Statement of Intent.
Human beings fascinate me, why do
people look like they do?
What is individuality? (Above and below
the surface.)
Over the summer I looked into this and
the topic of the 'Freak Show' instantly grabbed my attention.
I spent some time looking into the acts
which appeared in these shows. Most people involved were medical
anomalies. I intended to look further into this and became more aware
that even now, people are still interested in the bizarre side of the
medical world.
As well as finding a topic to research,
I also wanted to experiment with different media and processes.
Primarily being a pen and ink based illustrator this is something I
have wanted to do for quite some time (new experiences and ways of
thinking.) I have used paint, different printing processes and also
collage so far. For me this has been mainly a chance to have fun,
letting loose with image making and enjoying the freedom.
The next step for me will be to develop
and further my use of different processes and perhaps taking images
that I create and introducing them to different surroundings ie.
drawings with collage or paintings with photography.
Using different types of media together
interests me highly.
Keeping the topic of the 'Freak Shows'
and the different media I experimented with, I intend to collect a
number of sketches, paintings, prints and collages, and combine them
all together in one format.
The format which interests me the most
is the simple book. The fanzine layout and appearance interests me,
the quick rough and ready look and feel to them. I will look into
different fanzine and magazine styles to get some ideas for
reference.
With the intention of creating a book,
I’ll need to look into fonts and writing and how to space and fit
them on a page. I won't necessarily need a lot of writing, maybe just
a few lines to go with the images.
Reflective Practice
Review.
For this project I was exploring a way
of making 2D coexist with 3D on the theme of creating a Freak Show.
After creating a few images which was based on this, it soon became
apparent that it wasn't working. The drawings which I had placed with
the live action objects didn't fit together, even when completed they
still did not look like finished pieces.
Previously experimenting with media I
had created a mermaid using a fish tail and a doll. I found this way
of making so much more engaging. It allowed me to go through the
process of finding the right fish the right doll, and then having to
create a set to photograph them in.
From this image, I went back to
designing more things which I could create. I wanted to have the same
running theme within all of the pieces. Like the original photograph
of the mermaid I kept the chopping block as the stage and the white
foam board of the set as the background. With these two things it
gave the images a more scientific feel. Much like a specimen in a
autopsy laboratory, which wasn't a theme I was aiming for but
achieved and decided to keep.
My goal was to create six of these
oddities while using found or bought objects. If the objects I was
trying to put together didn't fit, I would photograph them separately
in the set and then use Adobe Photoshop to merge them. I found this
way of working a lot more productive, it wasn't nearly as time
consuming either.
The original six I had created didn't
work as a sequence when laid out together, some were more striking
than others. The six got slimmed down to four. The four that I had
collected consisted of the mermaid, a squid lady, a angel and a two
headed cat.
With the four I had I ideally wanted to
put them together in the same space. I am trying to make my own Freak
Show, therefore I’m trying to promote. I went through the process
of creating single posters for each oddity just to see if they worked
as well on their own. The layout for the posters was kept all the
same, but individually they didn't work. As a group they had more
impact, and were visually more interesting. From this experiment I
tried creating a single poster which involved all of them. It was
also at this time that I decided to play with colour. By turning the
images greyscale and playing with the contrast it gave off a grunge
feel. The contrast gave my freaks the freak feel they needed. I
created the poster with all of them on but kept one coloured while
the other was greyscale. I did this because I wanted to see which was
more successful.
I felt that creating a Freak Show
became a finalized idea when I decided to make them instead of trying
to find a way to make 2D coexist with 3D. It simply came down to the
fact that the 3D images I created were material things, they worked
and fitted together. They also had the appearance of being able to
reach out and touch them, whereas the 2D / 3D images just didn't look
convincing. Overall I’m happy with my Freak Show acts, if I were to
do this again I’d try and create more than four like I originally
wanted to do.
