Making a gif banner seems a bit hit and miss- the lowest down one is the best one I’ve managed to make so far, but I’m still not 100% happy with it so I’m going to keep experimenting until I get it right. Also it turns out RedBubble only accept PNG or JPEG for their site banners so I’ll have to do something else for it. I do want to get to grips with this process though and I would like a new gif banner for this blog, so I will keep tinkering!
I am making a Redbubble account to sell some of my designs on, as all my work has been cancelled due to Covid19- I would prefer to print my designs onto products first i.e. via screen printing at 3rd Rail Print Space, but it is shut due to the pandemic and I need a form of income during this time.
I was playing around on Photoshop with the aim of making a banner for my Redbubble shop and to replace the gif banner currently on this blog. It was going to be a larger version of the one I already use, but as I was messing around on Photoshop I came across a way to make the text 3D, which I did, and then began playing around to animate it- resulting in this. I watched a few Youtube videos, but mostly just figured it out as I went.
Given it is my first time using the 3D functions on Photoshop and given how long ago I made the first gif I am really pleased with how this turned out, however I am working on it further as I want it to be a little bit slower (so it is easier for people to read) and I want it to flow a little better and look less clunky, so I’m going to keep working on it!
Above: photographs taken of classical marble sculptures in one of the rooms at the Victoria and Albert Museum, taken on my phone
I spent about 3 hours in this part of the museum drawing and photographing some of the sculptures shown above, partly for practice as I am wildly out of practice in terms of drawing, and also for research as part of my FAT project. I wanted to look at the body types and poses in particular, which is why I have photographed and sketched them from different angles.
Above: photos of a variety of sketches done yesterday at the V&A, taken on my phone. Some are on A3, and some are A5.
I started off trying to realistically capture the forms and shading using pencils and pastels, but I wasn’t entirely happy with my efforts, so I then used blind contour drawings in felt tip pens to warm up a little, before shifting back to pencil, the moving on to simple line drawings using just a fine liner pen to capture the forms. I have been struggling lately to motivate myself to get out and make art, due to overworking and poor mental health, so even though I am very critical of the drawings themselves I am deeply proud of myself for getting out and travelling across London to the V&A to actually make some art.
I think given how out of practice I am the drawings aren’t a total loss, I still managed to capture the forms and that was the main point of the exercise- to practice and to study the body types and poses, which I think come across in my drawings. I particularly like the line drawings, they aren’t perfect but it was freeing to draw directly with pen and simplify the sculptures down to the bare essentials. Also with the pencil and pastel drawings I tried harder not to erase too many of my mistakes- I quite like seeing the bits I’ve re-positioned and redrawn as it shows the development of the drawing, and it was helpful to get me out of my perfectionist mindset.
I would like to go back and draw some of the sculptures in other rooms, mainly focusing on European, as I am white British and I am examining the lack of diversity in classical European sculptures in particular. I think next time I might take some other drawing materials such as watercolours or inks to try and do some more gestural studies. I would also like to try redrawing the sculptures with different body types (I will probably use images of myself in similar poses as a reference) and possibly experiment with digital drawings on Illustrator.
I want to further develop my ideas around my body, how it feels to inhabit a fat body, and a non-binary body, and how it is viewed by the outside world. I still need to upload my FAT zine on here, which I want to make as a digital version as well, and continue on in that vein. As part of this I began making a sculpture a few months back in The Kiln Rooms, which I need to finish sculpting and then fire and glaze.
Above: photos of the sculpture in progress- it is hand sculpted from white stoneware clay, and is a self portrait based on photos I took of my own body in the same pose (which I won’t upload here, for various reasons). I need to work on the legs, feet, and boobs a little bit more, but I am planning to leave it headless and arm-less, as I want to concentrate more on main body, and I quite like that it resembles a broken classical marble sculpture. When I have finished sculpting it I plan to fire it and glaze it with a white satin glaze, to give it the silky white texture and look of a marble sculpture.
I started making this as a way to come to terms with the reality of how my body really looks- selfies and photos taken by others often aren’t 100% honest depictions and I wanted to challenge myself to see myself in a more objective way, to help build on the vein of self love and acceptance I have been working so hard to cultivate. I am hoping to make more of these small maquettes, in different poses, as part of this. It also got me thinking- its’ resemblance to a classical marble sculpture made me realise we so rarely anything other than idealised versions of the human form in art, and particularly in sculpture. Even artists who sculpt self portraits and cast from life tend to be able bodied and cisgender, with conventionally attractive or at least socially acceptable bodies. I think it would help a lot of people who don’t fit these margins to see bodies more like their own represented in museums and galleries, as we have always existed but are too often left out of art and history for conforming.
