Wax/Skin (e)

Wax Skin

So I've started to create a wax skin with the ironing fabric from the paper making kit. The paper I'd made wasn't very translucent and I had wanted the skin to be clear enough to see the tumours inside. 

Overall I would of liked a latex style of skin but I don't have the stuff to create the idea I had originally envisioned and I think a textile style is more suited to my portfolio for the next level of my studies. 

To hold the skin up I thought a spine inside would help to support the stucture of the skin. I wanted it to be a natural colour as not distract from the skin and tumour itself. I was going to colour the fabric to look like skin but I decided that I liked the more organic look. Sometimes you can do too much and I'm trying to do less is more when it comes to my thinking and work. It had been a little bit for a head ache to be honest and I wish it was easier to have a cast in place instead of having to create this from the unknown/unsure point of working.  Its frustrating and draining sometimes trying to find solutions to the simple problems I find myself having. 

wire for paper mache

my paper mache spine 

I do like the texture and finish of my spine, it isnt exact as how the spine of humans are but I like the idea of a designer spine. More of a style rather.

skeleton in class 

The tumour below, I used red and green batik ink mixed with pistachio shells and hot wax. The shells I had kept as I had thought they were interesting enough to used for something. Funny the things you keep for no reason! However it has worked a treat. Plus I get to eat more nuts!

my tumour

As I'm writing this blog I've decided to search on google for Human Skin artists. Some of the results are pretty weird and wonderful and to the level I would of like my own skin to ended up being like. However, I did seem to be onto something using wax as many of the object had actually used wax.

Art Made Flesh: 35 Sculptures Rendered in Human Skin & Hair. 

https://weburbanist.com/2015/07/15/art-made-flesh-35-sculptures-rendered-in-human-skin-hair/

Felix Deac

 

Romanian artist Felix Deac creates amorphous blobs of flesh replete with veins, moles, wrinkles and hair. While some might look like deformed human body parts, most are just abstract shapes reminiscent of nightmarish tumors that have taken on a life of their own.

The controversial Australian artist Patricia Piccinini creates sculptures of fantastical creatures with extremely human-like skin and hair.





The skeletons within these sacks of flesh by Francesco Albano seem to be melting piece-by-piece, leaving behind some fully-formed body parts while the rest become no more than a pile of leather.





If human flesh can be grown in a laboratory for purposes like medical prosthetics, could it – and should it – also be used for other applications, like art? Artist Jason Hopkins explores this idea with ‘posthuman structures,’ ‘biostructures’ and ‘human reconfigurations.’





New technology and art is something that really interests me. This idea above excites me and I have in the past thought the idea of art and medicine should come together. I like the idea of children designing they own prosthetic limps or casts. Torso and limps to reflect a mood or outfit/style. Cancer patiences designing head gear or expressing the journey that living with with cancer has had in an art form.... Scars sewn up and tattoo with an image of refection and courage etc. individual and a memory of  strength, sorrow or whatever. Art therapy is another interest but I'm definitely not doing psychology to try and understand someones mind. Hell my own mind is enough at times for me to study.

Helping hand

After.settling down for some college stuff I had been thinking of what to do.. Without having sketch books for ideas and stuff, I've found me.looking at my hand again.. Where or what the hand itself is gotta do with what is being asked im not sure.  Its just seems for me to be reappearing.. Here below I began looking at the paper id made and out came the fabric.  I think I was thinking about tones and depth however, its more an Expressive direction I think its headed down.. Well as Expressive as a still object on fabric can be. I like sewing and think its something I'd definely be wanting to do more often.. 

The back of sewn hand

I feel that by doing this, its gave me a good start at feeling ok with the unknown again. A hand may or may not end up being relavant to any of my work but it has reminded me how much I enjoy the sewing machine. 

This play of words off the last years work was among my machine stuff. I enjoyed having a reminder that gives u an its ok, when your unsure.

3 snaps a day

3 snaps a day

Tonal still life (1)

Still Life

Today we started setting out a still life by using a ground to paint in the objects using a tonal process. As usual I found this fun but exhausting, trying to get everything in the correct position.  I kinda failed but I did learn so much from this. The way Im lazy with my eye thinking im actually looking but not really looking at all and I'm always wanting to block whole objects in instead of adding a tonal build up. 

I found it hard to overpaint my mistakes and I felt I'd ended up with a bit of a mess.. I so wanted to start again and it was a task in itself to continue. 

While many things are wrong I'm very much excited to try this set up again and maybe think of how to take my time through out is something I'd like to try and achieve 

Below is some edits that I was trying out to see what changes it could make. 

Hand Lino Cut

Printmaking Lino cut

Here I was thinking of the contour of the hand and I was trying to add depth and shape with lines only. I think by adding the backgrounf hozional lines it makes my hand jump out of the print. I do like how looking at an object really does help to understand the overall object in some much more detail. Its is a great thing and one I enjoyed learning.  

testing printing on paper before cutting lino

My first print I was surprised at how graphic the lino cut was. I can see where I when wrong and what did work better but overall happy with my hand. Would like to do more prints adding smaller directional lines and try to really bring it all together for a stronger image.

I like the print on the lighter paper the best.

produce paper for body! (e)

After making paper I thought I should begin to look at the human form in more detail. I've started out looking and thinking of the shape of muscles so that when I do my paper cast I don't end up with just a box shape of the features. I would like it to be more of the skin that just a outline of a shape. I would like to add features in detail and have some of the features/shadows to give an added illusion to the skin. Adding depth etc

with this paper I wanted in see-through in parts

added fibre to make the paper stronger and more structure to consturt

The paper is very soft and fragile when I apply glue it basically falls apart of disintegrates. This will have to be considered more as I try to build my human.  I did like the modroc cast I had done and how it gave bits failing off.. Maybe this would give a solid base to add my paper onto.

bones of feet. I struggle to draw hands and feet. I think breaking them down can help me combat this. my paper leg needs more shape and proportion as thigh not correct, but its making my eye look and at this stage in my design I feel that is what is important

again its not correct and angle off

While I'm unsure if all this is going to work, I do feel excited at the thought of doing and practicing this design.  It very time consuming and this process based learning may help to slow down my thinking and jumping ahead.

Modroc cast