Over the holidays I have admittedly found myself looking for things to watch on 4od on Youtube. Little did I know what I came across.
An episode of Faking it, from 2001, in which a Painter and Decorator named Paul has to pretend he is an emerging Artist in the London Art Scene and convince 3 critics he is the real deal. At the end of the programme he was able to fool 2 out of 3 critics.
Through the episode he dives right into producing work and practicing. I found it very interesting to watch because it brought up a few questions in relation to the Art World in general, but as myself as a practicing Artist trying to make it into this world. Could it be that Paul had an artistic spark in himself all along that he did not know of, he seems to think so in the programme. But it could be argued that through quick revision and having the paint skills from decorating he is able to 'blag' his way through. This could mean that anyone could be an artist if they wanted to really. This then brought up the question of, is this a good or a bad thing? and are people genuine when it comes to their work?
I also thought it was ridiculous they they 'restyled' him to look more like an Artist. I thought these days anyone looked the part.
I am beginning to ask myself these questions, but I do strongly believe that this year I have been able to create genuine pieces that reflect what I want to say and throughout the term they have been moulded into my own style and I hope to continue with that. Through carrying on researching and looking at different Artists I hope that my work will become stronger.
Unfortunately embedding is disabled for the video, but is available on youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRtriHsSrtc&list=SL&oref=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fshow%3Fp%3Dg7CLpseB-Gw%26s%3D2&has_verified=1
Tuesday, 26 April 2011
Friday, 22 April 2011
'Cycling through Rusholme' Blurb
Cycling Through Rusholme, Film, 2011
The video piece I have created for the Chorlton Green Festival is of myself cycling through peak hour in Rusholme, in Manchester. That past of the city has such a buzz at night, it was something I wanted to capture. The street is lip up so much for fluorescent lighting, I wanted to highlight that along with the juxaposition of cycling, showing the essence of two uses of energy and which one has its better uses.
I wanted to capture the piece as a dream like sequence through editing and make it quite stylistic. I wanted to take a different approach to highlighting a reaction to the festival and as a keen video maker I thought this would be appropriate.
Kay Woodley
www.akayinthelifeof.blogspot.com
The video piece I have created for the Chorlton Green Festival is of myself cycling through peak hour in Rusholme, in Manchester. That past of the city has such a buzz at night, it was something I wanted to capture. The street is lip up so much for fluorescent lighting, I wanted to highlight that along with the juxaposition of cycling, showing the essence of two uses of energy and which one has its better uses.
I wanted to capture the piece as a dream like sequence through editing and make it quite stylistic. I wanted to take a different approach to highlighting a reaction to the festival and as a keen video maker I thought this would be appropriate.
Kay Woodley
www.akayinthelifeof.blogspot.com
Monday, 18 April 2011
Chorlton Green Festival
During the term I volunteered for the Chorlton Green Festival, in which Interactive Arts students were asked to create a piece that would be exhibited on the day. Andrea Zapp, a previous second year tutor explained what the festival was about and it seemed interesting and I definitely wanted to get involved. The theme for this year was 'Bike to the Future', and we were explained that our work should be based around this brief.
Through Email and correspondents meetings were held every week at in the Holden Gallery Cafe, and on Friday 18th March, a visit to the site was held in which we looked around with one of the organisers of the event, Jeff Heie.
When looking around the space I thought that the idea was to create something around the theme of green and being more crafty. I had never worked in this way before so found it a real struggle. The idea of creating something about bikes and including what I thought was a political message about being Green was very difficult.
When working on the site project at the beginning of the term because the brief was so broad I found I could deal with it better but this certainly was a challenge.
Over the coming weeks and meetings I still had no ideas, having hear everyone elses. I created a few suggestions, still thinking I had to make something, of creating bunting made out of recycled things. This was not hitting the brief enough and at the time I even knew that. I was just desperate.
The Festival was on Saturday 16th April, and the deadline to show Andrea our work was Wednesday 6th April. At this point I had nothing to show. Explaining I was struggling and that I had never done something like this before, was something that appeared to be in my head the whole time. Andrea gave me the go ahead into making a video piece for the festival.
