https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit Sense of self en-us 2022-11-30 15:07:46 UTC 2024-01-16 12:59:07 UTC hello@padlet.com venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560328350 2023-04-19 15:04:00 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560328350 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560333845 2023-04-19 15:08:09 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560333845 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560334751 2023-04-19 15:08:50 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560334751 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560335435 2023-04-19 15:09:19 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560335435 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560335815 2023-04-19 15:09:38 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560335815 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560336267 2023-04-19 15:09:56 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560336267 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560336656 2023-04-19 15:10:13 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560336656 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560337060 2023-04-19 15:10:33 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560337060 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560337531 2023-04-19 15:10:51 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560337531 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560341966 I wanted to research fem artists that work with subjects regarding femininity and the body, my intention for these studies was to broaden my approach when it comes to materials, methods and application. I found that majority of the artists I looked at used oil paint, which I think I will do in further developments. As oils take ages to dry I tried my best to get the same effect in a different medium, mostly using watercolours. ]]> 2023-04-19 15:14:10 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560341966 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560346950 I had trouble printing off the images for the previous artist studies, so I thought of using the extra prints for collages. 
Working intuitively, I noticed that the collage looked quite similar to male and female reproductive systems and decided to draw in the gaps. I feel this communicates the feeling of incompatibility with your own body.]]> 2023-04-19 15:17:55 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560346950 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560349221 I created this one by weaving a black and white version of the same coloured image to represent that gender isn’t black and white, it isn’t male or female, that it’s a spectrum. ]]> 2023-04-19 15:19:38 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560349221 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560388020 2023-04-19 15:47:22 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560388020 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560388520 2023-04-19 15:47:47 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560388520 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560389544 2023-04-19 15:48:37 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560389544 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560389870 2023-04-19 15:48:52 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560389870 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560390615 https://www.meredithwood.co.uk/blog/2016/3/2/shirow-zewx4-wj68n]]> 2023-04-19 15:49:23 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560390615 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560391473 Abstracting parts of the woman body in magazines]]> 2023-04-19 15:50:01 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560391473 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560391862 2023-04-19 15:50:18 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560391862 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560392677 2023-04-19 15:50:56 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560392677 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560392995 2023-04-19 15:51:11 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560392995 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560396607 Why are they all smooth, wet, and glowing? Is there a reason why woman in adverts or papers are depicted this way? What is it about having a woman be smooth and wet helps sell a product or an image? ]]> 2023-04-19 15:53:58 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2560396607 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575355852 2023-05-02 15:14:32 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575355852 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575356339 2023-05-02 15:14:52 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575356339 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575356854 2023-05-02 15:15:14 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575356854 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575357734 2023-05-02 15:15:49 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575357734 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575358273 2023-05-02 15:16:12 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575358273 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575358775 2023-05-02 15:16:36 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575358775 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575359337 2023-05-02 15:16:57 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575359337 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575359754 2023-05-02 15:17:17 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575359754 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575360246 2023-05-02 15:17:38 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575360246 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575360698 2023-05-02 15:17:58 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575360698 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575361126 2023-05-02 15:18:18 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575361126 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575361585 2023-05-02 15:18:37 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575361585 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575362181 2023-05-02 15:19:02 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575362181 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575362591 2023-05-02 15:19:19 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575362591 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575363089 2023-05-02 15:19:41 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575363089 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575363444 2023-05-02 15:19:57 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575363444 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575363905 2023-05-02 15:20:18 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575363905 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575364310 2023-05-02 15:20:38 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575364310 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575364714 2023-05-02 15:20:57 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575364714 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575365204 2023-05-02 15:21:17 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575365204 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575365670 2023-05-02 15:21:40 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575365670 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575366173 Painting from the projection workshop! 
I would say watercolour may not have been the best medium to use when trying to get it to have the projector affect, maybe acrylic or oils would have been better so I could glaze the patterns over a base painting?? Besides that I actually quite like the end result !]]> 2023-05-02 15:22:01 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575366173 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575366849 2023-05-02 15:22:33 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575366849 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575367202 A collage experiment based on Judy Chicago’s dinner party,
I saw a couple of the plates take on this weird abstracted almost fleshy like form, some felt quite feminine, I thought how could I connect this back into my practice? I started just by scanning through images of the plates and collages them into this wee thing! I think the top looks kind of like a face, and the bottom reminds me of the Louise bourgeois body like sculptures. ]]> 2023-05-02 15:22:50 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575367202 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575372367 Patterns from distorted body, using red chalk]]> 2023-05-02 15:26:44 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575372367 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575372870 2023-05-02 15:27:03 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575372870 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575373486 2023-05-02 15:27:25 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575373486 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575373944 2023-05-02 15:27:45 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575373944 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575374470 2023-05-02 15:28:07 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575374470 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575375520 2023-05-02 15:28:53 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2575375520 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596336592 2023-05-18 14:17:58 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596336592 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596337597 2023-05-18 14:18:44 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596337597 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596338228 2023-05-18 14:19:12 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596338228 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596342879 https://www.thepinknews.com/2023/01/27/anti-lgbtq-hate-crimes-scotland/
“Hate crime incidents against LGBTQ+ people in Scotland have soared by 75 per cent in just eight years”

