies much deeper than our looks. Therefore I've began experimenting with joining my concept of flowers and muscle work into one. Shown in the example image. By doing different studies with different combinations of flowers I am reflecting different traits in different people that make up the identity of who they are. Making them all different combinations will support that we are all individual and different, and this applies to both our personality and identity but to our bodies aswel. Our bodies are also unique and we should embrace them.

At the moment I feel very positive about this idea, it would help me to conceptually represent different identities in a way that might please people aesthetically. Flowers are considered or usually associated with beauty and I want to promote that we are all beautiful from within. I want to promote positive body image that may help people take even a small step in the right direction away from self loathe.

In experimenting with some drawings, such as the one above, it has helped me put my thoughts down on paper and allowed me to come to the conclusion that using body parts such as the hands and feet ( where the muscles are more intricate) are much more interesting to play with as I can wind and intertwine the flowers much more interestingly. The flowers aren't hidden in a subtle, exciting way when using parts of the body with larger more block-like muscles.

Aternativelly, instead of just placing flowers discreetly between muscles I could create patterns with the flowers themselves And then apply the pattern to cover different muscles. This is something I could address next in my experimentation and may actually work effectively for the more larger muscle groups.

new brief, new start...

So this is the moment we all wait for in degree art & design...the opportunity to do what we want to do! I've always been interested in the body obsession issue that plagues society and how it has resulted in a rise in eating disorders. Having partaken in projects in this theme before I've always approached it from the angle of someone experiencing an eating disorder. Therefore this time I want to promote the idea of inner beauty and how we should be defined by our personality rather than our shape or size. 

I feel this could be a much more interesting angle and help me to create artwork that isn't going to make people uncomfortable like previously but help address a matter that should be taken more seriously. We are human and it's natural to have flaws, we aren't designed to be perfect and trying to be that is causing people to be seriously I'll and unhappy. 

Having a chat with my mentor was really helpful, focusing on the key words of identity and individuality will help me demonstrate that we are all different and that should be embraced not resented. On the down side I'm now hit with the difficulty of addressing identity without causing any focus on looks or body image, a tough one but could also be interesting during the research process. 

The next step is to come to a conclusion about how to represent different identities with people....research time! 

Graduation plan

So it's presentation day for my graduation plan in PDP. I think I've come to the conclusion that I want to get my honours...it could really help me out with my goal to own my own gallery and help me broaden my knowledge.....at Least that's what I'm telling myself anyway. Have to present it later on so I'm sure I'll find out sooner or later if my plans brilliant or atrocious 

Got new brief last week aswel focusing on the concept of lines so let e honey that could encorporate anything really...I'm trying to be really clever about what I choose to do but giving myself a bit of brain pain in the process :( had a few ideas such as the line of fire (shotgun executions) or the expression "crossing the line" which I could either use as an emotion type focus or look more into boundaries within the world...the first idea I hae loads of topics to explore but I feel like I'm always picking something kind of depressing to do. And the second  option I don't really have to many ideas for but if done right could really tie in well with my travelling diary for my "big project" after Christmas.....so basically more research ahead. 

Critical writing is going well, David seems pleased with my plan so far so all good in that aspect, just very annoyed I can't get hold of either of 2 books at the library that I've been recommended. Would be so much nicer if people would actually return them when supposed to so I feel I'm gonna end up having to buy a book... It's not like I'm a student and im skint all the time.......  Grr 

Macrobert finale

So we found out on Monday who the lucky winner was and I hate to say it but I'm a little relieved I wasn't chosen. It may not be the right attitude to have but I know I've struggled with this brief and it's pushed me completely out of my comfort zone so it seem's reasonable that someone who enjoyed it more should win. Needless to say although it wasn't my cup of tea it was a great experience and in answering any brief it's not always going to be easy as there's the possibility of conflicting ideas so it was definitely a learning curve! on the bright side I'm hugely excited to find out my next task tomorrow and completely intend to throw myself into my work, I've been looking at some new textile artists online and there's a few techniques im interested in trying! So exciting times ahead! 

