Exploring line further

I have been experimenting with my line photos and editing them in different ways in order to focus on line. I have been trying to change them so they are not seen so much in terms of subject matter but more in terms of the elements that make up the subject - in this case, the lines. I have also tried to create different versions with different types of lines. Here are some of the results:

Reflections on Wayfaring

In my reflections on the various readings related to /references to wayfaring, I was struck by how open this methodology is and how many possibilities are generated through this approach. It is very generative in that one idea will lead to others and they in turn will lead to others. It is up to the researcher to choose which route to pursue.

I created a painting along this theme using Brushes on the iPad. Below is my sketchbook page, finished piece and a video file of the painting so you can see how it was painted.

Street Art: Daichendt's voice thread

Street art, by its positioning in the public domain, requires a response from the passer by. It often causes us to look again, to reflect and see something we have always seen in a new way. The familiar is often largely invisible; street art can make it strange and interesting again and articulate a wide range of ideas, concepts, complexities and contradictions. For example:

A gallery piece by Banksy that makes the familiar new and causes you to look again!

And a preliminary street art sketch that really made me think about my own attitudes and those of the western society as a whole. Very thought provoking:

One of the most thought provoking street art projects I know of was where an anonymous French street artist called JR took photographic portraits of Palestinian and Israli people of different occupations. He then paired them up and pasted 2 large portraits of taxi drivers / teachers / shop keepers/ etc (one Palestinian and one Israli) in different locations either side of the border. The artist and his team then observed reactions and discussed the works with passers by - nobody could tell who was Palestinian and who was Israli, they were just 2 faces of 2 people doing the same job. But there was so much animosity as soon as the label of nationality was placed over them. Very interesting stuff. Watch the TED talk - it is fascinating.

Images of Banksy's artwork are photographs I took when visiting an exhibition he held in Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery in 2009.

JR, 2011. TED talk: Use Art to Turn the World Inside Out. [online] Available at: [Accessed Oct 2011].

Pirrie & Brown presentation

Here are some of my initial thoughts on the Pirrie and Brown (2011) presentation followed by my summary of how it relates to research practices for the Artist Teacher:

This presentation and powerpoint linked in very well with Ingold’s work from focus 1 with a key theme being that “Wherever you are there is always somewhere further you can go.” (Ingold, 2007, p. 91). Pirrie and Brown suggested that, in order to be forward thinking, creativity should be a form of improvisation - not always knowing the end point (in terms of timing and content), and not as a direct ‘line’ from intention to output - more of what Ingold describes as a wayfaring line or journey of discovery instead of a connecting line or direct journey between two known points. I feel this must be the underpinning basis to my own arts based research in order for it to be successful and worthwhile and to have an actual impact on my person rather than just be a goal I have achieved.

I thought some of the ideas behind the Polyark project interesting - for example the focus on the exchanging of info and ideas that were freed from the boundaries of location and institution and the liberation of students from their institutions and locations in order to challenge ideas and preconceptions. From personal experience I know the incredible value of getting out and about and visiting different galleries, artists, art spaces and exhibitions of all types of art. I always come back enthused, with new ideas and changed views regardless of personal preferences. In arts based research I think it is vital to, as the Polyark students did, get out of our boxes and engage with art of all genres and types. These engagements can be valuable research tools and formative in directing the path of the wayfaring journey. I have found they are significant in what was described as the ‘generative’ dimension of creativity in that they open up new ideas and lines of enquiry.

The last point from the presentation that I thought was significant was the notion of risk taking and how important this is in true creativity. In our own research I feel it is important for us to push outwith our boundaries and take intellectual risks in order to make connections and move forward in our knowledge and understanding by building on both failure and success.

Ingold, T., 2007. Lines, A Brief History. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge

Pirrie and Brown, 2011. Visual presentation [online on VLE] Available at <http://blackboard.uws.ac.uk/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_1_1].

Additional PolyArk information accessed online at:

http://www.architizer.com/en_us/projects/view/polyark-ii-glasgow/1703/

Exploring line

I have been out and about around my local area with my camera investigating 'line'. Here are some of my photos. I think I will experiment with them in different ways to see how I can transform them into something more interesting... Watch this space!

Line experiments...

I have been doing some experimenting with digital lines using 'Flowpaper'. I love the flowing, swirling line it creates and have enjoyed learning how to manipulate and control it whilst still letting it 'flow'...

Here are some finished paintings:

Ingold: Lines

I found Ingold's (2007) research into "Lines" very interesting and insightful. I found his expositions of wayfaring and connecting lines fascinating and very relevant to my own studies at this point. Click Here to view some of my thoughts as I was reading the chapter. Below is a summary of what I learned & found interesting:

The fact that the Artist Teacher masters course necessitates the development of personal visual arts practise lends itself very much to the wayfaring methodology presented. This approach has, as Ingold (2007, p. 81) describes, “no ultimate destination, no final point with which they are seeking to link up” rather “there is always somewhere further one can go” (p91). At masters level I feel that we should not feel constrained by preconceived ideas of end results in terms of artwork, but rather have the creativity to explore further, discover further and create with the confidence that, at this level, we can make the connections and developments necessary to complete the requirements. It is about creating artists who will continue to develop as much as it is about creating artwork.

Personally, I feel much of the purpose and benefit of the visual arts modules has been to allow me to begin anew the walk of becoming an artist. I have found it very exciting and, as Ingold (2007, p. 76) states, I have discovered “an ongoing process of growth and development” as an artist. When I began the course it was very much as steps or points I could connect together on the way to a qualification. I had undertaken the journey “not for its own sake or for the experience it might afford, but for the sole purpose of witnessing the sights to be seen at my destination” (Ingold, 2007, p. 79). However, one year in, I feel that the real benefit and learning is actually in the experience of art making along the way and all that this is opening up to me. Ingold’s work encouraged me again not to constrain my ideas but to explore and experiment and let the process lead me on.

In terms of the written aspects of the course at this level, I feel it is important to adopt the same approach. We should try not to hold onto preconceived ideas or views, filtering all new knowledge to fit in with these, but rather embrace the fact that our views will change and develop and that avenues of thought will open up for us to explore - we do not need to know all the ‘answers’. As Ingold (2007, p. 88) explains, we should be developing a "professional ordering of reality", where there are "changing horizons along the way".

Ingold, T., 2007. Lines, A Brief History. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge

Statement of Intent

This is my initial Statement of Intent for the VAP2 module. I know it will change but here is the plan...

I intend to further develop and extend my use of digital media in the creation of a range of artworks. Specifically, I aim to experiment with digital photography and moving image work as well as a range of applications on the iPad – including digital painting, collage, text manipulation, etc. I am aiming to develop my skills in the use of these media as well as imaginatively explore the possibilities for creativity they represent.

Thematically, one area I intend to develop is landscapes.

I intend to record and archive my work through the development of a digital sketchbook which documents the process of inspiration through development to finished piece. I intend to include photos, video and recorder files of some works showing a drawing as it is created, stroke by stroke.