Material Tests…….

I have been preparing the material that I excavated from the Helsby Quarry, which consists of drying and grinding the Sandstone to a fine powder so that I can add it to test pieces to fire.

   

In my research I have been looking at how other professions document and record in the field. In particular Anthropology, Ethnography and Archaeology. So the material samples have begun to take on a slightly more scientific aesthetic, using test tubes and glass jars to keep and record them.

  

So I have added the material to both Parian Porcelain and Ivory Stoneware tests, some for the electric kiln and some for the gas kiln. I have put them in saggar’s as I am not sure what reaction the material would have in the firing and I did not want to damage anyone else’s work. Fingers crossed that something magical and exciting happens (makes me smile that I find it magical, one of the reasons I love ceramics, it’s the alchemy.)

      

    

 

To My Suprise…….

On my way home from a morning romp up Helsby Hill I notice that the house with the beautiful Strata still has no garage built. So I return with larger containers and my spade…….

This time I decide to excavate a larger quantity of material from the Strata surface as that garage will be built at some point and all this beautiful surface will be hidden. I decide to take some more close up piccys of the surface, every time you look at it you see something different.

      
I also decide to concentrate on the three main colours a deep red, lighter beige and rich yellow, managing to get some larger pieces.

Looking at different methods of recording I have bought some test tubes and different sized chemical containers so that I can keep a visual record.

My plan is to combine these materials with some of the clays that I use and experiment with some glazes. The idea being that I introduce elements and traces of my own history into my work. The Quarry being my Present. I have returned to the Art School since the  tutorial discussions and though I will not take materials from here fundamentally this is where my creative journey started. The Art School is a major chapter in my history. I am unsure about the buildings future but it would be a great location to use as a photographic backdrop for the work, if it remains standing? I do have a thought to perhaps use some transfer images on some of my forms and incorporate these with the material from the Quarry, Past and Present.Though initially my focus will be using the materials from the Quarry.

 

 

 

 

 

Another good week………

A very unexpected weekend……I was on my way to the Quarry (Helsby Quarry) to take some piccys and to excavate a sample or two of possible materials. As I turned the corner I noticed that one of the properties was having some building work, as it was Sunday so there were no workmen around.

As Helsby Hill rises some of the houses are built into the rock and the building work had exposed a wall of Strata…….YUMMY!!!!! So with camera in hand I begin to snap away outside the property boundary. To my surprise a wee head popped out of a downstairs window and asked “how I was enjoying the Strata???” And before I knew what was happening of I go, explaining how I am a local Potter looking at using some local materials in my work and would they mind awfully if I had a wee dig and took a sample or two of the exposed rock. Help yourself was the reply, so excavating I went.

The closer I looked at the rock the more detail you begin to notice, the finest threads of different colours winding through the face, just beautiful. Though what they are ??? More research into the Quarry and it’s history is needed. Leaving with several small pots filled with, what looks mostly like sandstone, it feels like the adventure has begun.

On Tuesday we had a talk from Kevin Hunt, a Sculptor and Curator.
The images of his own work that he showed where not so inspiring, though looking on his web site there were things that did interest me. The columns and use of totems within environments, made from the everyday, how something so mundane can take on a whole new meaning by some very simple manipulation.

But it was his curatorial ideas that I connected with more. To define a space, place items, objects within it and then to invite the public into that space. Giving them some basic instructions and letting them create and alter the architecture of the space. Thus allowing the sculpture to develop and inhabit the space.

Kevin Hunt, Empty Space (detail 1), wood soaked in ink. Courtesy the artist and Kettle’s Yard. (Contemporary Art Society)

I particularly felt that this idea could be translated into a project for the Health and Wellbeing group. To allow people to express themselves without the boundaries of failure. To let go of the everyday shit and to be fully absorbed into something that they would never have imagined, very exciting. Visit his website here.

This was followed by our seminar with Dr Jane Webb ( Director of Studies: Design)
“Ways of observing, exploring, designing and reflecting”
The seminar was an exploration into how we document and to explore with both visuals and text, to try and get us to think in a broader context. The way that Jane lectures was very accessible, in terms of language used and the visuals that supported the lecture. Truly inspirational, to be exposed to ideas around process, how to connect process with the ideas.

It began by looking at collage as a way of recording and then onto how the ‘Artist’ used the media. We also covered drawing, photography and ethnography. I am a little in love with the idea of being a ‘Flaneurs’ a city stroller that wonders through society, accessing all areas, recording modern life and yet not being effected by it’s grubby undercurrents. 

                 

We then went to the library to examine some of the items from the ‘Special Collections’. The archive includes major collections of objects and books, some of which were collected when the Manchester School of Art was created in 1838. As well as historical pieces there is a collection of contemporary work .Visit the website here.

