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The ARO Guide - First Year
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Overall production cost
These are some personal costs that would be key in deciding what price to sell my artwork, I had to take into consideration costs for manual labour and hiring a venue which in London is definitely a pretty penny I can tell you…
SPECIALIST TECHNICIAN KNOWLEDGE – screen printing tutorial, artistic critique and teachings … £20.00 per hour 4hrs £80.00
CARDBOARD LARGE BOXES = Free
ROLL OF WHITE PAPER £10 a roll
HIRING CONSTRUCTION FOR NEW BOARDS £20.00 per hour x 7 = £140.00
HIRING BOARD FOR EXHIBITION SPACE £10.00 per screen per day
£20.00 x 2 days (Exhibition length) = £40.00
PAINT FOR PAINTING DISPLAY BOARDS £10.00 per tub x 6 = £60.00
TIME SPENT PAINTING BOARDS £10.00 per hour x 10hrs = £100.00
TIME SPENT SETTING UP EXHIBITION £10.00 per hour x 10hrs = £100.00
COST OF EXHIBITION SPACE £40.00 per day x 2 days = £80.00
POSTERS = £1.00
REFRESHMENTS = £2
TOTAL COST = £622.00
(However as I am just starting out I would be happy selling my exhibition pieces for anywhere in the region of £30 - £100!)
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Final Presentation
Combing a few images of my work in chronological order to demonstrate how my it has progressed through this project - eventually leading to my final slide which demonstrates the completion of my final piece and my thoughts.
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The coming together of my Development File
As if I haven’t given myself a whole lot of work to do in regards to my exhibition piece and evaluation, now I have to demonstrate my progression through this project in a development file. Really, an organised person would have continuously written and drawn ideas into a book, in order to provide the future self a whole less hassle, however I’m not really one of those people. Though fortunately I have recorded quite a lot of information through this blog that I certainly kept up to date… ha…ha…ha…
Throughout this course the tutors have stated that it is the artwork themselves that is important, and really the development file can be completed within a weekend. Though I have provided myself with a longer time period I am hoping that I have enough time to really do justice to this work – after all this is a component that when marked contributes to my final grade.
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Evaluation
Finally, at the end of this year I have started to see a progression in connection with my artwork and concept ideas; a development that saw me manipulate and expand the confines and restrictions of drawing that I had subconsciously set. Instead turning away from perfection and detail that I once pursued to create standalone piece of work whose core objectification and personification would lead to an abundance of thoughts and interpretations.
My starting point this year was to create pieces that represented the repression of the capitalist society against the poor, mainly looking towards the dark underbelly of London which is never discussed, in the end creating a forum in which to illustrate the importance of public expression. However, I wanted to invert these assumptions in my second (and final) project, instead having a lack of any really obvious social expression with my final installation, with the solitary nature of these standalone pieces forcing the public to interpret them instead of giving them a kind of guided tour. The intention was to highlight and exaggerate ideas by purposely manipulating the everyday, in the end causing irony and tension with a piece of contemporary art that would seem rather out-of-place in any gallery setting. Overall I think that I have fulfilled my proposed intentions as I have explored this universal subject matter that is easily relatable to my audience and will (I am sure) make people think.
Previously I had drawn parallels in my work between the confines of a wardrobe with the everyday social expectation of sexism. Though I ended up developing new skills within printing and laser cutting - to produce forms of wrapping paper and boxes – I became bored and disinterested. Though I had tasked myself with the aim of exploring more of Camberwell’s documentation and resources for key artists and themes, it wasn’t until I had a tutorial with one of my course tutors when I really found direction in this project with Anna Barriball and Mark Manders (coincidentally my two contextual studies artists). They became really influential in my work as their installations/ sculptures introduced multiple meanings and tensions that brought to light how consumerism leads to suppression. As a result, the previous early gallery visits to the Tate Modern, Lazarides (to name two) yet again became handy for though I wanted to produce pieces that were very contemporary, the vocal protest of consumerism in pop art that I had explored in my last essay was still valued.
