Author: Kayla

For the first week of semester 2 we were introduced to the concept of an “Art Machine” this being blah blah blah. Due to personal circumstances I was unable to be present for the first week. Though used this time away from studio to grasp a clear, concise understanding of this assignment. Though due to circumstances I was still able to collaborate for this assignment. I love the use of a collaborative assignment especially with a very hands on project as it allows room for creative growth, new knowledge and and new thought processes from other artists.

My group decided that amongst the 5 of us it would be most beneficial to split for the first week to experiment on our own concepts and then come back together in the beginning of week 2 to share, explore and discuss our ideas and concepts. From there we currently plan to choose a concept we would like to develop on for our final product of an “Art Machine”.

The first step in approaching this assignment, especially while being away from the studio was to thoroughly read through recommended artists to research. Being away from the studio meant I would struggle with inspiration as I find myself to be inspired by other artists in my class as I feel my mind thrives in an environment full of creatives, this was something to overcome. I proceeded to brainstorm everything that was coming to my mind.

Due to being away, experimentation was very limited therefore I thoroughly drew up plans, researched and listed resources available to me, and took into consideration the time I’d have to execute once I came back to studio. I came to the conclusion I wanted to include lights or any from of illumination.

With the core criteria for this brief being ‘Palimpsest’ the final of my brief reflects this in multiple ways. Starting with the book to the right, it is composed of my experimentations and developments leading up to the final works (final works of course have been displayed behind the curtain). This reflects palimpsest not only because of the content though the actual book. My works are derived from porn magazine cut outs I have bound my new works back into a book, returning the content to its original form.

The core part to my instillation being the imagery behind the curtain, is my main way of portraying palimpsest, through methods of photocopying, tracing, layering, collage and cut outs I come to a concluded body of work that flows. The use of multiple images arranged in an orderly fashion is to preserve the idea of where the content originated from, this being porn magazines.

Even beginning with content of porn magazines, I had to be aware and considerate of the audience, thus the addition of a curtain. I love the addition of the curtain as I feel it intertwines all elements of my instillation as you see the book first and engage with that, leading to the unveiling of the final works.

If there was more time for this brief I would have practiced screen printing and have screen printed an illustration such as a silhouette of a body or arm onto the curtain as I feel it would make my concepts more present and concise.

I found difficulty in being able to clearly portray the palimpsest concept, I attempted to portray this through woodcuts, printmaking and collage though this wasn’t enough for me to be happy with the outcome as it didn’t interact with the content I was using effectively. Moving forward I played around with tracing and photography which expanded the opportunities for me to effectively portray palimpsest through the content I was utilising alongside with my concepts.

Here I have bounded a book together composed of my experimentations and developments leading up to my final copies which are displayed behind the curtain. The intention of bounding the experimentations together was to utilise the content I have removed and reworked from page vintage porn magazines and bring them back to their original form of a magazine. Using magazine and photocopy pages I have a book of mixed media.

With inspiration from Tracey Emin I have used cut outs from the porn mags to creat collages. I loved this experimentation as it pushed the images to be more intriguing as there is more happening in the composition that just silhouettes and bodies. Moving forward I will experiment with photocopying these collages to simplify to black and white colour, as I fell having multiple of these images displayed with colour will feel too cluttered and busy. Use of black and white will refine these images to flow together sequentially.

By experimenting with the different compositions available with my tracings I had an outcome of 5 images that I felt fit with the rest of my current body of work. The bottom left image is a combination of 4 silhouette tracings layered together then photocopied, creating an intriguing complex image where multiple bodies are present yet triangles amongst each other. The centre bottom image has led my mind to more experimentation ideas with use of college and tracings photocopied to create a final palimpsest piece.

Combining my experimentation’s together of printmaking, collage, tracing, photocopying, choice of colour, and collage, we have found a fluid body of work! Now the process is to refine each piece so that they could all demonstrate my ideas and concepts individually though together, they are a fluid body of work.

Tracey Emin is an English artist who produces works of drawing, painting, sculpture, film, photography, and neon text. Emin is most widely known for her storytelling through visual language, portraying unique and intimate life-events throughout her works.

From Emins work I admire her use of creating a personal narrative amongst her work. A personal narrative in her work shows in the instillation “Everyone I Have Ever Slept With” aka “The Tent”, she prodded to fill the tent with name of everyone she had ever slept with. This personal narrative grows to across many of Emins works, her self portraits made during her battle with cancer depict dripping silhouettes.

Tracey Emin

http://www.artnet.com/artists/tracey-emin/

https://ocula.com/artists/tracey-emin/

Cecily Brown is a British Artist whose primary medium consists of paintings, her style depicts strong influence from a range of painters. Browns paintings portray a contemporary style, a combination of abstract and figurative. Browns artworks portray brilliant colours and rhythmic energies, her loose application of paint creates a flowing sense amongst a piece. Brown subject matter across her paintings is commonly fragmented bodies positioned erotically.