What a relief!
Immediately ideas came, and through corresponding with Jeff to see if this would be okay and if there was a suitable area to plug a small television in, I began working on my piece.
The Piece entitled, 'Cycling through Rusholme', is exactly what it is, myself cycling through Rusholme- which is known for being very busy. With the technical help from Arnold Pollock (who held the camera whilst cycling behind me), I was able to create a short video. Knowing it would be busy and loud I made the piece silent as I thought sound was not important.
The idea behind the video was my use of energy on the bicycle against the use of energy of the bright lights along the curry mile, and which is better for the earth.
The next challenge was how I was going to set up the piece. Borrowing a plinth and television from uni, the day before the festival I had to pay £10 for a taxi to transport it from my house to Chorlton. Setting up the video piece easy as I had brought all the correct equipment from cable locks to hazard tape so that people would not walk into the plinth or TV set.
The day was a success and a lot of people attended the festival.
Looking back over the whole experience I found I did not enjoy it and that it was very stressful. Paying up to £20 to get my equipment there and back did not seem very green to me. It could also be argued that my piece wasn't very Green at all, with it being played through electricity constantly. On the other hand, I am a practicing Artist who at the moment is working with video. Through my practice I thought I had met the brief as best as I could.
When my piece was ready I was just relieved it was done. I did not get much feedback from it and this is definitely a learning curve as to promote the work from the Interactive Arts students more so. It was overwhelming the number of people who attended and I don't think they were attending to see art pieces. But I do think it was a nice touch to the Festival, as all people from different areas all came together for the Festival.
Brigid Smart created the poster for the festival to promote our work there. I thought it was brilliant as it suited her work so much but kept in theme with the festival at the same time.
My piece, 'Cycling through Rusholme', for the Chorlton Green Festival 2011.
Through Email and correspondents meetings were held every week at in the Holden Gallery Cafe, and on Friday 18th March, a visit to the site was held in which we looked around with one of the organisers of the event, Jeff Heie.
When looking around the space I thought that the idea was to create something around the theme of green and being more crafty. I had never worked in this way before so found it a real struggle. The idea of creating something about bikes and including what I thought was a political message about being Green was very difficult.
When working on the site project at the beginning of the term because the brief was so broad I found I could deal with it better but this certainly was a challenge.
Over the coming weeks and meetings I still had no ideas, having hear everyone elses. I created a few suggestions, still thinking I had to make something, of creating bunting made out of recycled things. This was not hitting the brief enough and at the time I even knew that. I was just desperate.
The Festival was on Saturday 16th April, and the deadline to show Andrea our work was Wednesday 6th April. At this point I had nothing to show. Explaining I was struggling and that I had never done something like this before, was something that appeared to be in my head the whole time. Andrea gave me the go ahead into making a video piece for the festival.
What a relief!
Immediately ideas came, and through corresponding with Jeff to see if this would be okay and if there was a suitable area to plug a small television in, I began working on my piece.
The Piece entitled, 'Cycling through Rusholme', is exactly what it is, myself cycling through Rusholme- which is known for being very busy. With the technical help from Arnold Pollock (who held the camera whilst cycling behind me), I was able to create a short video. Knowing it would be busy and loud I made the piece silent as I thought sound was not important.
The idea behind the video was my use of energy on the bicycle against the use of energy of the bright lights along the curry mile, and which is better for the earth.
The next challenge was how I was going to set up the piece. Borrowing a plinth and television from uni, the day before the festival I had to pay £10 for a taxi to transport it from my house to Chorlton. Setting up the video piece easy as I had brought all the correct equipment from cable locks to hazard tape so that people would not walk into the plinth or TV set.
The day was a success and a lot of people attended the festival.
Looking back over the whole experience I found I did not enjoy it and that it was very stressful. Paying up to £20 to get my equipment there and back did not seem very green to me. It could also be argued that my piece wasn't very Green at all, with it being played through electricity constantly. On the other hand, I am a practicing Artist who at the moment is working with video. Through my practice I thought I had met the brief as best as I could.
