Transcribing Caro part A

The “Transcribing Caro Project” was my first experience exploring a 3D project also interpreting photography and a variety of elements joined together to complete the whole task. Firstly, I found a collection of primary research and images from my visit to the Yorkshire Sculpture Park and Hepworth gallery valuable because it allowed me to explore my manual settings on the camera further, and a range of media such as completing set tasks by my photography instructor and tasks set by my art tutor which was to complete one folding sketchbook of some of caro's sculptures. Throughout all of the visit to the galleries I took both close up and none close up's, also landscape photographs when exploring the wide range of sculptures. Collecting these images helped me a lot because I got an idea of what materials and shapes Anthony Caro goes for.  I also found it valuable collecting primary research from the gallery visits because it allowed me to compare Caro’s work in both galleries with the folding sketchbooks and images. It also helped me think of idea's how photographer's that use 3D elements could relate to Caro's work.  The trip was valuable because it allowed me to collect a variety of primary images that were placed into my sketchbook for further development and to explore ways in which I could put both Caro and photography together using 3D throughout the project. Also I found the visit important in particular as collecting primary images allowed me to look at 3D from a different perspective and different angles when taking images that was useful for the project and a photography point of view of 3D.  I found looking at the sculptures in real life better than secondary images because you can explore the piece at different angles and perspectives. Also it’s better to look at sculptures in real life because you can look closely into how the elements were placed together and this was shown in Caro’s work with strong fixtures and fittings. From my perspective it is  better to look at sculptures up close than secondary images because you can see how it fits in the environment and how other people in the gallery interact with the pieces. I think that my primary research turned out extremely well because I collected a variety of information, but mainly photographs as the photographs were to come in handy further into the project and also one completed folding sketchbooks from both galleries. I strongly believe my photographs showed turned out extremely well capture the landscape of the sculptures and looking at different angles and view points. Also I think they turned out well specifically for my primary research because I collected a variety of photographs not just photos of one specific sculpture. It allowed me to explored different types of caro's work, and the use of different materials, how the sculptures were placed and the scale of sculptures. I captured sculptures in ways that they looked abstract at different angles and perspectives and the photographs ended up looking great and it allowed me to use them for my sketchbooks also for my mini sculptures to just get a little inspiration to what my own sculpture would look like. Also including the one completed primary folding sketchbook turned out better then expected as it gave me observations or Caro's work from my own drawings with a variety of different drawing techniques.

The secondary research I collected was effective because I explored a variety of photographers that interact with 3D in different ways, these photographers were; Mark Bulford, Lisa Kokin, Lee Kirby and Joseph Parra. These photographers interpreted 3D in many ways such as projecting imagery, picture sculptures and so on. For my secondary research I collected a variety of images from each of the photographers and created sketchbook pages for each individual photographer and tried to copy some of there work and create it as how I imagined it would have been done or how to create it in a sketch book. Considering it myself as a photographer I thought it was quite challenging combining both 3D and photography as one. But, seeing some of the work of the other photographers I had chosen gave me a lot of inspiration.

Throughout the development stages for my 3D sculpture and 3D photographic sculpture task I have developed, organised and planned what I was going to design and create. Whilst thinking of a design that could also interpret photography was quite hard but whilst looking at photographers I had a inspiration from a photographer called isidro blasco who's work looked like this. I then thought on about applying some of caro's sculptures to my sculpture itself and making an elution that different parts of the sculptures were coming forward and some behind. 

Isidro Blasco  work

Ceramics workshop

On Thursday the 26th I had my last workshop ahead of me which was Ceramics, with my instructor Debra. Last time in ceramics I had a great experience doing it and my last project went extremely well because of it. To start off with we had to gather all research and sketches and dicuss our idea's with our instructor and see what ways, techniques and materials could be used to create part oof our sculpture.Once I had created them it will help me when I was exploring the other workshops for the sculpture. The task allowed me to solve problems in 3D and apply practical skills to create the final product. Also, the project allowed me to apply my knowledge that I have learnt in the previous ceramics task and use the methods within the workshop to create my final piece.
For this project in ceramics I did not really have much planned as it wasn't a main aspect of my design but I did have a small individual role for this workshop. My idea was to create something similar to one of Caro's paper sculptures but obviously with clay, clay that is able to go really thin that it actually looks like paper. The clay I used was paper clay which explains why I used it as I wanted it to look as realistic as I could get it. Firstly when messing around with any clay you have to need it and get rid of any air bubbles, because if  there is any air buddle's it is more likely to explore to the kiln. After rolling out the clay I measured 20cm x 20cm for both pieces of clay and once finished I ripped the clay off all around he edges of the clay as I did not want my paper to be just flat I put some round objects underneath the clay so that one it had been fired it would come out curved. Now all my ceramics work is finished I am now just waiting for in to be fire in the kiln.

