Cardboard Catwalk

The cardboard catwalk took place at the Manchester School of Art for the fifteenth consecutive year and was based on the theme of  'The Odd Couple' -  this was because the two processional outfits/ wearable garments/ objects that we were making (entirely out of cardboard) were influenced by one pre 1950's artists and one post 1950's artists- our pre 1950's artist was Henri Matisse and our post 1950's artist was Cai- Guo- Qiang

We worked in groups of six, and resarched out artists first. Three people researched Cai Guo Qiang and three of us researched Henri Matisse.

This is my Research summary sheet for Matisse:

Here are some photographs of our two models
on the catwalk!!

The Cai-Guo-Qiang inspired, explosive cardboard dress

The Henri Matisse inspired cardboard mime/performer

Measured and linear Drawing Workshop

On the final day of the drawing week, we learnt how to draw an accurate, measured drawing. We also drew quick linear drawings, these are useful for documenting a place, someone or something and also enable quick recognisation of objects/people/places.

Our task was to draw 8-10 of the pet projects that were on display around the studios. The purpose of this task was to make our drawings useful for someone who had never seen the pets before to be able to find them by using the drawings as a guide or thumbnail image.

Below are some photographs of my drawings:

Text, Signs and Symbols Project

This was a self- directed weekend project that we were set and was about exploring text, signs and symbols around us. These factors could have been noticed on a journey or in relation to a person or a significant object. I decided to explore the texts, signs and symbols that I noticed on a journey through manchester. I noted down how I recognised certain buildings and how I remembered a facts about them- things such as where the building was situated. I also noted down all the signs and symbols that I came across through this jouney.

I photographed places and locations that significant to me and then edited them in photoshop, inserting text that explained where and what I felt during the journey through manchester.

These are a few examples of the compositions that I put together. I made around thirty compositions and then put my favourites together to make a tapestry which symbolises my journey.

The Final Piece

Drawing Week- Day Two

3D Drawing Workshop

Photographs of work

This a drawing that I did of an arrangement of chairs in my kitchen . I drew this using a fineliner pen and decided to draw the arrangement as I perceived it, this included the shadows, the way in which the shadows of the legs of the chair crossed over and some of the detail of the chair, such as the stitching on the seat and around the back of the chair. This is an A2 sized drawing.

Drawing Week Two- Day One

During the second week of the drawing lab, we learnt to draw from the moving image; this was an extremely interesting and fun workshop- I learnt so much and although it was challenging at times it was incredibly useful. I found that I wanted to draw a certain snapshot or section from the moving image clip but I would miss details when it changed- this was just one of the challenges- the other was getting the correct colours and media to hand in time to paint or draw what I was seeing. Being pressured for time only made my work more expressive and free and I really enjoyed the workshop.

Photographs of my work

Performative Drawing Week- Day Three

On the third day of the performative drawing week we explored colour and pigments. We collected materials and substances that we could extract colour from and documented these on an A1 sheet of paper. I found that you could get colour from practically anywhere- outside, earth materials and pigments such as mud, grass, and clay that artists have been painting with for decades and centuries; in the kitchen, spices and food colouring, fruit and vegetables; in the bathroom, cleaning equipment and solutions, bleach and all sorts. We learnt that pigments are primarily animal, mineral and vegetable based. I was fascinated by this workshop because it reminded me of how the ancient Egyptians were famous for their exploitation and experimentation of colour- the make-up industry was inspired from this ancient civilization and had it not been for them, it perhaps would not exist now.

Photographs of my work

This image you see here is of an A1 sheet with three paintings of my pet project on it, these paitings were done using the colours and pigments that I mixed together and so are all alternative paiting media.

Performative Drawing Week- Day Two

On the second day of the performative drawing week (Tuesday 4th October) we brought in loads of material that we could make drawing tools and implements from. Things like washing line pegs, leaves, paper clips and sponges because drawing utensils. We made ten tools which we could then experiment with- we created as many different lines from one tool as we could and documented them on an A1 sheet of cartridge paper.

Here are some photographs of the materials and bits that I made my tools from and the finished tools:

This is what my 'Lines and Marks Sheets' look like:

After we created as many different lines and marks from the tools as we could, we drew one of our tools using the lines we had just experimented with to create. We were asked to choose the most unusual lines from the sheet and to combine a thick and thin line to draw our tool.

This is what my tools sheet looks like:

These are the different marks that I accidentally made whilst drawing with the ink- although they were unplanned I thought they were beautiful and so photographed them and kept them.