Preparation and Designation of groups

This was a group exhibition during the beginning of the 2nd fall term. At the onset of preparing for this exhibition we all gathered into different groups to set the multitude of tasks that lay before us. Since I participated in the curation team earlier this year in our 1' show at Chelsea I decided t for this exhibition to participate in the Finance Team. Our group met up a number of times before we broke for summer. We made lists of what we might need money for and designated tasks for how we would raise funds. A priority was obtaining funds from everyone on the course during over the summer. This was somewhat difficult but in the end we arrived at the amount needed. To look at options for funding Andrea and I met with a gentleman named Rory at Canary Wharf to discuss the contractors scheme and how this might be a possibility to get sponsorship for the exhibition. I called Majestic to get suggestions on what we should order for our event. I gathered information on how many bottles per head, costs of glass hire, and payment information. We worked well as a group and stayed in constant communication throughout the summer. 

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Research and planning

for my piece for the exhibition was a challenge. I wanted to respond to the architecture of the crypt and St. Pancras church. I also was interested in the fact that people who were buried at the crypt were people of “means” I visited the crypt a few times over the summer to take pictures of the interior and exterior. I researched online about the construction of the church and crypt. Also, my interest in textiles led me to the Victoria & Albert museum to research fabrics and textile techniques used during the time that the crypt was in use. Even though the piece had to be site specific I wanted be consistent with my practice of working in the extended field of painting and sculputre. I was trying to figure out how to add the fabric element by keeping it minimal. I also had to take into consideration that it would be damp and cold in the crypt and the materials that I chose needed to be weather-proof. I experimented with materials in new ways: pool floaties, spray paint, and wax. I had to figure out how I wanted to incorporate wax, paint and fabric. I used a textile technique of hand needle felting and for the colourful silk-fibres.  I coloured the wax with oil paints embedded the fibres into the wax. It wasn't perfect but I really liked how it turned out and I'm glad I experimented with a new process. The decision to experiment and make a floor piece was because of the limited ways to fix our artwork to the walls of the crypt. I also wanted to start making my work over the summer because I knew once school started there was limited time between start of term, making in the workshops, and the exhibition. With this in mind since my work has been in the past heavily dependent on using woodwork or metal shop I devised another way of making my forms and could add the finishing touches once I had access to the workshops.  Allowing the curation team to make decisions on where my piece would be displayed was a big effort of letting go on my part. I am continuing to grow and relinquish some control of my work and have faith in the power of collaborative efforts. With that being said I felt it imperative that I be very detailed and communicate how my piece should be handled. I took photographs and gave written instructions. I've never done that before and was nervous as to the outcome. I was very pleased with the overall exhibition and I liked how my piece was displayed.

 

Private View and Invigilation

During the Private view I spent most of my time helping out behind the bar with Emily and Sarah. I took moments to talk to guests about our individual works and the show as a whole. We each took turns invigilating and this gave us more time to speak to guests about our work and answer any questions.