3D workshop

On the 19th of November I continued to plan and create a photographic 3D sculpture for my project "transcribing caro". The 3D workshop was the main workshop session my sculpture was interpreted for as I needed to create practically all the elements that will connect all the pieces for my photographic 3D sculpture. I was inspired by an sculptor/photographer that goes by the name Isidro Blasco that involves 3D by overlapping images and making you see an image from either a different point of view or angle. By interpreting both Blasco and Caro I came up with the idea that I would use the same idea as Blasco by using my own images of Caro's sculptures from my visit to the Yorkshire sculpture park and overlapping them and creating a 3D photographic version of my interpretation if Caro was to be involved with photography and saw it from an abstract way. By creating a photographic sculpture it allowed me to see things from a different point of view and different ways 3D can be created through not only using ceramics, wood work and other hands on projects but photography also.

To start the session we were given a recap from the woodwork introduction about the health and safety that was required in the workshop. When we entered the workshop we were told to place our bags and coats out of the room away safely to avoid tripping hazards and causing serious injuries as well as if  left in the room it may get damage. We were also reminded of certain safety logo's on the machines which were "wear safety goggles", "wear eye protection" and "tie long hair up". The rules and safety signs must be followed at all times throughout the workshop to avoid any injuries. After recapping health and safety rules from the induction, we followed them all way through the workshop to avoid risk of injury.

Firstly, to start the workshop I collected all my secondary research of Blasco's work, images of Anthony Caro's sculptures and rough sketches. After gathering all my research and sketches I discussed to the workshop leader Brad my idea and what I wanted to create. When discussing to the workshop instructor Brad about my design I faced a problem which was think of how to create this idea I wanted to create and by looking at Blasco work try and get some sense of how he made it so secure and made it look so out there and 3D like. When coming to a decision I decided to start working on the base and how it was all going to stand so I made 5 stands that were stable and secure to, when making them I did not have exact measurements to what height was going to be but when me and the workshop leader were working at it we went along as it went and marked down the measurements to what I sticked to. After collecting measurements I measure upwards where the piece of wood for the base would go and once measured I took all the pieces of wood to the drill and drilled where it was marked. After applying the holes I drilled screws into the main piece's of wood going through to the other so that it was able to stand. I then got on to make a flat surface to place a background natured image onto.                

Print making and photography workshops

On the 12th of November I had my first workshops for the Caro project, being print making and photography we had half a day to finish both workshops. Before any of the workshops took place every individual instructor explain what the process was going to be and for print making it was that we were going to be making an etching print either to make prints go on to out final sculpture or to make the etching part of the 3D sculpture. The process on this day was that print making would take place in the morning and photography in the afternoon. Moving on, when starting early hours on print making I was oblivious on an idea to do but not only that thinking of something that would relate to Caro's work and being the photographer I am I decided to be adventurous and use one of my photographic images I had taken of one of Caro's sculpture from my visit to the Yorkshire sculpture park. After choosing one individual image I was instructed by Jess, our print making instructor, to start collecting and sketching ideas, from the image I had chosen I started to collect basics shapes on the sculpture and drawing them as they were but more simple and adding detail and with a sheet full of different etching techniques, I was able to see what each tool looked like on a etching plate without testing it myself and making any mistakes. Firstly, I got my etching plate and removed the plastic base and began etching the basic shapes of the "Caro" sculpture I decided to use. I then tested it with black ink and a white play piece of card to discover that the print wasn't showing up as good as I wanted it too. So, I used a wood carving tool as my instructor "jess" recommended it as she has a lot of experience. By using the tool I was able to make deeper and thicker lining and which the etching tool I used before I was able to use it for great detail. It then enable me to then make more finer and better prints.

