BEYOND PATTERN an exploration into the cultural meanings of pattern education resources Contents Pages 2 Teacher’s Notes 3 Using This Resource Pack 3-4 Beyond the Decorative: Pattern as a visual language conveying ideas 5-26 About The Artists & Worksheets 5-6 Catherine Bertola 7-8 Michael Brennand-Wood 9-10 Nisha Duggal 11-12 Leo Fitzmaurice 13-14 Doug Jones 15-16 Adam King 17-18 Steve Messam 19-20 Henna Nadeem 21-22 Angharad Pearce Jones 23-24 Pamela So 25-26 Andrea Stokes 27 3 Acknowledgements Teachers Notes Beyond Pattern presents 11 contemporary artists whose works explore ways that pattern can be used to comment on social, cultural and political ideas that extend beyond the decorative. This resource pack is designed to help teachers and pupils to get the most out of a visit to the exhibition and provides suggestions for discussion and activities that use the artworks here as a starting point. Looking at Contemporary Art The variety of media and approaches to be seen in Beyond Pattern reflects the way that many artists working today use a range of techniques and skills as a means to convey their ideas, rather than as an end in themselves. Teachers do not need to be experts in order to help pupils engage with artworks - everyone has a different reaction to an artwork depending on their personal life experience. Posing open-ended questions is useful in encouraging pupils to respond, while emphasising the validity of each response and inviting pupils to give reasons for thinking as they do. Useful questions to ask in any exhibition include: • What can you see? • What does it remind you of? • How do you think it was made? • What do you think the artist is trying to say to us? • Can you describe why you think or feel this way? A full colour publication accompanies this project. Essays by Laura Mansfield and Lesley Millar. To order a catalogue please email [email protected] 2 Using This Resource Pack About the Artists Information about each artist, the ways they work and ideas that interest them is provided, along with details about the artworks in Beyond Pattern. This is supplemented by links to other contemporary artists with related working practices, to aid comparison and discussion back at school. Worksheets: Questions for teachers Teachers can use these questions as a starting point for their own personal development, to prepare for a visit to the exhibition or subsequent pupil work. They are devised to help teachers initiate discussions with pupils about the works in the exhibition. They can be used as they are or amended to suit the age and ability of pupils at different key stages. Activities for Pupils These provide practical starting points for activities based on the exhibition’s themes and individual artworks. They can be: • • • • • Employed as they are or adapted to suit the context and ability of learners Used alone or together or as a stimulus to other projects Used as part of a project or to form a project in themselves Used for work at the gallery which is further developed back in the classroom Delivered to whole classes, groups of students or individuals depending on what key stage a teacher is working with Beyond the Decorative: Pattern as a visual language conveying ideas Pattern is all around us, whether we are conscious of it or not. It penetrates every aspect of our lives and can be found in the home, workplace, street, garden or in the landscape. We often think of pattern as simply an adornment or even as a means of disguise, but it can also be a form of communication through a specific visual language. We learn to understand and interact with our complex world by seeking out patterns and using them to imposing order and thereby meaning. The artists in Beyond Pattern all exploit pattern as a visual language to convey ideas. Patterns linked to social history Michael Brennand-Wood bases compositions on seating patterns from sports arenas and holding patterns from slave ships to refer to historic patterns of trade and social control. 3 Catherine Bertola uses patterns from mass-produced lace tights to represent individual members of the 18th century Bluestockings circle in her drawings. Using motifs and patterns from specific cultural traditions and places Henna Nadeem combines Islamic and Oriental decorative patterns with European landscapes. Michael Brennand-Wood subverts floral textile pattern traditions from around the world. Steve Messam uses fleece from local black and white sheep breeds to recreate the black and white patterns of regional architectural styles. Patterns of behaviour and belief Doug Jones explores patterns of ritual and hierarchy associated with religious institutions and secretive societies. Andrea Stokes uses ornamental patterned net curtains as symbols of social status, aspiration and ‘Englishness’ in her video performance. Patterns of labour and manufacture / hand versus machine / pattern as template Pamela So, Andrea Stokes and Catherine Bertola all use lace and embroidery patterns as templates or stencils for recreating patterns and through drawing re-enact the repetitive labour associated with traditional handicrafts. Angharad Pearce Jones addresses the loss of local building skills to a globalised construction industry, using her blacksmith’s craft skills and linking symbols together to create decorative pattern. Repeat patterns that provide structural cohesion and balance Leo Fitzmaurice and Henna Nadeem exploit this property of repeat patterns by deliberately disrupting them to produce optically complex spaces and shifted meanings. Pattern as a way of bringing order and understanding to chaos and complexity Nisha Duggal uses grid patterns and symbols as visual codes for reducing the complex to simple elements. Patterns of communication Adam King uses the physical detritus of consumer society to make structures that resemble the chaotic and complex webs of our virtual communications networks. 