]]> 2023-05-18 14:22:42 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596342879 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596343704 Looking at old European master drawings 

I want to look back into art history and create a new take on traditional painting and drawing methods, by reclaiming this famous stylised era, and making the portraits centred around queer people. ]]> 2023-05-18 14:23:22 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596343704 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596344221 Looking at old European master paintings.

With the far left image, this painting to me feels camp, the extravagant flamboyant pose, the leopard print. It’s camp 💅🏼 ]]> 2023-05-18 14:23:46 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596344221 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596348533 Analysing the paintings, seeing what elements are important to bring into my paintings/drawings ]]> 2023-05-18 14:27:15 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596348533 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596355093 (Missing text: L they/he) 

I asked friends on Instagram if they’d like to be included in this project, starting with quick sketches reminiscent of old master drawings! I used pencil instead of chalk as I don’t have fixative at home but I think it turned out really well! I used a burnt sienna pencil and the colouring it’s quite similar to the red chalk seen in previous studies ]]> 2023-05-18 14:32:35 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596355093 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596356849 2023-05-18 14:34:09 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596356849 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596363148 Scaling up the portraits!!

I am actually really proud of this sketch, I feel as though I really captured the softness seen in the old master drawings! I didn’t want to go to heavy and over work it as I’ve been thinking of how can I incorporate my concept on queer erasure, so I thought maybe leaving it quite bare in areas could allude to this, but I would like to add more detail into the hair as I feel it would look more polished 

!!! There is more of these I forgot to photograph on the desk in my studio space !!!]]> 2023-05-18 14:39:21 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596363148 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596366522 2023-05-18 14:41:37 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596366522 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596372987 Playing around with erasure in a literal way! 
Found this artist michele petrelli, and I think the way they do their portraits was exactly how I imagined it may turn out!! Pretty cool :) ]]> 2023-05-18 14:45:23 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596372987 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596383301 Obviously I’m not an old master painter, and usually my portraits take on a more stylised, exaggerated look. I found this study to be quite hard as it was so different to the way I naturally work, I made sure to use the techniques old masters used, whilst also trying to achieve the half painted half sketched look found in Petrelli’s work. I think I definitely over worked this piece but it has taught me to be intentional with what areas I should ‘erase’, In the future. ]]> 2023-05-18 14:52:04 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596383301 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596396358 (This looked a lot better before I closed over the sketchbook and it squished it) 
I wanted to quickly experiment with the previous collage, thinking of how I could maybe take it further, I worked with tissue paper and started manipulating the way it folds, it reminded me of fabric manipulation and i definitely think that it could be an element I play with later on, especially thinking of textiles. ]]> 2023-05-18 15:02:45 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596396358 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596399302 2023-05-18 15:05:17 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596399302 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596406712 As I don’t primarily work in a 3D form, I was thinking how could I connect the sculptural work I’ve looked at into my own practice? I thought, well I could use paint! 
I really love how this turned out, I wanted it to somewhat resemble elements of a body but not enough where you could flat out say it’s whatever area of the body. Aswell as wanting to insinuate feminine traits by adding the soft curvy patterns into the piece. 

I actually made quite a few of these, but my little kitty decided to run over them as they were still wet and got her and the house covered in blue paint :| ]]> 2023-05-18 15:11:30 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2596406712 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2604735022 (Sketchbook page was a bit bleak!) 

Barbara Walker is British artist who’s work talks on the social, political and cultural realities that impact her and those around her. 
Barbara’s practice is influenced by her upbringing in Birmingham and the struggles of issues regarding class and power, race, gender and representation, these topics are core to her work - and bringing visibility and a sense of belonging through her art makes it universally understood.

