Embroidery

I have started to use line drawings as my template for embroidery and overlapping my drawings with tracing paper to get an interesting composition. See figure 1.

 



Figure 1: personal image, line drawing, overlapping with tracing paper.

 

 

Figure 2: personal image, using sewing machine to draw. The front and the back of the fabric.

I have started to use the sewing machine as a tool to draw, but I find it difficult to get the details, for example, the hands and toes.

 

Figure 3: Personal image, second attempt at drawing with machine stitch.

I am much preferring the result in figure 3 than in my first attempt, see figure 2. With more colours involved within my work, this gives a different mood to it, I think colours are the key to my next stage of development.   

iMovie of Fairground

I was given a chance to work with different types of projectors and this really helped me to develop my ideas futher of how to combine dancing with the theme fairground.

I filmed a carousel projector, projecting photographs of fairgrounds and rides on the wall.

Then I was taught a new technique, by putting a bowl of water on the overhead projector then drop ink on to it and I have filmed the process of it on the wall. See figure 1.

Figure 1: Personal Image

I started doing movements with my arms in order to respond to what I was seeing and I think that worked really well, because my first attempt of trying to combine my sewing machine progress and my dance clips together was not working, because it just didn’t feel related.

Because I did not want my face in the video clip,  I went really close up to the overhead projector and this means only my shadow was framed, which is what I wanted. Also the clothing that I was wearing worked very well, because it was kind of see through, this meant the things that were happening on the overhead projector were still able to be seen.

After I put the all the clips together, I was really playing with the idea of time; I was slowing selection of clips down so that it almost looked like a still image.

I was really into the idea of looking behind the scene of the performance, because I know that being a performer, practise is really needed to be good at it on stage, I thought using my shadows only could be a symbolic idea of being behind the stage.

After I put the film together, I was struggling with the sound, because during the process of filming I had people talking, noises in the background, so I have muted everything in my film, but then with my film, I felt like it really needed some sound to go with all the movements.

I did not want to borrow some singer’s backing tracks, because I like the idea of having it as my own. Therefore, I thought it would have been a good idea to ask a friend of mine, who is the bassist of the band, Found From Within, to help me with the sound.

After telling him what I was looking for, he actually made the backing bass track to go with my film, therefore, the sound and the film worked perfectly for me.

 Also it was a great opportunity to work with different people in different areas.

 

 

 

Video made by me.  

Band name - Found From Within
Bass - Tom Fisher

Working space

 

Figure 1: Personal image, working space

I think it is really useful to put images and work up on the wall, because it gives an overview of my working process.

Figure 2: Personal image, Working space.

 

 

 

Comparing figure 1 and 2, figure 1 is the most recent image, I have been putting more drawings up on the wall and have been really experimenting with my work.

After the experiment of stitching onto papers, I have come to realise it does not have the same quality as film, therefore I started stitching on to film itself.  

 

 



Figure 3: personal image, machine stitch onto film – experimenting.

 

I really liked the effect of the fairy threads on the film, as it changes colour and also with the transparency of the film, therefore I was working the front and the back of the ground.

Also, I was experimenting with the perforations along the side of the film with tailor tacking, I really like the texture it has created, but the down side with it, is that I would not be able to play it.

What inspired me to stitch on to the film was Stan Brakhage, The Dante Quartet.



 



Figure 4: A hand-painted image from The Dante Quartet,1987.



The Dante Quartet, 1987.

 

 

 

At the moment, I am struggling to find my hand stamp, struggling to find myself within my work. I enjoy working with colours, but when I was on the sewing machine, it was hard not to continually stitch in straight lines all over the film, so I have drawn on to a piece of film, then handstitched on top of it. See figure 5. I like hand stitch more because it gives me time to see the whole thing. With the machine I only see sections. I have a plan of what I’m going to do on the machine, but I need to keep stopping to look back at it. It is really hard to see the overall. It also feels like it is turning into a manufacturing process so that everything ends up looking the same, rather than what I had in mind of what I’m going to produce.

 

 

Figure 5: Personal image, handstitch onto film.

 

 

Drawing with the sewing machine.

After I was introduced to iMovie, I wanted to explore on iStopmotion, but the university does not have the software I need to work with iMovie, which means live action movies. I then realized filming with live action I am still able to make it look like still images and really expand on the idea of time.

