Development - Week 4

Following some advice I got from a conversation with Jane McKetting after a lecture of hers last semester, I intend to draw out all of the potential of my original 'Orphan' illustration and ethos design. Due to the time constraints of this ambitious project, I must be conscious of time management with sample development and I think continually reproducing the same design design, but with alterations in thread choice, fabric, scale and placement is most realistic for this collaboration, and more fitting to industry expectations. 

coloured mulit-head on white organza

 I am happy with the development of colour into the design, although the stitches are quite small still and therefore the illustrative detail gets lost, I intend to enlarge the design and simplify to reduce stitch count; layering of simpler designs could be much more effective.

gold multi-head on wine red dyed velvet 

White on white organza.

Going against what I feel most comfortable with (an explosion of colour) I explored the possibilities of a stripped back design, enlarged, using only white thread on white organza. This is completely different to my usual work and I am extremely pleased with the serene simplicity of the design. In discussion with the group we all feel this is a step in the right direction as it adds a narrative detail, without making the garment too busy. The layering potential of this sample is also exciting.

colour/fabric swatch 

We have also began underpinning a colour/fabric swatch selection. Developed mostly by my work in the dye lab to achieve the truest colours to our research I feel this selection captures our aesthetic effectively.

Development Week 3

Continuing from the ground work made in the past week, I have further explored through illustration with intent of developing on the multi-head.

Cuckoo / folk inspired illustration. I am fascinated by the idea of the displaced child. 

I am strongly influenced by Russian fairytales, and this is physically manifested in the samples produced on the multi-head; sticking to a single colour thread at first to perfect the digital design, the simplicity of a red or yellow line lends itself to the Russian aesthetic. From this initial Ethos session I intend to enlarge the design, and add more layers of colour to give the samples more depth. 

yellow multi-head embroidery on dyed silk organza, I like the translucent quality of the silk. 

red multi-head embroidery on dyed yellow velvet.

Following Sarah's advice to cross-pollenate our work, taking one of Zsofi's drawings I developed it through to the lazer cutter. By using dyed velvet, a continuous element in my work we cut out a grid design based on the tudor architecture of Ordsal Hall. I'm pleased with this work as an initial sample, it creates an interesting presence when layered, but as a group will we have to underpin just how it can be used.

lazer cut samples, developed by myself, inspired by Zsofi's drawing research at Ordsall Hall.

Cuckoo: Initial Research

Due to a study trip to NYC on the first week of Unit X, I didn't meet my group until a week after everyone else, which I was worried would be detrimental to my own work and that of the collaboration but, full of ideas we each began generating work following similar themes and aesthetic. Due to the short nature of unit x, and the size of our group, I feel we are definitly taking on the most ambitious Unit X project, which I find both intimating and exhilarating.  Already I have noticed the difference in pace of this project, and working alongside the structure that fashion students are familiar with, this project will be a valuable insight. Things I have began to consider with initial thoughts of Cuckoo are the obvious limitations we will face, I am aware that unlike our usual Textiles in Practice projects were the whole project is sample development, I will have limited time to develop and refine my samples it will then be used in a fashion/costume context. 

generic garment draping

Our first collaborative effort as a group was the draping of some generic garments; a dress, a lace blouse, a corset and a tan military jacket were compiled to generate interesting silhouettes for us to begin developing designs upon. Although this is totally different to my way of working within textiles, it was very informative in terms of shape and the particular contrast in textures has got me thinking about potential material qualities to explore.  

Cuckoo research mood board. I particularly enjoy this method of processing and analysing interests of research.

My initial research has been based in the realm of folklore and fairytale, Russian tradition, referencing the Russian heritage of the Cuckoo character. As a group we all love the idea of a Russian folk aesthetic. In response to this I have experimented with illustrative elements to convey a graphic narrative, although I intend to develop this further.
As a group, we feel my illustrative narratives could become a main element in the costume to be developed through embroidery and possibly print.

Cuckoo illustration, playing on my strong graphic hand developed in the Locations project. I am excited to develop this on the multi-head.

Cuckoo muse development, using my illustrative style to further establish an over-arching aesthetic. 

Locating: Evaluation

The Locating unit has been a demanding and insightful project. We have had to keep the 'risk-taking' element from Intentions in mind, whilst juggling 2 projects and underpinning an outward facing approach. I feel the true test of the project has been in the balancing of a prescribed live-brief and working within limitations and towards an intended purpose, whilst also having the freedom to establish ourselves as creatives in our self-initiated projects. I found myself concentrating mostly on the Rochdale brief for the beginning of the project and realised my self-initiated was in danger of neglect; I feel as an artist/designer I'm learning that its acceptable and sometimes integral that separate projects and research spill into and inform other endeavours.

Locating: some samples from body of work

I've realised working with archives is beneficial to my practice, and I think research of objects and artifacts will continue to become a crucial part of my creative practice. This is something I look forward to carrying into Unit X in the 'Imagined Museum' option; appropriation and retelling of objects narratives is something which is a driving force of my work.

As intended, this unit has given me the room to develop my illustrative hand, and I am confident in a style I am developing more and more (like intended at the end of Intentions). In reflection of this I do think my more graphic samples worked best in this project and I'm learning that although it is always crucial to explore and experiment with processes, its important to know your strengths and to play these to my advantage when exploring new avenues.