In reflection back to the brief I will look at the idea of collage with fragmented bodies, as Brown packs her some of her pieces with bodies and abstract application of vivid paint stokes.

https://www.artsy.net/artist/cecily-brown

https://gagosian.com/artists/cecily-brown/

Danial Eatock is British designer who explores conceptual and inventive qualities of everyday objects and situations; commonly proceeding to create his work from systems and materials. Eatocks primary skills originate from his strength in graphic design, repurposing conventional tolls of graphic design and translating them into a process for this conceptual work.

Eatock designs the ‘eye’ logo for Big Brother and the other versions alongside. This piece particularly peaks my interest in reflection back to my work as when researching Eatock I viewed the ‘eye’ logo and its variations at once, I admired the way they all looked together.

https://eatock.com/

http://www.eyemagazine.com/review/article/17-things-we-know-about-daniel-eatock

Ingrid Calame is an American artist widely known for her abstract paintings influenced by human detritus. From a young age she wanted to recreate maps or what her view on the world was, her work doesn’t depict maps but has a heavy influence from them. Examples of her work and the use of human detritus is such as when she traced the stains on the LA river and Indianapolis Motor speedway, taking the palimpsest from these stains and street art and utilising them in her bodies of works.

I love Calames intention of including the world in her works through palimpsest, quite especially her use of street art,it ortrays a sense of connection between creative minds.

http://www.ingridcalame.net/videos-on-process

Peter Madden is a New Zealand Postwar and contemporary artist. Madden takes his imagery from National Geographic magazines, reworking them to create a new piece of work. Maddens work commonly features chairs he states them as being viewed in his perspective ‘as framing devices for the body.’

Maddens work explores ideas of palimpsest, psychedelic interconnected ness, cosmology and the conceptual, deeper thinking behind everyday objects, magazines and surfaces. Madden states in an interview “I don’t think there’s a conscious desire to undermine masculinity here, but I’m happy for people to think that, because masculinity is as much a masquerade as femininity is.” His thought process regarding his work I find inspires and resonates with me.

Peter Madden: Orgasm and Trauma

This week we got to take park in Binary workshops, we explored techniques such as foiling, embossing. As a collective group we also made three types of books, hard cover, pad of paper, and a simple rubber band bounded book with French flower folds for the paper.

In relation to my current works and thinking of the final presentation I will keep in consideration binding the pages to create a book of my own. This would reflect the original form the content came in which was a porn magazine.

I loved the highlight I could portray on princes body through foiling, ill take thi experimentation and make use of in my works, as I can highlight the bodies in my works with foil, presenting a more elegant and beautiful feel to my work

By layering a clear plastic sheet onto the magazines I was able to trace out silhouettes simply. This method allowed me to play with layering silhouettes together alongside of images also(above right images are silhouette tracings layered onto my printmaking experimentation from week 2).

This experimentation made me thinkable view my methods of word differently especially the matter I was using to produce this body of works. I wanted to develop this idea by using text this time.

Using the same technique as with the silhouettes I traced text from a spiritual book onto clear plastic. By doing so I am able to layer text with silhouettes or on top of any images, this broadens my options amongst my work and how I will compose a body of work together.

Ellen Gallagher is an American artist who works with vintage magazines, producing works of various mediums such as painting, film, video and collage. Her works refer to concerns of race, racial stereotypes and principles society imposes on the community. Gallaghers work is most widely recognised due to her intricate layered works that she continuously builds on; by undoing and reforming thought processes in relation to her works. Gallaghers works portrays palimpsest though a process of recovery and reconstitution.

In relation back to this brief and the concepts and ideas I’m developing from, Gallagher makes for a strong artist model as she utilises vintage magazines in her work through palimpsest thought processes. Her use of multiple images to create one piece of work intrigues me and will be considered in the final display of my work.

Kara Walker is an American contemporary artist who works are depicted through printmaking, film, paint, sculpture and installations. Walkers paper cut silhouettes which are globally recognised, depict to her viewers, sensitive historical narratives of domination, violence and sexuality.

My interest in Walkers work is the methods and mediums she utilises to depict a clear understanding of sensitive historical narratives while continuing to be aesthetically pleasing to the viewer.

Wade Guyton is a post-conceptual American artist; most widely recognised for his black monochromatic inkjet printed paintings. Guyton explores the relation images and artworks have towards Guytons inkjet works typically are inclusive of X’s, stripes, and flames, as he explores the erratic characteristics of Inkjet printers.

In relation back to my work in this brief I will take his use of printers, maybe not to the chaotic extent as he does though will be useful experimentation to look into.

Reflecting on changes from last weeks works to this weeks, there is a change in mediums used, from almost collaging with vintage porn magazines and other founded matter to predominantly printmaking works. Through printmaking it’s much simpler for the concept of palimpsest to shine through. Moving forward I will focus on a more concise body of work that can CLEARLY portray palimpsest