A beautiful day for a walk

After the snow, the weather has been cold and so bright it has given me a headache.  Today I remembered to take my sunglasses when we went out and felt much better.  The light was so bright and clear that all the colours seemed saturated; I haven't done anything to the colours of these photos.  Apologies if you're getting bored of pictures of the beach!

Progress and Setbacks

Since I posted about finding a technique I wanted to explore, I had a bit of a setback.  I did a series of experiments and made various samples and, all of a sudden, it stopped working.  Cue a mild attack of panic and a series of unsuccessful experiments, followed by a quiet afternoon trying to remember what on earth, what tiny, seemingly insignificant thing, I had done differently before. Fortunately it dawned on me, I had an anxious day waiting for the test kiln firing to finish, but it worked... phew!

So I've been putting together some little glass-and-wire fences.  Or maybe trees.

The next issue to sort out was the wire; the first one I used broke when it was twisted tightly. The next one was a bit flimsy;  although I do want to channel broken down fences, not so much that I can't get the thing to stand up at all...

On to the next wire; this one is quite a bit thicker and I did think it might be too thick, but I'm pleased with the way it has turned out.  The pieces have a nice sturdy feel to them and I do like the black colour of the wire.  Although I might attack it with a little salt and vinegar and see what happens...

And so, on to the next challenge, to sort out the image printed on the glass.  Currently it's a bit too 'all over' for my liking.

Icicles

Unusually we have been hit by the recent snowy weather too (snow doesn't usually bother with this little corner, surrounded as we are by so much water).  Not far away there is a lane that often floods; and the combination of the chilly weather and the flooded lane have given us this:

Every time a car drives through the puddle the hedge is sprayed with water; it had a few more soakings as we watched.  Isn't it lovely?

Finding my way

Isn't it funny how trying just one thing can suddenly make everything fall into place? And about time too you might say, as I am very nearly at the end of my degree course.

In the first year of the course I fell in love with collagraph printing. Creating the plates; the way the ink echoed the texture of the plate and the unpredictability of the print itself; the variations in the strength of the marks; everything.

Ever since then I have, sometimes consciously and sometimes not, been trying to replicate that effect in glass.

First I tried copying the images I had created from the collagraphs and screenprinting them onto the glass.  That worked, up to a point, but for me the screenprinting process meant that the images lost the essential sense of texture that they had as prints on paper.  They were just too definite, too clean.

Then I tried creating plaster moulds in the same way that I create collagraph plates and casting the glass in these moulds.

So far the results of this have been somewhat unpredictable. I dare say if I pursue it, eventually I will get it to work as I want, but it is a time consuming process, and also one which uses a lot of expensive glass frit.  I have also realised that to do this I will have to get used to using more robust materials to create my textures; both to stand up to the mould making process and to create definite enough marks on the glass; and I'm not sure that I want to change my materials so much.

But then the other day I had one of those 'I haven't tried that' moments and these little printed strips were the result.

They may not look much but I am very excited about them.  The print on the back of the glass was taken from one of my collagraph prints; the glass was laid on top of it in the kiln and has 'picked up' the image, but in a much more interesting and sketchy way than a direct screenprint.  There is just enough texture on the back of the glass; I can see endless possibilities in these two little strips of glass...

Edges

I've been waiting until I could take better photographs of these pieces because they really need the sun, and lately the sun shining and my being around with the camera have not happened at the same time.  So I've given up waiting and here they are.

Living where I do, I have been looking again at the textures and light on the estuary, the edge of the land and water.  And working with glass I have been fascinated by the play of light on the edges (which is why I was waiting for the sun for the best effect.)


I've combined the glass with paper, either rusted or embossed, and, of course, stitched it all together.  I can't seem to get out of the habit of sewing things to paper!



This one has paper embossed with fishing line from a tangle I picked up on the shore.


And this one, I rusted the paper using a piece of scrap metal collected a little way up river.


I spent quite a while wondering whether these pieces were perhaps too 'minimal' and worrying that perhaps they looked as if I hadn't done anything much.  But then I find that I tend to start off with a busier design and gradually edit it down to something far more restrained; stopping at the right point is the skill I suppose.  I think I've got it right...

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Quiet

I've been quiet lately, I know I have.  The final year of my course is speeding along and I have been trying to find a way of working that suits me.

Perhaps because my work is quiet in feel, I find I work better in my own space at home rather than in the noise and bustle of the university studios.  Plus each day I stay at home saves me 2 hours of travelling time and quite a lot of petrol money; yet I can't get over the silly feeling that somehow I am 'playing truant'.  Despite this feeling, since Christmas I have been strict with myself and have stopped dashing around, giving myself time to think about my work and where it is going.

a sneak peek

I have also been worrying that my work has been getting so restrained that it is barely there at all; this timely post from Fiona has really helped me to resolve that in my own mind.

So this week I shall be quietly arranging and rearranging my fragments of glass and hope soon to have some resolved pieces to show you.

Fundraising Art Auction

Regular readers will know that I am doing a degree in Applied Arts; what you might not realise is that I am in my final year now.  I know, its come round really fast, hasn't it?

So we final year students are holding an auction next week, to raise money to take our work to the New Designers show in London next June.  Lots of generous local applied artists are donating work and we students will be putting pieces in too.

You are all invited... there will be mulled wine and mince pies and the perfect opportunity to buy some really unique Christmas presents.