Plaster Casting - Matchsticks

I made large clay sculptures of matchsticks, adding detail into the burned top. To do this I looked at pictures of close-ups of burned matchsticks.

     

Once these were fired in the kiln they were much more solid. However, some did break and were glued back with super glue. The next step was to create the plaster casts. 

To start off more clay had to be used. It was flattened and cut into same sized slabs. The matchsticks were pushed into the clay and the border was created by using 

thin pieces of wood.

A barrier had to be created to get the plaster into a rectangular shape. To make sure it didn't leak out, clay had to be stuck in the corners. After a while the plaster is partially dried and this is when the wooden barrier is taken off. This had to be done carefully and at the right time as the plaster can stick to the wood and cause the cast to break (as I experienced with one of my casts). 

Another important factor to consider is the consistency of the plaster.Too thin and it will never set and too thick it will set before you can even pour it into the mold. A good way to make the mixture is getting a container/bucket and filling it half way up with water (or as much water is needed) then sprinkling the plaster (not dumping) into the water. This has to be done at a fast pace, so it doesn't set, and until it sits on top of the water. It then has to be mixed, with a spoon or with your hand. It should feel like sticking your hand in double cream. It should then be poured into the mold as soon as possible.

The plaster casts turned out like this:

Plaster casting

Plaster casting is a techniques that artists, such as Whiteread, use to create either a negative or positive space. Whiteread creates negative space as seen by 'house'. I tried plaster casting something simple, a set of keys. 

Firstly, I selected some keys and then pushed them into some clay. I then mixed some plaster into water and poured it into the clay. Before this a created a barrier, so the plaster wouldn't run everywhere, out of scrap wood. This also made sure that the plaster stayed in shape.  This is an example of positive casting. 

Rachel Whiteread

House

Holocaust memorial

Stairs

Rachel Whiteread is an artist that uses liquid concrete to fill spaces. In 'house' the abandoned house has been filled with concrete and the outer shell has been stripped away. You are left with the imprint of the interior of the house, the windows and doors, on the exterior. Whiteread wanted to create something unmoveable and quite permanent. This was the piece of art from which she won the Turner prize. Many people either really hated it or really loved it. It wasn't considered a work of art but a waste of space by many. Andrew Graham-Dixon, in an article for The Independent, says "The house has, itself, become a giant sarcophagus, a mausoleum containing (but also concealing, as mausoleums do) the lives and memories of all the people who once lived there." It does make you wonder who had lived there, what they achieved and who had died there.

It was demolished about 11 weeks after it was made and the same day that Whiteread won the Turner prize for it. Turns out that it wasn't permanent at all and the council hated it. But it's still one of the most admired pieces of work by artists today.

Using Plaster

I have been experimenting with plaster and have used it to create texture.

I started off by printing pictures of each stage of a match burning and pasting it onto some cardboard.  I then mixed some plaster and water so it was quite thick and using a paintbrush I layered on the plaster. Once it dried it had an unusual texture to it. 

Seeing An Installation

I recently made my way down to Birmingham city centre to attend a small event organised by the Hippodrome and the Ikon Gallery. It was called About Town and was a series of installation by a dozen or so artists. Starting in the Hippodrome, there were random videos of stray cats on old TV sets placed around in the building. The second was a clip of the artist sitting on the steps by the old Birmingham library for several days, at the same time. The people just go about their daily business without noticing her. The artist is called Kelly Mark. 

After, we walked down to the back to back houses and made our way up the narrow stairs to a video by Dean Kelland called Just Like That which was a line commonly used by the comedian Tommy Cooper. There is no sound but as soon as the fez is removed he starts to mime 'Just Like That' but in a very distressing manor. Its funny but painful to watch. Even though there is now sound you can almost hear his screams fill the room. 

We then walked to the Havana car park and there was one installation showing there by Grace Ndiritu called The Nightingale. 

Ndiritu's website (http://www.gracendiritu.com/The-Nightingale-2003) says:

  "Poetically, this is conveyed by a sentence superimposed on the opening sequence: "He stood East of my childhood and West of my future". The beginning of The Nightingale is peaceful and serene, showing Ndiritu slowly moving a cloth that covers her head and shoulders, to reveal her face, with eyes closed. The quiet African music suddenly changes as the artist becomes animated, with eyes wide open, focused on the viewer. She twists, wraps and folds the fabric in a sequence of simple movements to transform her appearance. Each action reveals another identity, the fabric being exploited for its versatility, playing the role of blindfold, hajib, headscarf, burka, veil, bandanna, purdah, gag and turban. Its reference to an assortment of cultures is both joyful and unsettling, developing with the rhythm of the music, pausing into moments of playful seduction and sculptural beauty. The final sequence of the video consists simply of birds in flight, literally above human politics, suggesting freedom from cultural compartmentalization."

