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Collaborative Contextual Conversations Masters Degree Show 2015 MFA Contextualised Practice MDES Contextualised Practice
Gray’s School of Art Robert Gordon University
Something about Early on in the session we drove out of the Garthdee campus in one of the University’s minibuses, as it is good to get out. New places are always stimulating; they get people thinking about ideas in fresh and different ways. These places, wherever they are, help us with new perspectives. On this day we travelled to a building, on the opposite side of the River Dee, not far away. It had previously been Maryculter Primary School but was now a space we could use. We gathered a table and what chairs there were, sat down and all laughed. We looked around wondering what had happened here, it was smaller than the school that I had gone to but this place had a recognisable atmosphere. We set up our equipment and notebooks ready to discuss
and share our thoughts and ideas of our research mappings, it indeed felt refreshing to open up a discussion in a place that made an influence on our thoughts and perception of things. Reflecting over the year of the Masters in Contextualised Practice course shows us that all creative practice has its contexts and collaborators. They help to determine and complete the projects and work for all those involved in its development and realisation. Each of the students here, have developed an individual portfolio of creative practice, which has been enhanced by this attention and application to context and
collaboration. Through their individual skills and processes the students have made important connections between creativity and the world around us, by way of social, political, economic and cultural contexts. As their projects evolved throughout the year it became apparent that a unique value of sharing was being generated. This value opened up many possibilities of collaboration with different colleagues, peers, tutors, professionals, mentors and the public, helping the students to develop and resolve their methods and inquiries. Although the initial authorship stays with the student, it is through these collaborations that a collective ownership in the professional and public realm is
the year produced. This process creates a trust between those involved in developing the creative work. In essence therefore, it seems important to recognise that this positive value of sharing and trust generated by the students with their collaborators is clearly integral to the success of their creative practices and projects.
Nil Gulari, Iain Morrison and myself - as well as Fergus Connor, Arts Development Officer at Aberdeenshire Council, Graham Domke, Exhibitions Curator at Dundee Contemporary Art and Donna HolfordLovell, Curator of Fleet Collective and all those involved in the development of their individual projects.
During the course this year the students have engaged in and enjoyed collaborations and conversations with Gray’s School of Art specialist tutors and researchers - Andrea Peach, Annette Murray, Jim Buckley, Keith Grant, Michael Agnew, Dr Jon Pengelly, Charlie Hackett, David Blyth, Dr Jon Blackwood, Chris Freemantle, Dr
Well done to all the students - Anne Murray, Nicole Porter, Giuseppe Pizzo, Nathan Garden, Lauren Milton, Chris Alexander and Jessika Shaw - on their dedication, creativity and professionalism over the year. Iain Irving Course Leader MFA/MDES Contextualised Practice
From Left to Right: Nicole Porter, Chris Alexander, Anne Murray, Nathan Garden, Lauren Milton, Giuseppe Pizzo, Jessika Shaw
Nicole Porter
Masters Exposition Gray’s School of Art January 2015
The MFA was an opportunity to challenge myself and explore an area of my practice, which I was keen to gain a deeper understanding of through a studio-based investigation.
studio self portrait
After completing my undergraduate course, I was awarded a series of residencies in Norway, Paris and New York over a two-year period before returning home in 2010 when I set up my own gallery, The Nicole Porter Gallery at 88 King Street, Aberdeen. Since then I have been running the gallery while painting full time.
My project is focused on the genre of history painting and an investigation into the possibilities that art, in particular painting, has to communicate and represent contemporary historical and political events and ideas. This research has extended into a study of the ability history painting has in today’s society to participate in public debates as well as providing a valuable tool for the documentation of these events for future generations to come. My aim is to capture on canvas the interaction between political elected representatives within the society they represent. Using imagery from current culture and debate to create a painting, which visualizes these links in today’s society through an exploration of contrasting visual languages within the medium of paint. The final painting will be exhibited within the Debating Chamber of Aberdeen City Council’s Town House with the local councilors as the audience. The exhibition will then travel to The Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh at the end of this year.
