Mission Accomplished.....

Over the past 9 weeks, I have been working towards the completion of an artwork suitable for the new Alloa Campus. Throughout the course of these 9 weeks I have experimented with and developed my paper making skills but also my printmaking skills. Printmaking has not exactly been my strongest area, or an area of expertise that I have found particularly exciting or interesting....I have been proved wrong.

I have successfully completed my final artwork for the Alloa campus and with 2 days to spare. The final outcome was the production of 3 silk screen prints from a sketch of books I had created in my sketch book. Not only have I produced a multiple of prints but I have also produced an Artist Book. Although not in a 3D form or even that of the traditional book format we are familiar with, an artist book is whatever the artist deems it to be. These prints are in response to the lack of the book dispersed around the college. What i tried to create was a serious yet quirky artwork. The prints are somewhat abstract, given depth to the piece but which also brings the viewer in closer and question what the artwork is.

My message throughout this project is, 'What is the point of having book that have no intension of being used. To me they are mearly there to be looked at, hence the reason for producing a multiple print of books in an abstract form that with hold no information.'

My processes of choice for this project were combining paper making and screen printing. I felt that both of these methodsa combined would give me an aesthetically successful artwork but one which also worked concetpually. What I wanted to achieve throughout this brief was learning new skills which would hopefully set me up for the coming months where I will be driven to deciding my specialism for 3rd year.

Whilst working continuously on the development of my project, I learned a great deal about the sort of artist I am, what I try to achieve within my artwork and just what exactly I think an artist book is.

I feel that I have successfully achieved what I set out to acheive throughout the course of this project and am looking forward to what is in store for next semester.

Unfrtunately I am unable to upload photos of my work but hope to have displayed soon.

Getting there....

The ultimate question that i've had to keep asking myself throughtout the course of this project is, what is an artist's book? To me, it doesn't neccessarily have to be in the traditional book form that we all know and love. In today's society you can read an entire novel online. You're reading a book off a screen, not off of paper. Therefore, an artist book or just a reading book does not have to have the pages turned by hand.

In response to this, I feel that the drawing/sketch below is worthy of being classed as an "artist book".

Initially, my intension was to create a book that would be situated within the library. However, through further development and experimentation I feel that producing a screen print would be more effective.

The above photos are different experimental pieces during the development stage. I felt that if i went back a couple of steps then i would be able to progress forward and be able to produce a final artwork.

My Pathway, My Career....PDP.....Creative Practice Update

As I come from a contemporary fine art background, the knowledge I have of artists is far greater than that of design and craft practices. Still needing to have the sufficient research into other specialisms, extenisive anaylsis into the WHO, WHAT ,WHERE, WHY of design and craft is crucial.

At this current moment in time I am unsure as to what my specialism is. However, I feel that at this stage I should keep my options open, rather than limiting myself with reguards as to I will write in this paper. My intension is to do extensive research into the work of contemporary painters, printmakers and photographers. All areas that I am familiar with and apply to my own work.

An update on Creative Practice....
From the beginning of this project I kne w(near enough) exactly what approach I wanted to take in response to the brief. Knowing a rough outline of my concept, the materials I was going to use, the process I was going to carry out, although good for having focus and producing an efficient time plan, it has proved not to be good development.

Experimenting with different materials and processes is a key role within my work. Being able to experiment and develop new ideas is something I find very interesting and inspiration for my progression. However, this has not been evident through out thecourse of this project. I feel that I have been restrictive in my approach...something that has never been the case in previous projects.

I decided that the best thing to do is to go back to basics and experiement with different materials and methods. Not neccessarily starting a fresh but taking what i've touched on briefly and take it a stage further.

One Step Forward....Two Steps Back...

I find that the best ideas for a project usually come from something that you haven't considered or thought possible to achieve. Not disreguarding my initial idea but I feel that for me to gain the full potential of my knowledge and concepts, I need to distance myself from my original approach and experiment with something new...

Learning to push the boundaries, learning to think outside the box, learning to challenge yourself....