Thursday 2 February 2012

show and tell...

i had my first exhibition today... well, more of a viewing of everyone's art medals from silversmithing + jewellery and environment art + sculpture. so, i suppose it was an exhibition!

it was great to see the medals displayed together although, each group was slightly intimidated by the quality of the other, they were all fantastic but hey, the grass is always greener!

i had to explain what my medals represented and the meanings behind them...

two

two thousand metres
two hundred years
two minutes

this medal is a response to the environmental effects of over fishing in scottish waters
we have rare and precious coral reefs off the north west coast of scotland which lie some 2000 metres below sea level and can take centuries to form. however, they can be destroyed in just minutes by deep sea fishing

i was inspired by a trip to the hunterian museum where there was coral on display with the most wonderful cellular patterns. it was of course tropical coral and there were story boards explaining how much of the tropical reefs we are losing due to environmental factors. this reminded me that we have coral here too and i thought of the coral beach in skye which led me to research deep water coral in scottish waters, i found two areas of significance, the rockall bank and the darwin mounds it is called lophelia

the wax i used was quite soft and squishy so i was able to achieve an organic texture on the outside that cast quite well, and a deep pattern on the inside resembling the surface of the coral i studied.
the pebble shape represents the the sea and the protection it provides,
it opens to reveal one half that is alive and growing, the other half is eroding and dying


tidal treasure

this represents a stack of sea worn, eroded limpets and is a tribute to my childhood growing up by the sea

i used a much harder wax for my limpets, they cast really well
if i am involved in the art medal project next year (which i hope i am)
i know that this would be my choice of wax



later on i went to the glasgow print studio to see an exhibition called resonance by papermaker jacki parry. jacki was head of printmaking at gsa between 1991 and 2001 but the reason i know about her is through her papermaking protege alison newman of pulp. i have attended a couple of workshops with alison where she taught me how to make paper solely from plants. this is one of the coolest things i can do, i love making paper and hope i will return to it one day soon.

while i was at trongate 103 there was also a photographic exhibition at street level photoworks called what presence! the rock photography of harry papadopoulos and features lots of scottish bands and singers such as edwin collins and even peter capaldi in his art school band, and bigger artists like blondie and david bowie. although its not my era, i really enjoyed the photos and the way they led me around the room, i liked the display it reminded me of the way i display cards and pictures on my own wall... memories.


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