I was looking forward to starting the Sampling unit, as I was eager to beginning developing my work and working on the problems and weak points I encountered in the previous project. I began with the knitting workshops, I particularly enjoyed this as knitting was where my main interests lie. I am happy with my samples from the knitting machines, I liked working with colour and texture; I feel that at the halfway point of this project, my strongest part is the sampling.
I am less pleased at this point with my sketchbook. Despite realising in the first project that I should have concentrated more from the start on research and drawing, I struggled with this the second time round as well.
Phase two of the Sampling unit I am on the intermediate 3D Construction workshop. Here I hope to develop the ideas behind my samples concerning shapes and scale. I hope I will enjoy this as I feel I work well when I’m working straight onto the body. I also wish to explore texture in the 3D construction, using materials that in keeping with the fragile vs. robust theme of my work so far.
I am disappointed in myself that I didn’t take advantage of the resources such as museums and galleries on my doorstep, I feel that if I had done so from the start and made more observations and drawings that my work would be stronger at the moment. I have been able to develop my time keeping skills however, which were a weakness of mine previously.
I think the strongest pages in my sketchbook are the ones where I have explored colour, I think it shows that colour and tone is where my strengths have been in the sampling unit so far.
I feel that so far in the project I have been more selective with materials, honing in on textures and colours that are specific to my initial research. I hope to explore the use of less traditional and non-textile materials in phase two, perhaps with plastics, metals and papers to take my work in new directions. I want to continue with colour exploration also.
