Summer Project

Back in July I was sent an email from Edinburgh College that gave instructions to complete a project in preparation for starting the Contemporary Art Practice HND Course on August 24th.

Part 1 of the project was to research a handful of contemporary art galleries and specific pieces dotted around Edinburgh, to then express either positive or negative reactions to the pieces of work.

Part 2 required us to actually create 2 pieces of work based on our research and development taken down in Part 1. These 2 art works were to be produced in response to 2 of the following titles:

• Here & Now
• For Sale
• This Land is Our Land

The instructions included details of how we were expected to create our actual art works. We were asked to produce our final responses in two distinct media with at least one of the pieces in a media we are less familiar with.

Having been used to critically evaluating different art works from the BTEC course and why I like them and why I don't, I felt I was able to easily slip back into that mindset when I visited the Modern Gallery recently on Belford Road in Edinburgh.

Since receiving the email I have made a conscious effort to visit Edinburgh and take down my thoughts in note form regarding different art works and how they made me feel, why they made me feel that way etc.

(I will post these above mentioned reflective notes in a separate blog post)

Since I have became familiar with working with video and audio in the past year I chose to create 1 piece using said media. As for the second I have the material and development but have yet to choose an 'unfamiliar' media to work with.

I have just under a week to complete the project and hand it in on my first day. It has been great to get into the swing of things again since finishing at Borders College in June!

Working at Lyle & Scott this summer has given me the opportunity to think a lot about what I want to achieve through my artwork. 'Time' and how us humans experience time has consumed a lot of my thinking this summer and has ended up being the theme of one piece of this project under the title 'Here & Now'.

I am planning on posting about this project at the weekend once I am completely finished.

'Work Version 2'

Gave 'Handmade: Glass" a watch after Niall recommended it in class just the other day. A truly beautiful 29 minutes worth of considered camera angles and phenomenal skill.

Afterwards, I was working on some stuff for one of my units and I felt inspired.

I had a record playing in the background so currently shiteing it that YouTube will pull copyright theft and remove the video off their site, so fingers crossed.

Final Major Project filming = done!

On Thursday I went along to Hawick Knitwear and finished up filming for my project.  I spent about 3 hours in total at the factory and made sure to take notes to include in my sketchbook. Human Resources and the staff in general were consistently helpful and genuinely interested when it came to what I was filming. I began at the very 1st stage of production and followed the process through the mill capturing visuals that looked similar to each other. I was considering composition with every shot I took. Having the tripod definitely helped me frame certain shots, and even allowed me to venture from stationary recording to slowly sliding the camera left or right. I made sure I spoke to each operator a little before I began filming at their machines, every single one of them were more tan happy to help out and even gave me a basic run through of what it was they were actually doing. This made a huge difference when it came to understanding how long I should film for or how zoomed in I should be etc. I let them know the exhibition dates and that I would provide them with a few invitations nearer the time to show my gratitude for allowing me in to film.

Douglas Gordon

Since seeing '24 Hour Psycho' as part of the Generation exhibit at the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art I have made an effort to look at more of Douglas Gordon's work.

I am interested in how people perceive certain movements and in particular hand gestures. This specific concern was unearthed why I discovered Gordon's video piece titled 'A Divided Self I and A Divided Self II'. Displayed over two screens it consisted of 2 hands interacting with each other. The two screens were near mirror images of each other.

I felt a sense of un-ease and intrigue during, and afterwards. While some would acknowledge these feelings as negative I realised that this reaction can only be a good thing, the visuals had evoked a reaction that made me feel uncomfortable and because of this I was filled with curiosity.


Why did it affect me?

How exactly did it make me feel?


These questions that I asked myself, and the mere fact I was asking myself questions is the main reason I want to create film work. I want to make people feel, and question. Whether it be negative or positive or neutral - I want a reaction. To be honest, the more negative the better!

Below are two pieces I created with 'A Divided Self I and A Divided Self II' in mind. I am pleased at what I came up with and realise that at this early stage of experimentation I have a lot to learn, but for now I wanted to see what I was capable of.

As I mentioned earlier I am interested in how people react to visuals such as these ^ and so I asked my family and friends careful questions about how they felt during and after watching these pieces. The general feedback included phrases like "creeped out" and "it scared me" or rather candidly from my Dad "arty farty". I made an effort to observe their facial expressions whilst the videos were playing and they pretty much matched up with the feedback. 

All of this helps me so much as I prepare for my first session of filming for my Final Major Project this weekend. I am constantly aware - both during filming and editing clips - of the audiences attention span and patience. 

I made sure I never asked them if they liked the pieces. I only asked how they felt. 

I don't care a bit if they liked it or not.