When my piece was ready I was just relieved it was done. I did not get much feedback from it and this is definitely a learning curve as to promote the work from the Interactive Arts students more so. It was overwhelming the number of people who attended and I don't think they were attending to see art pieces. But I do think it was a nice touch to the Festival, as all people from different areas all came together for the Festival.
Brigid Smart created the poster for the festival to promote our work there. I thought it was brilliant as it suited her work so much but kept in theme with the festival at the same time.
My piece, 'Cycling through Rusholme', for the Chorlton Green Festival 2011.
Wednesday, 6 April 2011
Anish Kapoor: Flashback
I recently went to see Anish Kapoor's latest exhibition at Manchester City Gallery. I had seen one of his pieces at the Tate Modern when I was very young but remember being gob smacked at the scale of his work.
This exhibition did not disappoint either. Kapoor brings such a sophistication to his work, and it always very beautiful. The piece that stood out for me the most was titled 'When I am pregnant' 1992. The piece was a large smooth orb that was moulded into the wall but as you walked around it, it changed, and standing in front of it created an illusion of shadow and made it appear as if it has disappeared. Illusion seemed to play a very important part in his work, along with using pigment and wax. His sculptures made me stop and study them, and question how he had done it, which to an extent the viewer will never know.
'When I am Pregnant', 1992.
Image from: http://www.studio-international.co.uk/studio-images/kapoor/6b.asp
This exhibition did not disappoint either. Kapoor brings such a sophistication to his work, and it always very beautiful. The piece that stood out for me the most was titled 'When I am pregnant' 1992. The piece was a large smooth orb that was moulded into the wall but as you walked around it, it changed, and standing in front of it created an illusion of shadow and made it appear as if it has disappeared. Illusion seemed to play a very important part in his work, along with using pigment and wax. His sculptures made me stop and study them, and question how he had done it, which to an extent the viewer will never know.
'When I am Pregnant', 1992.
Image from: http://www.studio-international.co.uk/studio-images/kapoor/6b.asp
Sunday, 3 April 2011
No offence Intended: Articles and Reviews
It is overwhelming to think that someone has written positive things about the exhibition I was part of a few weeks ago.
Robin McDonald who wrote for the Manchester Mule website visited and reviewed the exhibition. Here she wrote:
"Kay Woodley’s video projection, My Morning Routine gives the viewer a highly-personal insight into the daily rituals of the artist. The work couples video sequences of early morning household scenes with sound recordings giving life to the video’s unmoving objects. Although the artist is never seen, visual and aural clues provide insight into her personality. The video ends with a shot of the inside of the artist’s front door. We do not see the artist leave but we hear the door open and then close before the sound of her footsteps retreating into the distance. Yet, once she has gone, the house remains silent. This prompts the spectator to consider the role of individuals in the creation of sacred rituals and spaces."
Source: http://manchestermule.com/article/exhibition-review-no-offence-intended#more-8180
I am very pleased with what has been written as it is exactly what I wanted to portray in my piece. I felt I have come along way and have been successful in what I want to say and video seems to be the best way for me to portray it right now.
Kevin Bradshaw who worked at Blank Space was behind our ideas the whole time, and was always giving his support along with the rest of the Blank Space team. He wrote:
"In the far corner we can see Kay Woodley’s morning routine in her video and sound installation, My Morning Routine. She has captured to scenes and sounds that she religiously adheres to every morning. It’s a self-portrait which doesn’t show the subject. Here again we have the problem of a photo not truthfully representing the actual work. I vote for a youtube video. Seconded."
Along with some photographs of my video piece.
Source:http://kevin-bradshaw.blogspot.com/2011/03/248-no-offence-intended-exhibition.html
Photos by Kevin Bradshaw (www.kevin-bradshaw.blogspot.com)
Robin McDonald who wrote for the Manchester Mule website visited and reviewed the exhibition. Here she wrote:
"Kay Woodley’s video projection, My Morning Routine gives the viewer a highly-personal insight into the daily rituals of the artist. The work couples video sequences of early morning household scenes with sound recordings giving life to the video’s unmoving objects. Although the artist is never seen, visual and aural clues provide insight into her personality. The video ends with a shot of the inside of the artist’s front door. We do not see the artist leave but we hear the door open and then close before the sound of her footsteps retreating into the distance. Yet, once she has gone, the house remains silent. This prompts the spectator to consider the role of individuals in the creation of sacred rituals and spaces."
