This project started by selecting a piece of fabric in class to deconstruct at home. The exercise was assigned of us to understand the material and explore ways to change/manipulate it.
Journal Writing Before Starting:
What are the qualities of the material?
Varied edges, some what smooth, not easily manipulated with hands so it stays, wrinkled, multiple colors, color is more saturated on one side than the other, heavy thread/thicker, weaving/stitching can be seen, shiny/reflects light well.
What ideas/Associations does it bring to mind? What about it suggests these things?
The fabric pattern reminds me of something from the 80's or 90's. The color and varied strip pattern is a combination I have seen many times in old photos. The material reminds me of a fabric found in an upholstery store as a sample of the patterns that could be put on furniture. The material also reminds me of curtains because of the similar feel.
What deconstructive actions does this invite?
The need to pull apart each thread, because of seeing the stitching and frayed edges. The pattern of different colored strips also invites a long tear in the fabric. It also invites burning because of the surface area and plastic/shiny quality of the fabric. It invites you to mess with the surface area because of the flatness and lack of dynamic texture.
Journal Writing After Finishing:
What kinds of ideas does the piece suggest to you? What qualities of the work contribute to your interpretation?
This piece suggests some kind of tapestry or tattered clothing. The qualities that contribute to this idea are the cuts I put in larger/full pieces of the fabric. The tattered clothing idea comes from the shredding I put in some strips of fabric as well as unravelling the threads of the larger piece of fabric. The pattern of the fabric reminds me of a design on an 80's shirt, which also contributes to the idea of clothing.
Below are a series of pictures of how I deconstructed my fabric and my classes:
Next, we were split up into groups to create a collaborative fabric deconstruction piece. I was paired with Sheldon and Megan. We chose our main fabric to gain inspiration from, then chose supporting materials to aid in our sculpture.
Journal Writing choosing a textile:
Make a list of actions that might relate in some way to the "given" of the item:
To knot, to fold, to burn, to shred, to twist, to fray, to weave, to tear, and to cut.
Why did you select this particular item?
I selected this item because my group were drawn to colors that were subdued, and I wanted to choose more vivid colors to balance out our composition of colors. The colors that we ended up choosing in our piece were variations of pink, purple, beige, and grey. I think that parts of our personalities were taken into account when we were choosing the textiles, which is why we were all drawn to different shades of the same colors.
What ideas does this textile suggest to you? What makes you say this?
This textile suggests that our final piece could be something that could be ordered chronologically. I say this because the reason why we chose the textiles we did was because they were different but they go together. This made me try to figure out an effective way we could put the textiles in a composition that works well, but also satisfies our individual preferences in color and texture.
What things might you want to do to the item? Why?
With my individual piece, I would want to do some variation of what I accomplished with my initial deconstruction fabric. But, when working with a group, I wanted to figure out a way we could work on a larger scale, so my deconstruction method of fraying/unraveling threads will not work. I will have to go with a larger strips/tearing method.
In what ways will this change the form and give the piece new physical structure?
This will change the form because the method of tearing will make more 2D pieces of fabric. Our piece will be flat, which is why I wanted to find a way to make it more like a sculpture so it would be more interesting to look at as well as challenge ourselves to do something different. I think that the 3D element of our collaboration will have to come from the supplemental objects that we get for the project.
In what ways will new meanings be introduced? What kinds of meanings are possible?
In our project, the meanings will come from how we choose to deconstruct the fabric individually and how we bring them together in the end. Each of us will be deconstructing our pieces of the fabric separately, without knowing/seeing what the others have done to it. We will then compare and swap pictures when we are done with the process. I believe that meaning comes from how we choose to accomplish our individual pieces. I think that our unique styles and personalities will come out in our designs, and putting them together will create a new meaning. It could bring a meaning about togetherness and strength in numbers. It could also bring meanings about diversity and tolerance.
Journal Writing choosing alterations/supplemental items:
How might these new materials and their alterations be used with the textile item?
I chose the yarn color the same way I chose the fabric color, since they are brighter colors than in my partners scheme's. The yarn because it will bring our pieces together. Each of us will be using the yarn in some way in our piece. I chose the lanterns because I wanted to find a way to make our collaborative piece more like a sculpture than a 2D deconstruction piece. With the lanterns, we can manipulate it with the fabric and yarn, they can both be wrapped and woven in the lantern.
Thoughts about deconstruction process: What are you doing to the materials in deconstruction? How are you playing with possibilities? How is it working?
I am thinking about my original deconstruction exploration, and seeing if the same kinds of techniques will work on this fabric. Since the fabric that I chose also has think threads, I will be able to fray the edges. But, there is still an obstacle of how to make our pieces more 3D. I will be able to apply my deconstruction methods to the lantern I am going to work with. I can take off the paper surrounding the lantern, and weave the fabric and yarn through it. Once I took off the surrounding paper, it seemed like the twisted paper armature was too week to be on it's own. I will have to find another way to cover the lantern, which means that I should probably be using a wrapping method and tying knots as well.
Thoughts about reconstruction process: What are you doing to the piece as you reconstruct? How are you playing with different possibilities? How is it working?
