Caroline Reapy

Showcasing the processes of creative art & design @here

Biophilia

Summary 

seeing the patterns of merging events; Carrying on from the idea of layering five different images from the charcoal making process.

With the help of a technician to produce the stand (drawings: top right), I was able to place five sheets of acetate in the gaps created especially to house them. Looking at them directly creates the transparency to guide the eye through the layers.

intaglio print; Ink not getting in every gap but creating texture nicely.

risograph workshop 07.12.2020; Using two layers to create a finished print - 2D combined with digital medium.

Oil based inks to create each layer - one in red, scanned in, the other in yellow, scanned in. After the scanning process we produced two proofs before printing onto the special risograph paper which is oil absorbent. The printed images have a slight glossy sheen to them. 

In preparation, I used two sheets of A3 tracing paper to make each layer; One to be printed in red, the other in yellow. The burnt tin can from earlier in the project was the primary research I was working from here. Choosing the darker elements from the image I was working from to be in red. Although, (bottom right) the inverted colours made a varied texture print too. Using pencil and a fine illustrator pen I was able to recreate the scratchy marks inside the tin. Using a washed down Indian ink as the rest of the tin. I also used graphite pen, oil pastels to create the writing, a thick permanent marker and string to experiment with texture. 

(unsuccessful) image transfer onto fabric; Laser printed image, plain t-shirt, lavender oil, online tutorial

putting the pieces together; Enhancing the mistakes

image transfers; What is needed? PVA glue, a laser printed image, wood panels, water and a soft cloth

In preparation for this I sanded down two small wood panels. The images (top left) are the printed images of what I intend to be transferred. This process involves putting a thin layer of PVA on the wood surface before laying the image face down and leaving it to dry for a few hours, making sure to squeeze out any air bubbles between the two layers. When fully dry take a soft damp cloth and CAREFULLY start to rub the back to remove the paper.

On the first attempt, the layer of glue was too thick and I didn’t allow it long enough to fully dry. When taking off the paper, I ended up taking off the whole lot because there were too many gaps in the image. So I started again on both. This time I reduced the amount of glue I used and I left the panels for a day to dry out. I used my fingers first to gently remove the back but I was getting a similar result. I changed to using a soft damp cloth and this produced a better result for me. The image on the second panel (bottom image) was a little faint. The other panel showed the patterns of the direction of the wood grain. I varnished both panels with a clear gloss. 

dramatic changes; Using fire as a drawing tool

ARTIST INSPIRED

Using Cornelia Parker’s ‘Red Hot Poker Drawing’ as inspiration (top right). Parker has folded up a piece of paper and singed along the edges o create this drawing.

showing stages of the process; Layering images on sheets of acetate

The top image is a blend of the five images below it, representing five stages of the process used during the charcoal making process: pallets, fire, tin, charcoal dust, and application. 

Using image manipulation in Photoshop to create layers within three of the images (pallets, fire, and tin) to create a pattern-like form. These five images will be printed onto transparent A4 sheets and will be propped up vertically a stand. When looked at/ through, the image seen should be a blend of all the processes and maybe resemble something like the top image we see here. 

ARTIST RESEARCH: SUSAN PHILIPSZ

This artist places her sound installations at specific sites for which they have been designed. She uses the space combined with the sound to evoke feelings of emotion in the audience/ listener.

‘the texture of sound’; Using short recorded audio and digital video clips to compile a brief film in Premiere Pro.

Using audio I collected I finally realised how to best apply them in my project. Combining them with some digital visual recordings where I was taking most of my inspiration from i.e. my home and the local fishing lake was the ideal way to show this.

In this short clip I introduce the environments around me with both visuals and audio. Shortly in, I dull down the visuals to a black screen and now all we have is audio. The viewer can decide what they are hearing based on the textures that are conveyed via the audio channels. From what we hear, we can use our imaginations to visualise the surfaces that are being explored via the medium of sound. The visuals are brought back at the very end. The layering aspect of the work, track on track, is also relative in my response to Biophilia.

textured surfaces; Tile grout and carborundom/ silicon carbide

In preparation for inking up the two plates, I sanded them down by hand (bottom left), front and back. The ‘texture’/crevasses left during the grout application can now be more emphasized by the relief printing process. I gathered graphite rubbings from each plate (bottom right) to see how they may turn out as prints.

mixed media; Suspending the structures and creating a ‘layer’ in front with wire

Spray-painting the inside of the cardboard before suspending the structures. It being a very dense spray (’stone’ textured spray-paint), it took a while to dry. Using white spray-paint on the structures to enhance the contrast against the darker background.

Top image: Starting to place the wire in a grid-like structure in front of the hanging pieces. The wires will need to be tweaked and straightened before I will be happy with the result. This may take more time than anticipated.

I found this workshop extremely helpful to help extract from what I have already done, what I need to develop before the Christmas break. During a tutor-led group discussion, each student helped identify the concept in each other’s work to make for a more clear, concise and articulated working statement. Suggestions for blog improvements and overall design of the student’s page to help with meeting assessment criteria was also discussed.

From this workshop, I was much clearer on how to use artists reference in my online portfolio. I have now updated my ‘artist research’ posts and made sure to comment on how the work I have seen is relative, or could be relative to my own work. I felt this was an area that was lacking in my Tumblr account. I joined this work shop in the nick of time and I am very grateful for it. I was relatively happy with how I was posting, but always knew it could be better.

Below, is a quick sketch from the workshop to help guide my work development over the next few days.

flattening the structures; Driving the project forward

I eventually decided that I could use the sheets as separate panels that join to make a single piece. Using a cardboard box as the supporting structure I PVA glued the individual sheets on. I tried to seamlessly merge the sheets as if they were one but I had too much of a glue layer that created extra creases. I plan to:

1) Hang the flattened structures with fishing wire from the top of the cardboard, and

2) Use wire to create a mesh grid ‘barrier’ to place in front.

ARTIST INSPIRED

Deciding to flatten the plaster bandaged structures was something inspired by Cornelia Parker’s work where she has flattened 3D objects such as wind instruments and silverware into 2D. I decided to use the weight of a car to compress the structures. I was interested on how they would transform during this process, having an almighty urge to destabilize them anyways. I enjoyed doing this and from it I was able to continue using them in the project as you see above. 

ARTIST RESEARCH: SUSANNA CASTLEDEN