Thursday, 20 October 2011
Wood Work
So yesterday I went and spoke to Matt in wood work to find out about booking into a laser cutting induction, as it turns out, all the laser cutting inductions are fully booked until Christmas! He did say that if I had something small to cut out then he doesn't mind doing it if I have the correct illustrator file and know what material I want. He said that sometimes people don't turn up when they have booked in for an induction so I could turn up on a Monday morning at 10.30 to see if there is any chance of getting into the induction. I will do that the first Monday back after reading week! The induction is at 10.30- 12.00. The laser cutter is having walls built around it over reading week so there won't be access to the wood work studio. I asked about what is available to do in wood work and I have arranged to go and try wood carving on Friday morning. He told me about other things to do that mostly involve cutting and joining wood, I can try this too and see what I can make. I was thinking of maybe finding some wood to carve into such as a log or large piece of a tree.
To do
I have a lot to try and explore over reading week. The crit helped me it made me excited to go and explore and I just need to go and talk to people and get on with it! I am going to finish the mugs I have made that are currently in the kiln and then no more! I want to try transferirng images onto them using lasertran. I need to go speak to people in the workshops surrounding ceramics such as wood work and metal work, find out more about what is available and arrange a day to spend in each or something. I need to research further into glazes/oxides and find out more about possible outcomes and broaden my knowledge of the materials. Over reading week I am going to spend a day preparing an image on illustrator to create a file for the laser cutter. I have never used illustrator before and this prospect scares me slightly.
Wednesday, 19 October 2011
What to do in reading week?
As there is an elective in the ceramics studio from Monday-Thursday, I won't have access to the workshop for most of the week apart from Friday. Andy has said it will be okay for me to come in and pick up my work that will be in the kiln over the weekend and also I am hoping that there is space I will be able to do some glazing if my work is put into the kiln over reading week. Andy has said the that both studios are very busy on reading week so the chances are I won't be able to work really in them. So, what is my action plan for reading week?
- Go into college to pick up work, glaze if it is ready, if I can work in there at all, then do!
- Laser cutter, investigate.
- Pyrography pen, research, investigate, explore.
- Drawings/sketches/ideas/designs to transfer onto mugs.
- Mug design ideas.
- Paper making, bind some papers together, make envelopes!
- Print out illustrations Lasertran to transfer onto porcelain mugs.
Poverty Aid
I saw some really cool old pottery in Poverty Aid the other day, there is so much amazing old stuff there! I really like the shape and simple pattern on these mugs, there are an off white colour which I really like and brings an older aesthetic to them. A good tea cup set!
Woodcarving, must take real skill and patience!
I really like the idea of attaching a handle to the pot. I like the bold blue colour of this pot too. I have not yet made anything that has a lid, I would love to make a tea pot or storage pot like this! I have spoken to Andy about it and he has explained that there are difficulties when it comes to the lid as it is quite intricate, possible to make with clay though! I hope the skills I am gaining through this project will build up to making something more complex like this.
Some ornant sculptures in the clay. I thought this was interesting design, although not really what I am interested in exploring. I want to create more usable ceramics.
Woodcarving, must take real skill and patience!
I really like the idea of attaching a handle to the pot. I like the bold blue colour of this pot too. I have not yet made anything that has a lid, I would love to make a tea pot or storage pot like this! I have spoken to Andy about it and he has explained that there are difficulties when it comes to the lid as it is quite intricate, possible to make with clay though! I hope the skills I am gaining through this project will build up to making something more complex like this.
Some ornant sculptures in the clay. I thought this was interesting design, although not really what I am interested in exploring. I want to create more usable ceramics.
My first complete mugs!
I am so pleased! My first ever mugs that I have made complete! Some of the colours haven't come out how I expected, but overall the results are really good. I feel I can apply what I can see from the results of the glazes and oxides I have used to the other mugs I have made. It has given me an idea of the variables and shows the aesthetic off the colours and glazes. There are still many variables in the results but I do find the unpredictablility exciting, it is interesting to see what happens even if its not always what you want!
Tuesday, 18 October 2011
Glass Work
After setting up working with glass yesterday, Andy was going to show me after lunch but it turned out to be very busy in ceramics and I didn't get the chance. I occupied my time making more mugs using porcelain and clay, keeping busy. Today I went back to work with glass and it wasn't too busy so Andy could demonstrate and help me out with what to do.
First, he showed me how to cut glass, wearing gloves and goggles! Here is my first attempt at cutting, slightly wonky and un neat, but my first go at it!
