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Space-Time, 30/01/20
Reflection on crit
Overall, it went very well today, with the piece being used and enjoyed by many people which is precisely what I wanted it to do. Feedback systems of light and sound cause the space they exist in to become warped, in a way breaking down reality, and becoming very disconcerting (sometimes painful) for those who experienced it. Call me a sadist, but I've often fantasised about the future of my work where I create situations that are borderline torture for those experiencing it, and this work feels like a step in that direction. In a way, it turns this piece into something sexual for me- it's restrictive and confusing and yet it is oddly nice, opening you up to new worlds of pleasure. Maybe I'm revealing too much about myself here, but anyway. I think this work is another where the connection to the performance has become increasingly important in what I make, and this is something I will certainly be taking forward with full throttle for Unit 4.
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Space-Time, 20/01/20
As part of the introduction to the project today we experimented with projecting images/ video onto different objects we found around the building. We ended up collecting bits of a Christmas tree, an electric scooter, a grille, one of the nets I made for Room and some balloons, playing around with the arrangement of them to create this scene reminiscent of a childhood memory, abandoned and lost. In contrast, we projected footage of the Hiroshima bombing over the objects, demonstrating how such events have had profound impacts on children globally. We reflected the action in the video by creating a bomb-sack of our own, filling the nets with balloons and suspending it above the scooter. I think this is an interesting starting point with lots to think about- for instance, if we had more time I would have incorporated a moving element with the scooter, perhaps carrying the projector around, or focusing on the balloons and the net more (for I prefer the journey of that section of the piece), perhaps projecting directly onto or even inside the balloons (having a look at how they pop would also be interesting). Whatever way it goes, I want to wait until at least tomorrow's workshop before I start thinking about where the project is going.
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Room, 14/01/20
Sound is a crucial element of the space I'm going to be installing in due to the echoey nature of the acoustics, and I wanted to create a mini-outcome that explored the power of this. Considering the principles of site-specificity, a work becomes corrupted when it is moved from its original site to another, and so I wanted to illustrate this by performing an action in the staircase (banging the railings, for that is what causes the greatest vibration in the string), then taking it out to cause string to vibrate in the studio (connected to the original hooks of my inspiration). In order to maintain my logic, that meant I had to corrupt the sound, doing all sorts to it to turn it into a sonic mess. I then played that through a speaker tied up in the string to get it to vibrate (this took a lot of working out kinks, but I got there in the end, ensuring the tension was kept as high as possible, that the string was making contact with the speaker and turning the volume RIGHT UP). It really helped me to understand that the vibrational aspect is key to this piece, and I will be applying the lessons I learned from today to my final installation so that the vibrations are accentuated and as big an amplitude as possible.
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Room- 04/01/20
I am beginning to realise just how much performativity permeates through my work, not to mention how much I enjoy that, and so it is vital for me to understand the net's relationship with the body so that the performative aspect can be established. This was to help me understand how the nets fall on the body. From this point I can work out how best to incorporate the interactive element. Of course, they are incredibly tactile, so I would love to have them on hand rails (although there may be a safety issue with that) or handles. Perhaps I could create a space underneath the stairs which I inhabit with the nets and encourage people to crawl under, 'trapping' them in a similar way to how I have been trapped in this photo.
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At Home Or On The Move- 04/01/20
I'll be honest, I can be a bit of a slob, and that can be illustrated by this part of the project. There is so much stuff in my room that it becomes very difficult to dust, so I rarely bother. The result? Years of dead skin and hair and god knows what layered up all over the place. But that presents me with an opportunity to collect a sizeable amount up and create sculptures out of it. Dust as a material can be shaped really easily, and so I initially explored the shapes it could take. This is the essence of my room condensed into something about the size of a golf-ball, and so it has a really interesting materiality. In a way, the medium is my history, so I thought it would be more interesting to return the dust to where it was sourced and see what effect it has on the objects around it. Strangely, it becomes quite human, like a mini version of me, yet it feels so peculiar to have such a human connection with such an inanimate mass (although perhaps the context of its creation gives it life). It is something I find really interesting, so it would be great if I could collect loads (enough to make something human sized, although not human shaped) and see what impact having something comparable to the body has on it and the audience.
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Room- Reflection on the first week, 06/12/19
When first thinking of ideas for the project, we were told to find a part of the studio that interested us most and study them. I was fascinated by the hooks screwed into the ceiling- to me, they looked like we were fish in the sea, and fisherman were trying to tempt us out to our doom, and so I hold these hooks with a degree of caution. Obviously we won't be drawn up into the sky and suffocated and gutted, but we don't know how much weight they can hold, or when they were put up there, things like that. Playing on those ideas, I want to create something that replicates those feelings for other people, and so my initial idea was to make a net and fill it with "heavy" objects (painted Styrofoam), then suspend it just above head height. As I was looking for materials to create my net, I found there was an abundance of bog-standard string lying around the studio- hence anything I made out of string would have an inherent connection to the room. During the process of net making, I discovered two things- the nets play around with the light in a gorgeous manner, casting delicate and ghostly shadows in the right light and they are incredibly tactile- you just want to touch them and play around with them. Furthermore, after doing research on Cristina Iglesias' 'Alabaster Room', I was intrigued by how materials, if used in a different way to how they are meant to be, can have subtle yet profound consequences on the room itself, changing how it is perceived. This has encouraged me to solely explore the net as a means of gently changing spaces, and this is the route I want my project to go down.
Most, if not all, of my recent work has been very performative, and right now, the performative aspect is missing to give it that edge I feel this project needs to push it. I am hoping the scale I intend to reach (almost covering the stairway, a space I have selected due to its lighting and abundance of tying points) will provide part of that, as people will have to move around in the space to fully observe it, but I will also hide sections and cover some hand rails with the nets to cause a more explicit investigation on the behalf of the observer, so people are searching for it and touching it. Much more development is required, in particular drawing out ideas, but I am looking forward to where this piece is going!
