Floor Plans

This images captures the essence of what I hope to acheive with both object and space. I think it shows a climactic point in my current practice and presents ideas for change and development.
I am interested in pushing the relationships between the objects which I will install in the final exhibition and how these can relate or will perhaps achieve new relationships in architecture's future development.
The limited colour palette allows the objects to still be examined as objects, not as painterly compositions and the use of colour on only 3 then disassociates the nearby structure.
However, I see the structures as having clearly designated relationships that rely too much on each other, rather than push the interest in how the forms can be altered and manipulated over time.

Questioning the function of form and flatness.
Plaster layered on polystyrene.
Flat vs free standing
Stacked vs straight edged

Set construction no. 1

Assembled from polystyrene and plaster the image shows the beginning stages of astop-motion construction to animate the sculpture. At the centre of my approach lies an interest in evolving landscapes through individual journeys. By using the sculptures to create and disassemble I will explore this directly for the viewer.

The video will be displayed at the Dukes in Lancaster city centre with the sculptures themselves installed in derelict shops nearby, evoking a trace of the past but hinting at present architectural developments.

I created these wall pieces to question the definitions between architecure and environment further but also to raise questions over the importance of colour. In the previous sculptures I used a pastel green and red which I felt were effective; they referenced lines taken from maps, and the stronger the red the more closely it could be linked with bricks and building materials.
However, I felt there was something missing from the compositions at this stage. To make the historical Baroqque references more explicit I employed gold as an addition to the structures.
This worked on top of the polystyrene but not the plaster and particularly well against the green. It was always my intention to use the colour as an addition to the others but not to take precedence over and this Is something I will be continuing to engage with.

This is a large scale Baroque stone piece carved out of polystyrene and covered with plaster. I wanted to alter its relationship between architectural environment it is most freely associated with. This piece works purely as an experiment, but the placement is too random and a little obvious.

On reflection, the elements I found most exciting in 'the kitchen table' were the large, vertical table legs. I was pleased by their appearance protruding through the horizontal polystyrene, leading me to think about the possibility for this to work on a larger scale.

The detail that can be observed within the two forms is taken from interior architectural details such as wooden banisters and alcoving. I thought this would offer interesting perspectives on the industrial materials being used and the softer forms asscoiated within everyday environments.

The second formal structure, pictured above is aimed at developing my sculptural ideas more architecturally. The first structure hints at this through the combinations of horizontal and vertical elements but lacks communication with any recognisable forms. I began working with the polystyrene cutter more intuitively, working from photographs of highly detailed Baroque architecture in an attempt to provoke a thoughtful understanding regarding the architeture's heritage.

The polystyrene wire cutter allowed this to happen quickly and effectively, with the amount of detail dependent on my developing skills. This allowed me to think more ambitiously about producing highly detailed structures on a larger scale.

Currently, I am interested in pursuing architectural forms from different sites. This has developed from initial site visits, to responses gained from archival research. The combination of recognisable forms and detailing from historical sites, the layering of plaster on top of the polystyrene and Baroque traces aims to maintain and intrinsic interest in the continuing changes within internal and external sites. I still view this as a crucial part of my current sculptural practice and find I am constanltly striving for ways to make this more apparent.

For the exhibition which I am currently working towards creating a short film which explores the inevitable transformations that historical and urban landscapes undergo through time. Using stop-motion to film the sculptures, I will be showing the film at the Dukes in Lancaster to create a conceptual approach to an indefinite location.

The sculptures themselves will be installed in a derelict shop space which the viewer will be invited to visit after seeing the video. I believe this will invite conversation regarding how we interact with space and the understandings we impose ion structures through their timely alterations.

The above images stemmed from a desire to create something that cemented the ideas and experiments from the last 3 months work. I was interested in the relationships that could be drawn out through the different thicknesses of polystyrene and how the heavy application of plaster could contribute to this.

I found the horizontal base and vertical legs which I initially created an interesting angle and wanted to take this further. So to push this further architecurally I created taller structures to represent table legs which protruted from the thin, paper-like polystyrene. At this point, I found myself questioning the colour and texture of the whole object and treating the various parts as separate elements. I did this by plastering some of the structure to test the effects. This made progress slow and decision making too controlled.

The idea was to create a complete structure, and to fulfill this intention I decided to plaster the whole table. This process was difficult with the quick drying time of the plaster and the weight which it gradually adds. But I found that persevering with both of these things made the piece more succesful and aesthetically interesting.

