Evaluation:

Evaluation:

'History always constitutes the relation between a present and its past. Consequently fear of the present leads to mystification of the past'John Berger, Ways of Seeing

I began this project with the aims to explore history within objects, colliding the past and present, moving between  3D and 2D and creating a 'Moment' in an image. I have found the concepts and process of this project very interesting as I have been moving forward from the last project. Through experimentation of drawing, collage and photography I have created a body of work in which holds emotion and I am proud of. I have utilised Photoshop and digital print to sophisticate my work and take the research further, as soon as I began to experiment with different fabrics and risk take they began to lend themselves to a female fashion scarf outcome. 

 At the beginning I was confused as whom my work was for but I overcame these issues and became to acknowledge and embrace I am an image maker and each image or collection I create can be for a different context. Through contemporary and more historical contextual research I have understood that my work I have created for Unit X is appropriate for Women's scarf fashion, selling in a high end shops

I have found my strengths in this project have been image making, using my camera to take initial primary research (photographs) and then using objects I have a historical connection too. My image making is my main strength and refining a skill in focusing and selecting the right image is something I have achieved through digital sophistication and experimenting with up scaling my work to A1 and A0. My colour pallet has been inspired by the photographs and scans I have taken of the objects, this enabled me to keep focus throughout the project on creating the right Moment and collision within each sample as the colour was naturally occurring.

Overall as a textile artist this project has advanced my sophistication, technical skills and an eye for arrangement and placement. I have learnt that it is important to have an audience and context in mind for each collection or images I create. Collaboration was unsuccessful for my own work as I lost ownership but with help and advice for my website collaborating was a positive.

I have created a 3 collections of women's high end fashion scarves (6 designs) and a selection of artist books in which each collections images are held for inspiration.

My future intentions is to, print my final designs of business cards in time for degree show and to secure a work placement at a high end retailer on the design team and continue sophisticating and experimenting my personal practice on the side.

Week 8: Monday 19th May: Final week of UNIT X

Week 8: Monday 19th May:

Final week of UNIT X

My current website link to achieve a larger audience and give my work a more outward facing approach.I am hoping to continue with a textile career after university and  by having a website I can reach a larger audience. Collaborating with the Graphic Design student was much more of a success for the website rather than editing my prints. It has enabled me to learn new techniques and be selective with the images I choose.
http://lois-mnorman.wix.com/loisnor


Final 6 designs for scarf prints. 3 different collections containing 2 prints each. (30inch by 30inch)



My scarves have been made inspired by historic objects I have collected within my family home, colliding the past and present, old and new creating that 'moment' within and focusing on a reliving an old mark or detail.

collection 1: taken from direct scans from books, edited on Photoshop.

Collection 2: direct scans from pieces of Parquet flooring. edited in Photoshop
  

Collection 3: direct scans from an old Elasoplast tin. Edited in Photoshop.

My scarves are ideal for high end women's fashion, selling in shops like Harvey Nichols, Fortnum and Mason and Libertys of London. I have recently contacted Libertys of London and considering going to one of their open days in which they see up and coming new designers or artists to select for their new season.

                      

Having previous work placement at Harvey Nichols I feel it gave me an insight into the client. My scarves has been costly and the type of female client that will shop at high end stores will be wanting something contemporary and individual, price is no object over quality and uniqueness.

My life after university is something I have been considering approaching  companies like the above to sell my designs too. Initially I do not want to be freelance as I feel there is no regular income. I would like to work on a design team or buying team within the more bespoke companies like Fortnum and Mason (companies which have history). I have created a physical portfolio of my paper prints / samples and a website for  an online presence. Creating a portfolio, blog and website  has enabled myself to select and edit my work in the best way possible being selective and choosing the 'right' image or images for each page.                                                                  

Week 7: Monday 12th May 2014 UNIT X

Week 7: Monday 12th May 2014

THE COLLECTIONS SO FAR AND CREATING A NEW COLLECTION.

Working towards the ending of unit X i have been focused on creating  3 collections based on colliding moments of history with objects I have collected from my family home. As previously featured I have been creating image based samples for my first collection using my grandfathers books. These are steeped in history, from how old they are, the handwriting and marks, the books have lived through generations to tell a tale.