'Dandy no.2', digital illustration/print

I feel I could have developed my structural pin-tuck work further, and as there was a good canon of related work in Intentions i could have really pushed it in Locating; I feel structure and form are definitely elements I wish to revisit in the next unit and should really consider the possible relationships between my structural work and my more graphic, illustrative pieces.
My understanding of both the Ethos programme, and the technicallities of the multi-head machine have developed to a confident level as it becomes an integral element in my personal practice.

'Dandy no.3', digital illustration/print

This unit has pushed me as a designer/artist and the nature of my samples have informed me much more on the context my work would is beginning to fit in; I definitely see my work in the grey area between art and costume (similar to Shonibare and Velucia) and hope to further explore this in the next unit, perhaps even with a full costume installation for the Unit X exhibition.
The body of work produced for Locating has informed my practice tenfold and I feel confident with a style and aesthetic idiosyncratic to me.  

Refinement - Self Initiated

multi head design on green velvet

multi head pattern repeated on violet velvet

repeat of head pattern, stripped back

Referencing back to a group tutorial we had with Jane McKetting in the last unit, she informed us that the multi-head is best utilised when you repeat an existing design or alter it in further development; with this in mind I decided to stretch out the use of my head design and produce some samples on the dyed velvets I have accumulated. Following on from my multi-head experimentation last week one thing I decided to change was to strip back a lot of the fill and satin stitch and rely on changing the stitch sequences to double the running stitch sequences with different threads. The multi head on velvet creates a beautiful embossed effect which I'd like to explore further either in this project or the next. I feel these samples fit more into a fashion context than a art/costume directed one, which is something for me to consider in the future.

face design, multi head, dip-dyed velvet

I utilised the design further and explored increasing scale by placing it on a larger piece of dip-dyed velvet, with violet bleeding into a teal green. On the bleed I wanted to play with subtle balances of colour, with tones and shades of the dye mirrored through thread choice. I think the negative space works well, and is probably one of my less 'busy' pieces, which is important to consider when thinking about promotion of my work and intended audiences.

satin fill border, multi head, dip-dyed velvet

I decided to focus on refining my illustrations and see how I could aid my hand using Photoshop. I feel like I have really made improvements with my photoshop skills, and have a much stronger comprahension of brushes, layers and my general approach to digital art. I feel the next step of progression is to continue developing the illustrations I already have with the possibility of digitally printing on fabric. I feel the Adobe touch has brought my drawings further to life and is a great way for me to make key decisions about presentation of my narratives. 

digital illustration, collaged on Photoshop, 'Dandy no.1'

Refinement - Rochdale

Following my experimentation with parallel devore lines I revisited an element of my previous project, creating structure using the pin-tuck stitch. I enjoyed this sample, but i feel it lost the focus of the graphic playfulness I wanted to explore. I think it's quite late in the project to develop this sample further and I am conscious of neglecting my self-initiated project in the last weeks, which all bubbles down to time-management and scheduling my studio time better. The sample plays with ideas of fragility and form and although I do not wish to focus on this much further for locating it is an interesting process to revisit in the next project. 

devore velvet sample, wire inserted using pin-tuck stitch

Revisiting the quilter I played with aplique and selective placement of wadding to build relief in the piece; building on my previous experimentation quilting I used various rich coloured fabrics and drew bigger stitches free hand giving a much more organic feel to the sample. I can see the sample working well both as a tapestry-like art piece and translating into concept costume.

green velvet and cotton quilting, with multi-head text stitched on dissolvable fabric and hand sewn

visualisation of quilting used in costume context

I've found myself spending more time on the ethos programme perfecting my designs, and when stitching out, playing with the functions and set sequences of the machine. I've found I can achieve unique stitch qualities by stoping and skipping stitch sequences of the machine. I'm pleased with the bold stitch designs paired with the subtle Baroque devore as I start to find a balance between the traditional and the contemporary. 

devore velvet, with gold and purple text using multi-head

devore velvet sample adorned with multi-head stitch

 

Development - Self Initiated

Im using my self initiated project to further explore my illustrative hand and themes concerning masculinity and materiality. Due to time constraints of completing 2 briefs simultaneously and my interest in the narrative of the jacket consuming most of my time I decided to continue on with my Rochdale research, but to concentrate more on the graphic nature of my constructed fictions.

illustration work in sketchbook, exploration of vibrant colours and motifs

illustration work in sketchbook, representation of ruffs and frills through mark making

I find I can translate my drawings well on the multi-head, which enables me to be a bit braver with the control I have over grounds and stitch-sequences. Stuck in a creative block, I referenced backto work from the Intentions  unit which played to my strengths and decided to revisit my series of 'heads' or faces. I find this is a strong way for me to play with the relationship of illustration and machine whilst a face carries an intriguing invitation to an untold story. 

Using the water soluble fabric again, I played with control of stitch-out on the multi-head. Happy accidents in the form of the middle satin stitch being too big for the machine to create got me thinking about utilising the machines incapability to create an interesting warped affect. 

'casanova' head design, multi head on water soluble fabric

head design, loose satin stitch warped, multi-head on water soluable

Although I'm pleased with the water soluble samples, I feel I should utilise the dying skills I have gained in the past weeks and explore velvet as a ground on the multi-head.