HEIDI BEESLEY @heidibeesleytextiles-blog - Tumblr Blog

TERM TWO MODULE HAND IN

I feel a lot more confident this term than I did last term and I'm not sure whether that's because I have more to hand in or that I understand more about what it is I want to do. The image above shows a section of the hand in that was placed up against the wall. I wanted to show the concept by placing the different samples together in a way that would express the combination of the contrasts and the woven structures. I played around with layering and twisting, I like the fact that it looks different from all different angles.

RUG SAMPLE MAKING

I half planned the samples for rug tufting and half didn’t. The idea was to create samples that could then be further developed, adding yarns, hard materials, creating movement and more. Now I have experimented with this process, I do want to continue using it within my final major project, I think it is a very relevant process to the concept of weaving and trying to weave in a number of different ways. With more planning and preparation for the samples I feel I can create something very unique to work a long side the harder materials I have been using. Why can't I mix the softness of the yarns with the hardness of jesmonite?

RUG TUFTING PRACTICE

I finally got a chance to go on the rug tufting machine after a little persuasion and a free how in the technicians schedule. The images above show the canvas frame I was able to practice on. I spent a couple of hours one afternoon after my induction practicing how to use the rug tufting gun, changing the colours, direction ps and possible pattern outcomes. I knew I would only have one day t use it for samples so I knew that these samples would be first test experiments and likely to be unfinished but that's okay as I plan to work back into them at the start of the final major project. It was actually easier than I thought it was going to be just because of the short experience I had using it in first year where I just was not good at it at all.

PUTTING SAMPLES TOGETHER

Before I took the sample into uni I started to play around with how I could present these at home, I think I need to continue with the layering aspect to show case how different the materials can work together.

FOAM AND MDF

JESMONITE, MDF & YARN

JESMONITE AC100

I am so glad I decided to buy this material as I have discovered more about what my practice is about.I used the Jesmonite ac100 with the same mixture each time, this mixture was a combination of a liquid and powder form work with a 1-3 formula.

The samples above show three different ways I have experimented with jesmonite and acrylic paint. For the two rounder samples I used a plastic jager bomb cup. The other two samples were created in different plastic pots and bubble wrap.

I particularly like the smoother round samples more than the textured bubble wrap ones, as development I will experiment with different textures that could be imprinted into the jesmonite, I will continue to experiment with material combinations and processes.

PINTEREST BOARDS

I have created a number of pinterest boards to develop inspiration for my practice, these are: mark making, weaving and more, sculpture and materials and colour. The two key ways I research are secondary and practice led, looking at other artists with similar interests provide influences I may not have discovered otherwise, like the jesmonite materials, I found an artist working with this materials and wanted to try it myself.

An easy way to keep most of the research together to look back on is through pinterest, together with this blog where I have analysed some key research.

Please follow the link below:

https://uk.pinterest.com/heiidiibees/

Writing an artist statement

Personally I find it a huge struggle to write an artist statement, I find it even harder to refine myself as a designer, maker, artist etc. However, saying that I have given it a good go, learning from experience I really should sum up what it is I do or have been doing, when asked from others what it is I do I struggle to answer.

Concrete and Yarn

Rug Tufting Process

Rug tufting crossed my mind a few weeks ago when I thought of the idea of layering different processes together, I thought it would be very interesting to see how I could put all the different materials and processes I have been experimenting with together. After trying to set up a time to rug tuft I was told I would not be able to as Dave the technician is very busy at the moment with the final years he would not have time to give me another induction as the previous one I had was almost 4 years ago now.

However, Dave called letting me know he had a spare hour if I was still interested, I jumped at the chance and ran over to the technology building. Dave went through all there was to know about how to use the rug tufting, most of it I knew already which was good because it didn’t take long for me to get back into it.

I was given a canvas to practice on for the rest of the afternoon which was unexpected. Picking a bunch of colours I tufted in a few different ways, starting with simple direction changes, repeating the tufting action horizontally, vertically and in curves. I then started to play around with blending, how different colours work together, this was actually much more difficult than I thought it would be, not because of the blending but because the colours have to be changed so many times, I think with practice it will become easier to know when to change them.

New material

I discovered quite a few artists and students working with the material Jesmonite, after a bit of research I discovered that Jesmonite is a mix between resin and plaster and is used as a sculpturing, molding, casting, wall panels and more. As this practice if focusing on the combination of materials, I thought it only right to test it out myself. What is fascinating about this material is that it accepts many other components, for example you are able to mix a number of other powders, pigments, glass, paints and more.

It arrived yesterday in the post so I will be experimenting over the next couple of days. The aim is to see how another hard material behaves with other hard and soft materials. At the minute i’m quite excited, apprehensive and a bit worried that the material won’t work exactly how I imagine it to but it will be interesting to try something new.

A few plans:

Combine Jesmonite and concrete together

Dip macrame sample in Jesmonite

Dip yarns in thin layer of Jesmonite

Combine colour

#jesmonite #plans #material #surfaces #experiments

CONCRETE STUDIES

I began to play around with how two very different materials can be combined, I simply added the cut out plywood shapes that had been taken from one of the samples and placed them on top of the third concrete whilst it was drying.

The second I combined concrete and a small section of rubber grip, this one is different because I removed the rubber grip once it it had dried to reveal the pattern underneath.

3D WEAVING DEVELOPMENT

MACRAME WEAVING

I have been experimenting with the knotting technique of macrame, I decided to play around with this technique in the previous concepts module but didn’t get around to it.

Thoughts on presentation

I have started to think about the key components to the practice I would like to have on show in the hand in. Last hand in I left it until last minute to sort out exactly what I was handing in, this time I aim to have a plan a week before so I know exactly what I am doing, hopefully reducing the stress I got myself in last time.

I aim to have the key aspects of the concept on show with supporting documents such as: sketchbooks, technical files, photography and the blog I have been working on.

At the minute the key samples will be:

Large layered macrame

Hard material studies samples (Concrete, MDF, Jesmonite)

Large and smaller MDF samples combined with weave

Traditional woven samples

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