The music was the first thing you hear as you walk toward the car park and it gives a sense of the installation without even seeing it. As the piece of cloth starts to move the music gets faster and as the music gets faster her actions get faster and it captivated the audience. Something so simple to do but very effective at the same time. 

I didn’t even think about adding sound to my final piece and it is something that’s worth thinking about. It can create more of an atmosphere.

Moving on to the Gallan Car Park, the massive car park has about 6 installations it it which are all from different artists. The one that stood out was by Yang Zhezhong who used two screens opposite from each other. On one is a video of her exhaling with all her might and the one opposite was a video of a busy street in Shangai zooming put every time she exhales.

About Town made for an interesting evening, the artists all had very strong ideas and represented them in their artwork. It inspired me to expand on my work and strengthen messages behind it.

My Own Installation - Bill Viola Inspired

At first I set up the background and lighting. I used the shower as I thought it would give the right effect of water falling. I hung the torch from the shower head with some string which created a Viola-esque lighting. To create the background I simply stuck bin liners to the back wall of the shower. The light also reflected off this. Violas pieces are on a much larger scale and he uses 1000x more water. To create something similar to 'Ascension Tristan' I hung a doll underneath the torch.

 

Bill Viola mainly used actors in his works. This was on a much smaller scale and the closest thing to a human that is accessible is a doll. The light works with the water to illuminate the doll so it almost looks human.

My Own Installation - Tony Oursler Inspired

At first I cut out the shape of a matchstick on cardboard and painted it white. By using tissue paper and wire I formed the shape of the flame. To film the video a match was lighted and filmed so it was horizontal rather that vertical, this explains why the flame is flickering to the left. However, this experiment had some flaws, like the camera not being steady. The matchstick cut-out and flame are permanent, whereas, the video of the match burning is completely temporary. It would be a good idea to see how it looks without the flame. It would have been better for the cut-out to be painted black so the projection comes out better. To improve I could have used a tripod to hold the camera so it was steadier.

In order to improve it slightly, I removed the flame made from wire and tissue paper. The flame projected onto the whiteboard in the back and it started to look more realistic as it gave of a luminous glow. You can also see the match burning a bit better.

 

After this I made a new installation. Instead of painting the match black I left it white. This is because the match turns black as it burns and this wouldn't have been visible on a black background. I also placed black card in the background as it would make the flame more visible. The whiteboard in the previous video gave a reflection which I preferred. It would be useful to play around with different materials to get the best possible installation.

Tony Oursler

Tony Oursler is an artist that specializes in installation and multimedia art. He combines sculptures and video and painting in his work. His earlier work contains visual and sound effects.

This installation looks at burning of cigarettes and directly at temperance. The temperance that the cigarette brings to life and how temporary it is itself. 

The cigarettes are slowly being burned and turned to ash. They are projected onto rolled up card or plastic.

In this little video I made a compilation of matches that had been extinguished at different times.

Bill Viola

Bill Viola is an American artist who specializes in using light and technology to create his installations. His work concentrates on birth, death and aspects of consciousness, In a way, they are related to Vanitas as they show the suddenness of death and rebirth. In 'the crossing' it shows a man walking towards you and then taken away by light and water. It almost as if its Violas depiction of how death should be like. This is also shown in 'Ascension Tristan' in which the body is slowly levitated up while water is pouring over it. Viola uses sound and image technology to create his installations.

 

He uses actors in his work pieces and this contributes to the mass of money that is spent to create these installations. They movie in elaborate ways, like they are circus acts. Also a lot of flesh is shown which links to renaissance art. It also links to religious art at that time where Jesus would be painted/sculpted with almost no clothes on. Water is a main feature in his work but this could be because of how light reflects in it.

 

Shows a person being lifted up while water pours down and conceals them. They are slowly being lifted up and disappear. The water slowly starts to disappear and the person disappears with it. As the person is being lifted it looks like they are being lifted from the chest while their legs and arms face downwards.

This video shows the commission from St Pauls cathedral, the most famous cathedral outside of Rome, in which Viola created an installation of earth, air, fire and water. The earth installation shows a man emerging from the earth, as if he is being born. The wind section shows a woman that is hung by ropes being hit by a gust of wind. The third show a man enveloped in flames and the fourth show a man hanging upside-down and water being poured all over him.

 

 

Ascension is, in terms of religion, the bodily ascending of Christ from earth to heaven. The video shows a man being emerged in water and then floating to the top, almost like he's floating to heaven. This could also be seen as baptism which mostly occurs at the beginning of life in Christianity.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Installation art is mostly a modern type of art that is practiced by postmodernist artists.

Emerging during the 1970s, installation is associated with conceptual art which provokes certain emotions to the audience. Some believe that it's not art at all whereas other believe that it is the only type of art that is relevant to this day and age.

Examples of modern conceptualists are the YBA's: Damien Hirst and Tracy Emin who create quite controversial and shocking pieces.