I have always been inspired by Selfridges windows. I always wonder who gets to design these. I remember seeing Kusama's polka dot environment transforming the window space, I recently thought of how my work as it is, could feed into window displays and commercial spaces. My practice is focusing largely on the creation of installations, and I am wondering how other's make a career out of this. Installations are an experience, meaning in order for it to make money you need to be followed by a large audience. I am interested in applying what I have learnt from these installations into creating functional space for interior design, however, I am still interested in how my work could make money now. I think it's amazing to see how Kusama's environments have been used in a functional setting in collaboration with Louis Vuitton. This collaboration celebrates both the artist and the brand. It is interesting to see how collaboration can form something which is more profitable. I learnt this during the Ampersand collaboration, when Alice's poetry gave me the content to shape and communicate, allowing me to fully engage in what I was making, it gave me a direction. I am really interested in collaborating when I leave university, with brands, architects, set designers etc. In order to make spaces which reflect my raw practice, without 'function' taking away from the innovation of design.
0 Comments
The Allegory of the Cave was written by Plato (a famous Greek Philosopher) to attempt to understand and explain the nature of reality. The cave in the story represents our state of mind, the escaping prisoner illustrates the true understanding of reality.
The story is below... 'imagine a cave, in which prisoners are kept. These prisoners have been in the cave since their childhood, and each of them is held there in a peculiar manner. They are all chained so that their legs and necks are immobile, forced to look at a wall in front of them. Behind the prisoners is a fire and between the fire and the prisoners is a raised walkway, on which people can walk. These people are puppeteers, and they are carrying objects, in the shape of human and animal figures, as well as everyday items. The prisoners could only see these flickering images on the wall, since they could not move their heads; and so, naturally enough, they presumed the images to be real, rather than just shadowy representations of what is actually real...hat if one of the prisoners were to be freed and made to turn and look at the fire? The bright light would hurt his eyes, as accustomed as he was to the shadows, and even in turning back to the wall and its flickering images (which would only be natural), the prisoner couldn't help but notice that they weren't real at all, but only shadows of the real items on the walkway behind him. If the prisoner was then taken from the cave and brought into the open, the disorientation would be even more severe; the light of the sun would be much more brilliant than the fire. But, as his eyes adjusted, the newly freed prisoner would be able to see beyond only shadows; he would see dimensions and reflections in the water (even of himself). After learning of the reality of the world, the prisoner now sees how 'pitiable' his former colleagues in the cave really are. If he returned to the cave and rejoined them, he would take no pleasure in their accolades or praise for knowledge of the shadow-figures. For their own part, the prisoners would see him as deranged, not really knowing what reality is and would say of him that he left the cave and returned with corrupted eyes.' In Plato’s theory, the cave represents people who believe that knowledge comes from what we see and hear in the world – empirical evidence. The cave shows that believers of empirical knowledge are trapped in a ‘cave’ of misunderstanding. The Shadows represent the perceptions of those who believe empirical evidence ensures knowledge. If you believe that what you see should be taken as truth, then you are merely seeing a shadow of the truth. I am interested in challenging an audiences perception of realty through my work. Taking out the context from forms, seeing them as they are, without a label. I have tried to do this throughout my film and created landscape. The film looks at mundane settings and objects, taking them out of there place in a home, and seeing them in an exhibition space. Does this make us see these visuals differently? When we experience everyday life do we pay attention to our surroundings, how do we make sense of what's around us? We label forms and create spaces and objects for specific functions, but do we really understand everything for what it is? I like the idea of seeing the world as an art form, appreciating the beauty in our 'normal' surroundings. This is what I am trying to make the audience see. 'Pope, through the use of installation and performance addresses the issues of connectivity and identity that inform how we live our lives today. Pope, in this piece has created an installation that engages her (the performer in her work) to walk through suspended water filled balloons at head height in an attempt to burst the balloons. The paradoxical effect of the tranquil balloons against the violent explosions of water create a contrast that Pope is trying to establish, that of being ‘up against reality’, seemingly struggling against the unguided abyss of the unexpected unknown. Viewers are invited to also join in with this performance in an attempt to ‘clear the air’, thus the balloons representing the psychological and physical self.' I watched a video of this performance, I found it really disturbing and weird. I am writing about this performance and installation because I am researching how other creative practitioners illustrate the concepts of identity and reality. The relationship between these concepts is there acknowledgement of recognition and reflective thought to find clarity within yourself or within your surroundings. I like the contrast of materials she used to illustrate the issue of connectivity, the calm water is being disturbed by the force of the performer, this represents our confusion in the perception of our world and our frustration in understanding who we are. I find it interesting to incorporate people into the installation to interact and 'clear the air', actively destroying the balloons blocks the audiences perception in this space, it would be a freeing act and give the audience a symbolic memory to reflect on even after their experience. I am looking at how other artists integrate the audience into an installation to give me ideas of how I might include the audience in my created landscape. I read this article which talks about the 'Nature of Reality'. I am researching the psychology of reality and how we define it. This is reflected through my practical work which creates environments which aim to change our everyday perception, revealing a space different to that which we normally relate to.
