Module 3 - Fundamental Production Processes (JEW 4024)
Project 2 - Carved Wax Art Medal
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Project Brief:
"Using your understanding of the lost wax casting process, you will design and make a wax carved medal that portrays a subject or narrative that holds meaning for you. This master pattern will be created for the British Art Medal Society (BAMS) competition, a live industry competition with a prize. The Deadline for this live competition is 9/2/2019: ‘The medals will be judged on Modelling; construction; use of the edge; the most developed theme between the two sides; most imaginative dialogue between the two sides; innovation in the medium; portraiture; referential work.’" Everyone in the school is heavily into this art medal business. I'm not so keen. Ask me to design something pretty, and I'm happy. But the political themes that seem to be a necessary part of the art form, do not interest me. It's all to arty-farty.
We are also constantly reminded that our very own Artist In Residence, Stephanie Holt won the BAMS competition a few years ago: www.bams.org.uk/student-medal-project-2016/ But hey, it's got to be done. So to come up with a two sided theme for my design, I jotted down some of the contradictions in my own personality: - Don't like people / Feel lonely - Feminist / Easy to cry - Love church architecture & music / Athiest - Space exploration / Poverty still exists on this planet |
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My background in astronomy & astrophysics means I have spent considerable time pondering the future of the human race and the potential to spread out into space.
Perhaps oddly I am still conflicted on the issue. That basic instinct to explore and push the boundaries of our experience and abilities, is very strong within me. However as a depressive cynical introvert, I think that inflicting humankind on the universe would be terrible. We are hell bent on conquest, destruction and violence and should not be permitted to spread our hate to other civilisations.
A slightly less controversial standpoint against the space program, is that we shouldn't be spending such money on “pointless” research when there is such suffering and poverty on this planet (whether the space program is pointless, given the numerous advancements that have come from it, e.g. MRI scanning, is another debate).
This concept, space exploration versus home world poverty, is the theme I decided to explore for my art medal design.
Perhaps oddly I am still conflicted on the issue. That basic instinct to explore and push the boundaries of our experience and abilities, is very strong within me. However as a depressive cynical introvert, I think that inflicting humankind on the universe would be terrible. We are hell bent on conquest, destruction and violence and should not be permitted to spread our hate to other civilisations.
A slightly less controversial standpoint against the space program, is that we shouldn't be spending such money on “pointless” research when there is such suffering and poverty on this planet (whether the space program is pointless, given the numerous advancements that have come from it, e.g. MRI scanning, is another debate).
This concept, space exploration versus home world poverty, is the theme I decided to explore for my art medal design.
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My idea for the space exploration side of the medal was very easily formed. The hot topic at the moment is a manned mission to mars. Now although I am a (fairly) recently trained scientist, who was born in the same year as the Viking probe landings, I am still fascinated by the martian canal theory of Percival Lowell:
From Wikipedia... "For a time in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, it was erroneously believed that there were canals on Mars. These were a network of long straight lines in the equatorial regions from 60° N. to 60° S. Lat. on the planet Mars observed by astronomers using early low-resolution telescopes without photography. They were first described by the Italian astronomer Giovanni Schiaparelli during the opposition of 1877, and confirmed by later observers. Schiaparelli called these canali, which was translated into English as "canals". The Irish astronomer Charles E. Burton made some of the earliest drawings of straight-line features on Mars, although his drawings did not match Schiaparelli's. By the early 20th century, improved astronomical observations revealed the "canals" to be an optical illusion, and modern high resolution mapping of the Martian surface by spacecraft shows no such features." |
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"Percival Lowell was a strong proponent of the idea that the canals were built for irrigation by an intelligent civilization on Mars,[1] going much further than Schiaparelli, who for his part considered much of the detail on Lowell's drawings to be imaginary. Some observers drew maps in which dozens if not hundreds of canals were shown with an elaborate nomenclature for all of them. Some observers saw a phenomenon they called "gemination", or doubling - two parallel canals."
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The medal reverse was going to be more difficult as I would need to visually represent the abstract concept of "poverty".
Again, some quick ideas: - Homelessness - Rough sleeping - Famine - Elderly/fuel poverty - Food banks The choice was easy. I am shocked and saddened every day I come up to Birmingham, by the number of rough sleepers on the streets. |
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Feeling guilty about using images of homeless people for something so frivolous, I came up with a plan. Every time I worked on my design, I'd donate £10 to the Change Into Action charity.
And always buy a copy of The Big Issue from the man at New Street station when he's there. |