“Coallusion” oil on canvas 50x20cm
“In The Thick Of It” hung in the Debating Chamber in The Town House, Aberdeen - August 2015
“In The Thick Of It” oil on canvas and perspex 115x75cm
88 King Street, Aberdeen, AB24 5BA 07709123357 nicole@nicoleporter.co.uk
Chris is a Designer, Researcher, Academic and Maker and has worked under the guise of Creo Design for the last 5 years producing work independently and in collaboration with the worlds best Creative Practitioners. Chris has designed, made and manufactured products that have been distributed and sold worldwide. He has also had his work exhibited in Tokyo, Milan, Sydney, Los Angeles, Mexico City, Singapore, Berlin, Edinburgh and London. In addition to his creative practice Chris is a Course Leader and Lecturing in a range of creative specialisms including, Product Design, Interior Architecture, Digital Arts and Model Making, for the last 10 years. Internationally, Chris has Lectured and talked in Germany, Holland and Belgium.
CREOLOGY (cre-o-logy) Derived from the Latin word for Create 'Creo' and Greek word for The Study of (a certain subject) 'logy' - I created 'CREOLOGY' the study of creativity. MASTERS PROJECT AIM With a keen interest in the Maker Culture CREOLOGY (cre-o-logy) CREOLOGY and Collboration as Process, I (cre-o-logy) aim To CREOLOGY (cre-o-logy) Derived from the Latin word for Create produce unique platform, Derived a from the and Latin personal word for Create 'Creo' andword Greek wordStudy for The Study of (a Derived from thethat Latin word for Create ‘Creo’user and Greek for The Element, allows the Curate, subject) 'Creo' and Greek word for certain The to; Study of 'logy' (a - I created of (a certain subject) ‘logy’ - I created ‘CREOLOGY’ the study of 'CREOLOGY' thecreativity. study of creativity. Reflect, Originate and certain Engage subject)and'logy' - I new created existing creativity via of multiple means of 'CREOLOGY' the study creativity. MASTERS PROJECT AIM MASTERS allows PROJECT AIM interaction. Each unique Element the With a keen interest in the Maker Culture and Collboration as interest Process, in I the Maker Culture With a keen user to; draw, paint, write, sculpt, stick, add Collboration as Process, I aim To aim to produce a unique and personal platform,and Element, that allows the and/or subtract just to name a few produce a unique and personal platform, MASTERS PROJECT AIM user to; Curate, Reflect, Engage and Originate new and existing via user to; Curate, Element, that creativity allows the avenues of creative expression. doing Reflect,By Engage andso Originate new and multiple means of interaction. Each unique Element allows the user to; draw, existing creativity via With a keen interest in the Maker Culture an individual can learn more about theirmultiple means of interaction. uniqueofElement allows the paint, write, sculpt, stick, add and/or subtract - just to name aEach avenues and creative Collboration as Process, I few aim To sculpt, stick, add own personality/identity as well as user to; draw, paint, write, creative expression. By doing so an individual canand/or learn more about their own subtract - just to name a few produce a that unique and personal platform, understand of others, asavenues evidenced by of creative expression. By doing so creative personality/identity as well as understand that of others, as evidenced Element, carried that allows user to;Gauntlett Curate, research out the by David an individual can learn more about their by research carried out by David Gauntlett (2007 & 2011) and personality/identity Mihaly own creative as well as Reflect,& Engage and Originate new and (2007 2011) and Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi understand that of others, as evidenced by Csikszentmihalyi (1996). This, in turn, may assist in inspiring new creativity, existing This, creativity multiple means researchin carried out of by David Gauntlett (1996). in turn,via may assist inspiring curating ideas, forging new collaborations as well(2007 as fostering existing & 2011) andrelations. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi interaction. Each uniqueideas, Element allows the new creativity, curating forging new (1996). This, in turn, may assist in inspiring new creativity, curating user to; draw, as paint, sculpt, stick, addideas, forging new collaborations wellwrite, as fostering existing as well as fostering existing and/or subtract - just tocollaborations name a few relations, relations, avenues of creative expression. By doing so an individual can learn more about their own creative personality/identity as well as understand that of others, as evidenced by research carried out by David Gauntlett (2007 & 2011) and Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (1996). This, in turn, may assist in inspiring Website: www.creology.net new creativity, curating ideas, forging new www.facebook.com/creodesign Facebook: Instagram: @creodesign collaborations as well as fostering existing Twitter: @creodesign relations, Project blog: csadesign.wordpress.com Website: www.creology.net Facebook: www.facebook.com/creodesign Instagram: @creodesign Twitter: @creodesign Project blog: csadesign.wordpress.com
www.creology.net www.facebook.com/creodesign twitter.com/creodesign Intagram.com/creodesign csadesign.wordpress.com
Anne Murray ‘Welcome Home Rhynie Man’ is a Contextualised Project with a symphonic structure that took place in Rhynie, Aberdeenshire, in collaboration with Aberdeenshire Council (Archaeology Team), Northern Picts Project (Aberdeen University Archaeological Department) and Rhynie Woman (artists collective).
The Journey Hand Whittled from the Clashendarroch Forest. Cherry Wood Staff and Story Stick - Aberdeen to Rhynie
Some members of the community had shown an interest in returning Rhynie Man to the village, however with few people knowing Rhynie Man’s story and where he was it was difficult to establish a connection. The focus of the project was to reunite the village with their Pictish Symbol Stone; Rhynie Man, a stone carved about 1500 years ago ploughed up by farmers in 1978. The stone was moved in 1988 into the special care of Aberdeenshire Council and is now based around 40 miles away from the village in Aberdeenshire Council’s headquarter building Woodhill House, Aberdeen. The project comprised of four movements; the absence, the invitation, the journey and the homecoming, through which the community and others
The Homecoming
were taken through the symbolic return of Rhynie Man to Rhynie. This
Homecoming Event with Rhynie Woman and Community
project supported Rhynie Woman through a period of project development funded through Heritage Lottery Funding and although each collaborator had different backgrounds, disciplines and objectives, the priority for them all was to enhance the community’s relationship with Pictish Heritage and
Anne’s contribution to the community activities included
ultimately enhance Rhynie’s presence within Aberdeenshire, Scotland and
conducting object biographical research, creating a film, oral
beyond as an attractive place to live, work and visit.
history recording, walking from Woodhill House to Rhynie, interactive community activities, developing a cycle route between Aberdeen and Rhynie, producing a map for the village, gala day activities, story telling, establishing a blog and twitter feed for Rhynie Man, creating products for Rhynie Woman to enhance their practice through the work they do. In addition Anne developed a Community Narrative Framework which is transferrable to other communities, situations and projects and which has enabled Anne to secure a couple of Residencies working with communities after the end of the course.
Creative Community Narratives Acrylic Etched Rubbing Boards used at the Rhynie Gala and Archaeological Open Days
Creative Community Narratives Rhynie Man in the making - Are you related to Rhynie Man? Could you be the next lookie-likie?
Rhynie Man Pop Up Cafe
Rhynie Man Pop Up Cafe
Laser etched acrylic giant cookie embosser
Illustrated laser cut template
anne@anne-murray.com www.anne-murray.com @annemurraymakes TheRhynieMan.wordpress.com @therhynieman
Nathan Garden After graduating from the University of Aberdeen in 2013, I came to Gray’s to pursue my practical interest in art, creating a multi-media graphic narrative, The Tragicomedy. The Tragicomedy follows the life and career of Ant Harland, a fictitious comedian who is guilt-stricken at his career choices which have led him to attain the status of a prime-time TV icon at the expense of
his integrity as a performer. He is loosely based on the personalities and jokes of American comedians Bill Hicks and Lenny Bruce, and his appearance, as well as the appearance of the other characters who populate the universe of The Tragicomedy, is the result of my research into the styles of various graphic artists and illustrators.