I have realized my strong point is within the embroidery area, I have started to use the rides in Blackpool Pleasure Beach as templates, to help me to develop. I have used line drawing to draw out the ride then used the sewing machine as a tool to draw and overlap them.



Figure 1: Personal image, drawing of the ride.

 

 

Figure 2: Personal image, my overlapping experiment.

 

 

 

I see film as a ground to work with, but with limited budget, what I did was to photocopy the film onto paper, then cut them out into the same size as a roll of film, then I stitched on top of it with both machine stitch and handstitch. See figure 3 and 4.

 

 

Figure 3: Personal image, Stitching onto papers.



Figure 4: Personal image, stitching onto papers.

From a distance people actually thought I used real film instead of paper. With the filming, I was filming about the process of making, but then I was interested in the performers in Blackpool Pleasure Beach, but when I tried to combine the film of the process of making and the dance performance together in iMovie, it does not feel related.

 



Figure 5: Personal image, the overall view of the long scroll paper/ Working space.

I photocopied some sections that I like on the long scroll paper and this way it helps me to capture the moment and it helps me to develop sections that work more.

 

 



Experimenting with film

During the process of this project, I planned to introduce embroidery within my works. As in the last unit – Sampling -, sadly I did not have a chance to combine embroidery and Print together, as I intended to.

I have been inspired by La Cineteca Del Comune Di Bologna’s film - Danza Serpentina, 1869.

Danza Sperpentina, 1869

 

 

This has led me to think of ways to combine drawings, film and embroidery together.

I experimented with painting nail vanish on top of the film and rolling it back and playing it.

 

 

Figure 1, personal photograph, applied nail vanish on top of the 16mm films.

 



 

Figure 2, personal photograph. 16mm film.

 

 

 

 

Video of the film playing.



Sketchbook and Photoshop

I have been working with photographs that I took at Blackpool Pleasure Beach and using drawing, collaging and overlapping with my handstitch work to create new inspiration for myself. See figure 1.

 

Figure 1: personal image, sketchbook collage.

I then started to take away part of the drawing and combine it with dance movements. See figure 2.

I wanted to include animals within my work, because with the idea of fairground being tangled with circus, I adopted the idea of animal circus, even though Blackpool Pleasure Beach stopped using animals.




Figure 2: Personal image, sketchbook drawing.

I then used Photoshop to help me create new compositions and colour combinations from my sketchbook drawings. I ended up with an accidental piece from Photoshop, for some unknown reason the colours went to extreme. See figure 3.

But I am still happy with the result, because I think it would be interesting to use digital print to print it on top of a piece of fabric, the colours have made my layers more obvious to the eye, as it has taken away the details of the drawing and left just the shapes.

I am actually more happy with the accidental piece than the original design.

 



Figure 3: personal image, Photoshop accident.

The original design, see figure 4.

 

 

The original design, see figure 4.

 

 

iMovie

As a way of drawing, I was introduced to iMovie, but as a starting point, I did not know what to film, so I thought of going back to the beginning and using a piece of film that I had from a live action performance.

In the live action performance, I used an overhead projector to project the image on the wall and was hole punching the film and applying nail varnish on top of the film. Everything I did on the projector screen could be seen on the wall. This idea then was taken further later.

 A film that I have made. 

I have edited the film and used different angles to film, both landscape and portrait.

Before Unit X, I was invited to an exhibition by Angela Davis: Golau Chirk Castle, Wrecsam (Art Council Wales funded), I was really inspired how my teacher used the combination of sound, film, performance and lights to create an art piece, where everything was pretty much black and white.

I tried to recreate the mood I felt when I was in the exhibition.

I realize that things that I have experienced are coming through in my work. These are not always consciously related until I get stuck or struggle with ideas and then I start making connections.

I enjoy making movies because it is new but I’m starting to questions what am I? Where are my strengths? I don’t need to make something completely new I need to go back to where my strengths are. I enjoy movies but I am a handcraft person, very traditional using slow processes. Every now and then I keep being reminded that I have my own style but I’m not doing it on purpose. I do it without realizing I need to capture that moment and use it to help me develop my practice.

The question now is, what’s next?

2014: Angela Davis http://www.angeladaviesartist.co.uk/