Pecha Kucha and other research

This week we presented ideas we've been researching related to sketch innovation so far, to share our thoughts as a group. Pete briefed us to present in a 'Pecha-Kucha' inspired style. I like the fact that this (mostly!) kept things quite concise and to the point, with little snippets of information and inspiration being raised through each person's series of images and corresponding explanations. I hadn't heard of this form of presentation before, so there we go- I've been learning new things all the time on this module! From the definition of a pamphlet book, through to what a Pecha Kucha presentation is- fantastic :)

Here is a view of the images I presented:

the first section was drawings/sketches that have been significant in my own work-

brio play, pencil and ink (2013), and digital prints (own images)

The drawing on the left was made during my first year- it was a progressive drawing from a selection of objects I had infront of me. I began by drawing the brio train track piece in pencil, and then told myself I'd use a different media to add in each extra element, to build up a collage style drawing that could give inspiration for a print design. The 2 digital prints next to this image, are the outcomes that followed- my playful initial sketch, led me to playful, collage effect patterns, that used re-drawn, scanned in versions of the 'brio' motif as a start point. I had no idea at the time, that my initial quick sketch would shape my outcomes for that technical block unit. It just shows- the influence of one drawing can go far!

acrylic paint over oil pastel base, scratched into (2014), and fabric samples incorporating trapping, laser cutting, embossing, foiling and heat pressing. (own images)

The left shows a drawing made exploring the idea of braille (writing for those who are blind) in colour, playing around with braille cell coding that reads 'touch me', to create pattern. Following this, I began sampling fabrics that would have sensory qualities, with sections of braille and raised surfaces embossed into them, to create coded patterns. Braille is such a beautiful language, and I wanted to explore the idea of tactility, and surfaces that would invite touch. But also, from my original drawing, I was thinking about how braille is colourless- so I added colour and shine and different textures into my work, to increase the sensory appeal, regardless of whether people are sighted or not.

pro marker sketch of postal stamp (2012) that lead to photoshop print (own images)

When I was looking back at my foundation work, I was interested to see that even then, I was instinctively selecting sketches from my early design development, and carrying them through to print design work. I realised that I enjoy working in this progressive way- combining hand drawings with digital technologies, by scanning things in and manipulating/layering them up in photoshop

paperbead collage from current project, using paint, paper, pencil and wax resist (2014)

This is from my most recent project, which I have been working on alongside this module. And infact, the emphasis on exploring sketch in this module made this drawing very significant indeed. Because as I was creating this collage, based on my research of paper beads made in Tanzanian culture (Tanzania was my research focus), it lead me to explore the shapes of the beads, and create my own jewellery designs as an outcome (one of my pieces in development is pictured in the centre of this image)

Drawings that have influenced me: 

Lina Peterson jewellery design sketch, images available here

Lina Peterson's approach to jewellery design really inspired me on my current textiles practice where I was creating my own jewellery collection, since I was also working with wood and plastics in a contemporary way. I found it really useful seeing her little development sketches, as it helped me think about the construction of my own pieces, and how ideas can translate from 2d to 3d in terms of textiles for accessory.

Mia Christopher, colour tests, more sketchbook pages can be seen here

 Our current project in textiles has been focused on colour, and I like how Mia Christopher uses her sketchbook pages as a place to play with and explore colour. While I was putting together my colour palettes for this project, and producing different colour combinations, I created a fair few pages in my own book that looked a little like this!

Eric Carle, 'The Very Hungry Caterpillar', collage style- illustration

 I included this image in my presentation, as 'the very hungry caterpillar' was one of my favourite childhood books, and I was always fascinated by the bright colours and textural qualities of the illustrations, created by Carle's painted collage style.

Innovative practice:

Daniel Etock, pro markers bleeding onto white paper (2011), see more here

When I was looking at playful methods of drawing last year to inspire my 'things to play with' project in Textiles, I researched into Daniel Etock's work, and it came back to mind when I was thinking about this presentation. I love that the final piece is organic- there is no guarantee exactly how the pens will bleed into the paper, so the resulting pattern is not calculated or controlled- it involves an element of surprise! I also like how Etock left the pens for differing amounts of time to see how this would effect the marks that are made. It would be interesting to take this idea into fabric, and perhaps the dyeing process- applying a technique to samples of fabric, but each time carrying out the process for a slightly longer amount of time, and seeing what is left on the surface in terms of texture and pattern with each sample. Even repeating this pen experiment onto fabric could be interesting, as different fibres might soak up the ink to different intensities and it might spread in different ways across the fibres...so much potential for future experimentation!

BA Textiles collaborative drawing of the Queen (2013), pencil onto pieces of A1 cartridge paper (own photo) 

I really enjoyed this collaborative drawing we did together as about a group of 40 people in our textiles practise. We each were given a 1cm square section of a picture- none of us knew what the picture itself was, we just knew that each section was numbered, so when we'd all drawn our small piece out onto an A1 sheet, we could match them together to reveal the final image. This was a good experiment in terms of scale, as drawing out a 1cm square section onto an A1 sheet required some thinking and planning! And it also required trust- that somehow our section would work together in the picture as a whole, and fit in to what everyone else was drawing. (My piece is the lower part of the crown just above the left-hand eye, as the picture is facing us). I think large-scale collaborations with lots of people are a good way to innovate- as everyone's individual contributions mix together to produce a piece that contains within itself, many different stories and styles, meaning the outcome is both collective and individual at once. It would be interesting to try this task with lots of different groups of people, and then have a display of many different individual yet collaborative pieces.