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Sculptural Condition: Reflection on Crit, 28/11/19
For my main final outcome, I re-created the bubble sculpture inside on an infinity wall made of tarpaulin to protect the surroundings (as well as other implications which I will discuss in a sec). The shapes created were completely different to the first time, and each time it was 'birthed' (for I let it die down a few times so that it could be brought back), producing the formlessness I desired. This was picked up by the group also, who identified that it would never be the same. With this piece, my goal was to achieve formlessness and see how far I could push it- no other layers of meaning, just a challenge, and I feel, when you are watching it live, or indeed creating it yourself (for I instructed the observers to do so), this was achieved. The bubbles were constantly growing and popping, and so there is nothing constant, solid, or recognisable about it. In this way, it exists as a product of time, and so perhaps time is the real sculpture here. The only flaw, however, is when it is documented. When a photo of it is taken, or a drawing made, its form becomes fixed, and whilst it may have no recognisable shape, one will become accustomed to its form, and at that point, it will have gained form. Yet that goes for everything, even if you're filming something, the whole film stays the same. This is the limit of formlessness- even the most dynamic and fluid objects and materials gain form when they are documented. During the crit, a likeness was drawn to the thought experiment of Schrodinger's cat, and I feel this is an incredibly apt comparison, for you do not know what it is (it could be anything), until you look at it.
The tarp was initially just a functional item, to give me the excuse to be able to make this inside, but it provided an interesting dynamic to the piece once it all got set up. Its blue colour meant that the bubbles looked like clouds in the sky or glaciers stretching out into the sea. Yet although clouds are not solid, the likes of cumulus and cumulonimbus certainly look solid against the delicate blue skies, and the ice sheets are definitely solid against the fluid oceans. But in this case, the roles have been reversed. The background is now this tough, solid expanse, and the foreground is this delicate, ever-changing mass of bubbles. This juxtaposition questions the things we take for granted, and forces us to reconsider the so-called constants in this world.
The Language of Objects pieces were also discussed in the crit- I've already explained them, so I won't go into too much detail about them, but essentially, everyone got what I was trying to say. They recognised that the buckets had been made function-less, and yet the fact they still could be recognised as buckets only degrades the buckets further. Apart from the banana, no one could identify what the objects wrapped in the yarn were (I had to explain to them that they were fruit and veg), thus achieving my goal. The brightness of the yarn aided in distracting the viewers away from the form, generating themes of subversion and deception. Yet one thing that was particularly interesting is that I made these a week ago and yarn is useless for preserving food. Underneath, where the fruit was once solid, it is now soft and squidgy, so I dread to think what they look like on the inside. If I leave it for long enough, it will get to the point where the yarn is now holding the pieces together. In other words, where once the purpose of the yarn was to remove the form of them, it is now being used to sustain them. This raises questions about dependency and food inequality, where people are being forced to eat what they would normally throw away in order to keep them alive.
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Contextual Practice- Tate Britain visit, 27/11/19
Helen Chadwick, 'Enfleshings I & II', 1989
Here Chadwick has taken photos of meat, then mounted them on a lightbox, giving them an offal feeling (ba dum tish) of disgust, heighten by the sickly yellow lighting that I feels like would be in an old morgue, surrounded by death. There is in fact something very human and bodily feeling about them, as they seem to resemble skin and flesh, and so we end up comparing ourselves to them, understanding the realities of our bodies, which was the intention of the piece, and I feel it has been very effective at that, based on the visceral nature of it.
The forms in it, however, are not clear- you only have emotions to guide you through it, so in a way these works could be considered formless, relating them back to ERF.
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Contextual Practice- Tate Britain visit, 27/11/19
Rose English, 'Quadrille', 1975, 2013
These costume pieces/ sculptures fall very nicely into the remit of Sculptural Performance. Horse hooves and hair have been used to make pieces that exist on the body to turn people into horses, where they would then prance around as if doing dressage in front of an audience expecting actual horses (in a somewhat similar way to the cones I put on my body for SP). I interpreted it as a protest on the way horses are treated in a sports context, although in fact it was a piece about the oppression of women, which is of course just as valid, I only wonder if the horse imagery was perhaps too heavy and distracting.
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Sculptural Condition- Reflection
Moving on to 'Elimination of Recognisable Form', my initial thoughts revolved around notions of matter vs energy to achieve formlessness- i.e. matter has and gives form, energy has no form. Hence I wanted to create something that represented energy in a sense, something that was constantly changing so that it had no fixed form. This is where the bubbles come in. Bubbles are perfect because they have a life cycle- they get created, then eventually they weaken until the surface tension fails and then they die (pop!). This means that any structure made of bubbles is constantly cycling through this process, and so it is never exactly the same. In this way, a sculpture made in this way would intrinsically exist in time, and have a dynamic relationship with it. Furthermore, the bubble structures themselves have shapes that are very difficult to discern, and so this adds to the aspect of formlessness.
I really want people to be involved in this piece also- I want them to be the ones using the foot-pump to keep the sculpture alive, because that interaction will add a further level of dynamism and dependence to the work.
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Reflection on today, 19/11/19
After planning what I was going to do today yesterday, I was ready and raring to get into the workshops and start making. I happened to have LOADS of buckets left over from the Simmons commission (they ordered way too many for me, but oh well), so I wanted to use them as part of the Language of Objects work. A bucket is a very functional object: it carries things, you can mix things in it or they can act as temporary toilets. I wanted to investigate what would happen if you removed a bucket of its ability to function, leaving it in a contextual limbo, as it were, as it no longer has a purpose, other than being art. Perhaps that is how you turn objects into art: rid them of their initial purpose so there is nothing left for them to become.
Anyway, I wanted to explore the different way of doing it, so I melted down one bucket (although you can tell these things were built to last, as it was a right pain to melt the plastic and the fumes that were coming off it were pungent to say the least), drilled hundreds of holes in another (including a hole in my finger, that was fun) and then "filled" another bucket with concrete so that nothing else could go in it. I say "filled" because I have cheated a little bit: instead of actually filling the bucket up to the brim with cement, which would have meant that I was spending more money than I wanted to and it would have been a right pain to carry (I do not want a repeat of the Place project, thank you very much), I inserted a circle of wood into the bucket so that there was around 5cm from the rim, filled in the edges with clay, then made up a small batch of concrete to fill in the rest! What I find interesting is that if anyone tries to pick it up, they will expect it to be very heavy, but it won't be, and so they have to ask further questions about the bucket.