Not only did I explore various media, (screen-printing, graphics), this project also saw me exploring the need to consider the material on which to draw, paint … Thus I found myself recycling large boxes that had once contained flat pack tables, as they were the perfect height to suggest a wardrobe whilst also having text to conveniently indicate an original purpose. I knew that with the malleable nature of this media I would find lots of ways to appropriate it in similar styles to Rene Rietmeyer and Barriball.
Overall, I am definitely pleased with the finished produced. Though in the past I have found it difficult coming up with interesting themes and concepts, the additional research and readings have helped in this regard. With the late additions in terms of workshops and inductions, I have begun to explore different media and use my sketchbook in more of a development/ journal capacity. I have started to think bigger (where I am now less nervous in discussing my ideas or asking for help when needed), so cannot wait to see the work I produce in my second year.
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More Images of my Final Piece
Project Title
Unlike previous works that I have titled, this time I wanted to have fun yet still leave ambiguity (as the main aim of this work was for the viewers to make further interpretation unhindered by the biased artist). Thus I came up with the title Useless, as it literally defines the artworks, as these pieces may have the surface image of a door/ wardrobe; yet there is still the undying fact that these pieces are useless for any everyday problem.
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Mounting my final piece
Oh, the stress of today. The day before, each student had rushed around and stood in a space that they wanted and thought would best compliment their work. In this instance I was very pleased with the spots that I was able to acquire as they were directly opposite each other to enhance and compliment my key themes of the manipulation of the everyday object. Plus suggestions and thoughts are easily encouraged when the two wardrobes are seen together as I like the idea that they act as a passage between the two places in the room, however if they were moved then it would hold less effect (so all in all I was on track to complete my planned proposal).
However, when I entered the exhibition space the following morning, the notes and paper that I had left in my two spots had vanished, instead other students work seemed to have appeared. Full of frustration and fear, I found the closest tutor (who like me seemed to have no clue really on what was going on as over the space of this week a different tutor each day had arrived to help set up the exhibition, not helpful), thus I had to wait to talk to some of the students to sort this situation myself. In the end it turned out that I had to move, as my most pressing and disruptive obstacle could only really be situated in MY SPOT!! Which was really annoying and to top it all off that place that I was later assigned too really was too small for both of my wardrobes and from different points in the room would be obscured by other large and close sculptures. Though I had been warned that I may not be able to show both pieces in the exhibition, I’m not going to lie that it wasn’t still a punch in the gut.
Though I had to make do with what I was given, finding extra space in the entry to the small darkroom was a bonus, providing more room for my first box. On a positive note, I was glad the hard work of screen-printing wallpaper paid off, as it was this element that was able to bind my pieces together, as the bright red colour was in my mind eye catching and memorable enough for viewers to consider them as a singular piece, or in a series.
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Thinking through/ Planning my evaluation
It’s that time again; my first year at university is drawing to a close so now I have to sum up this whole experience (in a very arty way) through my 500 word evaluation. Not as easy as it sounds, as I need to reference and discuss artists, techniques, media to name a few topics…
My first thoughts were to first read through my last evaluation in order to prepare a skeleton plan, then find the unit 2 summary sheet of the answers the tutors were looking to be in it. After completing this, my next aim would be to write a first daft then continue to make tweaks and changes to it…
Yay
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Alternative final design layouts
Alternative Final design layout
I needed to produce designs that would not only work well in the exhibition space provided but would help highlight the manipulation of the everyday. Thankfully my medium/ design made my whole installation versatile and easily moveable, yet this may be a limiting factor when finding spaces in this exhibition as other students may have priority due to the tricky and delicate nature of their work...
Together
My first thought was to lean my boxes neatly next to one other in the middle of one wall, however I began to think that this idea might be considered rather ineffective and a cliché, for it looked like I had put no real effort into the layout of my piece. Creating enough wallpaper to span this design (i.e. the whole back wall) would have been hard and expensive if I wanted to create enough of an eye-catching/attention seeking impact that may end up looking rather tacky instead.
Maybe if I had wanted to display more wardrobes, with using similar boxes I might have been keener on this idea.