Andy showed me a few examples of materials and leaves and things fused inbetween two pieces of glass, I really like the way this looks. You can see all of the detail and texture in the leaves.
This is really cool! It is glass frits and copper wire fused inbetween two pieces of glass. It gets fired once and then a mould is made out of plaster for the second firing so it slumps to create the bowl shape. I would really like to try this!
This type of glass is called bullseye glass and is used to make jewellery among other things. Andy informs me that it is quite expensive! I would really like to have a play with it though, the aesthetic and look of the glass is of a different quality to the glass frits I am working with today.
A box of glass frits.
Confetti- another type of glass to decorate with, very sharp though, use gloves and pick up with tweezers! A problem with this material that Andy told me about is that because it is curved and then put inbetween the two pieces of glass to be fused it can often crack when fused.
Stringers- These can be broken or bent using a small tea light candle to make shapes and images.
I much prefer the way the image looks from the other side through the glass.
I add some white and more colour to the sky. I am pleased with the image on this side but not so much on the other side, it is messy and the clours have blended together. But maybe they will add another image to the glass once fused together, who knows! I am excited to see.
Then, Andy suggested it would be possible for us to make a mould, which I got terribly excited about!
Here is the mould ready to ut the plaster into. To make a mould for glass work the plaster has to be mixed with flint.
Mixing mixing.
The plaster and flint takes about an hour to dry. However the mould needs to completely dry out for a couple of days as it will be being heated to such a high temperature in the firing.
After seeing the earlier examples I really wanted to try fusing some leaves inbetween the glass. The textures and colours of the leaves at the moment are really beautiful and I want to see if I can preserve it! In this one I have added a bit of glass frits to add a bit of colour too. An experiment that I hope goes right!
Some of my failed glass cutting attempts, pretty disastrous!
My glass pieces ready to be fused!
I had an brilliant day today, I really enjoyed learning about glass and more processes and materials that are available for me to learn. Even though I has some struggles I hope to work with glass some more, improve and get the hang of things such as glass cutting. I want to play around and explore more!
Key points of the day;
First, he showed me how to cut glass, wearing gloves and goggles! Here is my first attempt at cutting, slightly wonky and un neat, but my first go at it!
Andy showed me a few examples of materials and leaves and things fused inbetween two pieces of glass, I really like the way this looks. You can see all of the detail and texture in the leaves.
This is really cool! It is glass frits and copper wire fused inbetween two pieces of glass. It gets fired once and then a mould is made out of plaster for the second firing so it slumps to create the bowl shape. I would really like to try this!
This type of glass is called bullseye glass and is used to make jewellery among other things. Andy informs me that it is quite expensive! I would really like to have a play with it though, the aesthetic and look of the glass is of a different quality to the glass frits I am working with today.
A box of glass frits.
Confetti- another type of glass to decorate with, very sharp though, use gloves and pick up with tweezers! A problem with this material that Andy told me about is that because it is curved and then put inbetween the two pieces of glass to be fused it can often crack when fused.
Stringers- These can be broken or bent using a small tea light candle to make shapes and images.
Making a mountain!
Preparing the glass-
To prepare the pieces of glass to create images onto first I had to file down the edges once I has cut the glass to size. My glass cutting skills are not the best I must admit, but it is my first attempt! To file down the edges of to glass I ran cold water over the edge and use a file sponge to smooth the edges. Then dry with a piece of newspaper!
I used glass frits to create the image of a mountain. Using PVA glue mixed with water to stick the frits to, I created the image to go onto the glass. I found it quite difficult to create imagery using the frits as it is a powder all of the colours blend together and not every bit I wanted to stuck to the glass. I began to look how I wanted it to on one side but on the other it looked very messy and nothing like a mountain!
How it looks without the second piece of glass on top. This side is the messier side.
I much prefer the way the image looks from the other side through the glass.
I add some white and more colour to the sky. I am pleased with the image on this side but not so much on the other side, it is messy and the clours have blended together. But maybe they will add another image to the glass once fused together, who knows! I am excited to see.
Then, Andy suggested it would be possible for us to make a mould, which I got terribly excited about!
Here is the mould ready to ut the plaster into. To make a mould for glass work the plaster has to be mixed with flint.
Mixing mixing.
The plaster and flint takes about an hour to dry. However the mould needs to completely dry out for a couple of days as it will be being heated to such a high temperature in the firing.
After seeing the earlier examples I really wanted to try fusing some leaves inbetween the glass. The textures and colours of the leaves at the moment are really beautiful and I want to see if I can preserve it! In this one I have added a bit of glass frits to add a bit of colour too. An experiment that I hope goes right!