4 Catherine Bertola Catherine Bertola creates installations, objects and drawings in response to historic contexts and the people who once lived or worked there. Her practice reflects an interest in the social history and status of women, their domestic labour and traditional craft skills such as lace making or needlepoint, that require repetitive and painstaking effort to create something of complexity and beauty. Catherine Bertola was born in Rugby in 1976, graduating from the University of Newcastle in 1999. She lives and works in Gateshead. www.workplacegallery.co.uk Other works by the artist Prickings (2006) An installation using the techniques and decorative motifs of hand lace making, in the pricking out of pinholed patterns onto vellum templates, suggesting the ghostly garments of lace makers and wearers long dead. http://www.axisweb.org/seWork.aspx?WORKID=49433 From the Palace at HillStreet (2009) & Bluestockings series of drawings (2009) Commissioned for this exhibition, this artwork was made with the help of over 80 volunteers working at home or gathered together in sociable sewing sessions. It recreates in embroidery fragments of a 1766 carpet design by Neoclassical architect Robert Adam for the dressing room of Elizabeth Montagu at Hill Street, London. This was an early meeting place of the Bluestockings, a pioneering network of Georgian women and men who debated the issues of the day and promoted education for women in an age where their civil and economic rights were severely limited. Adam’s carpet incorporated a circular motif, suggesting the equal exchange of ideas that took place between the individuals seated upon it. Each of Bertola’s Bluestockings ink drawings depicts a lace design in the shape of the artist’s legs and represents an individual woman associated with the Bluestocking Circle. 5 The Property of Two Gentleman (2006) Wallpaper pattern in this installation was recreated using dust as a material, as a metaphor for the domestic realm and the residues of its absent inhabitants. http://www.workplacegallery.co.uk/artists/ _Catherine%20Bertola,46/ Bit by bit, piece by piece (2009) Decorative pattern made using an arrangement of domestic cutlery and masses of dressmaker’s pins stuck onto board. http://www.workplacegallery.co.uk/artists/ _Catherine%20Bertola,17/ Other artists to look at Pamela So, Andrea Stokes, Linda Florence: using lace fabric metaphors. Cornelia Parker, Lyndall Phelps: Making installations and objects relating to historic places, people or events: Weblinks to these artists’ work can be found in the appendix accompanying this pack. WORKSHEET Catherine Bertola: Questions for teachers What do the titles of these two artworks refer to? Compare the patterns in From The Palace at HillStreet and the Bluestockings drawings. From when, where or whom do the patterns originate? How has the artist used these influences? Do the legs in the work Bluestockings look realistic or unrealistic? What evidence made you reach the conclusion for your answer? From the Palace at HillStreet is composed of three separate pieces. What do you think the artist’s intentions were behind this? What were the techniques and working methods involved in constructing this work? Activities for pupils As a class, recreate a carpet or fabric piece from a different historical period, style or culture, each pupil producing their own section. Completing the Carpet. Pupils produce observational drawings of the three sections of Catherine Bertola’s ‘carpet’, leaving the appropriate space between each one in their drawing. They are then asked to imagine and draw the shapes, patterns and colours that would fill these empty spaces. Explore the history of the Bluestocking Circle [links to History, Citizenship and PSHE]. Explore 18th century design. What were the characteristics and influences of design in this period. Who were the major artistic, craft or design influences of this period? 6 Michael Brennand-Wood Michael Brennand-Wood is a textile artist who investigates three dimensional structure and pattern, using computerised machine embroidery, fabric, wood, paint, metal, wire, glass, thread, collage and found objects. His knowledge of textile history underpins an abiding interest in how pattern can convey ideas about culture and politics beyond decoration. He reinvents floral patterns and motifs to deal with subjects such as popular culture, warfare or slavery. Michael Brennand-Wood has exhibited in museums and galleries all over the world. Born in Lancashire in 1952, he received his MA Textiles from Birmingham Polytechnic in 1977. www.brennand-wood.com Other works by the artist Babel (2008) Like Phial Bodies, the punningly-titled Babel presents a surface rich in text used for its inherent meaning but also as formal elements of pattern and texture. http://brennand-wood.com/ Other artists to look at David Mabb: working with the decorative patterns and political legacy of William Morris and the Russian Constructivists. Jim Drain: brightly coloured installations and sculpture incorporating textiles, found objects, 2D and 3D pattern. Holding Pattern (2007) and Phial Bodies (2008) These two circular works echo the shape of large sports or entertainment arenas. In Holding Pattern, machine embroidered blooms extend on wire stems above a mass of small wooden figures, lying in a pattern taken from stadium seating plans. Recalling the ‘holding’ design of 18th century slave ships, at the work’s centre are boxes covered in images of Georgian buildings, representing the wealth and property once derived from the slave trade. Vase Attacks (2009) A series of smaller works project from the wall, assembled from objects such as toy soldiers, a cobbler’s last (holding device shaped like a shoe), giant dice. Out of these vessels project clusters of machine-embroidered ‘badges’, suggesting flower and human heads, insects preserved for display, old fashioned hatpins, imaginary military insignia and floral tributes. 