Taken!

I seem to be enjoying myself making little bungalows that are perched precariously at the edge of the cliff, dreading the next tide taking away another bit of the land. The future is bleak... the houses are inhabitable and the sea will always win.

I have really enjoyed making this one; the MDF lends itself to carving and smoothing very quickly and visually it is one of my best. It can be viewed successfully from many angles and most are reasonable. This one was planned carefully and it was tricky to make the 'tide' fit properly; getting the angles just right against the coastline. It is a piece of work that I am proud of.

Coastal Erosion.

Another piece depicting the effects of coastal erosion. It is self explanatory and a simple statement really; the coast has been sliced away by the constant, unceasing tide. It shows no mercy for the inhabitants of the little bungalows that have been there for years and that chose the position for the beautiful sea view. The house has already broken; part of it is making its way to the base of the cliff to be taken by the sea.

Peter Randall- Page drawing to a close.

I just had to go and take a last look at the incredible exhibition at the YSP by Randall- Page before it disappears. His work has captivated me as much as Andy Goldsworthy did way back on my Access Course.

The YSP is the perfect setting for such incredibly beautiful work; it sits in the landscape as if it belongs there, as if it has been put there from outer space. The work is influenced by organic forms, their repetitive patterns and symmetry. I have looked long and hard at them and they move me greatly every time. The more I look at sculpture the more I am becoming involved in that world and I am being drawn in.

Not long to go now until assessments...help!

To say I have been busy is an understatement and for once I am not being dramatic; I feel that the days are flying by too fast towards my summative assessments and I am still creating work. My short holiday to Whitby on the East coast was really helpful in my new coastal erosion subject for some new sculpture/s. I sketched daily and really enjoyed it; where I would have taken photographs before I now have Richards voice in my head ' I always had a sketchbook in my pocket when I was a student'. I have found it really rewarding and relaxing, it also gives me a sense of pride in myself when I look at them.

I have sat and watched the Richard Wentworth video again and have studied the book to go with it and find myself sort of maturing; it is so... liberating to understand such work that I would not so long ago have looked past.

My sculpture is still predominantly wood and is in the same vain as I have recently shown but it keeps me busy and I must admit they have something, yes, what that is is not for me to say but I do like them.

Holiday! time to read.

I have been studying the sculptures: Carl Plackman, Richard Wentworth, Doris Salcedo who at one time in my life would have passed me by totally. I am never happier now than when I am reading about or looking at their work, if I 'get' it all the better. It scared me a bit that Art can be an installation in a gallery space that is built and removed and can consist of 'found' objects that when arranged together form artwork.

It is the thoughts behind the work that I love to read about; what does it say, what does it depict? Sometimes, as with Carl Plackman there wasn't always a title to a piece of work, it was in his head...somewhere but it was enough to see it.

I really like his drawings which were his plans really although many of them are a piece of work in themselves. It is his use of perspective, colour, charcoal etc in his drawings that I really enjoyed copying during a module where we had to get into the artist chosen for us for 2 weeks.
Both the images above are 2 copies of his drawings that I did and it was a really worthwhile experience; a new way of drawing completely for me. Carl Plackman died several years ago but his wife has a web site, I contacted her re information on the media he used and she was kind enough to email me straight back... I was thrilled to bits! She was pleased to hear that we were studying Carl on the FAFD course

The work I did is some of my best yet and it is ongoing. I have really felt an affinity with him.

Another one!

This is another one of my sculptures made in MDF; about 12" long and 4" high. It was fun to do but I'm not happy with it. It reflects the hazard of buying a house/bungalow on the coast where the land is being eroded away. It is unfinished but will probably change anyway when I get back to college and get my hands on the saw; the cliff side isn't right, it is too curved and soft. I think I shall sharpen it up or redo it completely. There is something about the 3D workshop and the smell of the wood that I like; my Dad could make anything with his hands, from tiny pieces of metalwork beautifully crafted to items of furniture, sometimes using a lathe and always to a very high standard. I wonder if he would have liked my work, he would have come up with a few ideas of his own I'm sure. It is sad that he isn't here to see it but I do feel 'at home' with the sawdust everywhere and the way the wood or plaster waits for you to 'do' something with it, it excites me more than I ever thought was possible. He would have asked "What about your painting"? to which I would reply "Plenty of time for that"!!! and there is...perhaps. I have found myself doing 3D work and I like it a lot, it is the way that the material looks that is either right or wrong to my eye that I find so great; you have to work it to know. A sketch can help in the initial stages with structure and size but I now understand that you have to 'draw' with the material too.

Thursday before Easter.

Good Friday tomorrow and therefore no college. Well, at least it will give me some time to catch up with some written work and try and decide just what I want to concentrate on for my collaborative work with Simon. I have really tried hard this week to work in the 3D workshop and make another plaster house; a larger one this time that is similar to the style that Simon lives in, I have a few ideas but until I can see them in front of me I wont know.