Snow days

I've been doing my visual culture this week, thinks it's nearly done. Also been doing various research on artists and thinking about an idea for a painting. I'd like to do a piece where the hand is reaching in to a background and another hand is reaching forwards (like when you touch a mirror). This is on the idea of touch and aesthetics. Of how we cannot touch this art work yet that is what it is about.

Monday Monday

Well hello there!

I have wanted to do work about the student protests and the whole political situation for the last couple of weeks but wasn't sure how to get my ideas out conceptually about it. I was listening to some Metallica and the song "Nothing Else Matters" and it just clicked. I wanted to show how the government are undermining arts and the education by putting collages of them on the text, like they are shards of glass (which was one of the aesthetics of the protest). I was using masking tape as it has a lovely fragility yet strength to it.
The other sculpture I have been working on is expanding the use of gum strip, exploring the idea of touch, but in a confined way by using the hula hoop as a barrier.

Jingle bells

It's that time of year again and I'm usually organised with presents but have left it to the last minute : S My boyfriends bought me a new camera so hopefully my documentation will improve : D

In the studio, I have been working on an idea for an interactive piece using acetate and clingfilm to trap layers of paint and allow the audience to interact with it by either stepping on it of using their fingers to mould the painting without actually touching it. It's a conceptual piece, playing on the idea of blindness that you can't see, there's this layer or barrier preventing you to see, yet you can feel.

Been reading Blindess by Jose Saramago. It's a good book, pretty gruesome in areas, but it presents an alternative reality where everyone is blind. It presents a vulnerability and various ideas are brought up about society's bonds.

Been looking at a great artist that has inspired me: Franziska Furter.
She works with simple materials, using dreams and imagery to construct organic structures or mini explosions. I think what I like about her work is that it has an energy which seduces you. Her work seems to speak for itself, instead of having to make something up. It draws upon the emotions.

Ice Ice Baby

Spent the last few days like a hedge hog hibernating. Done a lot of reading though- derrida, haraway, history of sculpture, blindnesss. Also did some snow sculpture, made a "Numb bum" chair - which promises to leave your bum numb for up to 1 hour afterwards (tried and tested)- influenced by Earth art's way of integrating art in to the environment through experiencing nature. Had work today, took 40 minutes to walk to the village at half 6 in the morning on an ice rink, swearing while trying not to wake anyone up in the nearby surroundings... bloody hell. Looking forward to doing more stuff in the studio, found this time reading helpful in re-evaluating my ideas.

Snow is falling...

I did experiments yesterday in the studio.... tried out the dried glue idea on a larger scale, as I thought this worked well. Hopefully it's worked, fingers crossed!











I've also found a mega super cool artist designer bloke... Dominic Wilcox. He did a project where he created something new for 30 days, which included a football smoothie maker, a bath fountain which was funny and lots of other witty stuff which I think is great. Take a look at his site (his name .com)