7 Fred Tomaselli: paintings with photocollage using floral textile motifs. Weblinks to these artists’ work can be found in the appendix accompanying this pack. WORKSHEET Michael Brennand-Wood: Questions for teachers In ‘Vase Attacks’ how many ‘vases’ are there? How have they been made? How do they compare to vases we understand or use ourselves? Describe the contents and materials of each vase. What themes have been explored by the artist? The artist likes playing on words: his titles are often punning and he includes words as compositional elements in his artworks. How do the titles and words in his works in Beyond Pattern link to the themes he is exploring? Describe how you think Brennand-Wood uses pattern in his work, especially in relation to floral pattern traditions? How does this compare with how other artists in the exhibition use pattern or floral motifs? Activities for pupils Create a 2D pattern and extend it into 3 Dimensions. Develop a 2D pattern using shapes cut from coloured (or black and white) paper or card. Glue it to a firm base, such as a cardboard disc or board. Work out from the base pattern to construct a low relief or 3D sculpture. Use cut and folded paper/card or found materials inspired by Brennand-Wood’s work. Experiment with headwear made as a form of sculpture. The individual pieces in ‘Vase Attacks’ almost look like hats with hat pins. Transform an old hat or create headwear from scratch using millinery techniques or materials such as felt, paper, textiles, willow withies, wire, found objects. Incorporate Michael Brennand-Wood’s ideas of extending small objects from the end of wire. Use textile or computer techniques to produce a brooch or badge on a chosen theme. Experiment with a variety of textile techniques by both hand and sewing machine or computer, taking inspiration from the shapes, images or techniques employed by the artist. Compare the work of Michael Brennand-Wood with that of Leo Fitzmaurice. Use this research as a part of a final piece based on the use of found objects and advertising literature to recreate a series of patterns. This could be permanent or ephemeral. Use photography to record your work. 8 Nisha Duggal Nisha Duggal makes drawings, installations and videos about everyday events and objects, that deliberately draw our attention to the mechanics of the artwork’s construction. She tries “to make the complicated simple”, often by breaking down her image into smaller, more manageable fragments. The artist describes this as “a coping strategy for living in our society of speed”. Born in 1979, Nisha Duggal completed her MA in Fine Art at The Slade in 2009. She lives and works in London. www.nishaduggal.co.uk Other works by the artist In order to acquire a void (2010): In this site-specific installation at the Florence Trust, London, the artist placed a mass of silver helium-filled balloons at the highest point in a tower’s vaulted ceiling. Although simply constructed from many identical reflective balloons, when gathered in a starburst-shaped cluster their effect is magical. Once again the artist has created something that appears complex but is made up from many much simpler elements. http://nishaduggal.co.uk/Inordertoacquireavoid.html Wherever you are in the world you take up the same volume of space (2009) Two large, near-identical ink drawings of common town pigeons make up this work. Through an almost mechanical drawing process each image is carefully constructed from multiple coloured squares containing a series of symbols within a grid, akin to those used as guides in needlepoint kits. Like pixels, these squares are the building blocks and pattern for each image and affect the resolution of the image as the viewer moves closer to it. The white squares, absent of information, expose this process and although they are located differently within each of the two drawings, these voids amount to the same volume. 9 Other artists to look at Carl Jaycock: Large-scale images made up from many much smaller pictures, created using photography, digital technology, paper and mixed media. Exploring ideas around identity. Lesley Halliwell: Highly worked abstract drawings constructed from simple repeated patterns using a spirograph Weblinks to these artists’ work can be found in the appendix accompanying this pack. WORKSHEET Nisha Duggal: Questions for teachers From a distance, what are the similarities and differences in the appearance of these birds? If one looks very closely at each of the pigeons, what do you see? What does the pattern here remind you of? What do you think are the origins of the symbols the artist has used? What materials and techniques have been used to create these images? Why do you think the artist has left five blank squares on each pigeon? What do you think the title of this piece is referring to? Activities for pupils Create a study sheet based on birds. Make drawings and notes, take photographs, use found images. Which type of bird do pupils like best and why? Create an outline drawing of a favourite bird and fill the bird with found patterns and shapes. Experiment with drawing, painting, collage, printmaking. Investigate ways to make the patterns enhance the work’s bird-like qualities when viewed from a distance. Ask pupils to write a short story about their experiences of birds. Do any pupils have pet birds / keep chickens / enjoy feeding wild birds? Investigate other kinds of symbols, mathematical codes or conventions. Make copies into sketchbooks. Design patterns using these symbols experimenting with media and colour. Experiment with a range of needlework and fabric techniques such as weaving, needlepoint or tapestry. Investigate the use of CAD to design a finished textile piece based on animals or birds. 