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Reflection on today, 14/11/19
To say that today was out of the ordinary would be a grand understatement. Today I did the main performance for the 'Sculptural Practice' part of the project, and created a film to document the process (although I am happy to consider the film as an additional outcome), of which the whole thing can be found in Digital Outcomes (the above image is a still from said film). Performing in such a way has been a liberating experience for me, especially after throwing myself in at the deep end by doing it half-naked (and some of it outside!), and I feel like today has been a monumental day for the progression of my practice: I feel much more comfortable and confident in the works I make, and limitations that I have imposed on myself have eroded away like a glacial till cliff-face in a winter storm. I will certainly be making more performative sculptural pieces in the future, and this is a strong contender for the piece of work to carry forward at the end of Sculptural Condition.
As I have talked about before, the piece is about ridiculing the delicacy of the conforming nature of masculine sexuality, bringing sexual feelings that may have been contained within to the forefront. As a culture we are so reluctant to be open about sexuality, and this has been part of the problem that has fuelled issues such as homophobia (cos people feel uncomfortable about bum-stuff for some reason...). This monster I have created out of "masculine energies" is a symbol of all the feelings (sexual and otherwise) men repress, only letting them out when they beat one off in private, and so I wanted to expose this and sacrifice my dignity (not there was much to begin with) for the sake of others.
The stiff way I move in the film is a consequence of the tape restricting my movements and sight, giving me even more of a robotic look (as it already looks very cyber/steam punk-esque), but I feel this adds a nice depth of meaning to the piece, in terms of how rigid and conforming we are to society's expectations of masculinity. I wank the cones because they are symbols of the phallus, but they are in a variety of places to represent the variety of sex/ sexuality related activities/ people etc out there. I have also put a strong filter on the film to make it even harder to look at, more sickly and uncomfortable, to heighten the 'off' nature of it.
Whilst I enjoyed waddling around with big cones taped to my body, my favourite part of the piece, and what I feel is the greatest performative aspect of it, is the reaction from other people- the looks of shock, disgust, humour (and a whole lot of confusion) filled me with joy, because right now, that is how people view sexual deviancies and minorities. I dressed up like this to expose those pre-dispositions society has engrained into us, and I think I did.
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Sculptural Condition- Reflection on the first two days of the project, 12/11/19
Until very recently, I had never considered sculpture and performance art to act as one, and had you suggested the idea of sculptural performance to me a few month ago, then I may very well have turned my nose up at the very thought of it. But this has been an eye opening experience, and one that I am thoroughly enjoying because it is forcing me to step outside of my comfort zone, and that's exactly what I wanted this course to do to me. I feel pushed, and I am very grateful for that.
With my piece of work, I am aiming to be rather outlandish and bizarre, inspired by the likes of 'Cremaster' by Matthew Barney. I am creating cones out of gaffer tape, which will then be attached to my body, and I will then creep around, wanking them off. The cone is representative of the phallus, notions of masculinity strengthened by the tape; it has always been a material used by my dad for EVERYTHING, and so it has a very masculine energy for me. On top of that, the cones themselves restrict my movement and my senses, and I intend to be half-naked for this performance, and so themes of BDSM culture and sexual deviancy arise (strengthened by the fact that I will be masturbating). Hence I want to ridicule masculine sexuality and its conforming nature, which has escalated into a disgust of femininity in men and homophobia.
The making process was not quite as simple as I thought it would be, particularly around how to attach them to my face, because initially they were not staying upright and making it difficult to discern the different features. To resolve that, as shown in the photo above, I created a headband to hold the ear and head cones, making it easier to attach the face ones. This photo doesn't show it, but to streamline the process further, I connected the eyes and the nose to each other. I also found that the dick I made was to big for it to function how I had planned (classic man, eh?), so I had to make a sort of jock-strap to hold it in place.
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Contextual Practice- Tate Modern Visit, 06/11/19
William Kentridge, 'Ubu Tells the Truth', 1997
As with a number of works I have seen today, conflict and inequality are themes that seem to plague humanity, and have become a part of who we are. This animated film adds to that list, exploring Apartheid in South Africa. Yet the drawings that compose the piece are childish in style, yet represent the very dark and serious problems occurring at the time. To me, this suggests how innocence is being lost as a consequence of such extreme inequality and all of its permeations.
In terms of setting, the film is shown in a very dark room with loud surround sound, meaning it becomes a very immersive experience. You become drawn into these stories and images, and you can't leave, because you need to see what happens next. This presentation combined with the nature of the animation/ film composition style means that it was a very impactful and successful piece, probably the most successful of all the works we saw today.
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Contextual Practice- Tate Modern Visit, 06/11/19
Ellen Gallagher, 'Bird in Hand', 2006
Themes surrounding human imagination and mythologies surround this piece, as it depicts a pirate in an undersea landscape, perhaps on the search for a lost treasure. The sense of mystery is heightened by the fact this work has been created by cutting away segments from sheets of paper layered up on each other, digging in, searching for something. Unfortunately, I don't think it is that effective (as I only got all of that from reading the description). For me it feels unfinished, and whilst I often don't mind that in a work, it made it hard for me to work out what the work was trying to depict (partly down to me not being interested enough in it to study it for long enough). My boredom isn't abated by the fact that it has been simply hung on the wall. On the bright side, it has re-affirmed my belief that sculpture is the right pathway for me, for I know that creating a flat piece of work to go on a wall is simply not going to satisfy me.
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Contextual Practice- Tate Modern Visit, 06/11/19
Joseph Beuys, 'The End of the Twentieth Century', 1983 - 1985
With this work, Beuys is exploring the ideas of war and injury, but also healing and recovery, in regards to aspects of being human. The 1900s were a bloody series of years, with two world wars, amongst a number of other conflicts, and so people and the planet were left wounded, which Beuys has symbolised by carving out a cone from these blocks of basalt. The blocks themselves are arranged on the floor, seemingly discarded, reminiscent of corpses on a battle field, furthering his point about the consequences of war. Yet each hole is lined with felt, suggesting warmth and comfort, also reminiscent of bandages, and the cone is placed back into the hole. This suggest the potential for healing, as long as we nourish the world and each other. Hence there could also be an environmental theme here, something particularly relevant today, over 30 years later, as I'm sure we're all aware, the planet is dying and we need to act fast to save it.
I feel Beuys' approach is successful, but for different reasons than the Walker piece. Whereas the latter hand-fed you what it wanted to say, the former is much more subtle, and perhaps hence requires more thought to contemplate and understand it, generating a greater involvement in the piece. That being said, I feel the use of rocks to generate a sense of connection to Earth and the arrangement of the works is not too subtle so that it just goes over people's heads.