'subjective reality, say the experience of an emotion, impulse or dream, doesn't necessarily depend on objective reality for its existence. The subjective world is as real as the objective world. Both have their own reality.' 'The truth is we live in two different worlds: the outer world of objective reality and the inner world of subjective reality.' This concept links to the concept I am communicating through my poem 'Yes, Here's a Room', the idea of comparing the identity of space to the identity of a person. The idea of inside and outside space, the threshold between these to entities is similar to the relationship between subjective and objective reality. When I compare the identity of space to a person's I am illustrating the similarities between the two, and how the space outside of a person cannot only symbolise a person's identity but also shape it. Our perception and interaction with our surroundings are reflected in our personalities and behaviour. Just as objective reality can feed into subjective reality, for example our perception of a person can trigger an inner emotional response, these to realties play on each other. A dream can be formed from a real previous experience. The is this unknown boundary between our experiences and our minds. Through my current process, I am deconstructing, then constructing poetry and space to play with the concept of the building blocks to identity and perception. The environment I have created plays with natural and projected light on various material and surfaces, creating distorted realities with reflection and scale of images. I want my audience to question the play of these elements upon each other, how do the sound and visuals take you away from reality and into my created environment? 'When we talk of space, we usually talk about an environment - a surrounding that engulfs our beings. However, when designer Ron Gilad talks about space, he implies sculptural explorations that are meant to be objects for viewing and speculating.' - Minimalismo Article “Having been without a home base for three and a half months, I think this work is my way of trying to understand the important role our homes play in our lives,” - I started researching Ron Gilad after I read about him in Minimalismo. His questioning about space and objectifying it intrigued me, as it is what I have been questioning this year. I read an editorial about him, 'PHENOMENOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES', By ZOË RYANNEVILLE BRYAN CURATOR OF DESIGN, THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO. The images above illustrate the way we objectify space through design, His simplistic sequence of an immersing 'chair' make the audience question how the birth of the chair came about, when was this functional object born and how to we recognise it to be what it is? We have categorised space to simplify it. I love the way his objects make you question and doubt the reality in the the way it analyses objects we encounter everyday. This concept and way of questioning is similar to the way I abstract imagery from mundane environments, altering the way we acknowledge and perceive the objects within a 'normal' setting.
I read an article in Aesthetica Magazine about the photographer Thomas Struth. I was interested in his investigation into Nature and Politics and Psychology. I resounding theme within my investigations looks at the connection between people and their environment. I also look at the comparison of the natural landscape to the built landscape, and how nature can be incorporated into man made designs. This article interested me because Struth makes a similar comparison between human activity and the built world. He talks about visiting Disneyland, a place which causes us to lose all touch of an ordered and stable external reality, and enter into this new world made up of architectural fantasies which fuel are imagination, stimulating human dreams, impulses and fears derived from childhood.
I feel as though this idea of entering a created environment and losing sight of normality is a concept I experiment with though out my installation and film work. I am challenging the audience's perception of reality, my work is not familiar to everyday life, but it has derived from images, forms and movement of mundanities. Does the new environment I create take the audience away from reality? Thomas Struth's current interests question how the abstract thoughts from human creativity and ingenuity manifest themselves in the physical world. I am interested in taking a turning point to my research, throwing it back to me, asking myself why am I questioning and creating the themes of reality and perception? How has the mundane world inspired me to create the work I do, and why do I want people to see it differently? Thomas Struth photographs see the comparison between networks of cables and patterns of life. This is similar to my work in Ba3a, my research into environmental psychology which led me to make comparisons between nature and the built environment. How does the built environment reflect elements of the natural environment and psychology? We create the built environment so surely everything in it is connected or inspired by nature? If so, why does living in the built environment take us away from our innate biology drawn in nature? I my dissertation I argued that the built environment which reflects nature improves psychological wellbeing, but now I am questioning if that is true! I love looking at Anne Harild's work, especially her animations of sculptural installations. I am interested in how she documents these pieces through film. I enjoy making installations because of there presence and interference in a space, I like my audience to be able to see and experience the installation physically because that is part of my growing interest of people's perception of their surroundings and how it changes their behaviour. However, I am thinking about how my work can exist online as well as physically, I need to be able to document my installations well in order to share them to the wide diverse audience the internet can provide. Anne's film's are incredible in the way the capture my intention. The clarity of image and sound in her film 'Taking Time' made me feel like I was really experiencing the presence of the perspex sculpture. Although it is not the same as physically being in the space and witnessing the movement of light in a material form, but film gives you the control of the timing and perception of the piece, maybe transforming it into a more visually stimulating piece.
I was also looking at how she exhibits the film as a projection rather than the installation. I think this looks interesting, however the space the projection is in can interfere with the audiences perception of the piece. If I were to do this I would be quite specific about the space I wanted it projected into. I am at the stage where I am documenting my installation and Anne has inspired me to be more playful about the way I film and photograph my piece. I also admire how Anne translates her 2D collage and drawings into installation. This is something I'm practicing but I don't feel I have mastered this connection. There is such a clear transition in her process and this is something I will keep working on through to my MA. Tom Dixon is an interior, product and brand design organisation for commercial spaces. 'This Design Research Studio has built up an impressive global portfolio of work that shares a strong narrative, aesthetic sensibility and demonstrates an innovative attitude.'