Above: images of works by Marc Quinn, exploring the bodies of disabled people, taken from his website
I am particularly inspired by the work of sculptor Marc Quinn, who has sculpted people with different disabilities. However as someone who identifies as disabled (due to my long term mental health issues) I find it somewhat uncomfortable that someone who is not disabled is making work about it. This is because it almost feels voyeuristic, and a little bit like fetishisation, although I’m sure it isn’t meant to come across this way. I do enjoy the idea of having these unconventional bodies created in this particular medium and put on display in gallery and museum settings- as I think representation and diversity are super important; but I think more needs to be done to elevate disabled artists and give us our own platforms to create, share, and display our works. This is a systemic issue in the art world that needs to be tackled and discussed by all of us. I would like to create work that explores and celebrates diverse bodies in a way inspired by this, but from the perspective of someone who actually has a body that doesn’t fit the norm.
As well as my FAT zine I also created the video “I Can’t Help the Way I Feel (My Fat Body)” in response to the sculpture “I Can’t Help the way I Feel” by artist John Isaacs, pictured below, and the drawing workshop of the same name. This thread is something I am keen to continue exploring through various mediums, as it is important to me and a part of my journey in self love and self growth.
I think further research and exploration into the subject needs to be done, which I am going to endeavor to do in my own practice going forwards with this project. I plan to start by visiting art galleries/museums to examine classical sculptures- I want to do some drawings and take some photos for inspiration and see where that takes me.
Above: Images from the one day paper printing workshop at 3rd rail Print Space
This workshop was my first time as Workshop Tutor, rather than Assistant, with an adult group for 3rd Rail Print, running a paper printing workshop. I was super nervous as I usually assist but I’m really pleased with how it went- we ran to schedule, finished on time, and everyone gave good feedback and were pleased with their prints! I think going forwards I will feel more comfortable to lead a workshop in future, although I am still happy to assist as well.
Above: photos taken during the 1 day t-shirt printing workshop I assisted with today at 3rd Rail Print Space
Today we had a larger group of 8 people for the t-shirt printing workshop so we overran a little bit, but it was very successful- everyone enjoyed the day and was very happy with their limited edition run of t-shirts. Some of the attendees came with digital designs which they needed help with using Photoshop, and some of them drew their designs in the morning- it was a nice mix and we managed to split the group quite nicely to two by digital or hand drawn designs to teach the various stages of the process. Lots of cool designs- my favourite was the hand drawn Dali lobster phone illustration!
I am currently part of the work placement programme at The Kiln Rooms, a Peckham based ceramics studio with 3 sites around Peckham. They offer classes and open access ceramics studio spaces for members and as part of their work placement programme I work for them 7 hours a week, during which I am training on the job as a ceramics technician. This includes learning about the kilns (how to load, unload and operate), mixing glazes, learning about different techniques and types of clay/other materials, and the general upkeep and day to day running of the open access space in Bellenden Road. As part of this I have free access to the staff studio space 24/7 in Peckham Levels, and free kiln and glaze use. I started there on October 6th and have been working on a few of my own smaller projects since being there, using the staff space before and after shifts at my job in Peckham. I hope that this opportunity will allow me to grow my practice as I don’t currently have a lot of experience with ceramics- I hand sculpted the ceramic bones for the River project during my MA but didn’t get to learn much in terms of techniques or the potential of ceramics as a medium as I just sculpted the familiar shapes using the same kind of techniques as I used with the waxes I made as part of the bronze casting process, and as I used to with polymer clay (which I worked with as a hobby in whilst in school and college).
I have already learnt a lot in the past few months since I started there; regarding the technical side of things like mixing glazes, kiln temperatures, the correct way to pack and unpack kilns depending on if it is bisque or glaze firing, and other bits like this. I think my main goals moving forward are to improve on these skills and gain more knowledge, and I also want to learn how to throw properly on a wheel and how to slip cast. I have a lot of experience with mould making in other materials, so I am looking forward to trying my hand at various kinds of plaster mould for slip casting- I have some ideas that involve lots of objects of different shapes and sizes that I want to cast in ceramic so it should be a good opportunity for learning and experimenting! I also want to learn how to throw properly- I have had a few attempts and so far have only completed one very tiny little pot. It turned out to be much harder than I thought it would be, so I need to watch some more tutorials online and keep trying.
Above: photos of my first attempt on the wheel, my first pot before drying, and then a photo of it after the bisque firing. I have also glazed it since then and need to add a photo of it. For a first attempt I am pleased with it, although I think I may need tutoring or classes in order to learn to throw properly- whilst I like the shape of the pot it is much smaller than I was intending, and it is wonky where the clay wasn’t centered properly.
I’m also keen to try and get back into jewelry making, so I have been experimenting with shapes and form to create something (hopefully) different and interesting!
Above: exploring forms through jewelry, showing the initial forms, then first firing, glaze firing, and final glazed pieces.