A huge sigh of relief that David seems happy enough with my essay proposal! So I've reserved a few books at the library that I'm going to go and query about tomorrow, and one ordered online so soon I'll be glued to the books once again like my childhood days! 

Unfortunately I've still not come to a conclusion about PDP and I feel I'm probably going to have a plan a, b and c but at least it'll be a plan I guess.....once again my inability to make a final decision causes me problems. Guess I'd better get my head in gear. 

October break!

So I've been using this week off from college to really focus on my macrobert brief, it's still something I'm not fully enjoying but nothing to do but power on... I'm in the construction stage, I have my 3 large scale origami stars folded and painted and I've just pinned and glued sections that are being a little temperamental. Next step is to start covering them..I have my felt that I spent 2 days making 12 large sheets so my arms are definetelly feeling it but this will help me to incorporate my 70s colour theme and help protect my peice from the dreaded fireproofing issue. I also have my laminated sheets of familiar Xmas objects such as bells and holly and I intend to stitch and couch into them to add some alternative texture and surface dimension. So basically I have my bits tomorrow it's just time to being it all together :)! Oh and I have old fashioned Xmas photos that I've thought about incorporating too but who knows?! 

As far as PDP is concerned I haven't even glanced at it this week as I've been too focused on project 1 but I definetelly hope to gather the last of my research this weekend to hopefully make a start on my graduation plan, although I'm still unsure of my first choice of route, so although I intend to start it I may just end up spending the day staring at my folder! :( 

I haven't really talked much about my critical writing project on this but I feel confident with my plan. At first I had a vague idea about doing something in reference to eating disorders or body image, but I had too many different topics so after some much needed thought I've come up with discussing the impact of Photoshop and the media on self image. This gives me enough to talk about indepth without going off on random tangents. I feel confident with this essay proposal idea and hopefully David (lecturer) will too! 

Aaaaanndd that's it..(breathe) 

Note to self: blog more so I don't have to write an essay every time I do lol. 

Playing around with my stars for the macroberts Christmas brief, having some fun with the felt and laminating pouches, good alternative to creating a shape or image with felt without flat felting!

3 weeks into my 3rd year degree...

As a degree student nothing can ever prepare you for a live brief, all you can do is hope that it'll be something you'll enjoy and something that allows you to showcase your talents and strengths. My first brief is a commissioned piece of artwork for the MacRobert Centre whom have decided this year they don't want to have a Christmas tree and want something a little different. That is of course where we come in, given with the challenge of creating something that gives of the same wonder and joy of the HUGE tree they usually have....OH CHRIST.

This wasn't something I instantly felt excited about, the thought of doing something Christmassy felt kind of cheesey and childish, but luckily there were other themes we were to consider incorporating into our Christmas themed show stopper and there was a glimmer of a starting point for me. The 70s, Disco and Aladdin....where do you start??
Well it was tedious to begin with, throwing around ideas of giant stockings and Santa sleighs, all of which lacked any real creativity but after weeks of staring at a blank page and talking to tutors with apposing opinions and ideas (what's new?) I seemed to get somewhere. (Is there such a thing as artists block?)

Researching Arabian textiles and cultures got me really excited! In particular the tradition and meaning behind Mehndi Designs. Drawing on the body in henna ink is something they do around times of great celebration such as weddings and what they draw on the body is supposed to symbolise different things such as joy and luck. Aladdin is known to be set in Saudi Arabia and as far as Christmas is concerned they don't celebrate it. That doesn't mean I can't take the idea of rituals such as the mehndi designs and use them to incorporate there way of celebrating into our celebration of Christmas. At the moment I'm thinking of creating a big Christmas star and incorporating the Arabian patterns and seeing where this takes me. I have a meeting with the MacRobert clients on Thursday so I'll present my idea forward to them and hopefully I'll know whether to take this further or not.

Well I'll keep you posted if I haven't suffered Christmas overload...