The Kitchen table 10/06

I am working on creating a table that brings together the forms, techniques and surface experiments that I have created in the last 6 months. I want this to be the next stage in my practice and the object to be on a larger scale. I am using 3 different types of polystyrene and using the table arrangement as a very lose description for the object. Above shows an image of the first stage, where I have treated the paper like polystryrene with plaster and then trapped it in the thicker. I really like this effect.

I have created two of these to exist as table legs to form the base. I used a thick base to shape holes in and secure the legs. This has a really interesting effect of creating a lot more depth, questioning the horizontal orgin and exploring the tactile qualities of the different thicknesses.

The larger shapes protruding from the base represent interior architectural details, such as staircases and banister rails. At present this is something I wish to explore further within the sculptures. The detail cut into the polystyrene is acheivable through using the electric cutting tool and allows for subtle details. I arranged the two vertical banisters into the thick base in the same way as the smaller pieces but on a slant to continue with the irregular stucture and manmande aesthetic.

I think this idea could be explored by using the electric cutter on the straight edges within the piece to push the ambiguous shapes and lines in order for the piece to work as a whole.

I've been finding working on the table over the past week quite difficult and I think i've become too precious about the shapes and visual experiments. I need to work much faster and be prepared to take risks in order to push the idea and work with unexpected outcomes. This is something I am hoping to achieve by applying plaster to the entire structure; this is easy to imagine but difficult to progress with unless the results are actually present.

I am currently concerned with the thoughts and sculptures of Tony Cragg, researching his working methods to see how this can be transferred to my own. This artist often sees preliminary work and experiments as 'gestures' rather than searching to create a finished product. I find this idea incredibly useful and am seeking to apply this to my own thoughts and practice.

In This Issue:

Whittington Castle circa.2009

My recent visit to Oswestry to make drawings from Whittington Castle proved a huge success and altered my methodology enormously.

Working from the historical site meant that I could then return to the studio and immediately begin working with the sculptural forms from the drawings. I also made a video of my journey around the site so that I could then refer back to this during the making process.

Since visiting the castle I have become much more in tune with my interest in the perceptions that come from personal experiences, compared to those that are told through others and literature.

The shapes that I am currently working with are beginning to reflect this; I am choosing to cut the polystyrene to form irregular shapes that reference architecture and layering different thicknesses to produce new forms.

Within this still exists reference in minor details to the architecture of the site or a particular history within it. At the moment I am hoping to maintain this through each composition. I think material manipulation and the contribution of colour can achieve this in a subtle manner. However, I want to keep an intuitive process and not rely on preconceptions and narrative restraints.

Current Influences: Anish Kapoor, Barry Flanagan, Petros Chrisostomou

New Work:

Thanks for visiting my blog. I will be using this space to discuss and update the processes within my current practices, the development of public art projects as well as my daily thoughts and inspirations.

Having recently returned from a public art internship in New Zealand I am now attempting to pursue my sculptural interests to make work specifically for and based on an external location. Currently, this is sought through the medium of plaster...my good old friend. I have been experimenting with different thicknesses and discovered this can exist in the same density as some papers. This was really interesting when applied to the thicker polystyrene, particularly on the edges. The thin sheet added to the minimal qualities of the large sheet, but enabled it to retain more detail and fragility than the single large piece.

Initially the shapes were taken from research into sites picked ambiguously from the found maps. These were then intensely researched to build a mental picture without actually having visited the site. I found this to be a very difficult way of producing physical work; I was equipped with a metaphysical experience but with nothing to show as a product.

I quickly composed a list of sites taken from the found map which I could travel to. I visited Whittington Castle in Oswestry, Shropshire. The site was very small for what I anticipated from research beforehand, and the narratives built up from this made the reality even more exciting!

I walked around the site taking photos and making notes about what I saw, including minor details such as the smell of the site, other peoples conversations about what they saw, the colour of the new bricks replacing the old elements which had worn away, the height of the remaining wall.

I then found a spot away from the site where I sat and drew from memory, disregarding any focus on detail and accuracy. I wanted a direct translation of the site onto paper through my own experience.

Drawing for sculpture: The drawings will be used as the content for the sculptures from this point. I intend to use the shapes on the pages as a translation for the site which I experienced and to create a current interpretation of a certain history through a sculptural narrative.