I want to try and make more delicate forms as these are quite clunky and I also need more practice with glazing. As well as this I have purchased thinner rods for the pendant stand shown in the photos because I’m not happy with how large the holes are on each piece- I feel it isn’t as aesthetically pleasing.
I tried to make a coiled dish (coiling is a technique where you take a sausage of clay and coil it tightly to form the shape you want) but it collapsed, and as I went to squash it and start over it took on the vague shape of a vagina- so I decided to sculpt it into one, ending up with the above piece, which I have since bisque fired. I hope to glaze it soon.
Overall I feel I have a lot to learn- as mentioned I would like to learn to slip cast and throw, and I would also like to improve my sculpting techniques.
Today I assisted the running of a one day paper printing workshop at 3rd Rail Print Space! It involved setting up the space ready for the participants, then assisting them and the workshop leader Melissa throughout the day, and cleaning the space and equipment afterwards.
We had a mixture of people who had never screen printed before and people who had dabbled a little in attendance, so we had to be quite hands on and thorough, dividing our attention as necessary. The aim of the workshop was for the attendees to leave with an edition of 10 prints that they designed, prepped the screens for, and printed themselves; so we began by getting them to either draw their designs then and there, or prep their digital designs to be printed onto film. We then took them through the process of prepping a screen for coating and the actual coating- each person was expected to coat their own screen after a demonstration. Once the screens where ready we took them through the exposing process (where the designs are transferred onto the screens). After lunch we then asked them to choose their colours and demonstrated how to do the actual printing- we both assisted where needed and where on hand to guide them if they needed help.
Working with adults is always a little different to working with children- if a child suggests an idea that is tricky to do, for whatever reason, they can usually be persuaded to simplify their idea- but if an adult has a difficult to pull off idea they are often adamant about doing it their way, even if they are completely new to the process. This can be quite frustrating when you are trying to run a workshop and make everything go smoothly, but it is a good way to hone conflict resolution skills and get used to being more flexible.
The Working Class Artist Network (Wank Collective) put up an open call on Instagram for working class artists to submit work for an exhibition taking place across two abandoned houses in Peckham (Safehouse 1 and 2, ran by Maverick Projects). I submitted a proposal to include the 3 zines I have made this year- BPD & Me, the Brexit zine and FAT. I finished FAT specifically so that I could include it in this exhibition, which was actually a really helpful kick to finish the zine as I had got a bit stuck with it for a few weeks.
I was a bit anxious to be in an exhibition full of people I didn’t know, but everyone was really friendly and it ended up being quite healing to be surrounded by other working class artists- the art world can feel really intimidating and alienating to working class people so this was refreshing! I was also concerned that because there wasn’t a theme to the exhibition that it might feel a bit disjointed, however a lot of us were working with similar themes by virtue of all being working class, so the show actually felt well put together- Wank Collective did a brilliant job of curating the work so it flowed well.
I had a bit of trouble sorting out how to display my zines and got to the venue later than I planned on the day, because of this- luckily there was a fold up table not being used so I was able to use that. I originally planned to use a shelf but we could only use pre-existing holes and as I didn’t know the space I decided against that in case they weren’t the right height or width apart for a shelf. Then I planned to borrow a table from a friend but it was too low for what I needed. I then tossed around the idea of making a shelf out of white foam board and adhering it to the wall with sticky tabs before deciding it would look tacky, and finally planned to grab some cardboard boxes from Rye Lane and stack them (you can always find colourful fruit and veg boxes from the stalls) before the organizer told me there was a spare table in the venue.
It wasn’t ideal, but I think it fit in with the aesthetic of the venue well. I need to come up with something better looking for next time though! We set up the exhibition during the day then held the private view all evening, after which we then had to de-install and clean up the space. I think this worked for the space and I liked the ephemeral nature of the show as i felt it suited my work- zines are often very temporary, made on photocopiers, distributed and then forgotten about. In terms of how I think it went I am super pleased- from what I saw lots of people stopped to read my zines and I got a lot of positive feedback, particularly in regards to how I dealt with sensitive topics like my experiences with BPD and my experiences as a person inhabiting a fat body. The exhibition as a whole was incredibly busy, to the point where it was hard to move, and received an overall positive response which was incredibly gratifying.
Big shout out to the Wank Collective Team, who did an amazing job organizing and curating the whole thing!
The exhibition poster
A selection of the other works included in the show
My zines in the show
A colleague from the cinema asked me to print a two layer t-shirt and one layer jumper for him at the Print Space- he supplied me with the designs and clothing, and I prepped the designs, printed them onto film, prepped the screens, mixed the inks, then did the printing, as shown in the photos above!
He is very pleased with the outcome, as am I.
KAT OUTTEN 