I feel as though these areas of Walkers practice is exactly what I am wanting to achieve through this project. She also physically erases some of her works which ties perfectly with the concepts I have. 

I think playing around with both physically erasing the art work and emulating the half finished style seen in Michelle Petrelli’s work is a great way of playing with the element of queer erasure within art, whilst also representing people in queer communities. ]]> 2023-05-25 11:29:13 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2604735022 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2604798484 I feel as though reworking found materials and objects are core in my practice, sustainability is something I’m conscious of within art and as i often obtain these materials from streets, turning something that would be disregarded as trash into something creates a element of unique, authentic art.
I feel as though it also speaks on class, half of me is intentional about sourcing these materials, the other half- has no choice, as art materials are often pricey I often have to obtain these materials in order to create my works. These underlying themes have been a major influence in my practice as it’s my day to day reality, and I feel by me showing these aspects is an act of representation for creatives that are of a lower class.

(Wee ramble sorry x)

I found painting onto these plates really hard as I -
1: couldn’t sketch out traditionally
2: sketching out with paint was hard Aswell as if it was a lil to thick or dry it would completely just come off :|

For the paint seen above I used a reference image of my friend Euan that honestly looked like a old master painting to begin with. But after working on it I found for the look I’m going for the images need to be somewhat lighter in values for it to seamlessly blend into the plate, in order to achieve the erased aspects im looking at.
So I decided to experiment with Barbara’s technique of directly erasing an area, and also the sketched out look seen in Michele’s work.

I found actually erasing (bottom right) the work to be quite therapeutic for this painting (because couldn’t stand to look at it any longer) as it felt intentional, a direct way to talk on the erasure of queer people in art history. 

And using the sketch-painting method (top right) felt more as if I was stating that even after the clear erasure of queer identity’s in art, you can’t fully erase them. Which I personally think articulates my concept better in terms of creating that representation. 

]]> 2023-05-25 12:30:20 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2604798484 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2604802728 2023-05-25 12:34:14 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2604802728 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2604806022 Going to the archives at GSA was super enriching for research into textiles and portraiture, it gave me insight to how leather has been used in art before, figurative print on textiles and garments, Aswell as traditional portraiture. ]]> 2023-05-25 12:37:08 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2604806022 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2604824357 2023-05-25 12:53:49 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2604824357 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2604840431 Although this idea of using leather in my work stemmed from thoughts on how I express my gender identity, through means of fashion, textiles and accessories. The historical aspect of leather within the queer community holds such an importance. I feel even though this idea started with my personal experience- it connects with a lot of queer identifying people through leathers history. ]]> 2023-05-25 13:07:14 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2604840431 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606144776 Cahun first started their staged self-portraits when they were 18, quickly becoming a staple medium in their practice. The portraits feature the artist looking directly out at the viewer, wearing costumes and make-up, swapping and mixing genders. I feel as though for this time period it was pretty revolutionary!  ]]> 2023-05-26 12:21:23 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606144776 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606152317 Experimenting with fabric compositions, using textiles I feel drawn to when expressing my gender! I wanted to combine these textiles in visually interesting compositions, blending feminine and masculine. ]]> 2023-05-26 12:29:51 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606152317 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606160152 Developing these further, (left) taking figurative elements playing with gender roles (blue boy, pink girl) and showcasing my personal expression through having a baseline of leather and denim (masc) and decorating with lace (femme) ]]> 2023-05-26 12:36:48 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606160152 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606174364 Forward planning, I knew I wanted the base of my final to be leather- but obtaining a large amount would most likely be a challenge. Thinking of how growing up in Glasgow, every scheme there is always a the standard leather couch sitting on a pavement, so I went out to search for one! Of course as I set the intention of finding one, and how easy it’ll be it’s Sod’s law that it was an absolute challenge to find one. I spent quite literally 2 weeks walking around local schemes in hopes of finding one. But hey! One eventually showed up in whiteinch! I wasn’t quite sure if the scale I was working to at this point- so decided to be generous and basically strip the entire thing. 

