Degree Show 2013

Unit X Summary

Unit X Summary

In Summery unit X has been a great platform to explore the outside world and work towards a real brief.  Although I personally have particularly found this unit difficult due to my circumstances, and I haven’t been able to attend all the classes which has made it very difficult and it’s been very hard to stay focused not seeing my tutor every week or working in a university environment. I feel this has let my work down and I haven’t been able to show my full potential but even so I have been able to produce some outcomes.

After becoming a national trust member I decided to explore some local buildings which I thought I might find of interest but unfortunately wasn’t getting any inspiration from them.  So I decided that instead of looking at buildings of local sites which contained artefacts and painting. I would look at their gardens instead where I could find textual inspiration.  My samples have been produced using imagery of trees and bark from National Trust gardens, which lead me onto my interest for fabric manipulation where I taught myself to create different types of smocking which I did find interesting.

I feel that these samples could have been taken a lot further than they did but could the outcomes could still be used in craft items either in 2d scanned prints or the 3d textiles for items such as cushions etc. like shown on my blog.

This project has shown me how artists sell their work through craft avenues and shown me how collaboration can be used as an advantage when producing work, even though I haven’t been able to do this myself I think after researching artists who have, I know have knowledge to do so in the future.

Professional and Employability: Task Two

Context of Practice

At this present time I feel undecided and confused about my career ahead, I don’t feel I know where I fit in the textiles area and this doesn’t help me with what job and what exact area I want to specialise in. My current work is in the area of embroidery but is usually crossed with other boundaries as I enjoy using mixed media’s, I think I am probably in the right textile area but I’m still very unsure. I am hoping that this final year will give me some guidance as well as focus me into the right area.
Before coming to the Textiles in Practice course I originally studied fashion and textiles and found the subject a little overwhelming to say the least as I didn’t feel I had the drive to survive so to speak.  Which is why I moved and I defiantly feel it was a right move my work is more textile based. Although I still enjoy fashion and garment making, but this probably comes from doing it at my place of work.  I have worked at a dressmaker’s shop since I was 14 years of age which is what I believe have me the push me into fashion and textiles. The shop creates garments for wedding attire, costumes to alterations and I can be doing anything from cutting to sewing to embellishment.
I am also currently making textile kitchen items for a small cook shop in the town in which I live in which I really enjoy, I know what I am doing, we have a few items and we just choose new materials together and I sew them to completion. But this doesn’t allow me to express my love for surface design as this wouldn’t be cost or time effective to do so.  

The Future of my Practice