I have chosen to contrast and compare what I have experienced from two of the Historical and Contextual lectures, ‘What is making?’ and ‘Challenging Perceptions, Uses of Materials’. I chose these particular lectures as I fell that they were the most interesting and the two which I learnt the most from.

A statement which stood out to me from the ‘What is making?’ lecture was a quote from Peter Dormer’s ‘The Culture of Craft’ he said “Tacit knowledge is practical know-how, and it exists in people. Consequently tacit knowledge is learned and absorbed by individuals through practice and from other people; it cannot usually be learned from books… It is learned through experience.” At first I did not totally understand what was meant by ‘Tacit knowledge’ but after looking into it I felt I was able to relate it to the artists and designers such as Maarten Baas’ ‘clay chairs all individual’, These could be a form of tacit knowledge as he could demonstrate how he made each chair but he couldn’t show you a design for it.

 

Also in this lecture was a video of Marijn Van Der Poll ‘Do hit chair’, After seeing this video I feel that my existing opinions on art and design were almost questioned as there was no sign of initial ideas, intentions or aims for the outcome he was going to achieve. I believe that this is more of a spontaneous act of art creation as opposed to a planned progression of design; this to me creates a whole new view for those who may not have an extensive understanding of modern art. Another piece in the lecture that has I feel has the same effect is Shinwei Rhoda Yen’s ‘Mushrooms ate my furniture’ the only difference being that rather than impulsively producing a chair out of a stainless steel block, he lets nature take its course by making a basic natural wooden garden seat  and embedding it with mushroom spawn. I personally think that this has a more creative edge as an individual piece than Van Der Poll’s chair, also I think by looking at them both next to each other Shinwei’s chair looks considerably more comfortable.

 Image taken from 'Justin Gould-Davies
 Design Ltd'  'Do Hit Chair'

Image taken from ‘Sabi Style Blog’                                                                                             'Mushrooms Ate My Chair'

 

‘Challenging Perceptions, uses of materials’

When looking back on my notes I decided to look further into the cape that was created from the silk of Golden Orb spiders. I thought it was a stunning piece as soon as I saw it but when I researched it further I came across a video of the process and I genuinely could not take my eyes of the screen as I found it truly fascinating. When I compare this to what I saw in the Challenging perceptions lecture I don’t consider any of the pieces to be at the same standard as this cape by any means. The thoughts, ideas and designs behind it are brilliant in themselves making the outcome seem as though it is of a much more extensive aspect of design and creativity. The intentions of this piece must have been extremely well thought out as each section of the hand embroidered pattern was faultless.

 Another piece I found to be rather fascinating was Roger Hiorns’ ‘Seizure’ which was created in a flat on a council estate in London, he used a scientific method to get the outcome he desired and its clear to say that it has worked tremendously well. Putting aside the science behind this idea I feel that the creativity level is quite amazing, as not only would it have taken a number of experiments to perfect but a high level of skill for the insertion and removal of the copper sulphate solution without any damage being caused. The way ‘Seizure’ has been pictured definitely shows the magnificent crystal structures that the copper sulphate was able to produce (see images). Although I find this a captivating piece, I somewhat question the making as Hiorns did not necessarily make it rather than implementing a scientific reaction which many scientists have probably also done but possibly in smaller quantities.

Susie Macmurray’s ‘Shell’ installation piece Is one that I am not entirely sure how I feel about it, upon my first look of it I instantly though of a royal, wealthy place as the red velvet inserts surpass’ the outer muscle shell in a sense that they really draw you in. I also had feelings of desire to know how long it must have taken to pry open each muscle and then add each scrap of velvet, (unfortunately I am yet to find out) as well as this I associated the red with blood and anger which is a main cause of me being in two frames of mind. Setting aside the emotional and material aspects I wanted to include design, creation and innovation in my thoughts and feelings about this piece and from what I have read so far I personally feel that her design elements show creativity and her use of materials clearly shows innovation and commitment in and to her work.

After comparing what I have seen in the two lectures I feel that these artists have had a significant influence on my ways of thinking and my attitude towards certain areas of Art & Design that before I would have just overlooked and not take any notice of. I also think that looking into each different artist has made me consider a wider range of professions in the design industry when looking for inspiration.

Overall I believe that my experience so far has taught me a lot about the design industry as I believe I will take more consideration in to choosing my design ideas and material selections, I will also be more adventurous with all aspects of my work rather than sticking to what seems normal to me and what I am used to in terms of techniques, processes and my intentions for future outcomes.