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Contextual Practice- Tate Modern Visit, 06/11/19
Kate Walker, 'Fons Americanus', 2019
In this work, Walker explores the aspect of power and inequality of being human. This monumental sculpture is a reference to the fountain outside Buckingham Palace, exploring the relationship between Africa, Europe and America, especially in regards to colonialism and the slave trade, where white people took control and used people of colour for their own gain, setting up massive inequalities that are still very present in today's society.
In terms of materials, this has been constructed with sustainability in mind, using recyclable materials such as cork to construct the forms. This contrasts with the unsustainable trail of destruction associated with the majority of large installations such as this- considering how art is still dominated by white men, perhaps this reinforces the notion of how backwards this inequality of power is.
I think it is very successful, primarily because it gets your attention (due to its scale and its location in the entrance of the gallery, in this massive hall) and forces you to think about what it means. Furthermore, the imagery is far from subtle, so it is very obvious what it is trying to say.
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Being Human- 04/11/19
Reflection
Whilst I love art and wish to pursue it as a career, there are many other subjects and topics I am thoroughly interested in (especially the sciences) which I am enthused to be able to incorporate into my work this week. Physics is a particular love of mine, so I wanted to focus on that, which I feel is appropriate, considering its principles are so prevalent in our society and as we progress, whether that be electricity (for instance clean energy, robotics and artificial intelligence), cosmology (space exploration and understanding the Universe) and the big boys, quantum and gravity, on which our very understanding of EVERYTHING is so dependent. Obviously I can't set up a fusion reactor in the studio, but inspired by the Takis exhibition I went to over the summer (see my research page in Part 1), magnetism is something I could easily play around with.
On a basic level, magnetism is a push and pull between two objects, and I feel that can represent society and societal structures in such a beautiful way, in terms of a constant conflict, fighting for supremacy. Equilibrium can be reached, but it is so delicate that it can collapse with the most delicate touch. Keeping with the scientific theme, I am particularly interested in the conflict between the future and the present: humans are so intent on progression (e.g. finding life amongst the stars, downloading our consciousnesses into robot killing machines...) that we have become blind to the issues currently plaguing our society (e.g. climate change, global poverty, human rights issues etc...) and this is where the conflict arises and the fight between the positive and negative, the North and South, is perpetuated. Hence I will use magnetism to explore this conflict, and see what impact it has on us as humans.
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Contextual Review
In the projects we have explored in Part 1, those that have caused me to directly engage with the materials I am using have stimulated the greatest enjoyment and generation of ideas. For example, the Material News project had a ‘response led’ approach to making, where the materials/ objects guide the design and what the final outcome will be, as seen with ‘Gnaw’ by Janine Antoni, 1992, where the material (either chocolate or lard) imposed limitations on Antoni’s body in how she could eat it, and the marks she’d make on it1. This highlights how this method of making creates a stronger bond between the art and the artist, as well as a more dynamic relationship. I enjoyed this dynamic so much from the Material News project that I carried it through into the Place project, a piece which was constantly changing due to limitations imposed onto it by the materials- for instance, one of the reasons I used bricks instead of stones was simply because it is very hard to find suitable stones lying about in London, unlike bricks, of which there are plenty. With projects such as Collection and Altered Spaces, I had a tendency to overcomplicate the meaning behind what I was making. Hence for the Place project I was influenced by the raw nature of the materials I was using and the work of Lee Ufan such as ‘Relatum- Existence’, 20142 and directed my practice into more minimalistic3 routes, to control my output. This process forced me to assess the relevance of every element of the work and consequently it has enhanced my critical thinking of my own work. Furthermore, creating work for a specific space is a new concept that was introduced to me on the Place project, and I really enjoyed how it challenged my way of thinking. It forced me to consider the significance of the place (and the institution) I was working in, what CSM represents. A text that really helped me to understand the implications of site specificity is ‘One Place After Another: Notes on Site Specificity’ by Miwon Kwon4 as it forced me to reconsider what I understand by the concept of ‘site’, which then informed how I approached this project. It was only at that point where I could start to consider materials that would lead to the creation of the final outcome.
For the Material News project, the forms of the sculpture were not only directed by the limitations of the chicken wire from which they were made, but also inspired by the likes of Henry Moore’s ‘Reclining Figures’ where holes can “emphasise the role empty space plays in the appreciation of form”5 and similarly Martin Kippenberger’s ‘Hunger Family’6, deconstructing the human figure and playing with negative space. By recreating this in my own work, it led me to explore themes around haptic observation and tactility7. I found that once you open up a certain form, the observer wants to interact with it, which is something I want to encourage with my work. I enjoy the idea that by making a sculpture, you are also instigating a performance, at a base level because the observer has to move around the work to fully appreciate it, but also the emotional interaction with something changes how we perceive it. This perhaps has been the most important and revolutionary approach for me and my work, and the texts ‘The Performativity of Performance Documentation’ by Philip Auslander8 and ‘Where Does One Thing End and the Next Begin?’ by Ian Monroe9 helped me realise this by getting me to think about the point at which action becomes performance and the boundaries in art and the world around us, respectively. By creating a sculpture, you are automatically playing with the boundaries of space (particularly with the Place project, as we were creating something to exist in a pre-defined space), and in doing so, the creation and observation of the work becomes a form of performance. ‘In Real Life’, the Olafur Eliasson exhibition at the Tate Modern10 was fundamental to helping me realise this due to how interactive it was, and hence how engaging it was. I feel that big show of an exhibition was needed to help me see the performativity of less in-your-face works and exhibitions, such as Takis at the Tate Modern11 and Sterling Ruby, ‘ACTS + TABLE’ at the Gagosian12, where tension and the potential for action to happen heightens the emotional reaction from the observer, creating a special sort of dance between the art, the artist, the space and the observer (furthermore, what it means to be an observer was out into question by ‘No innocent bystanders: performance art and audience’, by Frazer Ward13). This complicated dynamic is something I would love to explore through future sculptural work, because it brings work to life.
Bibliography:
- Wadsworth, J. (2020). Gnaw — Silent Frame. [online] Silent Frame. Available at: https://www.silent-frame.com/articles/1992-gnaw-janine-antoni [Accessed 12 Jan. 2020].
