Statement of intent My work explores the way in which Greek Mythology depicts creation and existence. Life is an event we all experience but each is varied, making them personal to us. My initial inspiration was Tracey Emin, a British artist who’s textile artworks mainly relate to her own life. I was drawn to the deeply personal exploration of her piece “everyone I have ever slept with 1963-1995”. I wanted to create a personal atmosphere to my piece as well, so chose to create a tent-like structure. I’m using black cotton drill to create a dark, atmospheric space as it will block out the majority of the light. I chose to look into Greek mythology in relation with this theme as the descriptions are often full of elaborate imagery. I began by looking at the story of Prometheus and the making of man. Zeus commissions Prometheus to make a species likened to the Gods yet less powerful. Prometheus moulds figurines from clay and Athena breathes wisdom into them. I chose a depiction by Constantin Hanson because of its composition, bold colours and interactions between the subjects. However, I found new inspiration in the myth of the ‘Three Fates’ as I felt I could create a more personal angle to my piece. I wanted to explore the theme of the constant presence of the three fates in our lives. The Three Fates or Moirai bring life, select the events that will take place and how a person’s life will end. Clotho creates life, unwinding the ‘mother thread of life’ from her distaff, Lachesis decides the length with her measuring rod and Atropos cuts life off with her shears. The simplicity of the concept piqued my interest as I could interpret it in many ways. I was especially intrigued by the ease with which the Moirai treat the important event of life so arbitrarily. To explore this idea of power over our lives, I photographed my friend playing with red string. I wanted to show how easily manipulated the thread could be and how easily our lives could be changed by the fates. I liked the more ominous perspective on the Moirai and chose to inspire my colour palette based on this. I will use black cotton drill to give the whole background of the piece a dark, intense aesthetic while using white and red to make the palette minimal yet impactful. Another artist, who inspired me to look at the everyday events of life, was Rosie James. A British textile artist who draws individuals she sees in crowds on her sewing machine to create linear sketches. I like that she observes the mundane parts of life which is reflected in the simplicity of her art style. The continuous lines of her sketches link to the continuous unwinding of Clotho’s ‘mother thread of life’. Whilst looking for depictions of the three fates, I found an interpretation by Henry Moore. I chose to use it as inspiration because of its unique colour palette of yellow and purple and its unusual style. It was unlike the many classical sculptures and paintings. I will use the simplistic shapes of his figures to inspire my own depictions of the Moirai.
My three fates will be on the left hand side of the inside of my tent. They will be depicted as an outline painted in red ink to show their constant yet quiet presence in our lives. They will be slightly different to each other to distinguish their roles yet they will be similar in size and general appearance to show their cohesiveness and joint force. They will be painted over a background split into thirds with their names screen printed in white ink. The text will be their names in Greek to emphasise the origin of this concept. I’m using white ink to make the text more impactful against the black cotton drill of the tent. Screen printing is the best technique for me to get a clean and uniform background. To add more dimension to the inside of my tent, I will hang red thread in drapes, plaits and vertical pieces of varying lengths to show the ‘mother thread’. The significance of the plaiting is to demonstrate connections we make in life and the lengths show varying lifespans. I’m using the same red thread I’ve used throughout my project because of its bold colour and the visceral feeling it adds to my colour palette. I wanted to create a tent in the easiest way possible to allow me more time to decorate and so experimented with hanging fabric over a guy line. I chose the height of the guy line (1.5m) as it creates a small and more intimate space which helped in creating the personal atmosphere I was striving for as it forces the viewer to sit in the tent. I also tried closing off one end to create a feeling of being enclosed in the art. To continue the theme of personal interactions, I wanted the viewer to share something personal with me as the artist, in the same way I was inspired by Tracey Emin’s work. I decided that including photos from throughout my life would be the easiest way to show growth and create a personal aspect to my art. In the majority of my photos, I am the only subject to truly show my life as a singular ‘mother thread’. My photos will be dark iron-on and attached to the right side of my tent, opposite to the fates. I chose this to show the interaction between the active and the passive, the power of the Moirai and the outcomes of their work, my life. Over my photos I will couch on red and white ribbon to represent the journey of life and the ‘mother thread’. I will create shapes around, through and on my photos to create an interaction between the Moirai’s ‘thread of life’ and me. I will also screen print an image of Atropos’s shears in red ink as a final layer to show her foreboding presence. Greek mythology and creation is a theme I explored in my mock piece when I looked at the Greek myth of Chaos and Order - the Greek explanation for creation. I find the Greek mythological explanations the most vivid and the interpretations and depictions extremely varied, making it easy to create my own take on them. Through my art I wanted to explore how easily the three fates control lives and how much power they hold over the events we experience and our death. I also wanted to create an atmosphere and experience for the viewer where they have a personal insight into my life.