Masters Exposition at Gray’s School of Art January 2015
To create this project, I had to develop a style for graphic illustration while learning how to
work in a variety of new mediums such as relief, collage, and conté crayons. By venturing into
other mediums I created a wider ‘biography’ for the protagonist, using the individual pieces to explore individual episodes in the redemptive
phase of his life. For example, I created voice recordings of an ‘interview’ with a fictitious
magazine, a small film with a voice of another
‘interview’, as well as experimental comic strips which tried to accommodate a 3-D dimension into the comic medium.
The Tragicomedy. 2 1. ‘Single figure with bulging mouth’ 2. ‘Smirking during the joke’ 3. ‘Single shocked figure’
1
3
nathan.garden.09@aberdeen.ac.uk
Lauren Milton Making work that deals with my specific interests - history, medicine, hysteria, mind and body – meant that the NHS archives seemed be a natural location for my research to begin as I aim to explore the Victorian phenomenon of hysteria and the female malady. My research has led me to asylums and health institutions with a particular focus on experimental treatments for female patients, day-to-day life in the asylum over time, background stories and patient case studies.
As part of my Masters research I have been working with the coordinator of the NHS archives to gain a wider understanding of historical conditions for women, and I have been able to gain access to case studies of women from medical institutions here in Aberdeen. Through working with these archives I have developed an interest in how life and experiences can be documented and saved, and how this information can become manipulated and edited over years. Ideally, I would like to build up my own archive consisting of the women and their stories that I have discovered through my research and show my own understanding and representation of their lives and hardships. The Grays School of Art MFA is providing me with an invaluable understanding of new research methods as well as supporting me through previously unexplored levels of critical analysis.
Mark making and pattern allow me to layer traces of human presence. Printmaking is crucial to my work as I use traditional processes to allow these layers to build up to create images that evoke a sense of time and state of mind. All this information then becomes visualised through an ongoing series of prints and objects.
l.milton5@gmail.com 07899721525
Giuseppe Pizzo The Stereotypical Magazine is an online based piece of publishing with the aim of embracing an audience who love active lifestyles and in the mean time are sensible to environmental issues and contemporary social dynamics.
The feature stories of Stereotypical Magazine are narrated both with photography and video, but also with the support of explanatory text that has the tendency to have an argumentative tone of voice. The magazine’s genre is the journey and the findings of this whilst on the road. The outcome is usually spontaneous and true to the audience. This magazine cares about the sentimental part of the society as much as the respect of the environment. In fact the magazine likes to highlight the existing gap between humankind and the awareness of preserving the nature or at least slow down the process of draining the planet resources in the name of a “god called money”. However, the magazine doesn’t want to distance itself from Art and likes to narrate about the subject, always including it within the boundaries of its journey genre.
93 miles drive to Aviemore
During the winter 2009 Scotland was enjoying one of its best ski seasons. But in spite of this the Scottish ski industry appears to be under threat due to climate changes.
Therefore, in March 2015 I took a trip to Aviemore to check some of the highest peaks in the Cairngorms Mountains to see how the snow conditions were and perhaps find out what the locals thought about the receding snow season in Scotland.
Free as a sheep
Surfing in Scotland
- Outer Hebridies trip
Thinking Hub
Spirit of 67
Ford Transit Hicube X98 FDF 95,000 miles - clocked
- Inter and Celtic meet again
www.giuseppepizzo.co.uk www.stereotypicalmag.com
Jessika Shaw “Culture influences both the conscious and the subconscious mind. Culture determines attitudes and actions, and in doing so provides identity as well as a sense of community. Culture is the hand that preserves the existing as well as being the matrix for the new. Each individual cultural activity, every artistic discipline, forms part of this process of affirmation and renewal.”
