Since my last BLOG the plans to take a solitudinal sabatical continue, with the choice made to visit the Shetland Islands made it is beginning to now more resemble an expedition rather than a brief visit, one thing I do know is that there is much work to be done before I can make such a selfish trip.
Instead, to fill the void, I have made a change in my work output, moving from 2D and Paint to 3D and sculpture; paint has taken me on an intensive journey spanning the last 13 years though at the end I have little more than a mediocre collection of works that have little importance other than as a record of my journey.
Like a duck to water 3D work has proved instantly to be more pleasurable than paint work, paint was always work, the catalyst for this material was while searching for something to make a 3D model of a castle walls, working in this new way however I found that my hands were constantly occupied, my eyes and my imagination were being used more while my brain takes a well earned break as I mellow into the process of creating a solid object, molding, crafting and building.
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small mesh chicken wire makes a great
and malleable armature, the shadows also
give good indication of the finished shape |
Part of the delay in turning to this discipline has been to find a material that I can enjoy without the burden of interfering with plumbing or structural load baring on the floor of a first floor studio, I have long searched for a material that not only fits in with both my physical abilities and to my environment, it is unlikely that the neighbours would survive the long term 'chip, chip, chop and chip' as I whittle away stone or wood without eventually banging on my door to cease!
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| ' The Shin-hugger ' in progress |
I have worked in chicken wire before to create larger works and have no reason to discount this as a suitable armature for my work, it is flexible, malleable easy to shape and grow, either with the addition of more wire or to shrink and mold either by cutting pieces out or by compressing, what has eluded me for some time has been a material to lay over the netting.
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| components drying before assembley |
I am quite taken with the idea of returning products derived from wood, such as paper and wood fibre and turning it back into its natural state, to compete with the beauty of the individual tree would be quite difficult in this process as there is no grain, no evidence of how long the tree was developing before contemporary man decided to remove it for better use than as wind-breaks to protect underlying eco-systems or as a simply beautiful structure, it is a challenge for me to find that hidden beauty and magic that does justice to
the humble tree
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| ' Last Button ' |
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| ' The Shin-hugger ' |
I have chosen a paper mulch curtesy of a new paper shredder and copious amounts of PVA glue, I have also experimented in covering this paper mache with a wood veneer, formed from dampened cat litter which dries to a beautifully smooth wood pulp. Through this process I have found I can create a beautifully smooth paste when dried and mixed with PVA or specialist wood glues that would leavin a surface when dried that can be sanded and smoothed as if it were wood; I have an inate love of the curve, it is a complicated structure and best managed with a keen eye, on the product vial its shadow to produce beautiful curving surfaces that, with experience I will be able to perfect and improve upon.
Thats it for now, have a nice week, with awakened passion there will, I am sure be more to come. best wishes from andrew