10 Leo Fitzmaurice Leo Fitzmaurice scavenges for ‘information-objects’ (commercial packaging, brochures) which he manipulates and transforms. He may rearrange, fold or tightly roll his material, or cut out every last vestige of text, image or logo, leaving a skeletal shell. These new objects are presented en masse as complex installations or carefully inserted into an unexpected context for us to encounter in surprise. Leo Fitzmaurice was born in Shropshire and lives and works in Liverpool. He graduated from Liverpool Polytechnic, completing his MA at Manchester Metropolitan University in 1994. http://www.leofitzmaurice.com/ Other works by the artist Detourist (ongoing project): The artist rearranges rubbish found by chance in city streets to create visually witty interventions, which are then documented. For example, two MacDonalds’ chips cartons tied to a lamp-post in Shanghai momentarily become red tannoys. http://www.bs1.org.uk/bs1fitzmaurice.html You don’t say 2009 Rather than bringing new objects into the world, in the works in Beyond Pattern the artist rearranges pre-existing advertising flyers in order to enhance their character and allow us to see them temporarily in a new way. He is not intending any critique of consumerist culture, but strives to retain what he describes as the focused energy of the original graphic designs, re-directing it into fresh forms. The commercial messages of the flyers get lost in the process, while other formal design elements, multiplied and overlapping, become fractured and reassembled to generate brand new patterns and the illusion of spatial incongruities, almost like looking at them through a kaleidoscope. 11 Other artists to look at Jim Lambie: Takes familiar objects from modern life and transforms them into vibrant sculptural installations in relation to a specific space. Jacob Dahlgren: is a Swedish painter, sculptor, and conceptual artist who works to a large extent with unconventional materials. Finding abstraction in everyday objects, he creates dynamic interactive installations and performances. Richard Wright: Uses intricate temporary painting methods, to inject complex works into often overlooked architectural spaces either on paper or directly onto the wall. Weblinks to these artists’ work can be found in the appendix accompanying this pack. WORKSHEET Leo Fitzmaurice: Questions for teachers What kind of materials does Leo Fitzmaurice use? What impact does the arrangement of the piece have on the colours, shapes and words printed on the flyers? How does this relate to pattern? ‘You don’t say’ is placed on the floor. How does this affect how we experience the work? The artist has used simple materials to create an apparently complex structure. Suggest problems the artist may have had to overcome in assembling the piece. Compare the work of Leo Fitzmaurice to that of Adam King. What do they have in common? Activities for pupils Collect a range of packaging and supermarket boxes which are then manipulated or joined together in a variety of ways to create a new object. This may have a function (e.g. cereal box becomes a bag, egg box becomes a desk tidy) or could be purely sculptural. Create an installation with the objects that have been made. This could be indoors or outdoors, on the floor or wall, hanging from the ceiling. Experiment with lighting and shadows to change how the work is seen. Collect a range of printed fliers and arrange them to produce patterns inspired by Leo Fitzmaurice’s way of working. Compare the work of Fitzmaurice to that of the Surrealists. Explore how everyday objects, when placed in a different context, make us react (e.g. Dali’s lobster telephone, Oppenheim’s fur lined tea cup). Pupils invent and produce similar works. 12 Doug Jones Doug Jones’ subject matter is influenced by his personal history, with family links to the Freemasons and a boyhood spent as a cathedral school chorister. His installation works combine the sinister with a sense of irony and humour, their Latin titles recalling ecclesiastical traditions and the power-wielding institutions of the past. Doug Jones lives and works in London. Born in 1967, he studied at Bucks Chiltern University College, completing his MA at Falmouth University College in 2007. www.cerihand.co.uk Other works by the artist Non Sum Qualis Eram (2009): The figures seen in Beyond Pattern are part of a larger installation of the same title, which includes a second group of large black-cloaked and hooded ecclesiastical figures, standing in a circle around an empty white-sheeted child-sized bedstead. http://www.cerihand.co.uk/index.php?/doug-jones/ In Utrumque Paratus (2009): A crumpled parachute printed with ‘willow’ patterns. http://www.cerihand.co.uk/index.php?/dou g-jones/ Non Sum Qualis Eram (2009) Translating as ‘I am not what I used to be’, in this installation the artist exploits the dramatic power of pattern to convey meanings on many levels at once. Shrouded figures are presented in fictional religious uniforms, standing in a formation whose pattern implies a collective ritual, submission to a higher authority or procession towards a shared goal. The artist researches and gathers his materials meticulously, using textiles whose origins and formal qualities refer to African and European cultures and history, to organised religion and popular culture. He sources garment fabrics from suppliers to the Vatican, uses commercial feed sacks, African batiks, nationalist symbols, animal pattern fabrics and military-style insignia to construct and embroider the uniforms that cloak his figures. 