]]> 2023-05-26 12:52:49 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606174364 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606177183 Sampling both sides of the leather! 
I want to weigh up the options on what side to paint on for my final, of course the darker side has a more smooth texture than the suede but I feel like having the texture of the suede could lead to a more visually interesting piece? ]]> 2023-05-26 12:55:56 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606177183 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606183117 Thinking back to Claude Cahun’s self portrait photography works I wanted to capture the essence of perception surrounding gender.
After editing a more feminine portrait with a more masculine one- I started thinking of how others perceive me. Regardless of how I identify, majority of the world will view me as a woman. 
This gave me a really cool idea of playing with visibility with painting. As I was playing around with digitally manipulating these self portraits I was thinking to my self- how could I lower the opacity of the “masc” portrait with paint? Maybe using a glazing technique or maybe painting it more monochromatic so it’s harder to see. ]]> 2023-05-26 13:02:20 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606183117 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606193230 I really love the playfulness of these two developments, I feel like they are reminiscent of the works of France-Lise Mcgurn that I was looking at towards the beginning of the project, as well as capturing the energetic nature of expression, which to me is accurate to the feeling of freedom when it comes to expressing gender identity. 

The only issue is, when working on leather- you can’t sketch out before hand. You need to kind of let go and really just dive in. I was really playing with the concept of visibility, on the left I made the ‘masc’ more opaque and larger to allude to the message that regardless of others perception that my identity is true. And on the right I made the ‘masc’ almost invisible- this is to show that, on a surface level you can only get so much of who I am as a person, by making the ‘masc’ portrait hardly visible- it’s inviting the viewer to sit with the work until the masc presents themselves. 
I feel as though it’s a really powerful message. ]]> 2023-05-26 13:13:18 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606193230 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606193980 2023-05-26 13:14:05 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606193980 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606194508 2023-05-26 13:14:39 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606194508 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606210397 I started researching the history of art of plates and found that fashion plates used to be a way of advertising the latest trends back in the day. The first fashion plate can be traced back to 1678! 
Even through I stumbled across these plates and decided to use them in this project for other reasons initially like gravitating to the more oval shaped plates to signify the cyclical nature of acceptance and hate towards the LGBTQ+ as it operates similar to an oval. there is an extreme connection or rather a coincidence or maybe intuition that lead me to using this as a material to represent my concepts on. to the queer experience, it’s influence in fashion and expression, and now to me representing queer people on plates, feels full circle (no pun intended ;) ) 

]]> 2023-05-26 13:31:09 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606210397 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606213370 2023-05-26 13:34:21 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606213370 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606271833 Thinking of the connection between the 3 streams and of course there is a sense of self, there’s connection between gender but I feel the most important part of the sense of vulnerability within each. 
With vulnerability comes strength. 

I started this project looking at paths I haven’t yet ventured into yet as most of my work has been centred around a sense of self. And I wanted to explore new topics and ways of connecting with a wider audience.

In my last sketchbook this theme kept coming up regarding my traumas, how my body processes and reacts to these situations, hyper sexuality - hyper fem, and the cyclical nature of healing those wounds. To dive into the womanhood in which I was born in to, the womanhood I never felt compatible with, to heal through the process of creation.]]> 2023-05-26 14:33:35 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606271833 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606276200 Previously I used this composition to abstract it to an unrecognisable point, into shapes. But I feel as though there is power in keeping the original image readable.
I created it to almost show to how being groomed into sex work had ‘tainted my purity’ making a flower like pattern to show that corruption in my youth, the damage my own body unwillingly caused to my mind. There’s power in that.]]> 2023-05-26 14:38:06 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606276200 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606282658 These where made to - in a way - talk with the before images, I wanted to show the experience of disassociating, disconnecting from your body when subjected to sexual trauma and how a common trauma response is to be hyper sexual. It sounds contradictory but it’s a way many victims that were subjected to this kind of abuse reclaim autonomy over their bodies. My experience with this I would say harmed me further, at the time I thought by acting in these ways I had the choice but looking back, I wasn’t in control of my body, wasn’t old enough to make those choices and didn’t consider the impact it would have on future me.   ]]> 2023-05-26 14:45:12 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606282658 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606291525 Collaging bodies, 

I was thinking of the best way to articulate the disconnect I had from my body, I used scans of drawing I done during life drawing classes to showcase differing body types as I want to focus on connecting this experiences I’ve faced to a wider audience. I feel this method of collaging articulates the feeling of not recognising your body as your own, it feels as though it’s an amalgamation of all the unwanted desires projected onto your flesh, that have no meaning to yourself other than it’s now your job to maintain it.  ]]> 2023-05-26 14:54:48 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606291525 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606291826 2023-05-26 14:55:09 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606291826 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606297516 I wanted to remove the body for a second and see how else I could articulate the dissociative aspect. I felt as though the act of being behind glass communicated this nicely as it’s an accurate way of describing the feeling of dissociation. I wanted my expression to be blank and flaccid, to communicate the aspect of not being able to control yourself, but rather you just have to sit by an watch it play out. ]]> 2023-05-26 15:01:35 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606297516 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606297904 2023-05-26 15:02:07 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606297904 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606298413 2023-05-26 15:02:40 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606298413 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606298862 2023-05-26 15:03:09 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606298862 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606299184 2023-05-26 15:03:35 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606299184 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606301766 Incorporating textiles again …