My Master’s project explores Aberdeen as a city, the way it exists at present, its past, as well as the future of the city. I’m particularly interested in the cultural development of creativity within city spaces and I aim to find ways in which this can be done in the city and how my practice can encourage this type of development as well as bring the creative community together. My practice usually consists of typographic work as well as a combination of handmade elements mixed with digital media. During this project so far my practice has still stayed very true to myself; however, I have experimented in city interventions, different styles of mapping a place and traditional methods of photography. I am currently undergoing collaborative work with various creatives, including local writers.
Analog Aberdeen Analog photography has such a magical aesthetic to it; whether it is the spooling of the film, the finding of the grain, the physical photograph or just all the happy accidents that come with it.
JessShaw@hotmail.co.uk Jessikashaw.co.uk cityofcreativeculture.tumblr.com
THANK YOU We would like to thank all those individuals and organisations who have collaborated with the students in the development of their projects over the year, including –
Gray’s School of Art Community Aberdeen City Council Alex Salmond Adam Dant Sandy Moffat Shane Strachan - Creative Writer Nathan Brown - Creative Writer Derek Stewart - Literary Scholar/Creative Writer Navigate Collective Artistic Pathways City Wide University of Aberdeen Oral History Archive Penny Taylor : Taylored Curiosities - Dorset Benjamin Kline - Tenacious Toys - New York, USA Angus McEwan - Wormit Anne Murray - Making Connections - Huntly Radim Malinic - Brand Nu - London
Chris Dobson - Alto - Edinburgh James Donald - PickOne - Edinburgh Akinori Oishi - Osaka Japan Jit Hee Goh - Ziqi - Singapore Katie Tang & Mike Doney - TADO - Sheffield Jamie Stubbs - Mimic - Portsmouth Paul Vincett & Becky Johnson - Stitches and Glue - London Jackson Aw - Might Jaxx - Singapore Gerry Roarty - Dundee Giuseppe Pizzo - Stereotypicalmag - Aberdeen Gordon Kydd - Kydd:Design - Balloch Richard Page - UME-Toys - Nottingham Frank Jansen - West Boylston, MA, USA Aaron Martin - Angry Woebots - USA Gavin Strange - JamFactory - Bristol Timo Wirtz - Das Mo - Germany
Donna Holford-Lovell - Fleet Collective - Dundee Frederik De Wilde - Brussels, Belgium Simon Atkinson - Ayr Pieter Michels - Gent, Belgium Steptan Konig - Germany Paul Farquharson - Fife, Dundee Phoenix Perry - New York, USA Ema Anel Sauramo – Germany Kirill Obolenskiy - Stirling Daniel Henshaw-Dann - Leicester Michael Agnew - Artist Nikolae Globe - Artist Jessika Shaw Mattia Spiga - The Stereotypical Magazine Adrian Roudergue - Surfer in Thurso Daniel the Celtic fan
Kieran and Mitch in Aviemore Roger in Callanish Anthony Barber in Port Nis Norman Mackenzie in Carloway Roberto Mancini - Football Manager Callum Kellie - Grays School of Art Serdar Karhemans - Thesis Wordpress expert Jacqui Venturini - Second camera assistant and painter Rhynie Woman - Artist Collective Aberdeen City and Shire, Moray and Angus Council’s Archaeology team Aberdeen University Archaeology Department Northern Picts Project Rhynie Primary School, the archeological dig team and community of Rhynie Rachael Jobs
Carol Ann Ron Brander Mary Bourne Ross Sims Joel Garden Danielle Garden Sarah Begg - The Gatehouse Martin Parker - The Gatehouse
Collaborative Contextual Conversations
www.graysartschoolaberdeen.com
Gray’s School of Art Robert Gordon University Garthdee Campus Aberdeen AB10 7QD
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