13 Other artists to look at Yinka Shonibare: British-born Nigerian artist who makes installation and sculpture relating to colonialism, the slave trade and international commerce, using printed fabrics made in the style of traditional and contemporary African textiles. Nick Cave: Life-size ‘soundsuits’ made from richly patterned materials such as fun fur, vintage toys, sequins and hair. David Mabb: Working with the decorative patterns and political legacy of William Morris and the Russian Constructivists. Weblinks to these artists’ work can be found in the appendix accompanying this pack. WORKSHEET Doug Jones: Questions for teachers How many figures make up this sculpture? How do they compare in size? How are they arranged in relation to each other? How would you describe the way they are dressed? What other kinds of costume or uniform do they remind you of? Each costume is differently decorated. What ideas or messages are suggested by each one? What is the language of the work’s title? What does the title mean? How does this sculpture make you feel? Activities for pupils In groups of three, come up with three questions you would like to ask about Doug Jones’ artwork. Share with the rest of the class or swap with another group and answer each other’s questions. Research the origins and processes behind the patterns, fabrics and symbols used to decorate Doug Jones’ figures. (How is silk made? How was military camouflage invented? What was carried in the food sacks and where did it come from? How are batiks printed?) Design a fictional uniform. Explore ways of incorporating images, symbols, patterns and textures that support and signify the role of its wearer. Develop these designs into a wearable garment or headpiece exploiting a range of textiles, graphic media, recycled or natural materials. 14 Adam King Adam King uses collage to make two and three dimensional artworks that may be contained within a picture frame or sprawl chaotically across a wall, ceiling or floor. His site-specific pieces respond to a particular architectural space, combining careful planning with on-the-spot improvisation using the assorted materials he brings to the installation process. Adam King lives and works in London. He trained at Brighton University and completed his MA in Drawing at Wimbledon School of Art in 2002. . www.houldsworth.co.uk Other works by the artist New Forest (Cosmic Conundrums) (2010): Made from mixed media collage on board in a perspex box, this piece demonstrates ways in which the artist extends two dimensional collage into three dimensions, using drawing, paint, paper cuts and found images. http://www.houldsworth.co.uk/artist-viewwork/adam-king/14 Other artists to look at Franz Ackermann: Paintings and installations on themes of globalisation, travel and urban life. Ambivalent Apocalypse (2008-9) Spreading across the wall with a sense of unrestrained growth, the structure of Ambivalent Apocalypse mimics the pattern of ever-expanding communication networks that characterise our contemporary Western society and how we use its world wide web. Paper cuts, fabric, plastic, wire and recycled objects are held together with paperclips, suggesting that the relationships between compositional elements are fragile and temporary. Details within the artwork refer to the media, fashion and consumerism, with its ‘throwaway’ ethos. Resources from charity shops, markets, magazines and catalogues are manipulated to devise a three-dimensional ‘drawing’ in space. Pattern is generated in an irregular way by the repetition of identical paper cut motifs, such as silhouetted bits of human skeleton, flowers and abstract shapes. 15 Jim Drain: Brightly coloured installations and sculpture incorporating textiles, found objects, 2D and 3D pattern. Weblinks to these artists’ work can be found in the appendix accompanying this pack. WORKSHEET Adam King: Questions for teachers What does the work Ambivalent Apocalypse remind you of? (e.g. an explosion, a spider) What do you think the title means? How do you think this relates to the images and objects the artist has used? Where did the artist source his materials? How do you think the artist arrived at the final shape for the work? How does the way the artwork is displayed relate to its immediate environment? What is your favourite bit of the sculpture and why? Activities for pupils Discuss as a class or in groups, how society’s ‘throw away’ culture is impacting on the way we live and our environment. How can we use our ‘waste products’ to better effect? (links with D&T and the 6R’s: recycle, refuse, rethink, reduce, reuse, repair) Investigate Adam King’s use of materials. Look at his work and list all the different objects you can see (e.g. mirror ball, flower, skeleton hands). Which objects have been found and which have been made by the artist? How have they been joined together? How do they affect the surrounding space (e.g. reflections, shadows, linking to particular features in the room)? How is pattern used or created in this work? Create a three-dimensional ‘drawing’ in space. Collect a variety of recycled and found materials. Cut out shapes and images from magazines on a chosen theme. Make up multiple paper shapes from a template made by tracing round an object or stencil. As a class or in groups, join together your assembled materials using wire and paper clips like Adam King. Decide as a group how to display the artwork (from the ceiling, on the wall?). 16 Steve Messam Steve Messam is an environmental artist who produces site-specific installations in rural and urban settings. He has worked across the world, and has filled a beach with thousands of sandcastles and paper flags (Beached, 2007); thrown a huge bubble over a building (Landscape Bubble, 2006); and made a line of giant balls from hundreds of red umbrellas in the heart of Shanghai (Souvenir, 2006). Steve Messam is an artist and curator based in rural Cumbria in the North of England. www.stevemessam.co.uk Other works by the artist Fleur de Sel (2009): Steve made Fleur de Sel in collaboration with artist Hannah Stewart. Clusters of lacey white parasols were floated on the canals of Venice and on Ullswater in Cumbria. Echoing the crystal structure of salt, the sculptures referred to the shared significance of the trade and production of salt in the history of both regions, as well as to local lace-making traditions. http://www.bbc.co.uk/cumbria/content/articles/2009/08/24/fleur_de_sel_feature.sht ml Clad 