Once we had finished our etching plates and final prints we then moved on to the photography workshop At the start of workshop I was curious to explore photography because  was unsure how it was going to relate to the “Transcribing Caro” project. When arriving at the workshop we were given a task which was to create an interesting, abstract paper sculpture that was going be taken into the studio to be used to create different shadows and lighting techniques. The piece we created had to be 3D like Anthony Caros work and incorporate an abstract layout in the design. Before we started to create our designs we were given instructions about health and safety which we followed throughout the task. As we were using craft knives, we had to be careful when using them as they can be very dangerous. We also had to use a cutting mat on the surface to avoid damaging surfaces. Also we had to use a metal ruler to avoid cutting yourself when cutting straight lines as craft knives can easily move out of place. These instructions were followed throughout the workshop. For my designs I did an archway in simple terms kind of like a rainbow, one with swirls twisted stuck to the top of the card and last one I cut out shapes like fire and stood them up. I decided on all of these designs as I knew what would make a shadow and what wouldn't as I have experience when it comes to the studio and lighting.

3D Workshop Introduction

On Thursday 5th November, I was introduced to elements of the 3D workshop. It was important to complete this workshop as it taught me the safety and knowledge of each machine that I can use throughout the course. Also it was important to complete the workshop as I wouldn't be able to complete the brief for the "transcribing Caro" project, another reason being that if we didn’t do the workshop we wouldn’t have been able to go on any of the machines as we hadn’t properly been taught how to use them or shown the proper safety risks. For me I found the workshop quite easy and simple as in my past school I had already been taught and shown how to use the equipment in a lesson called “product design” that I had studied for gcse. However, the experience was useful as it did remind me of my previous knowledge that I had forgotten in 3D. I was curious to explore the workshop as it allowed me to think about the materials I could use in the "transcribing Caro" project.  Throughout the workshop we followed the PPE (personal protection equipment) for the health and safety instructions.  Firstly, all loose clothing had to be removed for instance baggy jumpers, cardigans, scarfs  ect, long hair had to be tied back to avoid the risk of being injured and getting trapped in machines by these elements. Bags were not allowed to be placed in the workshop room because they are a tripping hazard which is dangerous for a room surrounded by machines. Also, lanyards must be removed for our own safety as they can get caught in machines which make it very dangerous when working. Finally, strong shoes must be worn in the workshop to avoid the risk of injury to your feet if any equipment fell on the floor. All of these instructions were followed throughout the 3D workshop introduction.

Yorkshire Sculpture park and Hepworth Gallery

On Wednesday the 21st October myself and the rest of my course visited the Yorkshire Sculpture park and the Hepworth gallery to explore the exhibitions and works of Anthony caro, a sculpture which helped us get ideas and inspiration for our upcoming project. By exploring both galleries it allowed us to visually collect information and inspiration to start our new project which is based on 3D and the sculpture himself, Caro's work.

At the start on the day we went to the Yorkshire sculpture park to explore Anthony Caro exhibition at the longside gallery. Once we arrived at the gallery, i was separated from the rest of the group to be given an individual task relating to my photography which was to focus on one of caro's sculptures and capture different images focusing on both the landscape and close up's of sculpture itself. The task itself was set by one of my new instructors who goes by the name even who gave me great feedback and really liked my work. Not only did i do the task i focused on all the landscape capturing different sculptures and the autumn season looking its finest. After my individual given, my course instructor Claire Harrison set everyone a task which involved sketch books we made at the start of the day, in them we were told to do quick sketches to create a range of drawings that observed different pieces of work in the gallery. All the drawings explored different uses of materials but as i noticed caro used a lot of metals in his work which to me made me think that he was a very handy man and likes DIY. It also allowed us to explore different displays of work viewed at different inside and outside of the gallery at different angles and perspectives which made the pieces of work more interesting and detailed. The display of the work also change my view point of the work itself as i believed it helped to figure out the meaning behind the pieces of art  and how it related to the kind of materials being used. Some of the pieces of work made me think of industry as a lot of metal was used and were displayed on plinths which helped me to view the pieces better as they related to construction sites and factories. However, some pieces of work were displayed on the floor which made me view them from an organic point of view as the materials used were natural. Throughout the trip i constantly took lots of photographs capturing the pieces of work from different angles and points for instance low points, high points, close ups and landscape focus. With these photographs i will be able to use them for my sketchbook and work more into them from my perspective. I felt i was able to capture more from the sculpture park as i had natural light and the quality on the sculptures from outside were amazing.Also the Gallery focused on more of Caro's smaller pieces of work and were great for close up's.

