My Assessment Design Practice Website

Visit my NEW website, just been published in the web for my assessment. I’m pretty happy with how it turned out even though there were a lot of problems with getting it running.

http://www.isabel-mcdonagh.com

Developed Soluble Work

I’ve been experimenting with the way I will be hanging and displaying my soluble works for my final assessment. Wether or not they will be sewn together, placed together , place apart, pinned on the wall or layed from a plinth. I really like the idea of having they laying as a group on low floor plinths. Heres an example.

Artist statement

As a part of our assessment we are to provide our markers (all 6 of them) with an artist statement/ background overview of our work. Posted below is a copy of my artist statement just to give you an outline of the concepts I have been working with in this final sememster and developing across the year.

Isabel McDonagh

A cell can be considered as an individual article working within a larger form, similarly a single stitch works as a part of a whole piece. By taking smaller building blocks of the natural world and using them as inspiration for a larger artwork I began to use these, usually unseen, forms as motifs. It was the asymmetrical nature of organic form that stimulated an interest in free form expression and how shapes and structures can be considered beautiful without needing to be even, straight or perfect. It is the undisturbed, flawed creation of nature’s own art that has stimulated my interest in studying these forms. I’ve created designs from these by hand, so that human error and imperfection can be seen as a parallel example of the asymmetrical components in nature’s art.

I became interested in beauty in both natural and constructed form. In my work I’m attempting to demonstrate that naturally occurring forms, scientifically considered flawed, are in fact ‘beautiful’ and ‘art’, despite not having had human interference or construction to make them so. Natural forms are not always neat or perfect but also jagged, broken and worn.

I became interested in the colour and vibrancy of forms in their natural habitat and the way they work with other, similar forms, to create larger landscapes. I chose to use a limited colour pallet throughout my work; using greens, purples, as well as black and white. I have used these to signify life, beauty and basic structure and form. A previous interest in biology and cellular forms stimulated curiosity in their representation. I have strived to show these organic and free form structures of natural beauties throughout my work. I have used materials including soluble fabric, thread, silk and methods of loose drawing with the sewing machine, sketching and hand sewing in order to achieve organic shapes. Many of the outcomes of these processes have been the inspiration for large scale prints and lengths of light fabric. The work of other designers addressing similar biological topics in their aesthetics, such as Carole Collet and Rachel Kelly, lent inspiration and guidance to my work. Rachel Kelly’s use of stitch, illuminating the cell like forms of her designs, compelled my research to include the study of scientific reports, photos of microscopic cell forms and structures and my own observation of cells on a microscopic level.

My work questions the cultural meeting point of art vs. science. In my work I find influences of science, through methodology and technical assistance to my artistic process. However, my work also finds the aesthetics within science. In the scientific (rational, based on reason and influenced by observation), I have found the artistic (form, shape, aesthetic beauty). My work shows that this meeting point works both ways, at the same time complementing and contrasting two components of an important relationship.

Prints

Ive decided its about time I posted some of my final prints up. My final assessment is this friday which i’m quite nervous about .. Very nervous about. I’m quite happy with the way my prints have turned out. i’m just hoping i’ve done enough because its hard to know how much is expected of us as 3rd year students. Heres abit of a taste of my work.

Solubles

Over this year i’ve been working constantly with soluble/dissolving material to create uncontrollable natural organic forms. These have been developed from smaller works to larger scale versions. Below are photos of some of the larger more washed out trails i have had with this material.

Printing from old works

On the lead up to my final body of works i had completed a lot of hand embroidery i’ve been working on turning these into interesting prints i will use for my final lengths of material in these last few weeks, here are a few of the original images.

Catalogue Photo

Last week the students of ANU had to submit photo’s of their works to be published in a graduating catalogue for the end of the year. These photo’s were taken by Melissa Camp of close details of my work.

Jeff Soto

Jeff Soto is a painter who uses striking visual imagery, and communicates profound visions and fears, nostalgia of his youth, and themes of love, lust, and hope.this is eveident in his work. his subject matter can often be striking and confronting but with a  distinct color palette, technique and bold themes his style of work really stands out from the rest. Hehas been Inspired by childhood toys, the colorful lifestyle of skateboarding and graffiti, hip-hop and popular culture, Soto’s representational work is simultaneously accessible and stimulating.

His works are a massive inspiration to me as i’m attracted to strong colour and his bold technique. Check his work at www. jeffsoto.com

Contemporary Lace

alot of my inspiration for one of my works, particularly working with soluble material has come from my interest in contemporary lace. I’ve been looking at some fantastic images i have found and i’d like to share them. A collection of then i have found from The New York Times.

Japanese paper

“Washi, quite simply, means japanese paper. There are few remaining producers of authentic japanese paper in Japan, most are made by machine giving them a similar look but without the qualities of the authentic product. Our japanese papers are of the highest quality, making them perfect for all papercraft and archival projects. Japanese paper stationery is our most popular as this is one of the most beautiful craft papers! Please note that dye lots may vary and swatch colours may vary slightly on different computers.”

http://www.finepapers.com.au/japanese-papers.htm?gclid=CIzRzYL8tZ0CFZcwpAod8HlQhQ

The papers are very beautiful and light. I love this kind of weight of paper and the range this company has in thickness, patterns and colours is amazing. Check it out.