2009 Using fleece from locally bred Kerry Hill sheep, bred specifically for their soft wool, the artist ‘clad’ a local timber-framed building he located in Newtown, a small town in rural Powys, Wales. Uniting the distinctive black and white features of the sheep with that of the traditional black and white building designs of the area, the artist encourages us to consider the role of local agriculture, architecture and aesthetics in the environment. The work also highlights a specific cultural and industrial heritage. Other artists to look at Anya Gallacio (Repens, 2000): Robert Adam ceiling pattern transposed onto the lawns at Compton Verney estate. In a further development, the fleeces used in Clad have been recycled, cleaned and woven into black and white patterned blankets that will be sold as a limited edition craft work. Weblinks to these artists’ work can be found in the appendix accompanying this pack. 17 Susan Grant (Dispossession, 2007): Site specific sculpture about the historic loss of communities to large-scale landscaping projects. Morag Colquhoun: Artist addressing environmental and energy issues through site specific installation and video, as well as sculpture using felted wool and wood. WORKSHEET Steve Messam: Questions for teachers What do you think the title of Clad is referring to? What is unusual about the materials the artist has used? What has influenced the type of pattern that the artist has used? Is this particular piece art, craft or design based? Give reasons for your answer. How does this artwork impact on its environment? The tactile quality of the surface of the house has changed its overall appearance. What other materials could be used to change the aesthetic qualities of the house? Viewing a piece like this as part of a gallery exhibition is sometimes difficult and can often only be seen as a series of photographs or as a model. How does this change the way one thinks and feels about the work? Activities for pupils Investigate Tudor timber framed architecture and building practices. Produce study sheets of drawings and other relevant information about the design of these houses with particular emphasis on the black and white pattern design. (History links) Investigate and experiment with the uses and types of alternative materials such as sheep fleeces. Consider their impact on construction practices and the built environment. Discuss issues around the creation of sustainable housing and buildings. (Links to Design and Technology and the Construction & Built Environment Diploma). Design a site specific sculpture of your own. Relate ‘Clad’ to other site specific, temporary sculptures (e.g. Andy Goldsworthy). What are the similarities and differences in how the artists work, the outcomes and the materials they use? Produce sketchbook studies of both artists’ work and ideas to inform designs for your own sculpture. 18 Henna Nadeem Henna Nadeem creates photographic collages by superimposing meticulously hand cut and decorative patterns onto various often clichéd landscape and travel scenes. The underlying theme to the artist’s work is her interest in and emphasis on geometry, pattern and landscape. Born in Leeds in 1966, Henna Nadeem lives and works in London. She graduated with an MA from the Royal College of Art, London in 1993. www.axisweb.org/seCVPG.aspx?ARTISTID=10089 Other works by the artist Entrance Garden (1999): Hand cut floral motifs in the Marmoleum floor of a hostel entrance in Slough.http://www.axisweb.org/seCVWK. aspx?ARTISTID=10089 Heaven 2/7 (2006): Large-scale patterns in vinyl on window screens enclosing a small office meeting room. http://www.axisweb.org/seCVWK.aspx?A RTISTID=10089 Summit (2000) and B&W Mountains (2001) In colour and monochrome respectively, these two photocollages show us how Henna Nadeem’s working method produces two kinds of visual language that vie for prominence. The ‘background’ landscape photo presents us with an illusion of depth. It is intercut with ornate patterns cut from a different photo, so that our eye is constantly drawn back to the surface. The patterns the artist uses are borrowed from Japanese, Islamic and Moorish stylised motifs, producing interesting cultural juxtapositions. Working with found images printed on paper, such as magazine photographs, has imposed a particular scale onto the work seen here, but Nadeem also applies her ideas to large scale installations and architectural works. 19 Other artists to look at Paul Scott: Ceramics, print and traditional patterns are used to explore themes around landscapes and their industrial and agricultural heritage. Ian Skoyles: Pieces from disparate jigsaw puzzles are reassembled to create new artworks, combining idealistic landscape scenes and cultural stereotypes in a single puzzle. Katie Allen: Intricately patterned and highly stylised landscape paintings. Weblinks to these artists’ work can be found in the appendix accompanying this pack. WORKSHEET Henna Nadeem: Questions for teachers Which cultures do you think have inspired Nadeem’s use of pattern? Where does she source the materials that she uses in her collages? What processes and techniques does the artist use? How does this affect our understanding of space in the works? What are the differences and similarities between ‘Summit’ and ‘B & W Mountains’? Activities for pupils Research and record through drawing the patterns of other cultures. These could come from textiles, carpets, ceramic tiles. Pupils examine and discuss their influence on our society, locally and nationally. Explore the theme of landscape through a variety of sketchbook studies. Pupils compare Nadeem’s work with that of artists such as John Piper and Howard Hodgkin. Create a mixed media landscape collage as seen from a classroom window. Pupils collect and use a range of found photographic images and patterns. 