Overall, I found Caro's work in both galleries both unique and interesting as all the pieces of art expressed individual inequality, also similarities with the types of materials that were used. I found some of the pieces work mysterious in a way as they had hidden details you couldn't just look at it from one angle there were loads of angles needed to been seen with different details and interests of the piece of art. The trip gave me some inspiration for my upcoming project with evidence being shown throughout my sketch book.

End of project Evaluation-"hands on"

Throughout the “photography hands on project” I have used photographic experimental application to explore characteristics of a wide range of visual language by showing hands in different ways for each individual characteristic. To use visual language we explored the “principles” and “elements” of design and key terminology from the workshop. The key words in the principles include pattern, contrast, emphasis, balance, proportion/scale, harmony and rhythm/movement. The key words in the elements include colour, line, shape, texture, form, space and value. We used visual language by describing all three elements above through our glossary pages and presenting them through images of hands that relate to the definitions of each key word. By creating my own definitions as a visual image made me understand the key term better than the actual definition. I used visual language also by producing 19 glossary pages that have images taken by myself in the photography studio and edited myself on Photoshop at first I found it quite difficult to use this type of media because it was my first time using it but as I made progress and the five weeks went along I was capable to teach myself as well as Victoria my instructor teaching me skills that would be more effective for the project. I have also been able to visually use visual language in the workshop tasks to complete each workshop outcome to relate to key terminology.    

I feel learning about terminology and producing a glossary has improved my English skills in different ways, as producing a glossary I have learnt different meanings for each individual words for both principles and elements. Also throughout each day of going through the project I have wrote on my blog: lala-2010.blogspot.com about the workshops I took part in and the keys words that we were given to also produce a glossary sheet out of. From writing about my workshops has allowed me to use me literacy skills because without having to summarise my workshops and glossary pages I would forget key skills in English that are needed every day. For research I produced both primary and secondary, primary being my own images where I took them in the photography studio where I work every Wednesday with my instructor Victoria. Where we look at different lighting and look at different angles, also including different backgrounds seeing what lightings work best. Ever Wednesday we focus on a different lighting technique used for portraiture and I myself get to be the photographer as well as modelling. Secondary research is photos from a different research source for instance I created a Pinterest board called ‘hands’ and got all my secondary images from there but when it came to drawing secondary images I simply search hands on google and found drawings more my style. My research was very effective during this project as it gave me inspiration for my glossary sheets and sketch book work also.   

In each individual workshop I have learnt many new skills and techniques, some I have never heard of and some I had never tried. Firstly, photography my main forte and what I am studying. In the workshop photography I learnt about the main aspects of manual settings being: Shutter speed(self-explanatory): Which is in simple terms the shutter at the front of the camera what focuses on the object or area you are taking a picture of, for instance on the camera the shutter is open when your finger puts pressure on the button. Aperture (opening): The aperture is basically an opening, hole, or gap. So for example the larger of the opening the more light is passed through but the depth of field will be smaller, where as if the opening is small there is less chance that the light will pass through. ISO (quality of light): The camera's ISO setting is its sensitivity to light. The higher the ISO, the more sensitive it is. Exposure:  A photograph's exposure determines how light or dark an image will appear when it's been captured by your camera. As well as learning all the manual settings we were taught lighting techniques such as high key lighting and low key. Every week I have a one to one photography session with my instructor Victoria as because there are only two students doing photography including myself we don’t get that much time to focus on our actual course. We focus on our portraiture and the lighting that can be used when taking a portrait photograph of someone and the lighting that we have learnt so far that can be used for it is: Rembrandt lighting and butterfly lighting. The “Rembrandt lighting” is a type of lighting that is popular because it is capable of producing images which appear both natural and compelling with a minimum of equipment. You will be aware when Rembrandt lighting is at work as you will see a triangle shape underneath the subject’s eye, also for the triangle to appear the light should be placed above the subjects head almost at the side of the subject also. This lighting is mainly used with a dark background and depending on the lighting it may turn out either lighter or very dark. Whereas when using “butterfly lighting” there is always a light background Butterfly lighting is one of the oldest techniques and types of lighting used in photography for lighting a subject. It is named butterfly lighting because when taking a photograph a butterfly-shape shadow should form underneath the subject's nose; this setup is a proven method to ensure your subject is well-lit in a pleasing manner.

