Started Work on Piece for Space Craft 'Inspired By' Exhibition

I've started work today on a piece of work for an exhibition coming up in the Space Craft Gallery in Belfast. Work has to be submitted by Monday 8th February. All work will be judged and short listed to go into the exhibition.

My inspiration has come from an exhibit of fossilised ammonites that was in the natural history section of the Ulster Museum.
Today I made a mould of my interpretation of the ammonite fossils I saw using a small collection of ammonites that I have collected over the years. I started by rolling a slab of clay into a rough square and then pushed the ammonites into it at different depths and angles.

I then made a mould of this which, once dry will allow me to fuse glass into it and take up the shapes of the ammonites. I just need it to dry out for a day or two before firing it in the kiln before placing the glass in to fuse.

Mirror Commission

I've been asked to make a gothic arched stained glass mirror by a friend of my sisters, so have been busy making a start on it. Luckily after a rummage in my cullet trays I had all the glass except for the mirrror, which I was able to pick up in Belfast on Wednesday.
All glass has been cut and I have started to lead it up, so should be ready to deliver to her when I travel to Wales on the 10th Feb.
Will post a picture when it is finished.

Back to Seacourt Print Workshop

I started back at Seacourt print workshop in Bangor this week. I am the only one that has signed up to this course so Cathy the tutor has agreed for me to work along side her while she gets on with her own work.
Merv another artist was there and it was good to watch how he applied two or three colours to the collograph plate and then rub back to get different gradations of colour on the same plate. You get a far better understanding by watching somebody that trying to learn by reading a text book.

I managed to print off four more collograph prints of my thistle and learnt how to apply the ink better, how to blend in any areas that were left white and a better way of centering the paper on the press. So a good mornings work.

Cathy wants me to do a two layer collograph next week were you ink up both plates at the same time in different colours and then put them through the with press one on top of the other. So some homework for this week.

I also want to make a test piece by putting different materials on the mount board and seeing what effect the achieve when inked and printed.

Finished Panel

Inspired By

I have been putting my thinking cap on what to do for the 'Inspired By' exhibition that is coming up.
I need to have a piece made by 8th February for submission which will then be judged and shortlisted for the exhibition. There is over 50 people that have put in a submission of intent so competition could be fierce. I really liked the fossil collection that was in the natural history section of the museum and intend taking this as a starting point.

Fabrication

Fabrication is well under way for my piece for 'Heart of Swansea'. I just need to finish framing it and getting it packaged up for transportation to Wales. I decided to go with using the red frit heart and will post a finished picture once I have completed it. Then I can look forward to the exhibition opening on Friday 12th February.

Visit To Ulster Museum

I've been thinking of submitting something for the 'Inspired By' exhibition that is opening in the Space Craft gallery in February. So I decided to go and have a look at the newly reopened Museum. I had visited the museum about 6 years ago when on a flying visit to Belfast for a family gathering in Armagh. What a change, they have basically gutted the whole building just keeping the historic facade of the building and built a modern interior.
They have a two floors dedicated to art which includes applied arts with a fantastic collection of cut crystal Irish glass and contemporary glass from around Europe. I've posted some of my favourites including work by Peter Dreiser and Colin Reid. I was a bit disappointed that most of the top floor had been given over to an exhibition on Sean Scully's work which all seemed too much of the same.

Inspired By

‘INSPIRED BY…’

CDC’s Annual Exhibition 2010

The Craft & Design Collective, CDC, invites you to submit work for it’s Annual Exhibition 2010 ‘INSPIRED BY…’.

‘INSPIRED BY…’ will be an exhibition of Craft, Applied Art and Design, open to Artist/Designer/Makers working in Craft Disciplines recognised by either the Crafts Council of Great Britain or the Crafts Council of Ireland (see attached/enclosed ‘LIST OF RECOGNISED CRAFT DISCIPLINES). The exhibition is intended to both challenge and inform the public perception of Craft, Applied Art and Design. A catalogue will be produced to coincide with the exhibition complete with images of the selected Artist/Designer/Makers pieces.

