Evaluation

Although I feel that I have managed to resolve this sampling project towards the end, I think that I could have approached my research and development in a much more active way in the beginning. I don’t feel that I really “hit the ground running” and this meant that the project didn’t get off to a very productive start. I feel that I’ve continued and developed my theme of Robust and Fragile throughout, with fairly good contextual research also. I began my research with taking photos and making observational drawings, which I continued to do all the way through this unit. My strongest observational work didn’t come till later though I feel, as I delayed visiting the Museum of Science and Industry too long – the photos I took there were helpful, I wish I could have done this earlier in the unit however. 

I feel that I am strong at developing and working through my ideas, I am capable of being selective with my themes and ideas. However, I think that when it comes to resolving these ideas into samples/pieces I struggle with realising them into the physical form. I know I need to work on this in the future to reach my full potential.

I enjoyed my workshops, particularly the Knit one. My work with colour is probably the most successful part of the whole project, I developed a good colour pallet that really pulled all my samples together in the end. I struggled with the 3D construction in the second half of the unit and my work reflects this – I wish I had given more time to sampling and really exploring the potential of working on the body but I dwindled this time.

 In future I plan to better manage my time, in the past I have always been a very last-minute worker and I think this has a negative effect on the work I produce. In the next project I hope to really throw myself into my work from the very beginning by building up an inspirational body of observations, drawings, photos and notes that will really kick-start things.

Alba Prat

In the 3D construction workshop introductory slideshow my eye was particularly caught by designer Alba Prat’s work. Her use of simple shape built up into complex forms was interesting, and the slotting form in some of the details of hers reminds me of my own work with slotting. 

Slotting

Whilst looking and exploring cogs and wheels within mechanisms, I became interested in how they interlock and slot together. This led me to briefly look at PlayPlax, the child’s toy with utilises this slotting technique so that infinite shapes and structures can be created. In 3D construction I am exploring different materials outside of the textile domain. I created some of my own slotting peices, circles that fit into each other to make an almost spherical shape. Though I tried to work in plastics, due to issues of expense I decided upon utilising cardboard. Cardboard has also proved more stable than my plastic samples, which were flimsy and delicate.

Using my spherical cardboard shapes, I worked onto the mannequin, experimenting with layouts and patterns that I could create. I decided to make the cardboard shapes in many different scales, one of the main reasons for this is one of my favourite drawings of mine from this project was the one that had many shapes and sizes of cogs all fitting together. The varying scales provides a more interesting piece I feel. 

MOSI

As part of the research into my exploration of Robust vs. Fragile I visited the Museum of Science and Industry. Here I took many photographs and made observational drawings of machinery, both large and small. These helped me to develop my ideas further about the structures and shapes that I used in my 3D construction sampling. 

Robust vs Fragile

The starting point for this project is the ordered opposites of Robust vs. Fragile. I plan to look at the mechanisms  in machinery mainly. This will go with the robust part. However, I am also going to look at the smaller scales of these workings, looking at things such as the mechanisms of clockwork, these minute pieces of machinery are much more fragile. I like the repetition of cogs and wheels, and will hopefully explore this further in my sampling work.