Final body of work: I am very happy with my final body of work. I have managed to create three unique wall hangings, two that are patchwork and one that is my own silhouette. I think that the first two images obviously work very well together, there are repeating images on each piece, they have the same boarders around each cyanotype and they have both been sewn together to create a patchwork look. When looking at the cyanotypes I have notices that there seems to be some fluctuation in the vibrancy of the blue tones with some being lighter and slightly more transparent and others having this vivid dark blue creating the image. While unintentional, I quite like the effect that this has it differentiates each brown and allows each image to stand out even more on its own. This allows for there to be an almost unpredictable aspect to the work, even thought I may have used the same image more than once the result is not the same and each Cyanotype is unique. This aspect is also amplifi...
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Measuring and cutting dowl I needed something to use to hang up my wall hangings and also weight the bottom of them dowel. I decided to buy some down to do this. I had to get two different sizes to do this due to one of the loops being smaller that all of the others. I took my wall hangings with me to B&Q so that I could test them while I was there and reduce that chance of me choosing the wrong size. I then measured out the length that I wanted, I decided to leave about 4 inches of dowel overhanging on either side of the fabric and this would give me enough space to add and attachment to hang each piece. I used a hand saw to cut each piece of dowel down to size which was a fairly simple process, and I put the dowel in each loop to test that they fit properly which the did.
Full silhouette Cyanotype: For the next step I needed to make a full body silhouette Cyanotype. I previously practiced with my hands and this experiment was successful. I then attempted to do one with some old mixture but this unfortunately didn't turn out well. Learning from theses experiments I decided to make sure that the Cyanotype mixture I used was freshly made and to paint the whole sheet of calico on in one evening instead of spreading it out over multiple days. I then left it overnight to dry properly and mid afternoon the next day I found a sunny area in my back garden to put it out and lay on it. I made sure that the grass was freshly cut and I lay out some blankets to try and give myself as flat a base as possible and stayed there for about 30 minuets. to wash it off I places the calico on to of a clothes horse and placed it in the shower and the way I was able to rinse the fabric properly. Last time I only held it up with my own hands and I found that the ...
Pinning, tacking and using a sewing machine: When sewing my practice wall hanging I quickly found out how little I knew about sewing and sewing machines, I found the machines hard to navigate and I never knew what to do when something went wrong. To try and improve as much as I could with the short amount of time that I had left on this project I decided to take a short sewing course, during this course I was taught about the different features on the machine, how to choose the right stitch, different techniques and how to reverse stitch to make sure my work doesn't fall apart. I found this course incredibly helpful and even ended up buying a sewing machine while I was there for me to use at home. During my practice sewing I made the mistake of not pinning or tacking any of my fabric together and not taking any measurements of where the stithies would go. As a result, I ended up with an incredibly messy and unfinished wall hanging. The seams were coming apart and none of the...
Looking at composition: For the placement and composition of each image I wanted to make sure that there weren't too many repeating images within each wall hanging. Due to the amount of acetates that I had I knew that there would be some, which I didn't mind but I needed to ensure that it wasn't overwhelming. To do this I took photos of each row of cyanotypes when I put them out in the sun to develop and was able to look back at this to figure out the next row of images. I found this to be a good system, it allowed me to be efficient and accurate with my decision making and save time while I was at it. I would leave each cyanotype out for about 30 to 40 minuets to make sure that they had good exposure and that the images would be clear and detailed.
More test Cyanotypes: Using my new mixture I made some more test Cyanotypes with my readjusted acetates, I have already made the decision to not use three of the new acetates that I have and it's important that I see how successful the others are. These images are all successful, the contrast is good and allows for the images to be light and clear. The white tones of the paper oppose the darker blue colours. While the images are clear I noticed that the lines within each Cyanotype are slightly blurry that create this distorted atmosphere within the work. I think that characteristics of Cyanotypes blend well with the natural eeriness of the images. I have said this before but while looking at this work it really feels like I am glimpsing into a parallel universe or looking into a scene from a dream. The depth that the blue tones creates make it feel as if I could step right into the image and walk around. While these have been very successful on paper I will need to see...
Making my own Cyanotype mixture and testing it: This was my first time making my own mixture with chemicals that I had bought myself and not borrowed from college. I had to look back at images form my first year so that I could get the correct measurements for this process. I mixed 10g of Potassium Ferricyanide with 100ml of water and 25g of Ammonium Citrate with 100ml of water, and then used this small amount to coat 4 sheets of mixed media paper to use as tests to make sure that I measured the correct amounts. For these tests I used the new acetates that I had readjusted and manipulated on photoshop. I decided to use the four that I was most unsure about in terms of their contrast and transparency and then I would be able to decide whether to use them on my final work or not. I left these cyanotypes out in my back garden for about 30 or 40 minuets to give them the best chance to be exposed to the sunlight and then washed them off in cool water and left them to d...