Another photocopy experiment
that is exploring the function of the layers, characters and landscapes.
Previous works have aimed to create disjointed landscapes via digital manipulation to found images of mountain range landscapes. The duplication of layers were used here to create a visual representation of the disjointed nature of what we perceive reality to be. If you could see a weather forecast or a x-ray of the human environment around you it may show it sliced and manipulated by the people that make up your reality. This has potential to relate to Heidegger's 'Earth and World' theory, as we live on the earth but have changed / manipulated it to be 'our human world'. I am however referencing the lack of control the individual has over ones existence or understanding of each moment of reality. As Jenny Holzer says in the 'Truisms' series 'Much was decided before you were born' and so much will be decided in our yet future.
The work i am making on at the moment, that references shamanistic powers, is exploring the moment when you recognise the shift in reality, a moment of clarity or realisation that things are not as you perceived them to be. The shaman character / power to communicate with the spirit world is being used to visualise the crossing from on understanding or reality to another. Prior research looked at gaming and virtual realities, 'Second life' or avatar. Exploring the explicit relationship that we have began to engage with another reality, that does not rely on a physical change only a mental response. Taking this into account i have began to design a character that is visually referencing gaming, that will exist within a virtual environment / landscape.
that is exploring the function of the layers, characters and landscapes. 
I remember your work now as you displayed it for the 'gifted party' show. It was really interesting as a fantasy/landscape. I find your work fascinating and so different. Do you work on one idea or several at once? Also do you get your ideas from movies [some do explore the theme of shaman/realities that are not what they seem/worlds created by your own mind and they do not exist.] I don't know anytthing about Heidegger - second person who mentions him in my reading today of others work] so will have to look him up.
ReplyDeleteAlso, when you talk about photocopying stuff, do you do this over and over and feed work with images on into photocopies again and again or do you work on tracing paper and overlay the images.
Look forward to seeing and hearing about your work in April.
Cheers Sue Williams. PT l Printmaking.
Hi Sue,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your kind words, i am always a bit worried that my work looks abit random against all the beautful prints. I try not to let it stop me as Fin is always encouraging of all works not jsut prints.
Yes some ideas of shamanism comes from the media. A recent influnce was 'true blood' the vampire drama. I guess its the whole none-european thing that is taped into by western film producers ect like wise with the fantasy / reality theme- which is very much a base of childhood, a topic that i was thinking about in my 1st year. I do find myself watching lots of things and thinking a ha this is relevant to my work. The animation 'Ghost in a shell' and the Studio Ghibli animations have also contributed to ideas.
I terms of ideas i am always conscious that i am aiming to explore the notion of reality in several stages. The first being the situation, meaning the background/ landscape that the characters exsist within being visualised as none worldly .The second being a spiralling narrative that is some times more focused on the the experience of the auidence seeing something 'unreal' / 'fictional, or as a veichal that visualises the events of the image. This then changes the characters forcing them to be depicted experiencing something else in the next works- keeping to a loose narritive. I am still experiementing with ideas to pin down some elements of my practise.
The photocopying is done via tracing and layer on the copy bed. I have previously worked by feeding things back through, but it depends on where you are doing the copying.
I hope that make sence. Thanks for the questions they do really help me rationalise my process.
Hope all your work is going well.
See you soon
Jenny