'A Man and his Dogs'

Last month I decided what I wanted to achieve through the Final Major Project unit. The idea is to produce a short film consisting of two pieces of footage, on separate screens, side by side, playing in synchronisation. Screen 1 will show a rugby team preparing, warming up and playing a game followed by their post match routine back at the clubrooms. The 2nd screen will follow the manufacturing process of a garment within a Hawick Knitwear mill.

These 2 scenarios will be shot in a very abstract fashion. I will focus on shape, colour, symmetry and juxtaposition.

In preparation for filming these events I wanted to get a feel for the camera I will be using, so I had a friend assist me in creating a small 'Mockumentary' following a reclusive man living with his 3 dogs in the country. There was no script or structure to the short film, I suggested things for Calum to talk of or things he could do, places he could go, etc. I wanted a subject to focus my camera on and see what I could come up with.

When I got home home and was preparing to edit, I found I had recorded a total of 81separate clips. This was not what I had expected and so putting together an appropriate selection of clips proved a tricky task. I spent around 3 hours figuring out what audio to use, whether or not to follow an obvious theme etc. What I considered most throughout editing was how the visuals would pair up with the audio. I wanted the theme or plot to be left open. Most of the dialogue sounds as if it should be 'off camera' or 'behind the scenes' conversation, thus hopefully feeling similar to a 'Mockumentary'.

After finalising details and watching it over and over, I noticed how quickly it moved at certain points. I didn't notice this at the beginning and Rosie, my classmate, was the one who pointed it out to me that the eyes of the viewer may struggle to follow what is on the screen. I will take this into consideration when filming for my Final Major Project.

The plan was to film the Hawick Harlequins home game against Duns at the weekend past, but the game was cancelled due to a frozen pitch. Thankfully I will have another opportunity this coming week as the Quins have another home game. As for filming in the mill, I plan to get an e-mail sent to the Managing Director this week detailing my plans and asking for permission.






Here is 'A Man and his Dogs' -

'Salesman'

I am on a roll so I may as well keep posting... I just need to talk about these guys once more. Albert and David Maysles released the documentary 'Salesman' in 1969 and it follows the working lives of 4 bible salesman travelling across New England and Florida. It provides a fascinating insight into the stresses and struggles involved in this particular line of work.

I have loved watching documentaries since I was about 15/16. Some are better than others and it of course depends on the subject matter and how they are made, but the whole concept and idea behind documentaries themselves, fascinates me immensely.

At a time when cameras and video weren't as popular as they are now, watching these men behave and communicate amongst themselves and customers fills me with endless curiosity.
I feel comfort in hearing these men confide in each other and behave they way they do. The challenge and effort involved in negotiating with everyday people seems a task that requires the patience of a saint. These men sell bibles door to door all the while their boss is breathing down their neck wielding a no nonsense attitude and accepting no "excuses" or "alibis".

Personally, there's nothing I like more than spending hours sitting looking through piles of old photographs from my childhood and also members of my family's childhoods. Video footage of my mum and dads childhood doesn't exist due to lack of technology, but I find pleasure in viewing footage they both filmed during the 80s when they first met and up until their marriage. I love how I can experience life before I was born through these home videos.

I suppose this all ties in with my interest in documentaries. Especially documentaries as old as 'Salesman'. There are many factors about this particular documentary that I like: the fact it is in black and white, the mens clothes, the interaction between the men and potential customers, the ability to observe how life was like in that day and age (e.g. without advanced technology, TV, mobile phones etc.) and finally the connection the Maysles brothers have made with the salesmen and people on film.
Albert Maysles has a belief that whilst making a documentary, the person behind the camera, the person in charge of capturing moments on film - has this responsibility to record reality in it's purest form possible. As if the camera isn't even there. Trust has to be established. The bond between humans has to be there, otherwise the intent and purpose of the documentary begins to fade. The link I shared in my erstwhile post shows Albert Maysles explain why he makes documentaries, why he loves it and why his passion for it has remained since his first project in 1955, based around a mental institution in Russia. He talks of the trust and comforting energy he emits when meeting people he is going to later document. I spoke earlier of Maysles and his belief that the trust and bond between himself and his subject is the first step on the right path to a strong documentary.

I will post the link to 'Salesman' below.

Albert Maysles

I chose this guy as one of my six practitioners for my Location Photography unit. I love the attention to detail in his photography and the fact he takes the time to get to know his subjects, even though this connection is brief he creates a bond a certain level of trust that allows the people he meets to act natural and behave in an open way in front of Maysles' camera. 

I watched this clip of Maysles giving a talk on documentaries. This interested me and ignited a desire in me to explore the world of making documentaries and how they are made. 

My recent exposure to editing in iMovie with clips I have filmed on my camera is part of this ongoing interest in video.

Here is the link to Albert Maysles presentation!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJhH3jDFeOU