On Wednesday I had my Ceramic Workshop Induction…………YIPPPPPPEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!! At last I can now officially get my hands dirty. Now week 7, I initially felt that I had to wait to long for the induction to happen. But actually in all honesty I think that making would only have distracted me from getting to grips with what the MA is and what it means to me. But I am not convinced that it is up to us as individuals to push for Inductions, they should sit as part of the first project………Rolling up me sleeves and purchasing me clay as we speak.

Happy as a Pig in mud ……..    Thursday was PECHA KUCHA Day……… Fortunately for me it was for Full time and 2^nd year Part Time MA’ers, so I was part of the supporting audience. It was really very interesting; I have never been presented with this form of presenting at all. PechaKucha or Pecha Kucha (Japanese: ペチャクチャ, IPA: [petɕa ku͍̥tɕa], chit-chat) is a presentation style in which 20 slides are shown for 20 seconds each (6 minutes and 40 seconds in total). The format, keeps presentations concise and fast-paced.

This was really the first time that we had an opportunity to see fellow students work and understand a little about their thinking and practice. It was a mixed bag of subjects, thoughts, ideas, materials, research and creativeness. Some presentations were a real eye opener; some people were very brave and honest about themselves and their work. Some cast new light on a topic or were looking from a different perspective. They were mostly very inspirational and actually I would think that it was a process that really helped to focus your ideas and thoughts………maybe I should go through the process myself, I think that it may help me clarify some ideas.

the fog begins to lift…….

The Fog Begins to lift……..

Wow! ……Wow!
What a day………Did not know that Tuesdays could be so fab!
Today something happened, things began to fall into place. Though very slowly, there was no avalanche but there was a definite lift in the fog, that has been surrounding me these past weeks.

The week started well we had a talk by Jamie Shovlin, a conceptual artist. Who’s profile can be viewed here.

“Shovlin is a difficult artist to pin down. He is interested in the balance between truth and fiction and our perception of the world around us. His interventions often challenge us to re-think or question our understanding of reality. “  Ingleby Gallery-Edinburgh

The resulting work was very interesting, but what particularly drew my attention was the project ‘Hiker Meat’. An Exploitation film that never actually existed, shooting a trailer, and re-creating key sequences from the beginning and end sections of the film.

The resulting exhibition showed the birth of this process, the collaboration between writer, composer & director. They used large black boards to sketch out ideas. For me they were very visual in there own right. The different layers of artists, the overlapping of ideas, and connections clearly visible. The creative process being documented, being laid bare for all to see. It was both a great creative tool and visually very exciting.

http://www.cornerhouse.org/art/art-events/curator-and-artist-tour

& then it was Tutorial time…..
I was a wee bit nervous, it has been such a long time that I have been in a situation where I look at my own creative work with such a critical eye.

I think that my confidence left me a little, managing to display just how overwhelmed I am, with regards the research, my practice and all the ideas and general creativeness. And actually it was not until I was talking about so many ideas & how I planned to investigate 10 things at once, that the scope of the work was really revealed.

So with the help of Helen & Sharon we began to pick through my thoughts. The question was, not to lose one’s self and drown in such a wide breadth of ideas but how to pin point one place to begin. To bring some cohesion to the thought process, also to maybe let go of some of the ideas, to question and understand my own intentions………..small steps!

I have been taking some photographs of places with an idea ( idea number 51) of some kind of installation and as we were going through these, it was pointed out how similar the places felt even though they were of very different things.

The Quarry at Helsby, where I now call home, and Grimsby School of Art, my birth place & where I lived until leaving for university some 26 year ago. Why these two places? What attracted me? What drew me to them, was there a connection? This will be the first step to begin to look at & analyse both places.

Helsby Quarry

Grimsby Art School.

We also talked about beginning to make. So next step is to begin to look at material and understand glaze, oh yes and that means some basic chemistry…yummy! I am going to start testing the raw materials we have & discover what they do and what they will do when I mix them. I also plan on adding some materials from the Quarry.

And step three…….where will my practice fit into the ceramic world of today? I have favorite Potters but again to begin to ask myself more critically what is it about the work, process, material that I am drawn to. Why I do or do not like something? It was a great great day…….Beginning to put some perspective on my work helped so much. I can feel a plan coming together….

      
Some of my pieces at home……

Health & Wellbeing.
Having had the report for a couple of weeks now we began by going around the room to listen to peoples reaction to it.

It became clear that some folks are a little lost. For some it was the report itself. It is heavy going and I myself am looking forward for the author to come and go through it with us.

I felt that the group began to gel though at the same time there was a feeling of hesitation. I think that the subject matter is very emotive & for some of us it is also very personal. Maybe folks will open up as we begin to explore the subject in more depth.

There were topics that did keep recurring throughout the conversations. Accessibility bringing people and the Arts together,connecting them in some way. Through a single item or through an activity of some description. The group are divided into those thinking about there own practice participation and those considering the whole event. I think that this will be the next step how we bring these two sides together.

For me a really great week, it feels like I am beginning to find my feet. Six weeks in, I am a slow burner…….