For my second collection I have used pieces of parquet flooring from my family home, my mother and father dug each piece of Edwardian parquet out of our sitting room floor 30 years ago and it has been stood in the garage ever since. Similar to my grandfathers books each item or collection of items I have chosen contains history and a past. Each mark left in the pieces of flooring has been made by someone. It has been my inspiration to make them beautiful again in a new way colliding the past and present, revealing and concealing each mark that has been made.

My third collection I have collected some old tins again from my family home, these tins are from custard powder tins to old type writer ink tins. I have been working with these in a similar process, scanning in, moving and arranging. Using the tins on the scanner became difficult I began to read the object as a whole image and it was not having the desired effect. (see image below)

I had to rethink my own ideas and concepts of the project to make this new collection work. Rather than scanning in the whole object, i began to scan in part of the tin and created collisions with several tins. (see image below) It became an image again like collection 1 and 2 focusing on the history, marks and cracks that had been created. with some more developement work this was to be my final collection.

Inspired by artists like Candy Jernigan and her artist book EVIDENCE. She creates a new book a collection of found objects. Her object choice is very different to mine, she collects waste bus tickets, road kill, anything that is deemed as rubbish. But the same idea occurs in both of our work, the idea of transforming an old or unused object into new works of art. colliding the  past and present.

The Daily Scrap book.(1991) Candy Jernigan: Evidence. [online] [Accessed 11th May 2014] http://www.thedailyscrapbook.com/entry.html?id=93

In addition I have been working on some Business cards for my Exhibition, this is a sideline project and something I will refine and  I will professionally print them  in the build up to degree show. Below I have some simple examples of ideas of what they could look like.

Week 7: Monday 12th May 2014 UNIT X

Week 7: Monday 12th May 2014

UNIT X

This week I have once again been experimenting in Photoshop, with my scans. Over the course of the project I have created in total about 200 or so images / prints. I have chosen my 6 final digital prints to be printed on a crepe de chine fabric. Timing is essential at the moment and I have put the Prints in on Tuesday to be hopefully ready by Friday. In which in the final week I will over lock and take photos of. I have decided on a SQUARE scarf style and print 30 inches by 30 inches for technical reasons as the objects I scanned were small, creating a long scarf stretched the image and some of the text too much. I have been inspired by Hermes and their more traditional shape scarf as a square rather than a rectangle, in addition Hermes use objects as inspiration for their scarves, from buckles, to belts.


Hermes, (2014) Hermes: Exceptional Scarves. [online] [accessed 10th May 2014] http://uk.hermes.com/woman/carres-exeptionnels/s-scarf-exeptionnal-scarves-61283.html

I have concluded that I will be displaying the prints in an Artist Book, either A3 or A2. I have been experimenting with a selection of different papers to choose from for the final book.
And been creating the final book whilst my final 6 scarf samples are sent to print.

The cream cartridge paper is most suited to all my digital samples and is in keeping with my concept and  the original objects and books I scanned in. I have also received some advice from book binding and to be able to create a book. A3 is more of a cost effective size and I can add too / change accordingly for exhibition. The pages I have selected are a taster of each collection, wood floor, books and tins.

Week 6: Monday 5th May 2014 UNIT X

WEEK 6: Monday 5th May 2014
UNIT X

I have sent two of my large scale A1 paper prints to be digitally printed onto fabric this week, the results have been fantastic, the colour quality is exactly the same as the original image and draped and placed delicately they become alive and really evoke emotion of history and trace of memory/  past.

 I have worked with old objects creating something new but  still preserving and enforcing the history within.

This week I have also been researching some more context textile designers. I am an image based artist but I feel the samples I am producing lend themselves to scarf prints or designs.

I have researched a contemporary designers like Rohka, a married couple whom collaborate and create couture prints inspired by their heritage. 

For the fabric they use silk and digitally print the orginal design and then hand print or flock on top. Each piece is completely individual and finished with stitched borders. 

Liberty of London. (2014) Rohka, Brown Van Dyk Silk twill scarf [online] [date accessed 5th May 2014] http://www.liberty.co.uk/fcp/product/Liberty//Brown-Van-Dyk-Silk-Twill-Scarf/97146