Andreea Partenie Component 2 Part 2
For these pieces I tried to develop the photographs and push my ideas further. I used tree ashes to symbolise how the environment has been impacted in lots of ways and some people try to hide the truth.
Experimenting with wax
In this experiment I tried to do a different technique with a different approach. In the images above you can see different materials that I used in wax. I used ash, metal pieces to show how plastic is involved when producing the metal, plastic beads, newspaper. I tried to create something else but also, I wanted them to be similar but significant in their own way. I like to think that all the individual pieces relate to climate change and that they are the reason for that. This suggests that newspaper is from trees, which those were cut and that is a risk for the environment. I also used ash and wood pieces to symbolise that. I like how the results came out because I could see the materials inside.
This is the same experiment but in a different approach. I tried to put them all on top of each other to show how the issues are increasing and affecting the climate change. I chose some of my most effective pieces and photographed them. I also tried to do different when building them up. I chose to do these kind of shapes to link it to bricks and how you need to add them and how you stick them together. This suggests that different materials added up together impacts the environment.
More experiments using wax
For this experiments I tried to develop something else with a different approach. I used hot water to make holes through the wax in order to attach them together. I tried to use the best was models in order to give the image a better quality. I have used blue string to show that most things that we use every day are dangerous for the environment. I tried to make different shapes and I tried to mix the string in order to represent how everything is linked to the side effects of the climate. This means that the objects that I have used in the wax link to the idea that they are linked to the cause of climate change.
Different technique: Mono print
This is a different technique that I wanted to develop. The technique is mono print and I think using this helped me realise that I can develop this work more in the future. When it comes to colours, I decided to experiment and see which one is the best. These are the first two that I did, and I really like the results. The last three ones are my least favourite because they turned up smudgy, but I still wanted to add them. I decided to use this technique to symbolise how plastic adds up and causes so much damage to the environment. I tried to relate this to the damages that this makes to the environment and also how this affects us.
Another Experiment using Fabric Material
This is one of the processes that I did before my main one. I tried to experiment with different fabric material. For this piece I used water to stick the image on to the fabric material. This suggests how ink can be imprinted on to fabric material and also how clothes can be made out of materials that affects the environment.
This is my second piece that I did. This one is different from the first one because I did not use water to imprint the images, instead I used a different technique called embossing. I heat pressed the images on to the fabric material.
My work
The artist's work
Component 2 – Reflective Writing
I made some rectangle shape cardboard also called 'briquette'. My intention was to make something similar to the big rectangle pieces of plastic stuck together because I wanted to show how this does not particularly affect plastic but also cardboard. I also wanted to do this because some people might not realise that cardboard can also be non-recyclable and it affects the environment as much as plastic. I think I visually achieved what I wanted because people will question whether cardboard is as dangerous as plastic and also how quickly it increases in the environment. The piece itself is quite simple, but the meaning behind it is complex. I wanted to aim at something simple to do but with a deep meaning.
When creating this piece, I took inspiration from the artist's work by relating to plastic and the way she presented. I think the artist created her work in a more obvious way, even though I wanted to add some plastic or non-recycle objects in my artwork I was going to do it a more symbolic approach rather than the obvious option. I also thought of taking a different approach and do cardboard because even cardboard can be nonrecycled. My artwork is different than the artist because she used plastic bags, I used cardboards and also the context behind it is different.
The piece suggests how unrecycled objects accumulate over time and how this affects our environment. When starting to make this piece I did not expect for the cardboard to stick together and be that solid. The element of my piece that I liked was the cardboard, especially the coloured one because it brought colour to my artwork. The most less effective piece is the second cardboard briquette because it did not stick together properly, and pieces fell off every time I picked it up. Choosing coloured cardboard was a good decision because it gives life, and it makes it stand out more. The texture of the work is smooth and uncoated. The shape of my pieces are all rectangle. This means that the shapes are imperfect and irregular. If I have more time in the future, I would like to develop this by using different techniques such as embedding and more mono print.
The artist's work
My work
Component 2 Reflective writing
I have made a type of painting using PVA glue, plastic string and pins. My intention was to bring awareness to people and help them acknowledge that plastic is an important ingredient when making metal pins. I think I visually achieved what I wanted because people would question whether plastic is an ingredient when producing pins. I think my piece is both complex and simple because even though the art piece is simple the context behind it is complex.
When creating this piece, I took inspiration from the artist's work by relating to thread and the way he presented. I think there is a similarity between my work and the artist's work because our work are both symbolic and relates to the theme 'simple or complex'. I decided to use pins in order to show that there is complexity behind it. This suggests that even though my piece is simple the meaning behind it is very complex. Another reason why I chose pins is because in order to make pins, one of the ingredients you need is plastic.
