'The Shipley collects craft by British makers that demonstrate innovation, experimentation and technical excellence. The gallery prioritises work which blurs the boundaries between the crafts and other art disciplines.'
Many thought-provoking items on display, and it was very interesting to see the way that traditional craft skills - such as quilting, rug-making - are being re-interpreted in contemporary items.
The development of the Transformation necklace from the starting idea of a cable reel to the finished piece using sewing machine bobbins.
Whilst working on this movie, I was thinking about Richard Serra's comments on his work Band - that, for the viewer as they walk along it, inside and outside are continually exchanging, and that the structure creates new spaces within the architecture of the room.
Similarly, jewellery as body adornment interacts with the surface of the body, and large pieces, especially, change that surface.
I am fascinated by the way Serra's work intrigues viewers: the overall form of his structures can only be appreciated when viewed from above; however, at ground level, the structures have an almost tactile quality that still attracts the viewer to walk all around them, to explore the curves and the hidden spaces close up.
I'd like to create that same attraction and intrigue in my work, whether viewed from a distance or close up.
Reminder - the arches! Now doubled, with mirror image below.
More work on an embellishment which also covers the joints. Tried some aluminium shim (0.6mm thick) with texturing from the rolling mill (sandpaper, different plastic packing tapes, net and metal mesh). Aluminium definitely looks better than copper.
I wrapped the main, central joints. The aluminium is
so soft that I lost the mesh texturing in the process of getting a close fit,
so I redid it using the vice, but it's not as distinct as on the original.
I tried using X-shaped wraps to hold the top of the arches but they kept breaking so I ended up wrapping strips of aluminium instead.
The finished piece. The design works but I'm not sure these are the right materials. The white tape looks right, and there's enough give in the design for the cuff to stretch over the hand, without needing a fastening, but it is not sufficiently flexible when the cuff is being worn. And the aluminium shim is too fragile. If developing this further, I would try translucent tube with sterling silver wire threaded through it to hold the arch shapes, with wrapped silver wire to fix the joints.
The task that always takes me longest - stringing a necklace so it hangs correctly on the body, is balanced (even though the design is slightly asymmetrical) and secure. My first, rough, stringing is OK, the design will work!
What sort of fastening is appropriate? Maybe a button and loop, to maintain the sewing theme ... Or another bobbin? I don't actually have one and it's probably too big. I did think about having needles on the end of the threads (too much!), but that should work as a fastening. Annealed a needle, bent it and polished it (blunting the end, too). Yes, that looks good and is a safe fastener. (Linked needles: an idea for future development.)
I also tried out adding some loops of coloured beading wire from Penny, there were three colours that matched the yarns exactly. Will do that, they're sufficiently simple to keep the line of the stringing and definitely enhance the piece.
Final stringing. I had to add a second, lower, string to stabilise the bobbins.
I'm also thinking about how to finish the threads. Tested how rolled metal tubes on the ends would look but wasn't appropriate to the style of the piece. Try out glues and varnishes.
I keep on thinking about reels, now at the opposite - small - end of the scale. So I've put together sewing machine bobbins, incorporating coloured yarn. Work in progress:
Yesterday I visited the Knitting and Stitching Show. I was very impressed by some of the graduate showcase exhibits and by materialspace.com, particularly liked the re-use of teabags!
Teacloth
Teapot
Then I went on to Metamorphosis: the Transformation of Being. Unfortunately, they'd run out of information sheets, there were no captions or credits on the pieces, and the lighting was not good, so that detracted from what should have been a powerful exhibition. However, I did recognise Tim Noble and Sue Webster's shadow portraits, fascinating and rather gruesome.