The next workshop, ceramics, I learnt many different skills that I quite enjoyed doing. I learnt techniques such as how to avoid air bubbles in clay so that when you have made your model it will not explode in the kiln, how to mould for instance me final idea was to make a mould of my hand so that it had all the texture and detail an actual hand its self would have. During the process of moulding you have to cautious that it wont burn or damage your skin so you have to put either hand cream or Vaseline so that in protects your skin. After ceramics i was introduced to 3D which i didn't in particular enjoy it as other workshops as it was not my forte but considering it wasn't, i did learn new key words such as abstract. i had already done a little of 3D in GCSE for product design where we have to mess around with flat pack and when it came to creating our designs we have to slot card together to create our models and also the final piece. As I found it quite hard my final piece wasn't as creative at i wanted it to be. Next workshop was print making, which i quite enjoyed with my instructor jess. I learnt techniques that i'd never done before which was lino cutting where you create a design either just a design or on the shape of a hand on a lino using a lino blade. These workshops were incredibly effective for my photography work as with my ceramics model i was able to create shadows and also great quality as when it came to editing it on Photoshop, i used to sharpen tool which gave it emphasis. Moving on to 3D using my final model in the studio allowed me to create harmony and form by using white on white aswell as creating a motion that the model was a waving hand. Bare in mind with print making as it was only lino i was limited to things i could do photography-wise but i was able to create a emphasised image by allowing the lines to be brighten and the background to be darkened. My last workshop was textiles, which as it was on the deadline not many key terms were explained through the process but we did get taught methods throughout the workshop which were: screen printing, batik, puff binding and heat press. 

In the process of my workshops most of my out comes came out unexpectedly better than i imagined, but on workshops such as print making it was quite hard to make it look perfect considering the tools were not that accurate to use. Once ink was applied to the lino and printed onto cartridge paper the pattern was more effective rather than the actual cut out itself, but some of the pattern was not cut out to how i wanted it to be as it was my first time it was bound to happen no one is perfect the first time. Where as in my ceramics workshop, which was by far one of my favourite workshops that was set as i got to experiment with plaster for my final piece which was quite extraordinary. By moulding my hand it gave me final piece emphasis and effection as all the detail from my hand was moulded into the mould just how i wanted it. But i did discover difficulties during my time in ceramics as when i had to leave the clay to dry out i took it out of storage to take a photo and because it was so fragile without me knowing i laid it onto the table and the fingers collapsed but i was able to apply slit onto the fingers to re-join them and now it is secure ready to be fired into the kiln. One workshop outcome i wasn't expecting to go down well was 3D as i didn't enjoy it due to it not being my cup of tea, but the outcome was unexpectedly creative. It was made to look like a motion of a waving hand which it did but also looked like a chandelier. The textile outcomes were very effective but very easy to do as all three were simple. Batik was a wax method which was similar to drawing in a way but it standing out as the wax dried. Screen printing where depending on the ink colour and what fabric, the method was easy, also buff binding was the same method as screen printing except you use a heat gun at the end.

Overall i think all of my portfolio of photographic images and work along side it, is effective as i have used all my skills on Photoshop to create, creativity and imagination. I also think it has presented my skills, knowledge and the understand of the project itself, through all the work that has been produced on the outcomes of workshops as well as glossary sheets. i believe my glossary sheets are effective in my portfolio of work because it presents a true understand of the key terminology by using a camera to produce such meanings, also how it expresses my imagination and creativity. Throughout the project i have come to terms with is that i need to manage my time efficiently and effectively as towards the end i was rushing to get everything done. It has learnt me also that when you do a piece of work try and get it finished because every little thing counts towards it all by the end What i have noticed is that i had a few bits and pieces that weren't finished to great quality so this is a number one tip i will bare it mind. 

Throughout the project we explored the elements of creativity and how creativity is presented through both art work and photographic images. We also learnt about how creativity is measured, where about the it is presented in a specific environment. To identify and get a image in our heads of what "creativity" was we were set a task to work in a group and by putting all our ideas together get an image of what creativity is. Throughout the project we have explored creativity in many ways by taking part in workshops and creating a piece of work that defines a word and our glossary sheets which by creating these we showed creativity by making our glossary sheets into meanings so that they spoke for themselves. I feel like i have improved my creativity remarkably well as i have learnt new techniques and skills which allowed me to use my individual ideas and show more of my creative side.