Vertically
Not really sure where I was going with this idea but next I decided to invert my previous proposal so that all my boxes were in a vertically downward line or by having both of them situated above head level. This would definitely be classed as unusual, attracting the gaze upwards away from other pieces of artwork - muhahah - though this idea does run the risk of people missing my work entirely as most people seem to lack very good observational skills…
However, my main priority then would be finding a place to stick my wallpaper, somewhere that would not detract from the overall effect of realistic pencil design and prints. The only way really was to have my paper falling behind the wardrobe boxes until it reached the floor in a large roll as the one space that would be tall enough is rather too narrow to have more than one paper length.. But I’m not too sure about this idea. Though if I were to lift my boxes to above head height, having a manufacturing line (just think monsters inc) of loads of different wardrobe boxes would be interesting however there’s no way to make this idea possible, as the ceiling is slightly to low and boxes too heavy for this.
Corner
My next thought came from a place of messiness, as by this point I was becoming frustrated with the lack of options and space that I could use when considering the placement of my pieces, this time I thought I could occupy a corner, having my wardrobes leaning on each wall. Then, instead of the neat placements that I had previously considered, having my wallpaper carelessly curling around the tops of the boxes in a way that suggests a rundown nature, to symbolise the rudimentary association of everyday object when they are in our lives – items that are accepted as just there and are often left behind. Though I probably can’t explore this idea as my next thought consisted of limiting exhibition space available for each student (as my class is the biggest drawing class in the history of Camberwell), and I can only guess how much space it would take up.
Evaluation
Finally, I have decided that if I can I would like to place my work opposite each other, as I think this structure will create both a balance and illusion of space manipulation. Unlike my other designs this one allows for twice the chance to attract the audience from more angles.
Truthfully, I found placing the wallpaper behind my pieces difficult, as I feel that some placements easily detracted the impact of my final piece and others, as I began playing with the idea of either wallpaper engulfing my work, or with sections of wallpaper covering the undrawn sections. Really if my installation was in a room on its own, I would have preferred one or more walls to be completely covered in wallpaper producing this massive blur of red repetitive patterns, however I had to compromise, as Camberwell is small, unable to provide a room per student.
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Thinking through/ planning my power point presentation – for my Final Assessment on the 16th of May
Unlike my last project hand in, this one concludes with the added bonus of a presentation, where I will be forced to chronologically present my findings and work to my peers in an allocated time of 10 minutes. To make matters worse, I will have to pick only a few key influential elements as I will not have time to display all my work (leaving most of my artwork in my development file for the tutors to look at later), so I will have to rely mostly on my ability at communication and discussion, which haven’t really gone well for me in the past (where I have mostly ended up confusing everyone including myself)…
The key ideas and themes I will be focusing on are:
Wardrobe
Prints
Repetition
Tension between objects
Everyday object in art. Is it art?
2D and 3D drawings
I will also have to mention some influential primary research (books, gallery visits etc) in order to differentiate my work from other PowerPoint presentations.
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Quick talk with Annette and Nicholas
As the deadline for this exhibition draws closer, I have become more and more anxious. How will my artwork fair in comparison to everyone else’s? Will the visitors understand my concept and themes? How will I display my work?
With a massive jumble of thoughts and ideas in my head I thought it time to talk to one or two of my course tutors who would hopefully set me on the right path again.
Thus I asked advice for my most pressing question, how was I going to display my work for unfortunately (possibly due to my uselessness) I had been unable to find many large boxes - an ideal and vital surface being the premise on which I have drawn on; instead, I had to compromise by drawing my intricate designs onto either side of the two boxes that I had been able to acquire. My first irrational thought was to cut my doors out of the boxes (irreparably destroying one of the key themes of my project) and placing them on some rails (in conjunction with the famous monsters inc production line). This floating in your face idea, in my mind at the time, would hit you with this consumerism idea. However, it was suggested to me to just keep it simple. The impact of one or two images on a box would lead to more interpretation and importance than displaying a row of doors just drawn on pieces of cardboard.