20 Angharad Pearce Jones Angharad Pearce Jones is a designer blacksmith, who produces metal artefacts and public sculpture. Her artworks result from an ongoing interest in the changing nature of human working methods and how these impact on society and the landscapes in which we live and work. They are usually site specific and can be temporary or permanent. Angharad lives and works in Garnant, Carmarthenshire. Born in 1969, she graduated from Brighton University in 1991 and completed her MA at University of Wales, Cardiff in 1999. www.angharadpearcejones.com Other works by the artist Branding the Land (2003): Scrawling across a grassy bank next to the modern great glasshouse, red flowers were used to recreate the giant signature of eighteenth century landscape gardener, Samuel Lapidge. At National Botanic Garden of Wales, 2003. http://artinwales.250x.com/PearceJones.htm I-Beam (Trawst-I), (2009) Reminiscent of a structural girder used in commercial building practices, this hand-crafted object is at the opposite end of the spectrum to mass machine-produced components necessary for modern quick-builds. Western construction methods, exported to developing countries or those recovering from war, replace indigenous building techniques and traditional skills, resulting in major shifts in manufacture. The availability and cost of raw materials such as steel are determined by a global market. Corporate logos representing companies from China, Japan, Germany and Canada, link together within the girder in a repeat pattern. Unable to provide strength and support, the girder’s futility is apparent, emphasising a move from hand crafted, highly skilled work, to fast and cheap production methods in an increasingly globalised world. 21 Llen (1999: A series of works constructed with scaffolding poles covered in flock wallpaper. Like the re-landscaping of the industrial valleys and now redundant mining communities of South Wales, structures used for building are covered over with decorative DIY materials. Other artists to look at Andy Hazell, Wheel of Drams (2000). A vast steel ring made from six curving rail freight trucks, marking one end of Hengoed Viaduct, which once carried mining products across an industrial valley and is now a leisure route for walkers and cyclists. Simeon Nelson: Sculpture and installation that investigate how humans and nature interact and the patterns this generates. Weblinks to these artists’ work can be found in the appendix accompanying this pack. WORKSHEET Angharad Pearce Jones: Questions for teachers Girders are usually solid, and steel grey in colour. How would you describe Pearce Jones’ girder? Why do you think the artist made it like this? The motifs in the girder come from construction company logos. How has the artist used them to create pattern? The girder is only attached to the wall at one end. Why do you think the artist did this? How does the position of the girder on the wall effect its immediate environment? Activities for pupils Design a simple personal logo or motif. Use relief printmaking to develop repeat patterns based on these designs. Make card stencils, polystyrene or linocut blocks from these personal logos. Transform an architectural feature in your school using pattern. Using different coloured insulation tapes, cut out paper or sticky-backed vinyl, temporarily cover the surface of a wall, pillar, window or door with decorative patterns. Produce studies of the decorative features of different buildings. Explore their age, function, size, architect, what materials were used. Discuss how buildings can change the landscape and why. Investigate how your school or home was built. What materials were used? How were they produced? How sustainable are they? 22 Pamela So Based in Scotland of Chinese heritage, Pamela So often made work about aspects of the Chinese community living in the UK. Using photography, installation and paper cuts, she explored domestic and cultural histories in both private and stately homes and museums. She was inspired by patterns in Moroccan and Eastern fabrics, Chinese blue and white ceramics and Chinese plants in botanic gardens. Pamela So (1947-2010) was born in Glasgow. Trained initially in Historical Geography, she graduated from the Environmental Art Department, Glasgow School of Art in 1998. http://www.axisweb.org/seCVPG.aspx?ARTISTID=13260 Other works by the artist Paper Cut (2006): In her paper cuts, the artist cut and folded stiff paper to create low relief wall pieces that explored the plant forms and patterns found in traditional Chinese ceramics. http://www.axisweb.org/seWork.aspx?WO RKID=57117 Other artists to look at Millie Burton, General Effects (2006): a four-year project documenting her grandmother's house in the years leading up to her death and its subsequent sale. Homeground (2005-9) & Boudoir (2007) Homeground’s photographs celebrate the cultural mix in her elderly mother’s home, where decorative patterns and objects illustrate the family’s journey from China to Britain. They show a private world whose domestic space juxtaposes English and Indian textiles, Chinese ornaments and European artworks. Boudoir re-constructs a distant memory of watching her mother apply make-up at the dressing table. The artist used materials (talcum powder, light and shadow) whose patterns are easily erased, delicate and ephemeral. Powder is sieved through a stencil derived from a Chinese embroidered mat, on to a mirror and its pattern reflected on to the wall. Alongside are ink drawings of crocheted mats. The artist drew each stitch, to better understand the pattern’s construction and the labour involved in making it.http://www.axisweb.org/seCVPG.aspx?ARTIS TID=13260 23 Kate Peters: Photographic portraits, landscapes and interiors, both inhabited and abandoned. Weblinks to these artists’ work can be found in the appendix accompanying this pack. WORKSHEET Pamela So: Questions for teachers Describe the contents of each photograph in Homeground. What might they tell us about the artist’s family