Painted Ladies

 

Inspired by the making days at the beginning of the week, I have kept the momentum going by trialing and testing further postcards – this has sometimes meant adopting T’s approach of working directly with photocopies – a more immediate method than scanning and working digitally.

I have been concentrating on two pieces that utilise a variety of different techniques, therefore each one is taking quite a long time to develop and complete. The trick is knowing when to stop and accept that the design is finished.

Making Days – North

 

Day 1: The day started with tea, coffee and discussion.  Multiple strands of conversation enabled the sharing of  visual processes made use of to date.  We discovered a commonality in our individual working practices and methodology through the use of found image, colour and decoration.  Strengths were recognised and celebrated in each others practice and the focus remained positive  – affirming decisions made. We shared and  exchanged materials and constructed purposeful ‘to do’ lists for the making day ahead.  The choice of working methods required us to work in separate studios, although we came together at relevant times throughout the day to support and discuss progress.

Having pre-arranged this day, making extended beyond the time spent in the studios and decisions continued throughout the evening. The day’s progress was discussed and new decisions were made collaboratively.

Day 2: After a brief discussion about the sequence in which we could both achieve the day’s objectives, we quickly adopted a similar routine to day 1 – our individual areas of focus and requirement of specialist equipment resulted in working in separate studios again.  We utilised a wide range of techniques including lino printing, screen printing, letterpress printing, photocopying and digital printing and foiling, and met at regular intervals to share progress and seek advice from each other.  Towards the end of day 2 we were able to review the project’s current status and plan potential tasks for the final Making Day in the south in three weeks time.