To celebrate the recent reopening of the Ulster Museum after it’s 3 year £17million redevelopment project Artist/Designer/Makers are invited to visit the Ulster Museum www.nmni.com/um and to then create one-off or limited edition pieces inspired by an object/s within the museum’s collections or to submit an existing piece/s that shows affinity with an object/s within the museum’s collections.

Sunset in Ballyclare

I took this image earlier in the week when we still had some snow on the ground. I love the intensity of the sun as it was setting between the trees.

If You First Don't Succeed Try Again

I made a second attempt at making the largest void again and all went well until I tried to take the fablon off when it cracked again!! This was a big set back but I had one more piece of glass so thought I would give it another go and until I finish sandblasting there is no point in cleaning down all the dust that has been created in the workshop.
All has gone well on the third attempt and the fablon is off. But when I came to take the fablon off another of the voids tonight another one broke so will have to do that again tomorrow. I'm hoping that won't take too long so I can start engraving the glass in the next few days.

Started Fabrication

I started fabricating my entry for the 'Heart of Swansea' exhibition and had to do it the wrong way by making the frame first. This was so that I would know what size to cut my glass because of the specific size that they require for the exhibition.
So frame made, glass cut and ready to fabricate. I managed to get three layers of the glass sandblasted with the voids but the forth one provided to be more tricky and broke, so I will have another go tomorrow.
I had forgot how much the grit gets everywhere when sandblasting! Was in need of a shower and hair wash after it and the workshop will be in need a good clean by the time I've finished.

Fragile Heart with Slumped Heart

This is the result with the slumped heart.
I like the way that the heart stands out from the void but I am still undecided which one to go with, decisions, decisions!!!

Slumped Heart

I fused some red frit into a heart shape onto float glass and fired it in the kiln.
Once it was cooled I cut a heart shape in some fiber board the same size as the heart. This was sanded down around the edges to make it smooth and then fired in the kiln to 600 degrees celsius to burn off the binders within it.
The fused glass was then placed on the fiber board on top of some small kiln props and fired to slump the glass.
This is the final concept that I wanted to try to add to the exhibition piece I am making and want to see what this slumped heart may add to the design.

Lacy Heart

Although the heart is too big for the sample it does give a good idea how it may look. I've tried putting it on top of the top layer as well as in the centre of the circles and quite like both.
I still have one more idea to try before making my final decision.

More Heart Ideas

I fired some red glass frit into a heart shape onto some fibre paper like the recycled hearts I have made before. It is the size of the finished piece rather than the sample but I like the lacy effect it gives.

Fragile Heart

This is going to be the title of my piece. I still have a few more ideas for the text and also for the heart and will post my results as I have them.

One idea was to crackle a heart which involves heating the glass in the kiln and then immersing into a bucket of cold water. This causes thermal shock in the glass which creates a crazing in the glass, sometimes the glass will hold together in its shape and other times it will crack. When I did this today it crazed but broke into about 10 or more pieces which I have not been totally able to put back together.

Sample Coming Together

Engraved Text

Sandblasted Circles

Heart of Swansea

As part of the 75th year anniversary celebrations of the glass department at Swansea Metropolitan University, all past students have been invited to make an exhibition piece. This will go into an exhibition at the Waterfront Museum, Swansea with its opening on Friday 12th February 2010. The exhibitions title is "Heart of Swansea".

I hope to put a piece in and have been busy over the last week working on a number of ideas for it. The panel size has been restricted to 30 cm x 30 cm and this includes the frame so not very big!

I have been working on a small sample with is 15 cm2 and working on four layers of glass that I have sandblasted circles out of the middle in steps getting gradually smaller. A bit hard to describe so will post some pictures of what I have done so far. I have also been playing with engraving text around each of the circles as well as on a separate layer of glass. The idea is to then place a red heart in the middle which the circles will lead the eye towards.