I actually didn’t expect this to work but I had an idea of layering scans and prints to seamlessly incorporate pervious symbols to femininity like lace and stuff, and it actually turned out really cool!  ]]> 2023-05-26 15:06:46 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606301766 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606307576 As I stated before I felt like after finding Jenny Saville’s work and how similar it was to what I was doing I had an urge to just come away from it all together as it had been done before. Sure the concepts behind it aren’t exact but visually it was almost identical so I started thinking about different ways I could articulate this. 

I started thinking of maybe using a surrealist approach and use things to represent what I’m talking about, similarly to what I done in project one with the pomegranates. And it lead me to thinking about how trauma is stored in the body- sexual trauma I could use the reproductive organ to represent the location in which the trauma occurred, maybe incorporating Medusa as she’s recently become a symbol for survivors of sexual abuse.  ]]> 2023-05-26 15:14:02 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606307576 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606311563 This is a rough sketch of what popped into my head after thinking of all these things. 
I wanted to show the how healing that trauma is almost an equivalent to taking on a child and protecting them. I though back to the ages I experienced this things and decided to place us all in the womb, a place of creation, with my arms wrapped around teenage me, teenage me protecting baby me. Having to be a mother to myself and protect the lil me’s. 
And to incorporate Medusa, I had the idea of making the ovaries the head of Medusa,  ]]> 2023-05-26 15:18:29 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606311563 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606314574 I couldn’t find a reference photo of teenage me so I’ll just have to remember that era, but I created this- again- really quick sketch to see how it would look better, and as the printer duplicated I had two images left over. Giving me the idea to use my face as reference for the Medusa head ovaries. 
This would add a layer of symbolism to how I need to protect myself further. Sure I have to look after lil me’s and help them heal, but in order to do that i right now need to be in a safe enough environment where I too can heal. The Medusa’s almost act as guards as I nurture lil me’s, ]]> 2023-05-26 15:22:07 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606314574 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606316401 The way in which these ideas where coming to me reminded me of works that frida kahlo has done, duplicating herself and even the right photo having a similar look as my sketches of this nurturing kind of vibe, like Lille Russian dolls . ]]> 2023-05-26 15:24:31 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606316401 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606321058 2023-05-26 15:30:20 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606321058 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606321381 2023-05-26 15:30:45 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2606321381 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2608235646 2023-05-29 22:12:00 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2608235646 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2608240579 I found these very interesting, whilst trying to find artists that combined different textiles and painting the only one I could find was Louise bourgeois, due to her environment growing up with her parents being tapestry restorers, Louise has a lot of different works that exhibit different textiles within them, but I think the figurative element in these works is what stood out to me. I found it so interesting the little dolls she had made. ]]> 2023-05-29 22:24:36 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2608240579 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2608241446 I chose to exhibit all 3 finals because I felt as they came together the energy that bounced around was visually intriguing. To me it feels as though the viewer is invited to sit at a table with a feminine and masculine presence, insisting the viewer to sit and digest the contents of the plates. Kind of like a commentary on the heteronormative societal constructs, as the viewer sits with these works does it show they are complicit in upholding this narrative, or does it show they are fighting for change? 

]]> 2023-05-29 22:26:48 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2608241446 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2608242691 Originally I was either only going to display the leather work on its own or both the dress and plates as I felt that maybe all together they’d look overwhelming to the viewer. After trying them all out together I really loved the look of them displayed like this. ]]> 2023-05-29 22:30:07 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2608242691 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2608253905 Testing oil paint on ceramic,
What happens when I add more linseed oil? How does it lay on the surface?]]> 2023-05-29 22:57:22 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2608253905 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2611910807 2023-06-01 14:45:18 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2611910807 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2631826854 2023-06-25 18:55:38 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2631826854 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2640923641  Forgot to upload these !!]]> 2023-07-08 20:40:34 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2640923641 venusisnotreal https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2640923670 2023-07-08 20:40:50 UTC https://padlet.com/venusisnotreal/gradedunit/wish/2640923670