Since I have worked out ideas about how to deconstruct the fabric, I have found the best ways to reconstruct it with yarn and the lantern. I have been working with yarn since I was young, and know how to knit. I was able to use a technique called finger knitting to weave the yarn into a rope kind of material. With this, I was able to weave it through the armature of the lantern. I also found that tearing strips of fabric would also work when weaving the lantern. But, I did not want the entire lantern just to be done with weaving so that the lantern would have different textures. I created the different textures by leaving some of the strips and yarn hanging from the lantern. When working, I noticed that the paper around the lanterns was keeping the armature strong. So, I decided to keep half of the paper on the lantern to keep part of its shape. On the other side, I had to problem solve my way to covering it without getting rid of the structure. I knew that I had to wrap the strips of fabric around the lantern and then tie the ends together to keep it in place. When I did this, it added a different and smooth texture as well as the knot making it not completely flat. But, I wanted to break up the space of texture and colors around the lantern evenly, so I took off some of the paper around the lantern so that it could alternate between weaving and wrapping fabric. In the end, the lantern seemed to be structurally stable, even if both sides were not completely the same in shape.
Thoughts about hanging process: What are you doing to the piece? How are you playing with different possibilities? How is it working?
Once we brought back our pieces from home, our first thoughts were to analyze what each of us did to the lantern and fabric to understand how we were going to put them together/hang it. Sheldon was unable to use the lantern, so he created something from inspiration from the lantern. It was hand woven and stitched using the yarn that I chose in the beginning. Megan was able to use the lantern. But when she saw that the lantern was really flimsy without the surrounding paper, she decided to create her own paper with the fabric. She was able to put the fabric on the lantern with a glue/paste and water mixture to paper maché the fabric onto the outside of the lantern. This way, the fabric will conform to the outside of the lantern, and it will keep it's shape. Lastly, I was the only one in my group that changed the fabric according to the obstacles I faced with the lantern. By knowing this, we decided that we should put our respective lanterns in a specific order. I originally though that all of them would look good if they were sequenced up and down/on top of each other. But, Megan closed part of her lantern so a piece of yarn would not be able to pass through her lantern. We then decided that we should take into account what lanterns' purpose are. They are usually displayed next to each other with a string connecting them. We decided to do the same thing, but hang our pieces in a sequenced order and in different lengths. We were able to find hooks that could fit our pieces and I made a larger finger knitted yarn rope with wire inside of it (to manipulate the shape) to connect them all. This worked for all of our pieces and they were successfully displayed.
Note shifts in direction, challenges, resolutions, surprises, and thoughts about final outcome.
Every move that I made with the material; fabric, yarn, and lantern, I have changed direction in because of each challenge I faced. The resolutions that I found were in response to a problem. When I needed to find a way to weave the lantern, I switched to knitting yarn to become thicker and tearing pieces of the fabric to fit between the lanterns armature. The surprises that I found was that my method of working has made a very "loud" and "dynamic" work of art. The approach that I took was head on and solving problems as they came to me. The natural outcome was for the lantern to look slightly torn up and imperfect. But, because of the characteristics of the fabric and yarn, the pieces stands out in color and texture.
What ideas/state/impression does the finished work suggest to you? What characteristics of the work make you say this?
I think that the finished work suggests different ideals, values, and people coming together. With all three of our approaches and methods, put together, the work looks like they fit together. Not only did we all use three different methods of deconstruction and reconstruction, each piece has a different characteristic to it. Sheldon's has a home made feeling to it, which makes it look inviting and small enough to interact with. I think that it also evokes a homey feeling because of the materials that he used to create the shape. The stitches that he used to put the fabric together look very traditional, in a homey/familiar way. Megan was able to problem solve by using her talents to make a structure. A lot of her work until now has been creating a stronger structure. Lastly, my piece was about changing to the circumstances. I was able to take on challenges head on without completely changing initial ideas. Together, we were able to create a piece that embodies all of us as people, artists, and educators.
In what ways are you satisfied with the outcome? What are the pieces strongest elements? What, if anything, might you change and for what purpose?
I am satisfied with the outcome because we were able to put them all together in a stable manner, but also in a way where people could add to it. Since the piece is so stable on the hanger, the lanterns can hold some more weight on them, which allows others to add onto the structure that we created. The pieces strongest elements are the colors that we used and how well they go together to create a unified composition. If i could change anything, it would be trying to hang the lanterns in a different sequence. I was hoping that the lanterns could be held on top of each other/hanging from each other. I think that it would give the lanterns a different meaning. I think that it would let the viewer to see the lanterns as something other than lanterns. When they are side by side, people consider what they are because that is usually what they look like. Since we were trying to change the fabric as much as possible, I was hoping that we could have made the finished piece more structural rather than realistic.
What might you invite exhibition visitors to add to your piece?
I might leave the same colors that we used in our sculpture near the sculpture, as an invitation to add to the piece. With the same color scheme, I think that people would be more inclined to do so. I also think that I could attach more lantern structures or yarn ropes for people to add onto another entity other than our original pieces.
Below are the pictures of my groups progress and final pieces:
Below are the pictures of my classes and groups final projects:
