Uni Talk

Student Life

So, I'm not the typical student. I haven't moved away, or chosen a big well known institute or even been to freshers.
That's because I don't feel like a student, I feel like I have been a student, partying and studying and being skint. I currently work roughly 18 hours a week and in uni roughly 16 hours a week. Leaving me with either no time  or no energy to do much else. If anything I feel like an pensioner!

Well there's my little moan for the day!

Now let us get down to the week's a
Life drawing - Enjoying it, you can just chill an get on with it. Yes there's a naked woman stood in front of you but after a while you don't even think about her being naked! An I'm finally starting to get the proportions right so she doesn't have creepy short legs!

 

Art History - Well the pictures say it all really. I struggle to pay attention therefore leading to some interesting but ultimately not helpful notes.

Digital Art - Had one lesson, couldn't use photoshop, printed a picture. Then copied and stylised said picture. Not much to say but here is an unfinished piece anyway! (Caravaggio - The Incredulity of Saint Thomas)

Studio Work - I'm not actually sure what our project is called but it's been kinda random to tell you the truth! Drawing several pictures of different places then placing them together to make a large unusual picture. We have just started to make sculptures from our drawings. It's all very abstract and strange, I'm not really sure that I like it yet!

N

No, I Haven't Died

No I haven't died or slipped into a coma or disappeared into another universe. I have been incredibly busy (sort of) with my combination of uni and working. And although I did finish uni for the summer back in May, I decided I wanted to move out AND start some pharmacy training. So I have kinda had a lot going on!

Anyway, my next few posts will be art and uni related. I let you get a feel for the craziness I decided to commit to last semester! Be warned, there will be blood, and organs and zombies. Not to mention a few other weird and unusual things! I extensively researched the uncanny for these projects! So enjoy =)

So this was my main project this semester. I looked at anatomy, it started off looking at anatomy and medicine throughout history but ended up being far more surreal and experimental. Take a look at my journal, a documentation of my work throughout the semester.

W/C 20^th January

This week I looked at xrays, and began to create my own studies. I produced sketches of the skeleton, I used tea stained paper to create and old look to my drawings of the skeleton.

I then decided to create my own xrays using transparent sheets, for this I used xrays from the internet and printed them onto the transparent sheets. I then used marker pens to sketch out my own style of xrays on transparent sheets.

W/C 27^th January

This week I began to look at organs and other body parts, I made sketches of a heart and a lung using the tea stained paper again. I then moved on to trying a 3D approach, using gelatine as my medium and a hand as my subject. I used a rubber glove to get the hand shape. The end result was successful although I did lose a few fingers upon removing the hand from the glove! I got around this by reattaching them with cocktail sticks.

However, this was not the only problem I encountered with the gelatine. I realised that as a food product, it was easily perishable and after a few days it began to go mouldy. It seemed a good analogy of the delicacy of human life and the decaying of the human body.

W/C 3^rd February

This week I looked at body parts again, this time I used my own body to create images, more specifically my hands and my feet. I used a photocopier to make it look like my hands and feet were pressing against glass, giving a trapped look. I liked the amount of detail I could show using the photocopier, this surprised me as I thought they images would be more blurred.

W/C 10^th February

This week I purchased surgical equipment to recreate a surgery. I will buy varies bits of meat to pose as a human body and will document it via photographs and film.

 

W/C 24^th February

This week I looked into creating videos using my theme, firstly I created fake blood video and then a one focused on my eye. I filmed these videos in my home on my phone, I like that they are close up and low quality videos this gives a rough look.

Help 

Who’s Watching 

W/C 3^rd March

Developing on my idea from 10^th February, I looked at an actual heart, I bought lambs hearts and photographed them. I then began to dissect them and study the insides. Next I sewed them up in different ways, I used a simple needle and thread for a rough look. I filmed the whole process and edited the videos adding different filters and music to create different effects.

I felt a little uneasy at first, cutting up the hearts as I was concerned what people would think but after a while I got stuck in and really enjoyed myself.

Later I got an idea of using my own body with the heart; I created what looked like a chest wound on myself and photographed myself in different poses with the heart. I had great fun creating these images and thoroughly enjoyed the challenge of trying something different.

 Heart                         

Heart

W/C 10^th March

This week I looked at my heart photos from last week and used photo shop software to edit them to create interesting and strange looks.

                                           

W/C17th March

Study week in Nice, France.

During this week I spent time viewing museums and galleries in Nice. Such as the Marc Chagall Museum, the Matisse Museum, and the Museum of Modern Art, I also visited the Picasso Museum in Antibes.

Although this week I have not produced any physical work, it has given me some ideas to further my product.

W/C 24^th March

This week, I found my self stuck for ideas and realised after doodling for a while that I could use the doodles in my work. I had created zombie sketches; from these doodles I began to think about the decaying human body and the deterioration of flesh.  I reproduced these sketches on my digital tablet using a sketching app. I hadn’t used the app before and it was surprisingly easy to use and learn.

              

W/C 31^st March

Following my mid module review, I am now looking towards using my dark humour in my work. I decided to create adverts style pieces of work using my heart photos from previous week; I like the use of satire and macabre themes within my work. When showing these pieces to others I liked the fact they got such a range of reactions from comedy to disgust.

    

W/C 7^th April

After looking at surrealist/dada films, I was inspired to create my own film in this style. Keeping my anatomy theme, I got pieces of meat and filmed myself seemingly eating them raw, it was a strange way of working. I kept clips short and simple, and then during editing I added sound clips to make the video even stranger, almost comical.

Meat  

W/C 28^th April

Since creating my heart video, I keep a heart in a jar. The intention was to document its decay, however despite its 2 months in a jar without any preservatives it has hardly changed in appearance. The only real change I can see the draining of the juices and a few blood clots.