I am feeling slightly better, as I now have some vague ideas on how I want my final piece displayed and where in the studio I want it placed. Plus the stress and strain of producing multiple doors in a limited time has now left my shoulders as both tutors agree that I make enough of an impact through my existing pieces.
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Tidying the studio
As predicted, the studio will transform over next couple of weeks to make room for the up and coming exhibition. After reminiscing about attending prior exhibitions devised by other fine art years at Camberwell, I was determined to transform my studio into a professional exhibition space. Though I have to confess that I have no idea how my peers and I will undertake this much needed room transformation, for throughout this year students have left half-finished projects, junk, paint brushes etc. lying around waiting for other people to clean it, meaning that at the moment the studio looks like a tip. Even though the tutors continuously complained, nothing was done to sort it, so the first task on the agenda I guess will be the clearing up and throwing away of random objects in order to clear some floor space to start mounting – it may take a while. Yay… Plus an additional pressure has been placed on our shoulders as each 1st year Fine Art pathway is exhibiting work on the same day, so of course we need to increase the standard of the art and studio space if we are ever to compete with these pathways.
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Studio reconstruction and development 9th -10th May
Seeing as the majority of this week involves me sitting around whilst waiting to be helpful, I decided to dedicate this one blog post to the inactive start of studio development. Even before the deadline for the final piece (really the 12th), furniture and items were moved and neatly stacked in the corridor outside to provide space for the manual labourers who arrived on the 10th to build new boards and walls due to the inescapable destruction generated by art students, which when positioned will be painted with multiple layers of white emulsion paint for a light and clean feel. A vastly contrasting environment to the dirty studio I have spent the majority of this academic year working in. In some ways these last couple of weeks have reminded me of the film Groundhog Day, as the days seemed to hold a repetitive quality to them, sitting, talking etc. Annoyingly not very productive when I have impeding blog work to catch up on whilst also being in vital need of a clean working space to provide the finishing touches to my exhibition pieces..
By the 10th of May, the boards were in position, sectioning off spaces and alcoves in order to create a white room with that vital professional finish everyone was looking for. Boards were washed, fillered, sanded and painted by the few students who decided to attend, which led to a very messy couple of hours. The newly prepared boards needed more coats of paint but due to the limited manpower, they probably didn’t receive as many layers as they should have done – I can certainly sense another painting day in my future.
After the boards had been successfully painted, it was then time to begin the petty arguing and name calling to decide where pieces of work were going to be mounted. Unfortunately for the few who regularly work in the studios, priority is not provided to them, instead of the mature adult way us students should be handling this situation, the placement of pieces has really started to depend on who can shout the loudest. Ironic really as Thursday (12th) is the scheduled day for tutors and students to decide the placing of our work taking special care to make sure that the room was aesthetically pleasing and balanced – a difficult task if you ask me, so no wonder exhibition placement has taken a long time to decide.
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Drawing onto more boxes
Now was the time for all hands on deck as for the past week I had been experimenting with producing different works on different boxes, partially looking at their scale, height and depth, to see if I wanted variety or repetition in my final exhibition piece. Which ones would work best and not look too weird and out of place – as this would already be vocalised due to my subject matter of the everyday.
The plan for this next week:
Firstly, I needed to decide which of my images would most effectively work in my exhibition piece or whether I will have to draw upon other design piece (for even if I don’t use them I will always record them in my blog and development file).
Secondly, I need to talk to the tutors and my peers for their suggestions and criticisms as I would rather have more ideas to evolve my work that show a substandard piece.
Seeing whether I could highlight and balance this gender equality debate that I was researching in my pattern designs.