Some of my failed glass cutting attempts, pretty disastrous!
My glass pieces ready to be fused!
I had an brilliant day today, I really enjoyed learning about glass and more processes and materials that are available for me to learn. Even though I has some struggles I hope to work with glass some more, improve and get the hang of things such as glass cutting. I want to play around and explore more!
Key points of the day;
- Cutting glass is difficult to get the hang of!
- It is quite difficult to create images using glass frits, I wonder what other ways I can explore to image make onto glass.
- Leaves and materials can be fused into glass!
- I can make a bowl using a plaster and flint mould, I am very excited about this.
- Bullseye glass is used alot to make jewellery, it is expensice but I would like to play around with it as it creates a different aethetic.
PPD2 Tutorial
The PPD2 tutorial today really did help and make me feel excited about the areas I am exploring. As I am interested in so many areas as well as teaching, I want to start looking at how the two cross over. My interests lay in making, crafts, ceramics, illustration and photography, I want to see how they cross over and combine with teaching. At this very moment I am not sure I will ever have just one specialism, if I do discover that I have a specialist area I think I will always be interested in other things too.
I began to gain experience with Pyramid Of Arts working with people with high risk disibilities in a movement group at the end of last year. This year I am starting the Visual Arts high risk disability group, I feel I have gained such an insight and broadened my understanding even in the short time I volunteered before summer last year. I am looking forward to starting the group on 31st October.
Another thing I am going to do as part of discovering how art practice and teaching cross over is to volunteer in one of the art workshops in the college, in ceramics, pottery or arts and crafts, working with a range of people with different abilities and skills.
I am also in the process of becoming a mentor in a Secondary school through the University of Leeds. I have has child protection training and mentoring training and I'm currently waiting to hear about my placement. I will be a 1.1 mentor going into the school once every two weeks or once a week. It is up to me to arrange with the school about how many pupils I mentor and how often and when I come in.
I am in the process of applying for the Camp America scheme as well for next summer. I am interested in working with people of all ages from all different backgrounds and abilities. I am hoping the experience I am gaining this year will help me get onto the Camp America programme. I think it would be an invaluable experience and would broaden my knowledge about people, ways to teach and ways people learn. It would be so different in another country and I feel it is a step worth taking to broaden my outlook about teaching and practice.
I am also going to carry on making my own crafts, ceramics, illustration, photography and combining them to present ideas for work at the village fete. I need to think about other ways to get my work out there and sell? If I find any competition breifs that I feel are relevant for me I'm going to go for it and not be scared!
Finally, continually looking at everything around me; festivals, galleries, events, artists, journals, websites, onlines shops, books, what is happening in my areas of interest? I need to keep myself up to date and informed, talk to people and get in touch with people who are practitioners and teachers; think about different types of teachers and approaches to teaching and learning environments. What are the work placement oppurtunities?
I began to gain experience with Pyramid Of Arts working with people with high risk disibilities in a movement group at the end of last year. This year I am starting the Visual Arts high risk disability group, I feel I have gained such an insight and broadened my understanding even in the short time I volunteered before summer last year. I am looking forward to starting the group on 31st October.
Another thing I am going to do as part of discovering how art practice and teaching cross over is to volunteer in one of the art workshops in the college, in ceramics, pottery or arts and crafts, working with a range of people with different abilities and skills.
I am also in the process of becoming a mentor in a Secondary school through the University of Leeds. I have has child protection training and mentoring training and I'm currently waiting to hear about my placement. I will be a 1.1 mentor going into the school once every two weeks or once a week. It is up to me to arrange with the school about how many pupils I mentor and how often and when I come in.
I am in the process of applying for the Camp America scheme as well for next summer. I am interested in working with people of all ages from all different backgrounds and abilities. I am hoping the experience I am gaining this year will help me get onto the Camp America programme. I think it would be an invaluable experience and would broaden my knowledge about people, ways to teach and ways people learn. It would be so different in another country and I feel it is a step worth taking to broaden my outlook about teaching and practice.
I am also going to carry on making my own crafts, ceramics, illustration, photography and combining them to present ideas for work at the village fete. I need to think about other ways to get my work out there and sell? If I find any competition breifs that I feel are relevant for me I'm going to go for it and not be scared!
Finally, continually looking at everything around me; festivals, galleries, events, artists, journals, websites, onlines shops, books, what is happening in my areas of interest? I need to keep myself up to date and informed, talk to people and get in touch with people who are practitioners and teachers; think about different types of teachers and approaches to teaching and learning environments. What are the work placement oppurtunities?
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