- Tourette, L. (2020). Lee Ufan chez Le Corbusier – exposition au couvent de la Tourette. [online] AMC Archi. Available at: https://www.amc-archi.com/photos/lee-ufan-chez-le-corbusier-exposition-au-couvent-de-la-tourette,7465/relatum-dwelling-b-2017-ar.1 [Accessed 12 Jan. 2020].
- Phillips, T. (2013). The subject of minimalism. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
- Kwon, M. (2004). One place after another. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, pp.85-110.
- Feldman-Bennet, A., Mitchinson, D. and Reid, M. (2010). An Introduction to Henry Moore. 1st ed. The Henry Moore Foundation, p.9.
- (2020). Martin Kippenberger - Big Until Great Hunger, 1984 | Phillips. [online] Available at: https://www.phillips.com/detail/martin-kippenberger/UK010509/6 [Accessed 12 Jan. 2020].
- Millar, S. (2012). Space and sense. Hove: Psychology.
- Auslander, P. (2006). The Performativity of Performance Documentation. PAJ: A Journal of Performance and Art, 28(3), pp.1-10.
- Where Does One Thing End and the Next Monroe, I. (2008) Where Does One Thing End and the Next Begin, in: Craig B, (ed). College, Assembling Contemporary Art. London: Black Dog Publishing
- Olafur Eliasson: In Real Life, (2019-2020), [Exhibition], Tate Modern, Bankside, London, SE1 9TG, 11/07/19 – 05/01/20
- Takis, (2019), [Exhibition], Tate Modern, Bankside, London, SE1 9TG, 03/07/19 – 27/10/19
- Sterling Ruby: ACTS + TABLE, (2019), [Exhibition], Gagosian, 6-24 Britannia Street, London, WC1X 9JD, 02/10/19 – 14/12/19
- Ward, F. (2012). No Innocent Bystanders. Hanover: Dartmouth.
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Space-Time, 21/01/20
Having completed the second workshop today, I can safely say that I have an idea of where I want to go with this project (hint, the image above is a bit if a red herring). I love the idea of entropy, there is something reassuring in knowing that chaos will eventually consume us, and this project, due to its link with physics, is an ideal place for such investigations to happen. I started thinking with the balloons and placing them in a state of uncertainty by using electrostatic forces (rubbing it on my leg for a bit) to stick it to the wall, counteracting gravity until the balloon discharged and fell down where a scalpel waited below to pop it (as it was almost impossible to tell when this would happen, notions of randomness were very prevalent). I liked this as an idea, but I felt that there was only so much you could do (and frankly all the popping was getting on my nerves). Frustrated, I started humming into the balloons, enjoying how they vibrated, when I remembered what happens when you set up a feedback loop with phones (escalating loud noise, very cool), and now I want to create an installation that examines this phenomenon and takes advantage of it. Speaking to Adrian about it, he raised the point that I really need to understand the mechanisms behind this so that I can control it, so my next port of call will be some thorough scientific research!
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Room- 16/01/20
Reflection on final installation
One of the downsides of creating in situ work which can't be installed the day before is that the installation period is crazy and incredibly stressful, but its worth it. By weaving the string through different parts of the staircase, and learning lessons from Tuesday about maintaining the tension, I created a space that responded to the people moving through it, with the string vibrating the best it's ever vibrated before. I played the sound from Tuesday (not too loudly this time) from a small speaker I hid under the stairs, and in the end it created an immersive environment. The string and the sound both subtly corrupt the space by gently affecting how its perceived, and as such, I like to think I've infiltrated the space, almost like a parasite (yet one which you cannot determine whether the consequences are positive or negative). I like to think this installation raises questions about the spaces we inhabit, to draw attention to the things in our lives that may be infecting and corrupting our lives (technology, dangerous political ideologies, etc...). I will say that in my view, the utilitarianism of the string, which links the piece so strongly to the concept of the 'art school', grounds the piece, allowing for these 'revelations' if they were to come about, and hence the work is about re-centring where we exist in a space or a room, leading us to reconnect and understand it more. In fact, one of the main issues I had was with how the group viewed the piece during the crit- in an ideal world, they would have moved through the space individually, connecting with it in a meditational and immersive process, perhaps calming them, but perhaps more so making them feel slightly uneasy. Instead, everyone piled their way up and down the stairs - this did mean that the vibrations they made were great, but that connection I was hoping to forge between the audience and the space was all but lost.
Initially I chose the staircase as a site due to its light and acoustic qualities, which aided my process nicely (it also meant I would be ensuring I would be escaping the chaos of the studio, which was a relief on the day), but it was through the risk assessment process and communicating about the work in relation to the site that I realised how important it was. It is a place of transport and movement, a fire escape no less, and so if there was one place I needed people to reconnect with it was one where people move through it without taking much consideration for it. By extension, as part of the risk management process, I had to fire-proof all of the string I used. This meant hours of handling the string (untangling it mostly), and so my connection with the material was all the stronger. In the crit I was asked why I didn't use something like guitar string or piano wire to heighten the vibration, but I explained how I felt I had a duty to the string- it has been a constant throughout this project, from finding it lying about in the studio to make a net to the wrapping of it around railings and I just couldn't let myself change it because for me it was so intrinsic to the work.
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Room, 06/01/20
Having felt like I have achieved pretty much all I wanted to with the nets, I thought it was best I investigate another aspect of the string (as the utilitarian and readily accessible nature of it is exactly what I want to be working with), exploring the themes of tension to define space, rather than a mass of slack squares. I returned to the hooks, connecting them together with string, as well as connecting those across the room, defining the space by the hooks, but I am constantly drawn to the stairwell. Hence, I replicated the process between the bars on the handrail (as shown above), and this is where I struck gold. Whereas before with the nets I created them outside the space, and so had to be forced into it, these interventions are created in situ, meaning they are far more responsive to the space they are in. Furthermore, the tension in them means they vibrate beautifully as people move past/ knock on the railings, creating that interactive element I so desperately wanted, the sound from that knocking adding a wonderful depth to the piece. I want to take this forward into the final piece by intervening all along the stairwell, leading people up/ down it, and creating more of an installation rather than a single sculpture.
