Posted by Agnes Iley , Monday, October 18, 2010 7:17 AM
What have you achieved?
Have you ever thought about drawing in this way before?
Drawing is definitely not one of my finer qualities. So my drawing never goes past a quick sketch that doesn’t make sense to anyone but me. Which is fine, it’s usually just a reference for an idea I don’t want to forget, so it serves a purpose. At the same time I am a notorious “doodler” so I guess mark making in itself is not alien to me.
Where you able to be inventive about the range of marks you made?
It took me some time to leave some inhibitions behind. I didn’t start to feel inventive until I moved on from the graphite pencils to the paints, crayons and different tools to make marks with.
Where you able to explore a wide range of media?
Yes, I think so. Although there are some other media I would like to try.
I am thinking about the fluidity of inks and the softness of cream pastels.
Are you pleased with what you’ve done? Do you think it will help you to approach drawing more confidently?
Yes, I think I managed to shake off some of my worst inhibitions about drawing and see it as a purpose to a means. This made me loosen up a bit.
I like to work with digital media and often use this as a substitute for drawing.
I feel I can use both now.
Which way of working did you enjoy most?
Making marks with words?
I was doing alright with the making marks with words relating to texture (e.g. soft, hard, etc.) when it came to making marks with regards to emotion I started doubting. Is it the mark that portrays the emotion, or the association with the mark I got in my head, or the colour? I got a bit stuck on this until I decided I was trying to split hairs and just did what felt right.
Making marks in response to an image?
This, for me, was the easiest way of working. Like I mentioned before I love working with digital media. So I work often with pictures.
Although I never worked with a viewing frame before, I felt it’s very similar to the way I work digitally. I always crop or enlarge areas to get a real focus on that part of the picture I really want to use
Making marks in relation to real objects?
I found it harder to focus on the texture of real objects. More difficult to pick up on the light and shade. I actually felt like picking up the camera and taking a picture and working from that.
Did you find each of them very different?
See above.
Which media did you most enjoy working with? And why?
One of the things I most enjoyed was when I unfolded the tissues I had used to stamp paint onto paper and mob up spillages. I love happy accidents and I guess tissue is as close to fabric as I could get with these exercises.
I also really enjoyed the effect of bleach on the tissue paper. The result felt like batik.
Another one that I was really happy with and that needs more exploration is my discovery of oil pastels.
Have I fully explored the possibilities of mark making? If not what else would you like to try?
Can you ever fully explore the possibilities of mark making?
There is definitely a lot more to explore, different materials, mark making in combination with traditional fabrics and the zap-able and dissolvable techno textiles, different threads, paints, inks and a combinations of all of these.
Do you have any ideas about how this work will enrich your textile work in the future?
Well it’s given me new ideas for experimentation; it’s of course hard to predict where it will lead to. But I do feel more confident. I realize now that I don’t have to draw or paint a masterwork, but that it’s just a design-tool. It’s not my drawing that will be on show after all.
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