The cutting of my text strips is still continuing, although I now think I have enough to fill the room which I will be using in the exhibition.

Exhibition Poster Idea

After a little inspiration and playing around with different layouts and fonts; to the left is the developed exhibition poster which is almost complete. Although the image in the background looks great, we are going to experiment with other images of the groups individual works to see which works best as a whole; the font and layout will remain the same.

We also had the idea of creating a variation of posters with a different image of all of our works in each one the background; keeping the information and text the same so that it's understood to the public that it is the same show.

Thursday 3rd March

I cant say I wasn't disappointed to find only three members of our group had turned up at the meeting today, alongside no other design Ideas for the advertisement leaflets; as I just want to get everything set up and sorted. It's beginning to become clear that many of the group members are not particularly bothered about the exhibition and the planning towards it been a success which is quite frustrating as I and a few others have been really looking forward to the show; which I think definitely has potential.

And so again, nothing much was discussed, although we decided on having the exhibition title as 'Self- Reflection' as a one word name, instead of 'Art & Self- Reflection', I personally think the word 'Art' in front works much better; giving more of an insight into the show being an art exhibition reflecting Self awareness, but more agreed towards Self Reflection standing alone as it was said to appear more 'arty' as a one word title...to be fair, I am happy either way as I think they both work well. We also discussed my proposal for the poster and leaflet design, and after the addition of different opinions and points of view on the matter, we agreed that there was a little too much going on and didn't particularly look artistic as it was a little too neat. Although we agreed that it should be black and white. For a little inspiration, we browsed on line at examples of exhibition advertisements and came across one in which we have decided to use as a base idea. It’s simple in design, layout and colour but seems to work perfectly...and quite professional looking.

Art & Self Reflection

Before the group meeting planned for this afternoon, I put together a design idea for the poster and leaflets to advertise the exhibition using Microsoft Publisher, ready to show the group. As I am aware a few of the other members of the group are going to design a template also and so our different Ideas can be altered to suit everyones opinions. Alongside the layout of the poster, with text and imagery, I would say that colour is a main aspect of the design as it is that which captures the attention of the viewer. I originally wanted to use bright colors combined with scuttle

shades but I found that it looked a little tacky and childlike and so I selected shades which I think catches the attention without doing that....these can easily be changed. However I also like the idea of the poster been much simpler, and so I transferred the design to black and white which I found works really well, looking a little more professional. I am not to sure which one I prefer, but I’m sure the group discussion and the addition of their mixed opinions will help us decide upon something.

Routes Into Teaching

The presentation given to us today on the routes into teaching most definitely gave me a better insight and understanding of the various routes into a teaching profession. I wasn’t actually aware of the whole process of beginning and applying for one of the many different courses which are available before the start of a career; and although I am glad that I am now more familiar after the information given, I would have to say the thought of the development is quite daunting. I personally am aiming towards teaching students from secondary school and higher education, preferably college level. Although I love been around children and teaching in that environment, I much prefer the thought of teaching older students that also want a career in art; who I can form a relationship with, helping and advising them individually to achieve what they aim for in life.

There are many courses for different sectors of teaching jobs, which is a little confusing. As I am aware I would apply for the ‘PGCE’ Programme, although I would research into this further before doing so. After the brief explanation, I have come to realise that there is a lot to endure before becoming a qualified teacher; as stated, alongside many other factors, the most important aspect of the application process is relevant work experience. I have worked in many different environments in the past, mostly part time whilst studying and also a little experience in volunteer work; although none of these had a teaching or artistic role. On knowing this I am definitely going to get myself started on some form of teaching experience; and with the useful links and contacts given to us by the programme leader, hopefully the route will be much easier and faster enabling me to start a position ready for the summer.

James Iveson

I found this morning’s lecture by the artist James Iveson really interesting. He was enjoyable to listen to as he explained his work and the transition from being a student to a professional artist. He spoke a lot about the importance of a studio space and how it was vital for him to have a studio space in order to develop his practice. This made me think a lot more about how I will continue my practice after graduating and whether or not a space would be important to the development of my own work; at this point in my studies, I am not to sure. Although the idea has become much clearer after James explained a little into the process and from the information given to us; I definitely intend to look into this further.

He also mentioned that he tries to gain relationships with as many different people in the art environment as he can; from art suppliers to other artists. This is a good point for so many reasons which I also agree with and know I should do more of to begin the process of getting my name and work out there in the competitive field, although I believe this blog and my upcoming exhibition is a good starting point.

‘Read Boats’ was a painting he referred back to a number of times, which he arrived at by the traditional observation of everyday objects, such as underpants and other garments. He said that he thought it was quite strange introducing a pair of pants into his art but liked the fact that it was an object that couldn’t be changed...it is what it is, whilst still giving the qualities that he wanted to extract from a portrait. He described the colour usage of these series of paintings as ‘provocative’, explaining that his limited use of colour was because he thought using a palette with a range of paints would give him too much freedom to change the colours in the object itself.

It was interesting to hear that a selection of his smaller works were produced from large observational  paintings that he decided didn't work as a whole He said that he selected sections of the painting he liked the most, cutting the piece into smaller individual paintings and reframing, focusing more on the detail; adding that he wanted his paintings to have the same qualities of the garment itself.

He ended the lecture on quite an amusing note, stating that just because you surround yourself with art materials and work in a studio doesn’t particularly make you a good artist. I agree but then again, if you’re passionate about art, whether as a practice or as a hobby, if you love what you do, then maybe that’s enough to make you a good artist?

The Tate again

On my second recent visit to The Tate, I focused mainly on the collection of works shown in the gallery other than the main show of 'Nam June Paik'. I have also seen the majority of these pieces exhibited a number of times, although I spent much more time reflecting on a collection of the works and how they related to my own.

Antony Gormley's 'Bed, 1980-81', I was drawn to on entering the room. I found this piece fascinating, not only by its appearence but from reading the information explaining the work.
Gormley describes sculpture as 'a visual means to refer to things which cannot be seen'. He frequently employs casts of his own body as a vehicle for investigating mans physical and spiritual relationship to the world around him. In 'Bed' he uses the space left by his consumption of his body mass in slices of bread to represent 'the infinity of space within the body'. The work is also a metaphor for the Catholic ritual of consuming the body and spirit of Christ, symbolised by bread, through the taking of the sacriment.

I related this piece to my own, simply because he is using and exploring the body's physical form to create a relationship; using photography and my own words, my intentions are similar, but with a completely different outcome. 

Gillian Wearing 'Sign's, 1992-93', suprised me instantly as on previously witnessing these works on line I originally thought the prints of this series would be much smaller than shown. The quality of these images were also much clearer than I assumed (seen as they were taken in the 1990's), wether these have been edited I don't know but they deffinately worked well as a whole. 
Wearing's series of 'Signs' shows the range of responses from passers-by she stopped at random in the street and asked to scribble down their thoughts. With there permission she then photographed them holding their statement. As indicated by the title, Wearing emphasises that this collaberation with the public departs from the usual technique of photo journalism with 'the subjects' clear collusion and engineering of their own representation'. In documenting, framing and then exhibiting these responses, Wearing draws attention to the disparity between public image and private person. 

Very different to Antony's piece, I related 'Signs' to my own because of her use of incorporating the public into the work. Doing this by appraching people at random, I wanted the public to incorporate themselfs into my piece; unconsiously getting an insight into my life.