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At Home Or On The Move- 04/01/20
I was at a Spoons and decided I wanted some prosecco (yes I'm the type of guy who orders sparkling wine in a Spoons, don't judge), and it came in these delightful little bottles which I decided would be perfect for a little sculpture. Due to their size, they appeared childish and cute, so I gave them to one of my teddy bears, creating this dire scene of despair and depravity (if only he was named Macavity). Its incredibly sad seeing something so blank and lifeless (its the eyes) surrounded by alcoholism, and the combination of the objects really heightens the emotional impact. Perhaps it is telling a message of the impact parental alcoholism has on children, or perhaps how the condition isn't taken seriously before it's too late, either way (or both), tis a sad sad situation.
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At Home Or On The Move- 04/01/20
Over the holidays I conducted a series of experiments, creating sculptures that were intrinsic to the space they were in (my home) as well as being heavily dependent on time. Christmas is synonymous with presents, and in the modern day, many of us (myself included) choose to order the prezzies for our loved ones online. Hence suddenly our houses become flooded with packaging material, dominating our lives and reshaping our homes, building up the chaos. I wanted to explore how this material aligns to the home environment, giving it a new context and also highlighting the shapes of the house. My favourite of the situations I created is the one above, where I have forced the packaging to conform to the shape of the stairs. I particularly like this one because it corrupts the symbolism of the 'safety' packaging- it being on the stairs transforms it into a hazard, where people could slip or trip on it. Furthermore, it forces the inhabitants of the house to consider how they move around it- the cats chose to squeeze their way past (they're a bit fat), perhaps suggesting the natural way to go about it; my sister had to alter what she was carrying so that if she fell it wouldn't be so much of a disaster (she chose to straddle the packaging); whereas I decided I wanted to challenge the bubbles, purposefully stomping on them (I documented this performance, please find it in digital outcomes).
Packaging such as this can also have severe environmental consequences, so it is interesting to consider how boldly this packaging declares its biodegradability. It will inevitably return to the Earth in a way that isn't harmful, which is great, but is this a cover upon the behalf of delivery companies who use thousands of polluting vehicles every day? There is something very false about the packaging, something I do not trust, and I hope that demonstrating how it is not completely safe exposes that.
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Personal Statement:
I am a firm believer in art’s ability to change the world, and I want to do just that: use what I create to instigate the changes I want to see. On this course, I aspire to explore the themes of activism and campaigning that I have already started to investigate through my art practice, starting with me completing a short course on FutureLearn about ‘Politics, Art and Resistance’, then carrying through onto the foundation course. I understand the context and the process for how art can kickstart change across all scales, whether it be the individual or the masses.
I am particularly interested in sculpture because I am fascinated with how materials and objects interact with the people and the space around them, creating an inherently performative aspect to the work. I explored this when I created a sculpture made entirely of bubbles, which was dependent on audience participation in order to exist. Recent exhibitions I have visited, such as Olafur Eliasson ‘In Real Life’ at the Tate Modern and Antony Gormley at the RA, have opened my eyes to the dynamic relationship between art, space and people, and I was able to explore this notion when I was selected to take part in the Unserhaus project. In a replica of a Prellerhaus, groups of students occupied the space for 12 hours, completing different workshops. I was in the ‘FORM AND STRUCTURE’ workshop, where we were tasked with using basic materials to completely reshape the space, with the aim of “bringing the outside in”. I created large wooden structures, interwoven with delicate fabric forms, to play on the conflict between the outside and the inside. The extreme circumstances of our proximity to one another pushed our ability to work together as a team to the absolute limit, yet this caused us to radically change how we worked, starting off as individuals and becoming a single unit by the end of the process. By working in such a way, it caused me to completely alter how I think about myself in a group, strengthening my ability to work collaboratively.
My desire to follow a career in art after the course was strengthened by the experience of being commissioned by the law firm Simmons & Simmons to create an installation. I had to work to create something that exists in a given space, using the context around it to shape the final outcome. The space was large and bright, so the piece that I created was bold and stood out from the corporate surroundings, but still referenced its context, by having elements of the sculpture the same colour as the company’s logo.
I took part in a residential run by the LGBTQ+ charity Stonewall to educate myself fully on the issues we face as a community and how we can campaign to change them. I then set up an LGBTQ+ club in my school so that there was a space for young queer kids to come and feel safe as part of a community. I created and led assemblies, as well as successfully campaigning to make the school’s uniform policy gender neutral, to ensure that no one felt excluded from being a part of the school environment. These ideas have already started to be incorporated into my art: when exploring themes of ‘Sculptural Performance’, I created a piece that ridiculed hyper-masculinity and the impact it has had on our perceptions of sexuality. This also opened my mind to what sculpture can be, something the foundation course has done on multiple occasions. For instance, by getting me to let the materials I am using direct the flow of my practice, most notably when exploring the concept of ‘Place’, I feel my work has gained an energy and depth I haven’t been able to access before.
I want my art to be able to inspire people and encourage them to stand up and make a change, however I feel I have only just started to identify and develop the skills to do so. This is why I am so determined to study on this course, so that I can build on the knowledge, abilities and experience I already have, and help instigate the change I want to see.
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Contextual Practice- Tate Britain visit, 27/11/19
Rita Donagh, 'affirm/deny' and '21.9.1971', 1972
I was intrigued by the aesthetics of these two separate pieces (although seem to exist as one), with bright neon crosses underneath a muted amalgamation of cloth. The crosses are a theme throughout, perhaps referencing 'X marks the spot', or the different axes for direction. Either way, the ideas of location seem central to this work, identifying where something has happened. 'affirm/deny' particularly intrigues me, because it feels like a choice (very red pill/ blue pill), and that you can chose to stay ignorant of what's happening in the world around you, or you can open your eyes to all the death and destruction. When you consider how these works are a protest of the killings of people, they feel even more relevant. The handing of choice to the observer feels quite performative in a way, engaging them mentally with the work, and so I feel it relates nicely to the work I've been doing for SF too.
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Contextual Practice- Tate Britain visit, 27/11/19
Sarah Lucas, 'Pauline Bunny', 1997
I think it is clear that this work is about the dehumanising effect sexism and the male gaze has on women- it leaves them as a lifeless pile of limbs, free for men to do whatever they want to them. It is very striking, seeming to be only made up of legs (and hence what lies between the legs is the focus, again, referencing how men see women), but the fleshy colours maintain that human connection, so you can't help but feel sad for this poor being, and so it is very effective.
