Experimental Printing

Collage with print on top. Also known as Chine colle. Something I've wanted to try for some time.

These are developing into more complex pieces with another layer of printing. Possibly another transparent layer of collage later, but I'll have a think about it. They are part of an edition of 15 for a voluntary group project for college across the HE students. Sorry the photos aren't really that good, it was late and I was exhausted after spending hours printing!

Ideas, ideas

Been trying to get my head around what I want to do with my latest college project, while at the same time trying to stay calm about being very skint for a couple of months until I start getting regular work from agencies.

I'm not in a panic, but I am thinking if I just accept that I will be having a week off and I will be skint and behind with my bills for a couple of months, i may just stop worrying about things. Why worry about things you can't change?

So the ideas I've been coming up with - oh hang on a minute, I smell of dog! It's very distracting, sorry.

Ideas, oh yes, so what i have is part collage, part textile, my favourite kind of thing. Fairly large, on heavy cotton fabric or canvas depending on what I have in my fabric cupboard and collage on using old map pages, news papers, brown paper and some fabric, painted over layered and stitched into.

In addition to that, my altered book is to have a cover that is a collage. That, however is as much as I'm letting on at the moment, because I'm going to start working on that tonight. I will probably start getting my main project started tomorrow evening, but won't be doing much more than that until Sunday, when I'll be recovering from photographing a wedding. I may not have time to work at this rate, but at least I'm starting to develop a fairly good photo portfolio.

So trying to fit everything in for college, photography of the paying kind, looking at developing things into textiles to submit for the winter open at the clocktower, and trying to find enough paying work to at least marginally stay ahead of the bills, my life is really rather full. Not time for TV, when of course the TV is now getting quite good. Flash Forward, Lie to Me, Stargate Universe and an endless round of CSI and Law and Order, I need more hours in the day or a lottery win to keep up. Something my have to go and it might have to be TV. I gave it up before, I'm sure I could do it again. I have computer, radio and I can read, just about. I'll ponder the question.
By the way, thanks Debbie for the cooker. The electric one will be put onto freecycle shortly, and I'm now looking for a small chest freezer and a standard sized fridge, cos there's no room in my kitchen for an eye level grill gas cooker and a full size fridge freezer! I have my fingers crossed that the housing situation will be resolved by the end of the week. The photo is Debbie and her lovely young man Mick, lovely gorgeous people, who are the best laugh.

I had a really busy day today, said goodbye to my boss of 6 years, managed not to cry, booked the restaurant for my leaving do and as usual did not homework. Will be doing some shortly, cos I want to make a start on the experimental work for the paiture/collage/project, whatever you want to call it. On that note I think I need to stop blogging and get some work done.

Bad good, good day.

So I am trying to be positive about my new future, the one where I don't have to work crappy shifts at a dead end job in a local hospital. Trouble is I am panicking about whether I can make enough money in other ways, through agency work, setting up a new life drawing class, getting jobs as a life model, selling my art and craft work. Oh and winning the lottery would reeeaaaally help matters at the moment.

Bugger I'm so worried about money.

So the better part of the day happened when I popped over to Nottingham to see my cousin, Michelle. Got big hugs and feel much better for having someone to talk to. Feeling lonely and afraid of the future, but I'm still sure i did the right thing packing my job in.

Today's picture, by the way is something I knocked off over the weekend looking at the work of Juan Gris, trying out a new way of overlaying image on image on collage to try and get something interesting. I kinda like the effect, but let me know what you all think of it. Ha! you all, only 2 people read my blog! I suppose 2 can count as all! Oh well more will be joining you soon when I start to get famous! Sorry I'll just have a short maniacal laugh - mwhahahahahahahahah - and back to normal.

Listening to iplayer at the mo, listening to how music gets picked for TV and movies, not really giving much info, it seems to be quite random really, it is entirely dependent upon who is listening to your music at the time. Like everything, it's being in the right place at the right time. Something I'm trying to do with my work, and becoming jobless. Hmmmmm. Pondering on the wisdom of my decision again.

I'm sorry I'll keep doing this until I start to pull some regular work and most important of all money. Bear with me normal(!?) service will be resumed shortly.

Going to play crappy games on facebook now.

Night all.

Countdown to unemployment

I've had loads of support from folks all around wishing me well in the new job choices, but now I'm starting to feel a bit wibbly. It's silly really because I know I will get loads of work, last time I was temping I had more offers than I could cope with! But still, big move and panic may set in some time at the back end of next week.

On a lighter note, there are actually people who want to come to my leaving do, so that will be loads of fun. Big nosh-up and a boozy bimble up west street.

Homework is starting to come together, I've made my sketchbook, finally and done loads of research on different artists and urban geography. I feel I'm starting to move towards a clear vision now, probably to do with Mumbai being the fastest growing city and the slums that occupy every spare inch of the city. I spent about 3 hours yesterday looking at Google Earth and photos of the slums and felt quite depressed afterwards. It seems loads of people have ideas about what to do with the slums, but none of them actually provide minimum standard housing for all the slum dwellers displaced by the clearances. How do you house that many people in adequate housing? I don't have any kind of an answer, especially when you consider the slums are responsible for the vast bulk of the recycling of waste in Mumbai and without that there would be a massive waste problem that could only be solved by land fill rather than recycling. I shall ponder. And never come up with an adequate solution.

Anyway back to the homework, I'm looking at collage and mixed media, although I've been playing with encaustic today, and I want to be able to include maps and town plans in with the collage. Loads to fit in, not sure how I'll do it. Looking at Robert Rauschenberg and Lee Krasner at the moment. Different approaches to collage, but fantastic results with both of them, such power and energy in both of their works. i have to say I've not really done much collage, but I'm looking forward to the experiments. Have to produce a finished board or canvas at the end of the project. Looking forward to that. Should be fun. I may even manage to get some stitch and textile in there too! Pics will be posted in progress.

It's now way past bedtime, so off I go.