Hands On

I was really inspired by the handprints in the footpath on the Dublin Road and by the footprint in the cement at George's Quay.

I really like the 'Cinderella's Slipper' idea behind these tracks..who made them?..why?..where are they now?


So I started experimenting with acrylic paint and printed my own hands and feet, as well as drawing and painting them.

 Acrylic Paint

Indian Ink

Pencil 

These prints are the negative of the objects ( hands, feet, tyres etc) and I wanted to get back to the original positive space of the object and I felt my best way of doing that was by casting.

At a casting workshop I did with Mike I did a press mould of my hand. This involved rolling out a slab of clay as smooth as possible and pressing my hand into the clay until it left and impression. Then I used more clay to build a wall around the clay slab, mixed up some plaster and poured it on top of the slab. (note: it's not a good idea to wear black clothes when working with plaster :P).

The plaster heats up a bit before it solidifies but after about half an hour it was ready for me to peel the clay mould off. When I was left with just the plaster cast I put it in the drying cabinet overnight to make sure it was fully dry. The casting (which I'd never done before the workshop) was a lot of fun and a success. Here's a few photos of my finished cast..

 

and here's a picture of my studio this week...

More Tracks and Trails

I'm looking at the different tracks some objects can leave by printing them. I've used a variety of materials like cardboard, bubblewrap, plastic wrappers, milk carton lids, polystyrene foam, combs etc.

The results of printing the side of cardboard

Dragging a comb through acrylic paint

  Printing Bubblewrap

 

 Making marks using a Toothbrush

 Printing Foam

Printing Bottle Caps

Trying to draw with a comb

I've also started investigating the soles of shoes and the prints they make. Here are some charcoal rubbings of the soles of shoes.

I found these mark making processes really interesting and liked the variety of marks that could be made using found objects.

Dublin Contemporary 2011

On Thursday, October 13th, a few of us first years (along with tutors Sylvia, Michael, Des and Kieran) visited the Dublin Contemporary 2011, a series of contemporary art exhibitions taking place in galleries dotted around the city.

 

Our jam packed schedule included visits to the Royal Hibernian Academy at Ely Place, a guided tour of Dublin Contemporary at Earlsfort Terrace, the Kerlin Gallery, the Kevin Kavanagh Gallery and the Douglas Hyde Gallery all showing work from both Irish and international artists. Here are a few photos of the pieces that really stood out to me in what was a really interesting and enjoyable day.