Sculpture and Surface Design

Art and Design Unit 2

Tiffany Duneau

Cass sculpture park visit, theme compositions, and artist studies.

Here, I was able to record the different interactions

between the manmade sculptures, and their natural

environment, as well as experience the materials and

the effect of the scale used in person, which

became a great starting point.

With these studies, I tried to explore the theme as broadly as possible, in order to have a good base upon which to build my later ideas. I chose objects with contrasting characteristics, ones that displayed aspects of their opposite nature and ones that were a combination of nature and manmade in themselves.

Here, I focused on the way others used materials

within their work –the degree of refining the

materials went through and the combinations of

textures, as well as the message they conveyed,

which helped me when creating my sculpture.

Using the formal elements to develop ideas

These two examples show

how I developed various

designs, by altering the scale,

and colours in order to

produce a different effect or

mood. I also used different

styles of drawing, such as

rough line, and mark making

to create more dynamic and

lively compositions,

compared to clean line

which produced a more

man made feel.

The different processes I explored, safety, and their effect on materials

I first tried creating a handcut stencil, by using a craft knife to remove areas which I wanted printed. As a safety precaution, I used a cutting mat and a steel ruler for straight lines, in order to minimise the risk of cutting myself.

I then tried a much quicker way, using Illustrator – I first converted my pattern into a path, which I was able to cut out on the laser cutter. An important safety issue here was the laser - it is important not to look into it as it cuts, as the intensity of light could severely damage your eyes.

To screen print, I first taped down my fabric and stencil to

the printing table to stop them from moving, then laid the

screen on top. After having mixed the right colour dye, I

laid a generous amount onto the top of the screen and

used a squeegee to push the ink through the screen. Here,

the screen was partially blocked, which stopped some of

the ink form coming through.

When printing, I made sure to wear an apron to protect my clothes, and washed the equipment as soon as I could after printing my design.

I first used Photoshop to repeat my initial designs, which allowed me to change the colours and repeat by mirroring, rotating the patterns or simply tessellating them.

With my black and white designs, I created photocopies, which I then reassembled by hand to create repeat patterns. I found this process good for exploring many different possibilities, however repeating digitally created more professional looking patterns.

The first models I made were paper, which allowed me to work quickly, but it was difficult to create anything strong, for example the curls of paper on the second sculpture. Capturing a sense of thichness was also very hard to achieve as the paper is naturally thin.

The method I used was spot welding, which is very quick, and works by melting the metal where the join will be, causing the two parts to fuse together. This works best when joining two flat surfaces or perpendicular wires. As the metal is heated very strongly, gloves should always be worn , and goggles to protect eyes from eventual sparks.

Braising is an alternative to spot welding, but takes a lot more time and is less precise. It involve heating the two pieces of metal to red-hot temperatures, and melting braise into the join to fix it together. As a much larger area of the metal is being heated, it should be manipulated using tongs, and heat protective gloves.

A very versatile method of forming is casting plaster, any clay or plastic mould can be made and filled with plaster. It is quite brittle, however so cannot withstand much pressure if applied to a small area, and if any excess plaster remains after casting, it should be left to harden before being thrown away, to avoid blocking the sink.

Vacuum forming is an alternative method, used to create a hollow plastic container. A sheet of plastic is heated until it can be easily deformed, and placed on top of a former. A vacuum is then created underneath, causing the plastic to fit around the mould and take its shape. When cool, the mould can be taken off and the hardened plastic trimmed to the correct size.

The way others have communicated meaning through their work

I researched the work of Tom and Bob Bennett, as their work related to how I had developed my sculpture. By analysing their work and what they communicated through it, I was able to gain a better appreciation of what my own sculpture would represent for the viewer.

How I conveyed meaning through my own work

For the surface design, I wanted to

convey a sense of balance between

nature and manmade, which I tried to

communicate through the pattern,

which is geometric yet filled with

seemingly random details. The bold

colours also add to the contrasts

between nature and manmade, as the

blue is a colour not often found in nature,

whereas browns and yellows are

abundant. The way the two main shapes

of the design capture equal amounts of

attention also adds to the sense of

balance, as well as the continuous

nature of the repeat.

I wanted to show the complementarity of

nature and man made, and how they can

become intertwined and sometimes even

seem to reverse. I did this by constructing the

sculpture so that all elements could

represent both a man made or natural

object – the curved wire seems reminiscent

of natural swirls, but could also be a

necklace chain, and the plaster resembles

carved jewels, which are obtained from the

fusion of man made techniques and a

natural stone. The spherical shape of the

structure itself suggests man made

geometry, but is also a common shape in

the natural world.

Overall I think I managed this project more

effectively than the last, although I still have room

for improvement, especially I terms of artist or

design research, as doing more would help me to

develop my ideas more in response to the work of

others, and I would gain a better understanding of

the impact of the formal elements on visual

communication.

I think I could also have taken more time when

developing my ideas, in order to be able to think

through my decisions more carefully, as I sometimes

felt a little rushed.