My blackboard

This blackboard will be used to present my work in progress next Thursday and Friday. My inspiration for this blackboard came from my friend Mina! Thank you! 

Shibori inspired alphabet

Colour mixing - made with love 

The colours

The result 

cont..

I mixed the colours above to make the different letters of the Maltese Alphabet.

Voila!

j a q

As I was embossing the leather with random letters, I realised that I was subconsciously writing jaq which is similar to the word 'jaqq' which means disgust in Maltese. This in turn made me think of my mum who always said 'l-ikel ma tghidlux - jaq! imma tghid li ma thobbux....' which means 'you shouldn't say the food is disgusting just say that you don't like it....'.

j a q:

Type-Sewing

Today I used the sewing machine available at school which is so advanced (compared to my mothers bernina) - I wasn't sure if any of the sewing was actually my doing! 

Examples of Type sewing:

Type on leather

Type on felt

'Postcards from Vegas' at the FAS Contemporary

This week I visited the Fine Arts Society and saw the exhibition 'Postcards from Vegas' by Nick & Rob Carter. I had already seen some of their work last week at the London Art Fair so it was very exciting to see their full collection of postcards! 

Sample here:

Embossing Leather

I started experimenting with various types of leather and embossing it by testing it at different temperatures and times. After some trials - I finally found the ideal temperature for the embossing. What I found out was that upholstery leather works better during the process because the letters become highlighted.

Some samples:

New ABC book to my Collection

I will be looking at different Children's books and researching the different interpretations of the alphabet. 

Dr.Seuss' ABC book

Alphabet cloth book in the making

After spending 2 hours in the metal workshop and burning one finger with the soldering iron! I have my alphabet ready for embossing experiments on leather tomorrow! So, this is a preview of the letters:

Work- in-progress

I am currently working on creating cloth books and incorporating the Maltese alphabet along with the English alphabet. 

This is what it looks like for now:

I am also experimenting with trapped fibres in between textiles. I have an example here:

In the following weeks I will be experimenting with metal lettering, embossing leather, Woodwork, Screen printing and much more! 

to be continued...

London Art Fair 2011

This was my first time at the London Art Fair. It was a longer visit then expected but a grand source for artists works(present & past).

Text 

Andrea Mastrovito

Love is a Four-Letter Word, 2010

Sir Peter Blake

An Alphabet

Rob & Nick Carter

Pioneer Pawn, 2011

David Spiller

Because of love, 2010

Can't remember the artists name but I will research it!

Helen Ingham

Up over the downs, 2011

I grew up with animals, 2011

Sir Peter Blake

I Love you, 2010

Text in Vienna

Lawrence Weiner (1942-, New York)

Conceptual Artist

Smashed into pieces (in the still of the night)

Vienna, 1991

Sonja Gnagl & Michael Schuster

The End, 2010

Aida pastry shop

Text in London-Malta

London           

Malta

Art & Text - Text & Art

Art and Text 

by Black dog publishing, London, Uk.

I had looked into lots of conceptual art books but this is unique with over 100 artists. I have been looking into what other artists have created to come up with new innovative concepts for my own work. 

Bruno Munari

When speaking of experiential learning, Bruno Munari comes to mind. 

His concept of:

'Fare per capire' - Do/Make to understand

Bruno Munari (1907-1998)

Italian designer/artist/pedagogist

To learn more about the artist

Links:

http://www.brunomunari.it/

http://www.munart.org/

I am currently researching and reading some of his books as he is a true inspiration to me.

Book list:

*Fantasia

*Arte come mestiere

*Da cosa nasce cosa

*Design e communicazione visiva

Links:

http://www.brunomunari.it/

http://www.munart.org/

Experiential Learning

High Society:

Last Sunday I visited the Wellcome Collection where a temporary exhibition is being held. It talks about Drug use in society. You will find text, artefacts, videos and interactive pieces too. Upstairs you will find the permanent exhibition: Medicine Then and Now.

Definitely worth a visit!

Link:http://www.wellcomecollection.org

The Museum of Everything:

After post-poning this visit to the Museum of Everything - I finally got to see it yesterday!

I saw the the 3rd exhibition(there where another 2 in previous months).It's a very stimulating environment, it's quirky and the space is exquisitely divided into different rooms. 

Check it out as it ends Mid-February for relocation.

Link:http://www.museumofeverything.com

Understanding Road & Public signage

Text is everywhere, it's part of our daily life. I decided to walk and take pictures of road and public signs. 


Colours used in road signs:
Primary Colours:
*Red: Forbidden
*Blue: Services
*Yellow: Warnings
 +
*Black and White: Regulatory


Some examples:

Testing the Letters

The next step was to purchase the ink and pad and try these letters out! So, I started by writing the alphabet. When working with wooden letters they leave a mark of the grain too; this creates texture on a flat surface. 

Type Wooden Letters

When I started looking into Type as a form of expression, the first thing that came to mind was to buy wooden individual letters of the alphabet to make up a print set. I headed down to Portobello market on very rainy day and an hour later I was searching through a box of old letters from a letter press which had closed down. The fonts are all varied but I like the contrast. After an hour or so and having 3 people searching through the two boxes - I had found the whole set! 

Check them out below: