One year on...whats changed?

Photo of my undergrad studio (detail)

I thought it would be interesting to end my blog with some thoughts on what I have gained from doing this MA course. Firstly, I want to compare my degree show work (June 2009) and then this current degree show, produced just over a year later. For my undergraduate degree I produced a work as shown in the image which consisted of latex dipped in melted sugar which was melted to different temperatures in order to produce different consistencies and colour and also added some pigments. The cocoon forms hung from the ceiling, there were 200 of them set in a grid formation. They were set above hundreds of painted egg shells. Over the duration of the show, the sugar due to the humidity reverted back to its liquid form despite having a high level of viscosity. The sugar dripped continuously and smelt incredibly strong. It was a multisensory work and very successful, born from months of experimenting with different recipes and research in how to slow down the humidifying of the sugar in order for it to not disintegrate entirely in one day. The work was about processes and pushing material boundaries and sex and bodily functions.

So... where did I go from there? When I arrived at Edinburgh, it was a very different environment to my previous Uni. I decided to do an MA in order to professionalise my practice more and engage with my sculpture in a different way within a critical community.I was open to my work changing form (which it has) and ready to move onto a more sophisticated level of engagement with my sculpture (again, yes). When I arrived the aim for my work was to achieve a subtle uncertainty in the object; leaving it open to the viewers interpretation (still a concern, maybe achieved?) I also hoped that on completion of an MA I would be even more confident with articulating the wider context of my practice and find the most successful direction possible of expressing my values in my artwork with a high level of expertise and professionalism (for me this has been achieved).Still interested in the multisensory and materials (particularly ephemeral) and investigating sculpture I made use of the research facilities as well as started off by continuing my little experiments in my studio but found the space quite difficult to work in so my work undoubtedly was affected by this. I went on to produce an ambitious work for my project space in February. This consisted of 1 tonne of forest mulch and casts of my breasts and strawberries, made into mushrooms/fungi which was installed in the project space room of the college. I then went on to complete a three week long residency in Chicago where I produced the work entitled Calcareous, based on the architectural history of the city. I also learnt printmaking, a technique I had not previous had the opportunity to experience, and produced a print as part of a group show. After this point, for the first time in almost 3 year I picked up a paintbrush again and drew and produced more two-dimensional pieces. I think I needed a little reflection from sculpture and explored another form for a while, a positive move I think. Following this, we moved into our new spaces (hooray!) and I started to start thinking about the impending degree show. Not having the ability to complete a work I was planning due to technical difficulties led to me to go back to my usual preoccupation of experimenting with things to hand.

I have realised how important this stage of making is to my practice as a whole. Experimentation has always been key. See image of my undergraduate studio and my postgrad (although to be fair, looking at my undergrad one is a little bit stressful..maybe I've become slightly more tidy!) But this time, rather than develop one thing I had been playing with in my studio into a bigger and monumental installation, I have very naturally used my intuition to create works which stem from the original experimentation but have a very different, more controlled and considered outcome. I am pleased with my progress this year...let’s see what the future holds.