history? Why do you think the artist selected these particular viewpoints of her mother’s home? How do these photographs link to the concept of pattern? Which photograph do you find most interesting and why? Describe the materials and processes used in Boudoir, in which the artist tries to evoke a childhood memory. Why do you think she chose them? Activities for pupils Using thumbnail sketches describe from memory the contents of a favourite room in your house or that of someone close to you. What do your sketches tell us about that person or their family (e.g. their hobbies, history, work)? Produce drawings, sketches, photographs of parts of the house. Discuss with pupils how to select interesting or unusual viewpoints and compositions. Produce a series of photos of interiors and objects focusing on pattern. Look for patterns (decorative, surface, texture, light and shadow) in the views selected. Discuss the reasons for your choices and compositions. Describe and make drawings of your favourite trinket or personal object. Try to relate why this object has such significance – discuss how this could be done e.g. through words, symbols, colours, context. Compare Pamela So’s photographs to David Hockney’s photomontages. 24 Andrea Stokes Andrea Stokes is interested in the meanings inherent in places and objects and uses a range of media to draw attention to them, including video, text, photography and drawing. The works here explore the net curtain, which allows a partial view onto the outside while keeping the interior hidden, and which the artist associates with ideas of conformity and aspiration. Andrea Stokes lives and works in Hampshire. Born in 1961, she studied Sculpture at Liverpool Polytechnic and Experimental Media at the Slade School of Art. www.andreastokes.com Other works by the artist Puncture (2004): Is a site-specific video installation that projects a blue sky aperture onto the vaulted ceiling of Portsmouth Cathedral. Over time, a woman constantly reappears at its edge, reaching across the ‘opening’ to draw and re-draw a series of white line structures, like climbing frames that might offer an escape route to the viewer below. http://www.andreastokes.com/projects/Pu ncture.htm Hampshire (2002) & Just a Kiss (2009), Module 1 (2008) In the video Hampshire, the artist stands behind a tautly stretched net curtain. Using scissors, she cuts out each flower motif using only one hand. The sound of snipping and the slowness of the task creates a sense of frustration. This contrasts with the background birdsong and sunny garden which gradually is revealed. Is her cutting out of the artificial flowers an act of destruction or revelation? In her drawings she painstakingly copies the mass-produced pattern of a net curtain. Just a Kiss (2009) interrupts the ornate symmetry of the pattern with a tiny ‘X’, symbolising perhaps a private act of rebellion. The artist associates net curtains with a particular kind of ‘Englishness’ - is the artist illustrating attempts to break free from this? http://www.andreastokes.com/projects/Hampshire.htm 25 Other artists to look at Mary Maclean: Photographs of recently vacated public or domestic spaces. Printed onto aluminium, their surfaces deliberately introduce the viewer’s reflection into the setting portrayed. Louise Hopkins: Drawing and painting onto found surfaces (floral patterned furnishing fabrics, maps, sheet music, etc.) that selectively reveal and obscure details of the original. Weblinks to these artists’ work can be found in the appendix accompanying this pack. WORKSHEET Andrea Stokes: Questions for teachers What medium has the artist used to produce these drawings? Do you think that the artist has designed these patterns herself or are they copied from another source? Where would you normally find this material? Why do you think the artist decided to make her drawings in this way? Why do you think the artist named the larger drawing ‘Just a Kiss’? In the video ‘Hampshire’, the artist cuts away at portions of a net curtain that hangs between us and her. What effect does this have on the fabric’s pattern? How does it change the scene’s background? Why do you think the artist filmed this activity? Activities for pupils Explore the theme ‘Cutting to Destroy or Create’ by making a short stop-frame animation or film. Research the theme initially by watching and discussing the ideas in Andrea Stokes’ video ‘Hampshire’ (in the gallery or on the web link provided). Experiment with cutting up found images, text or patterned wallpaper and reassembling the pieces in new arrangements. Try playing with ideas of concealing and revealing in your artwork. Make studies of decorative fabrics through observational drawing. Provide pupils with a range of decorative fabrics. Explore their patterns by working with tone and pencil and then develop through colour. Introduce new elements into the found patterns to disrupt and reinvent them. Display pupils’ new designs alongside samples of the original fabrics. 26 Acknowledgments An Oriel Davies Touring exhibition Curated by Alex Boyd Jones This resource pack has been developed by Helen Kozich, Alex Boyd Jones and Matthew Richardson at Oriel Davies Gallery, with consultation and input from Karen Howell, School Improvement Adviser [Art and Design and Design and Technology], Shropshire Council. Beyond Pattern has been made possible through an Arts Council of Wales Beacon Company Award 2008-10. Supported by the National Lottery through Arts Council England and The Laura Ashley Foundation. Catherine Bertola is represented by Workplace Gallery, Gateshead; Doug Jones is represented by Ceri Hand Gallery, Liverpool; Adam King is represented by Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, London © Oriel Davies Gallery, the artist, the authors 2010. All works are reproduced courtesy of the artists. All rights reserved. Photos: Stuart Whipps 27
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