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Exhibition group meeting and working poster design
As you can imagine, deadlines are looming, so in order to produce a large dose of yet more ‘much needed’ stress the tutors have now mentioned that we need to publicise our exhibition through Facebook and posters. Due to the nature of the motivational talk, it is not only the students who are beginning to worry about the amount of work hovering above their heads and dominating their nightmares, as it appears the tutors would prefer the majority of the class to be leaning towards the production/ design elements of the final piece. As many are too busy to have a sit down civilised conversation about poster designs, the decisions were advocated to a small group of students, who insisted that a minimalist repetitive image would provide the class and intrigue for our exhibition. After applying all this time and effort however, a few students rebelled, stating that more students should have the opportunity to display their work in this manner as they saw this image as favouritism at its highest. Though these people were just being purposely difficult, finally a design was agreed (as it was favoured that no one’s exhibition work centre around the poster leaving everyone’s pieces to intrigue and imagination). Now all that’s left to do is donate money (for the printing cost) and hand out posters to the unsuspecting members of Camberwell…
Target
Make sure my blog is up to date
To incorporate various designs and artistic reference into my work
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Tutorial with Jeffery
To be honest, this tutorial with my course tutor was more relaxed that my last, as pleasantly all the work that I had produced for this project seemed to resonate with him. Definitely an added bonus, as for this project I seemed to have come up with clear ideas and concepts that seemed to translate well when I was talking to him (phew, whilst also giving me hope for my final presentation).
After complimenting my work and the amount thereof, we sat down to discuss ideas that I could develop in the next two week before my exhibition. Even though I have a marginally clearer plan of what my exhibiting pieces were going to be, being able to add newly learnt techniques and dimensions would add some more depth and meaning to my work. For example, I have decided to explore some more printing techniques, adding a source of colour to my final installation by providing some sort of wallpaper design that will hang behind my pieces. This is a particularly pleasing idea for me as it will tie in nicely with the exploration of sexism in patterns and clothing that I had started to pursue at the beginning of this project. I think that I will experiment with the repetitiveness of my first architecture drawings as they are true manipulations of my wardrobe (which will link well with my boxes) which correlates well with the ambiguity in gender equality and sexism.
Targets and ideas to consider this week
Reference artists working on similar ideas
Continue with my body of work – creating more work that holds a coherent line of emphasis, i.e. box, domestic objects, wardrobe
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Unit 3 and unit 7 research workshop
Not only was it officially the end of the day, then term and was quite late (5 o’clock), I had decided to attend a late lecture, provided by two course tutors on their methods when they start an artistic essay. As I have to write one over the holidays, I thought it would be prudent to see two different processes that I might be able to steal (after all I did have some difficulty last time as art essays seem to differ dramatically from anything I have written before).
I realised right from the beginning of the first tutor’s lecture that his style would not work for me. As his artistic knowledge and context far suppresses mine, so he was easily able to pick many great pairs of complimenting artists. From there he knew where to build interesting connections which he would then research and solidify with artistic journals and books. His first reference source was to read through articles provided by Google scholar, which he was easily able to interpret through his knowledge of the artists and his regular usage of formal texts. Though he talked the talk, there was no evidence of him implementing these various research methods into an essay format (something I would be curious about), and it seems it would only be useful to me if my artistic knowledge were better.
The second half of the lecture (with the second tutor) was really rather bizarre, as the tutor talked very little about art and writing an essay. Instead, after becoming an artistic journalist for the early years of her life before getting her job here, her higgledy piggledy plan was implemented on the notion to research ideas and devises that no one had really thought of. She insisted she told the audience that she would usually read everything there was to know about an artist (which was something that I tried to do) and then find an area that hadn’t been covered – which is something that I would find most difficult as I haven’t been trained to do that sort of thing. Then after following her gut on ideas and artistic techniques that I couldn’t possibly have linked, she would usually find interesting connections and theories to write about. As I have already started to read as much as I can on my two artists (Anna Barriball and Mark Manders) I did like this new tactic, as I had never thought to find connection with ideas that hadn’t been said/ voiced – which would then help me to produce work that was certainly not plagiarised.
In the end, both lectures did hold some merits yet seemed a far cry from any technique I have used in the past. Though I have only recently decided on which artists to base my essay on, I have full confidence in trying to find far out connections which I will then solidify with research primarily from Google scholar. I feel fairly confident now, though this is before I have started, as for this week I have primarily been situated in the library using Camberwell resources for research. Next Google scholar and my essay…
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