This unit has taught me many things and has allowed me to develop skills that I had only just learnt from the last unit, as well as finally narrow down a potential career path post graduation. There have have been elements that I think have been successful, and elements that I think need more work and development going into the next unit.
The things that I think were a success were my main pieces of work; my cushions. These pieces were successful in terms of being an experiment into the use of textiles and a starting point into my exploration of soft sculpture. The wire cushions also contrast perfectly with the softer pieces, and offer a lot of different connotations some of which that I might investigate going into the next unit. I also think that the ways in which I have displayed these throughout this unit has been interesting as I have purposefully decided to not exhibit them as art objects on a plinth rather more functional objects in an art space to see how people would react to them or with them, and it was interesting seeing people move them from the chairs because they thought they were art work, rather than something to sit on.
Furthermore, it was also interesting working alongside Beth in her mini experiment with her cubes in PS1 and using her cubes as a plinth and actually seeing these objects in a fine art context or exhibition context just for comparison. It was interesting how they changed once displayed this way, and I do think that what Ele Carpenter said in her essay Activist Tendencies in Craft does make sense in terms of how Craftivist works lose that element of activism and expression when placed in a gallery context. However, I do think they worked as objects commentating on issues regardless, and I think it would be interesting to actually see these pieces in a professional exhibition space.
As well as the cushion pieces, I felt that my photoshop pieces were quite successful to an extent, and were a good investigation into the idea of subtly and how to convey a message without using text, or shape. I do think these could be developed further and more research into different types of imagery with different connotations could be interesting, and could potentially elevate these pieces greatly. I do think that the large scale piece of one of my initial photoshop pieces has made it in my opinion a lot more successful in terms of subtly and reading.
The cloth pieces with embroidery are also quite successful and have allowed me to move into a more focused subject rather than a the broad theme that I have been exploring. I already have plans to develop these further in terms of scale and material and I think more research into the type of text I use would be beneficial to these pieces. These pieces are a stepping stone to the work that I hope to create in the next unit. Furthermore my sketchbook and drawings have been helpful in planning my ideas and pieces. It's also been beneficial as the use of embroidery does take time, and so to be able to have immediate pieces of work which show the planning an intent of work.
In terms of curation, being part of the curation team has allowed me to be able to develop my skills in curation as well as working in a team. The curation process of the Interim Show could have been improved, and for the current staff/student show we have definitely improved in terms of communication, and planning. Overall the show was a success, and the fact that were able to curate 60+ people in 5 project spaces. The issues that we did have through this curation process was the poster, leaflet, event's schedule. There was a lack of communication in regards to these elements, and confusion, but in the end we were able to compromise and agree to how many posters to have as well as the design for the map. The social media aspect of the show was pretty successful, and we were able to stay in theme and really advertise the show well, and I am looking forward to working on the social media campaign for the next show.
Things that could be improved is the development of my work, and my exploration into different materials as well as making work. This unit has been taken over by Curation Team duties, and has not allowed to me to make as much work as I'd like. I do think that I need to develop this theme of sexism in the workplace further, and to research into this subject further. Additionally I think that I need to work more outside of the studio, and to play around with displaying my work in public spaces, rather than the studio.
Overall, I think I have made a great start to my practice this year, and all of the work that I have done in this unit will help me to develop a strong piece for the degree show within the next unit, as well as other pieces which demonstrate my interest in different materials and the binary opposites of hard and soft. I think that my sketchbook has been detrimental in planning out ideas, and will continue to play an important role in my work in the next unit. The next unit will be focused on making and researching, and really developing my ideas and finalising work.