As a side not, it is an interesting use of objects (especially tights), in that they have been used to create a vaguely human form. It forces you to question what happens when people are reduced to objects, and so you appreciate what other people go through.
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Contextual Practice- Tate Britain visit, 27/11/19
Steve McQueen, 'Year 3 Project', 2019
I think the first thing that hits you when you walk in and see all of these photos of year 3 children is the scale of it all. Every single wall is covered in class photographs. Now obviously, this is a period of great change in a child's life, moving from infant school to juniors, and this photos often act as monuments to this change. So perhaps the overwhelming nature of this illustrates what children may try to hide, but I also think it would be very comforting in a way. It is a reminder that no matter what sort of change you are going through in your life, you are by no means alone. Also, we live in dark times. This piece acts as a reminder that hope is not lost- thousands upon thousands of children smiling down at you reinforce the idea that they are our future, and seeing the joy of the visiting children engage with it and try to find themselves in it is so powerful and so heart-warming. It is rare that you get pieces of work that explore our future that are so positive, and it is refreshing.
If I were to relate this work to the work I'm doing now, I would say that by being compiled all together, the children in a way lose their individual form and become one smiling formless being, and I think that is what makes it so effective.
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Sculptural Condition- Reflection
Food is vital for our existence, and I was interested to see what would happen if I tried to break that concept down. I got some fruit and veg, and then wrapped it up in this bright and garish neon coral yarn. Instantly, you get the impression of toxicity, and so the thought of eating it is out of the question, breaking the purpose of the food down. To add to the notion of disgust, the yarn gives you the impression that they are soft and comfortable to hold. Yet when you do hold them, there is a disconcerting solidity that forms a barrier between what is needed for our survival and our perception of it. Furthermore, their shape starts to be broken down into the fundamental shapes (circles, oblongs and crescents), deconstructing the food on a physical sense too.
I guess in terms of implications, it makes us consider what we are putting into our bodies (perhaps the toxic colours are a reference to pesticides which damage the healthy impact fruit and veg have on us), but honestly, I didn't consider that. With 'Language of Objects', I am more focused on breaking down the functions and perceptions of the everyday things around us- the audience can interpret this however they like.
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Reflection on Sculptural Condition Interim Crit, 18/11/19
The above photo shows how 'HORNY' was presented, with the film on a large screen, me in some of the costume and the excess cones on the floor. It was presented in this way because I feel the film best captures the full nature of the performance and people's reactions from it, and so I wanted it to be shown on as big a screen as possible so that it could be fully appreciated. However, the live performance aspect of it is probably the most important aspect of the piece to me, so I wanted to re-don the costume and carry on with the performance as best as a possibly could (although it was not practical or worthwhile for me to get back into the full garb). To ensure the remaining spikes weren't being wasted, I stuck them to the floor by the screen, so that they could interfere with how people moved in the space and forced them to interact with the piece.
Although I think I have discussed quite a bit at length on here what this is all about, I shall bring it altogether and summarise now. Gaffer tape is a material my dad will try to use to fix anything, and he has held this attitude for as long as I can remember. Hence, the tape feels like an intrinsically masculine material to me, and so it was an ideal material to explore the themes I wanted to explore with. I wanted to further the themes of masculinity with the cones- they are a reference to the phallus, and the textural effect of the tape adds to that, resembling the veins on an erect penis. Hence themes of sexuality also arise now, cemented by me masturbating the cones, and by being covered in these cones, I have, in a way, been consumed by sex and masculinity. But I look absurd and I can't move! And that's the whole point- I am ridiculing masculinity because it has consumed us in such a way that society is based on it and its ideas of sexuality, and it is wrong. Hyper-masculinity has without a doubt led to homophobia/ biphobia and transphobia, as well as sexual deviancies (BDSM culture, for instance, of which I am referencing with this outfit), and with this piece, I want to tackle that.
In terms of the response from people, it was very well received, with people finding it funny in many parts. Something that was picked up on which I enjoyed hearing about was the juxtaposition between how awkward and isolated I was because I of what I looked like and how I commanded the room with my presence. The masturbatory element suggested autonomy, and not wanting to react to anyone, which led to this isolation (strengthened by the repelling nature of the spikes). Overall, I was thoroughly pleased with this crit!
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Contextual Practice, 13/11/19
Today we were visited by Satoshi Hashimoto, a performance artist from Japan, to do a workshop around the idea of art as a non-violent protest. We started off by considering the issues that we face today, then, after looking at Hashimoto's work, exploring the ideas around instructions. For instance, the Japanese government are insisting that everything has returned to normal after the Fukushima nuclear meltdown, instructing people to get back on with their lives and for tourists to come and visit the country, but in reality, the area isn't even contained properly and still poses a risk to health. Hence in response, Hashimoto creates works where he instructs the audience members to do certain tasks, and explores their reactions as the performance.
1. What was your main concern?
My main concern was that around climate change. This is because it poses the most significant threat to humanity and the planet in general, yet people in power seem to be doing nothing to tackle it.
2. What action have you activated?
For my main action (shown above), I instructed people to eat little bits of paper. Interestingly, this caused someone else to respond with an instruction saying "don't do that", and so we descended into a cycle of negating the other person's instruction.
3. Is there any link between the two?
I feel there are quite significant links for my piece. Climate change is causing food shortages and even famines, so people are being forced to eat scraps and rubbish to sustain themselves. Then the bickering was symbolic to current governmental statuses, with sides fighting, but not achieving anything.
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Being Human: Reflection on Final Outcome, 07/11/19
I will start off by saying that there is an immense pleasure gained when you eavesdrop on people's conversations of them enjoying your work. You know that they are not lying to be nice, because they do not know you are there, and hence when people are fascinated by what you have made, it feels so good. Anyway, now that my ego has been inflated some more, I shall reflect on today, starting with the group crit.
One of the key things to come from the crit is the tension in the piece, the dynamic between this hard, sharp, metallic structure compared with this small, rusting, floating object, a conflict between the strong and harsh and the delicate and fragile. The idea of a conflict came about, which I was very pleased about, because the notion of conflict is key to the piece. They said it was violent and made them nervous, all of which was music to my ears, although they didn't mention anything I needed to work on, which is good in a way, but I know I am no way near my "peak artist", and there is always something to work on. Personally I feel the "arm" on the right could have been filled out with a bit more metal, but other than that I can't think of anything else, so it would have been nice to find out. Other than that, I am very pleased with both the outcome and the responses!