The colours in my artwork are all related to my theme. I tried to organise them in order to match my aesthetic as well the theme. I added plastic blue thread to represent the theme but also to match with the blue painting on the canvas. I decided to experiment with white and black canvas to see which one looks the most interesting. I also chose colours based on my theme. I decided to go with light colours such as yellow, green, blue. If I will have more time in the future, I will develop these pieces by using black thread. I also might use different techniques and processes.
Reflecting on Component 2
I started the component 2 project thinking about the idea of environmental issues. However, compared to component 1 I wanted to focus on something else. Now, 3 college weeks into the project, my ideas have slightly changed, and my work is now specifically focused on the idea of 'Human Impact on the Natural Environment'.
The first artist I chose to respond to helped me to develop my ideas by introducing me to new techniques and how I should add them into my work. The second artist helped my ideas to evolve because after taking some photos of the work suddenly I had more ideas on how I should develop it, and that helped me in being more confident with new techniques that I never did before.
I have faced the following obstacles such as struggling on what to do next, or how I did not have any ideas for some work. These obstacles have, however helped me to realise that I should not hold myself back and I should not focus on only one process or technique when they are plenty that I could experiment.
New unexpected ideas for my work have emerged from my experiments, in particular my experiments with the cardboard which led me to new experiments, and I ended up with so many good ideas.
I have been spending around 4 to 5 extra hours per week in the studio and this has enabled me to improve and add more work in my sketchbook. To improve the quality of and refine my most recent pieces of works, I could focus more on quality than quantity.
Going forward, during the remaining weeks of the project stage of component 2, I feel that I could be more ambitious with my work by doing more experiments using new techniques and processes. For my next artist I want to find somebody whose work is different from the other artists that I analysed because it would be interesting to develop and respond to that work with different techniques.
I want my work to have the effect of worry and reality on viewers and to achieve this I need to focus and develop more work on how we impact the environment. In terms of displaying my work I am interested in the idea of what people would think when they will first look at it.
Climate, side effects, environmental issues, trapped/ suffocated,
I asked 3 people to respond to my most recent work with 2 words. They said suffocating, climate, crushed, compaction, discarded, waste. The words that I found most stimulating are suffocating, climate, crushed because they relate on how the climate change state is right now.
Betty Beaumont
The artwork that the artist has made is a balloon with milkweed seeds inside. Jenny Kendler does this because as any other artists she is trying to bring awareness to the public “of the more than human world”. The work represents how climate change and biodiversity loss. The title of this artwork is ‘Milkweed Dispersal Balloons’ and I think that the artist has given that title because there are Milkweed seeds in the balloon.
The title does change the way we see the artwork made by Jenny Kendler because we did not know what is inside the balloon, but after reading the title I found out what is inside the balloon. The medium of work is a balloon and some milkweed seeds that the artist has found. The artist used a transparent balloon in order to see the milkweed seeds
I really like how the artist chose the background because it goes well with the balloon and the theme. The shape that I can only see is the balloon, but if we have a look in the background, we can also see lots of clouds. The surface might be silky and soft. The scale of the work is 20 x 24 inches. The artwork was made in 2014 by Jenny Kendler. The work was for “a participant to take home with them and pop – releasing the floating seeds”. The artist also said, “Milkweed is the only group of plants upon which monarch caterpillars can hatch and feed”. This suggests that the artist is trying to help the living thing by feeding him milkweed seeds. The artist was born in 1980 in New York, and she is an environmental activist. Since a young age her parents were supportive of her art and that is what inspired her to continue with that. “I was lucky enough to be raised in a family that was supportive of my art and was very environmental”. This means that her family was always there for her and supported her art.
Artist Response
This is a new technique that I have never used before. I tried to create a response in a different approach with different meaning behind it. I have used ashes from a burnt book to place in the raisin. I did this because it symbolises how they can be preserved if we place them in raisin. This suggests that I tried to symbolise the fact that this generation is already damaging the environment. I wanted to place them into the raisin to show how they can be preserved for the next generations to come and look at the damages that we did. I like how the results came out because look different than I expected. I used ashes but they turned out brown. I like the colour and how there are bubbles inside the raisin. I think the results are effective and make the reader question whatever we are doing is good for the environment.
This is a development from the first artist response. I tried to do it with different techniques and materials in order to develop and explore more processes. I did this because I wanted to show how we can preserve soap as it is not good for the environment. I also added wax to see if it would work because I thought that the wax would melt the soap. I like the results because it symbolises what I am trying to communicate with the viewers.
Cornelia Parker thirty pieces of silver
Exam Ideas