Source: http://manchestermule.com/article/exhibition-review-no-offence-intended#more-8180
I am very pleased with what has been written as it is exactly what I wanted to portray in my piece. I felt I have come along way and have been successful in what I want to say and video seems to be the best way for me to portray it right now.
Kevin Bradshaw who worked at Blank Space was behind our ideas the whole time, and was always giving his support along with the rest of the Blank Space team. He wrote:
"In the far corner we can see Kay Woodley’s morning routine in her video and sound installation, My Morning Routine. She has captured to scenes and sounds that she religiously adheres to every morning. It’s a self-portrait which doesn’t show the subject. Here again we have the problem of a photo not truthfully representing the actual work. I vote for a youtube video. Seconded."
Along with some photographs of my video piece.
Source:http://kevin-bradshaw.blogspot.com/2011/03/248-no-offence-intended-exhibition.html
Photos by Kevin Bradshaw (www.kevin-bradshaw.blogspot.com)
Tuesday, 29 March 2011
Post Exhibition Blues
No Offence Intended is now over.
Having cleared out of the space, covered the marks we left and returned equipment safely, the exhibition has been and gone.
Looking back over my previous blog entries I think it is clear that it all came together, from me being unsure about being part of it to thriving it and wanting more.
On Tuesday 22nd, we decided to have another opening night in some way. Making cups of tea for people who attended and this time go round in a group and discuss our work. It was a small group that attended including employees from the Cornerhouse Gallery.
At the time it was very intimidating to talk about my work to people who knew the Art World well, and worked in it!
I felt I was able to speak about my work well and got a very positive response overall. The only criticism I got was that one person felt personally for them 4 minutes was too short for the video, in which I explained how I decided upon the length I thought suitable for in a gallery situation.
Other criticism I did not think was fair was comparing the piece not having any spirituality in it, compared to Runa's and Marcin's pieces. But this wasn't my intention at all. I never created the piece to be spiritual but for something that was personal but that people could relate to.
Interesting prospects came from the discussion, using the name and same Artists again is definitely in the pipe line and is something I would like to be part of again. It was also suggested to Blank Space that they could maybe broaden from their space and sponsor exhibitions in other spaces, in a 'Blank Space Presents' situation.
The past couple of months of planning, paying, things going wrong and making them right, has all been a reality and a taster as to how a Practicing Artist works in the real world. Along with the negatives came positives. Meeting new people and contacts and now being a New Artist in Manchester.
Having cleared out of the space, covered the marks we left and returned equipment safely, the exhibition has been and gone.
Looking back over my previous blog entries I think it is clear that it all came together, from me being unsure about being part of it to thriving it and wanting more.
On Tuesday 22nd, we decided to have another opening night in some way. Making cups of tea for people who attended and this time go round in a group and discuss our work. It was a small group that attended including employees from the Cornerhouse Gallery.
At the time it was very intimidating to talk about my work to people who knew the Art World well, and worked in it!
I felt I was able to speak about my work well and got a very positive response overall. The only criticism I got was that one person felt personally for them 4 minutes was too short for the video, in which I explained how I decided upon the length I thought suitable for in a gallery situation.
Other criticism I did not think was fair was comparing the piece not having any spirituality in it, compared to Runa's and Marcin's pieces. But this wasn't my intention at all. I never created the piece to be spiritual but for something that was personal but that people could relate to.
Interesting prospects came from the discussion, using the name and same Artists again is definitely in the pipe line and is something I would like to be part of again. It was also suggested to Blank Space that they could maybe broaden from their space and sponsor exhibitions in other spaces, in a 'Blank Space Presents' situation.
The past couple of months of planning, paying, things going wrong and making them right, has all been a reality and a taster as to how a Practicing Artist works in the real world. Along with the negatives came positives. Meeting new people and contacts and now being a New Artist in Manchester.
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