Judith Ann Braun, 'fingerpainted' charcoal drawings (see more here)

I really like how Braun creates environments out of her work- often covering gallery walls or exhibition spaces, it's like a fingerpainted backdrop or scenery. Her work is very expressive, and in contrast to our task of making a 'drawing device', where marks were made autonomously by an object or process (as also with Eatock's pen pictures), Braun's work is all about the body and movement- marks go as far as her arms can stretch, and boundaries are set by the shape of her fingers. She works a lot around pattern and symmetry, using both hands at once to create a mirrored effect.

So, that's my little presentation write up! When we shared our findings in the group, it was interesting to see the mix of things that we classed as 'innovative', incorporating both hand and machine created outcomes. It would be interesting to cross these two areas, perhaps. I liked the video Pete showed us of a large scale 3D printing machine, that is able to print 'paths' of line into empty space from the floor or wall (reference video here). Printed drawn 'paths' like this, could then be hand-drawn ontop of by people, to decorate the surface of the 3D line- a way of 'drawing' onto a 3D drawing, and combining machine and human sketching into the same piece...

In this video I found, 3D printing has been used to seamlessly slot into the real world- in this example, it is a continuation of a wall, to make it look as though it has been constructed from Lego bricks. I like the idea of being able to use 3D printing as a way of 'drawing' into reality, to play with appearance, context and meaning, by adding to everyday sights with bits of printing, that at a glance, appear to be real. On a recent trip to the science museum, I saw many other 3D printed objects, and I think it opens up fascinating possibilities to extend the idea of 'sketching', quite literally, off the page. 

Through technology, 'sketches' can actually become three-dimensional sculptural forms, in real time.

In terms of Textiles, this also reminds me of something I blogged about last year- Fabrican spray on fabric (see my original post here!).

spray on fabric t-shirt (image accessed here)

I think this is a type of drawing, too- the ability to 'draw' your own clothes directly onto the body. Also, in turn, this process creates a kind of drawing/record of your own unique body shape, as the sprayed-fabric can be taken off, hung up, or re-worn after it has been made, and it retains it's original sprayed form. 

Although technology is arguably taking us increasingly away from paper as a society, it does not mean that these new possibilities are the end of 'drawing'...infact, perhaps all these things merely are a form of sketch innovation, where technology is becoming the drawing implement of choice!

All booked up

Today was a session filled with insight -- by the means of looking at each others books!

It was really nice to see the varying selection of books we'd all had a go at making- from Abi's wood-covered small flip books, to Hannah Straw's A4 size fluff-covered pad!

First up though: my books!
Here is a sneak peak of the pamphlet-style book I made after last week's introduction to book making techniques. I used my newly acquired bone-fold to crisply fold my pages into 'signatures' (ooh yeah, I was listening to the technical terms!), and then laid them precisely and carefully together inside the cover, which I cut slightly bigger, with the aim of neatly containing the pages. As I didn't have access to a long-handled stapler to join my book together, I attached a heavy duty needle to my sewing machine, and sewed down the middle instead! I'm quite pleased with the results. And on a side-note to myself: I think I might make a few for family Christmas presents!

the front- with a little decoration (as usual!) to jazz things up

 I managed to get quite a neat, even line of stitching on this I reckon -- result!

In the session, we each had 10 minutes to present our personal sketchbooks from current/previous project work in our course-specific areas. I took in my sketchbook from the last project of the summer term in 1st year. Funnily enough, I realised that in effect, I 'made' my own books for all my projects last year, even though I didn't really think of it that way at the time. I also realised that I tend to work in staggered way, using my sketchbooks for more certain, concrete ideas that I want to show to others/my tutor as my work progresses. I don't tend to work in a very rough way in my sketchbooks, just incase others get confused/misunderstand when they are looking at my work to try and understand my concepts. For research and planning stages, I tend to work on loose sheets that then get put in a file, or get chopped up and put into my sketchbook in a more organised way. This is the first time I've been properly aware that I don't just do my sketchbooks with myself in mind- I am normally always considering how what I do will help others understand my ideas, too, to some extent. 

The cover of my last project sketchbook- a print out of one of my print designs, stuck onto the outside of the inner pages.

 A 'perfect bind'- I didn't know that's what it was called at the time when I did it...but I do now!

 I included photos at the very start to contextulise the work that followed work- this project was an installation, and I was aiming to make it for the local bus stop

 initial drawings/doodles, that I constructed into 3d paper flower models

 I never realised before how interactive my books can end up! Here everyone in my group that I was showing the book to thought it was fun/funny to have parts that pulled out/extended- like a book within a book. I think my work can be quite narrative- I like to show the different processes as little stories to follow that slot in place within the bigger narrative of the progression of the project.

 rougher pages that showed how my pint designs developed- included more in terms of assessment, for my tutor to see how I arrived at my print collection outcome. 

 my pages towards the end of my sketchbook work seem to get less busy/neater in line with my ideas being finalised and realised. This is also an interesting observation about using sketchbooks- there seems to be a natural ebb and flow within the energy of it's structure, with any parts that show development being quite full and varied, yet the initial outline and final ending are much more paired down. 

So I found this week very interesting in terms of a deeper, conscious self-realisation of the way I myself work. In part two of this post, I'll upload my pictures/realisations that came from looking at others work this week!