I am interested in the way ‘narrative’ is being used by current and emerging interior design practices. I feel as thought narrative has been somewhat lost in the built environment, especially in public spaces. I like the idea that narrative is coming back. I hope to bring narrative to interior design during my MA and my further career. Narrative adds meaning to buildings and spaces, making the environment we live in a more thoughtful and meaningful place. Tom Dixon’s designs are very obscure, the forms he creates a alien and almost otherworldly elements in some of his designs. The way he uses forms is similar to the way Verner Panton plays with form. I am interested in how interior designers install ‘pretend’ spaces for displays show rooms. I like that they recreate a space in a non functional way, taking the interior elements out of there original setting. It becomes as art form rather than functional furniture. The elements are appreciated as individual forms rather then for their use or ability to decorate a space. It allows the audience to really appreciate the design. I also think this is true for Tom Dixon’s window display in Liberty. THE CINEROLEUM
'The Cineroleum was a self-initiated project that transformed a petrol station on Clerkenwell Road into a cinema. The project was an experiment in the the potential for the wider re-use of the UK’s 4,000 empty petrol stations. The Cineroleum was an improvisation on the rich iconography and decadent interiors of the golden age picture palace. Classic elements were re-created for the roadside setting using cheap industrial, reclaimed or donated materials. Flip-up seats were made from scaffolding boards, the foyer was furnished with formica-clad school chairs and tables , and the auditorium was enclosed by a curtain, created by hand-sewing about three kilometres of seam in roofing membrane. The Cineroleum was visibly handmade, built on site by a team of over a hundred volunteers, learning and experimenting together, aided by instruction manuals written during the prototyping process. Unlike the out-of-town multiplex, The Cineroleum celebrated the social experience of filmgoing, from the popcorn machine and bar in the old station shop through to the programme of approachable classics. Separated from the busiest single-lane road in Europe by a curtain, it allowed for both collective escapism and created a public spectacle on the street for passers-by. At the end of the film the curtain rose, pushing the audience from the imaginative world of the film to the everyday theatre of the street.' I have been following Assemble since they came to talk at our University. This project particularly inspired me. I love the idea of recreating and reusing derelict spaces in order to bring the public together, creating more interactive communities. I also relate to this project in the way I am creating an installation 'Kit' which can be transported to any space, transforming the environment it's in. I like the idea of being able to take my installation to any space, using it to communicate to a wider audience. This creative activist approach is important in our society, it gives people a talking point, and allows people to communicate through visuals and be seen. I am trying to encourage people to take notice more of their mundane surroundings through my projected film. I can imagine projecting my film in public spaces, meaning the images I have taken would be out of their familiar setting, which enhances our perception of the visuals in their true form. It would be interesting to see what audience it attracts and whether people question and discuss the work shown. Cineroleum is an activist installation in a way, it directly addresses the fact that we don't utilise the space around us to its fullest, they inspire the recreation of derelict petrol stations by actually showing the public how the space can be used and enjoyed. 'American Lindsey Adelman’s designs are influenced by structural forms found in nature and the visual tension that results from mixing hand-blown glass with machine-made metal elements. Adelman’s light installation is inspired by the Natural Motion of plants. It comprises two light fixtures, each incorporating multiple phases of natural development into a single, cohesive form. The forms communicate through vibrational movement in an effort to capture the elusive mystery of nature within the constraints of industrial components.' The lighting collections are driven by developing industrial modular systems to capture the ephemeral, fleeting beauty of nature. Adelman first discovered Industrial Design when meeting a woman carving foam French Fries for an exhibition at her editorial job at the Smithsonian and went straight to study ID at the Rhode Island School of Design. She continues to be challenged and seduced by the immaterial substance of light and is obsessed with creating forms that maximize light's sensual effect and highlight emptiness. The light tree which Lindsey Adelman created for Nike's Nature of Motion exhibition was what drew me to her work. My interest in Biophilic Architecture inspires me to incorporate nature into the way I design, for me the her lights resemble flowers, branches and trees which make the lights more fluid and beautiful. I have also always been fascinated in light, it is really interesting to find a successful light designer who incorporate nature into her final outcomes. The Nature of Motion - Nike at Milano Design week A collection of conceptual and practical responses to 'Natural Motion'. Lindsey Adelman designed two light installations for this exhibition. "When I started thinking about natural motion as a design brief I knew I wanted the particular type of movement to be subtle," "I had never done this before, but I incorporated motors, which creates this ripple effect down each of the fixtures," she explains. "I wanted this effect to be like a quiver or a vibration and so we programmed it so they go off at random times." "Vibration is so much of how the natural world communicates," she says. "It has more to do with evolution and new forms coming into being. So making this connection between natural motion and where we are all headed as a universe." |
|