Before I talk about how I interpret my work, I would just like to bring attention to the shelf. I didn't want the piece to just be on a table, as that would mean you'd have to look down onto it (which would ruin the illusion of the floating nail, as it needs the white background of the wall to blend in). Hence to get the most out of my sculpture I created a shelf (from scratch, I might add, I was very proud of myself) so that it could be raised up to eye level. I also kept with the theme of using scraps/ waste material, building it from left-over bits of wood.
For me, one of the key aspects of being human is the need to better oneself. We have a desire to constantly improve and do better, for instance, exploring space or living forever, and we invest heavily into these areas. Yet as a species we are longsighted, looking towards the future without being able to see the issues we face in the present, such as climate change, global poverty and inequality. Hence a conflict arises, between the present and the future, and we are torn between the two, held in a stasis. This is what I have tried to capture with this work, creating two "arms", one representing the future (this one uses science and technology, including magnets, to try an make us progress) and the other the present, trying to pull us back into the real world. The two forces are acting on a nail, symbolic of our society (nails have been used throughout history in construction, and at the same time are symbols of industry and progress, giving them a timelessness), and so it can do nothing but float between the two in a delicate balance, rusting and decaying in the process. Furthermore, scraps have been used to build this to demonstrate the damage and the mess humans leave behind on our path for progress, and so every new move we make has to be built on what is left, and make the best out of an ever worsening situation.
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Contextual Practice- Tate Modern Visit, 06/11/19
Mitch Epstein, 'Gavin Coal Power Plant, Cheshire, Ohio', 2003
The photo itself stimulates themes around how humans exist in our environment, with heavy references (one could even say blatant) to pollution, but once you read the context behind it, you understand the prevalence over the human ideals of possession. The power plant wanted to move residents out of the town so that they could expand because they thought they had the right to the land, this "right" originating from the fact that they had lots of money, and thought that made them better and more deserving of the land than anyone else. The residents perceived themselves to be the rightful inhabitants of the land, because they had been living there. From this stems notions of colonialism, and people with more 'power' trying to take from those without, and so a simple monochrome photo of two chimneys spewing smoke into the air becomes so much deeper and more powerful.
My only issue is that this is all well and good, unless you don't know the context. An absent minded onlooker might look at it and then move on with their lives because they don't know the story, and I feel more should be done so that it is explained without the need for the text.
That being said, I think anyone could appreciate how good a photo it is. Epstein has used perspective to really screw with the observer's mind, meaning it takes a little bit to realise what they are - my first impression was of rockets, as they seemed to be zooming over my head. In this way, we are forced to think about the significance of the chimneys some more, but like I said, without the context, you're all but clueless.
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Contextual Practice- Tate Modern Visit, 06/11/19
Ed Ruscha, 'Soil and Oil on Aluminium Foil', 2018
I feel this work has strong links to how being human causes an interaction with the environment around us, and how currently that interaction is not positive. The use of the word 'soil' and the background image of a mountain create a link to the planet, the latter also stimulating ideas of magnitude and importance. When paired with 'oil' and 'aluminium foil', words that are symbolic for humanity's exploitation of the planet, they become a wake-up call for the observer, because they are here, they are very present and bold and given importance by the mountain. In a way, Ruscha has become the voice for the planet, demanding we take action.
Yet there is also something quite naïve and childish about the work, as a consequence of the use of rhyme. It plays on the human love and adoration of the young, creating this aura of innocence that is so convincing. The mountain is looking up at you, eyes bulging, begging you for another sweetie (a.k.a. to save it's life). Perhaps this is what makes it more effective as a piece of work, as without the rhyming aspect, it would just be some words on an exceedingly well painted mountain.
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External Commission (completed and installed on 30/10/19)
Whilst this piece of work is not related to the course, I thought it would be very beneficial to reflect on. For starters, I'll give some context. The law firm Simmons & Simmons has a relationship with my old secondary school, and as well as providing work experience and internships for students, they get the Year 11 GCSE art class to create paintings for them to hang up in one of their meeting rooms as a mini-exhibition (my cohort was the first to take part in this opportunity). Jump forward to April this year, and Simmons is going through a re-branding, and to mark that, they wanted a group of students who previously had paintings exhibited to create a new installation for them, which is where I (and a few others from my old class) come in.
This piece of work has been very different from how I'm used to working (for starters, I'm getting paid). We were given a specific location where the piece would be installed and we were given a specific brief we had to fulfil (focused around 'Collaboration', I'll come back to this in a bit), so it was quite strict in a way (although to be fair we had a good bit of freedom with the design). After months of going back and forth with designs, testing materials (and consequently completely writing off some of our designs because they wouldn't be achievable - this relates nicely to the Material News and Place projects, where the materials directed the process) and keeping in good communication with our commissioners, we finally reached agreement, construction could begin, and we reached this!
As I mentioned, the brief wanted us to create something around the theme of collaboration, so it was all a bit cheesy and corporate, but a good experience all the same. In this work, the white balls represent the individual units in a system, the employees at a company for example. They are then connected to each other by string, holding each other up (this is the corporate interpretation anyway). It should be noted that Simmons had a concept colour they wanted us to incorporate, and the yarn we used is (roughly) that colour (the actual colour wasn't quite so neon, more of a dull coral/ salmon kind of colour, which was, frankly, disgusting, so we brightened it up a bit). I have a different additional interpretation of the work: it has ended up looking rather like a toxic net/ spiderweb with egg-like lifeforms caught up in it, stimulating ideas around the environment and the oceans, and the harm humans are causing them. The piece has also ended up looking quite visceral, the bright colours making it even more difficult to look at, so maybe by having this inside a flashy corporate law firm it is exposing the insides of the workings, and how it poisons and corrupts you each day you work in such establishments.
It has been a very demanding experience, working to deadlines and directing the group (I ended up taking a leadership role after the initial guy in charge and main liaison with the firm packed up and quit on us, which was additionally frustrating when another member was having no input whatsoever), but it has been incredibly useful. I now have experience working for a client, preparing me for my future in terms of what is required to keep them happy (good communication, transparency about difficulties) and working to a brief. It has also developed my ability to work in an less-than-ideal group situation, proving to myself that I have the ability and resilience to work in this world.