editing and presenting

My aim for last week was to attempt to make the five tester DVDs so that I could experiment with how the images work together and the various ways in which I could format the films. I have been gathering TV’s and DVD players from various different sources to attempt to find the TVs that not only work well technically but also visually work with what I want to achieve. My aim is to have about seven TVs so that I will have enough for the main piece as well as some insurance TVs in case something goes wrong throughout the testing and installation or during the exhibition. There have been a few places where I have sourced TVs and DVD players: local boot sales have been great for getting cheap technology, providing that it actually works when you get it home. I have gathered two working TV’s, one with a DVD player, and two DVD players and hope to continue to visit these over the next few weeks. More successfully, local trash for nothing sites have helped me gather the large bulk of the TVs, where people are looking for ways to get rid of old items, I have been able to pick up four TVs locally for free from these sites, it was just a case of looking at the recent posts on the site regularly. I have borrowed a few TVs, DVD players and scart leads from family and friends who happened to have kept them. I have been surprised at how much I have been able to get for free from these kind of sites and very cheaply from boot sales, gathering the technology has been one of the easier things so far this project, which is something that I did not expect. I have learnt that something that someone is throwing away could be of use to somebody, just like these TVs have been of use to me. People have been particularly happy to help when I mention that I am an art student and am sourcing these TVs for my final degree project.   

The making of the tester films has been important, as I wanted to explore the way that they work together and how the film itself could eventually look. I wanted to get them done relatively quickly as I am aware of the lack of time that I have and felt that I needed to see if anything really wasn’t working just in case I needed to make some drastic changes to the project, as well as then allowing for more time to edit. It has been important for me to continue sourcing the TVs and looking at ideas for presentation as I have been editing these as they will all be working together and each aspect has to be right and each part is equally important, particularly as I still have to build the structure within which the TVs will sit. There were a two things I wanted the testers to achieve, the first was the actual image itself, the subtitles, the colours, the cutting and the way in which they blend and connect. The second was the way in which the individual films will work together, how they combine and work as a whole and to see how the work should be presented. The testers were based on the answers to the one question, with a few people pictured in each one, to get a sense of the looping, the links and the time span. The question was: Why are you an artist? I felt it was a nice question to start with. I went through the transcripts and found the different answers to these questions and cut through the film to pick out these parts. I experimented with using different colour filters, leaving the colour of the image as it is and changing them to black and white. I found that it really depended on the image itself as to whether these filters positively effected the footage. 

With footage like Alison and Polly’s where the colour is very important and bright, turning it black and white lost that part of it, it took what was visually interesting away from the image. Whereas the footage of TK for example looked much better in black and white because the bright sunlight coming through the windows made the footage too bright, the black and white made this softer and easier on the eye.

I also explored ways in which I cut to different clips of the students working instead of the straight footage of them talking to the camera.

This was effective as it made the films more interesting than the still camera, and also gave that insight into the students working and being active in the studio which will directly relate to the work that they will have in the show which will then reflect back again in my work. This is something that I definitely wish to play with as I think it is incredibly effective, I plan to focus on gathering more footage of students working for this purpose, it is exciting to get up close to what the students are doing.

I also thought a lot about the words, although what I had cut wasn’t exactly right, there were certain things said by the students that I thought were particularly important and I considered ways in which I could highlight these moments. What is said for me is the most vital element of this piece, and this is something that I wanted to make sure is clear, hopefully by publishing the full transcripts along with the work. When I do focus closely on the editing I plan to not look at the footage but think about what is said and how the conversation connects initially instead of the visual image. Sarah said something in her interview that I had included in one of the testers that I felt was a really interesting point that I wanted it to stand out. I experimented with taking the image away and just having the conversation and the words, I felt that the blank screen highlighted the text and drew the eye, more than if I had included both in this example. I also hope to use silence and the image in a similar way, highlighting something by taking part of it away. This is something that I think will be the next stage following the initial cutting of the footage for the films. Another very important element is the subtitles. I come to the conclusion that I wanted to subtitle all of the films not only because it is visually interesting but also as a way of engaging the audience better, in addition to solving any issues I may have had with sound. I tried out different fonts that I thought could be interesting as well as standard professional fonts that I researched. Some were very effective, but others really didn't work well with the footage. Again this is something that depends greatly on what the footage is behind the subtitles, but I will talk about the effects of the subtitles a bit later. I also tried out how mixing black and white footage with colour would work, as this is something that the essay film format does, and so I felt that it was important to test this further as I wasn’t sure how well this could be incorporated in my work. This would depend on how they would all work together when played.

Monday was a particularly important day for the progress of my final project. After finishing off the tester films I wanted to see them playing all together so that I could sit for a period of time and watch all of these. It was great to see them all at once, I already felt that there was a lot of information in the work and that was only the one question. Seeing them as a whole was a lot more powerful than I ever thought it would be. They seemed to connect easily together, and from that moment onwards the idea to separate the numbers didn’t feel right, nevertheless I wanted to give it a go and see what it would look like visually. 

I initially wanted them separate so that they could be immersed much more in the other work of the show. However, together they feel like once piece and Sarah mentioned that together they feel like my work whereas separate they would look like individual comments on the work of others.  What was most interesting was the way that the subtitles worked. I tried out many different fonts and sizes so that I could easily compare them when together and work out which one I would rather for the final piece, I initially wanted one single subtitle format for all films, this is still an option although at this moment in time I am unsure. Gilbert Richards felt that the different subtitles visually showed that each person had an individual voice, and seeing them throughout and feeding into the different films had the same effect as the changing footage. I must admit that the more I watched the films the more I realised that he was in fact right about this, the subtitles were not out of place and it did not look odd that they were all different. I was thinking about the way in which I have had to combat the footage trying to look professional and failing, I felt that the different TVs did this but also so did the changing subtitles, it is something that I never considered but definitely will be when I reach that stage. It will just be a case of deciding what subtitles to use and when to use them. The changes in colour had a similar effect, I noticed that it was interesting to see the same footage repeated but it black and white, that effect of taking away the colour changed the film and this could be seen throughout when they were all playing together. I felt that the changes in colour of the film didn’t mean that they didn’t connect, in fact I feel that if it was all in colour or all in black and white then it would be quite boring. My approach to this will be if it works for the footage and what comes before and after it then that is what is important, I realised that they will naturally fall together anyway. One thing that I feel is important to mention is the way in which the screens change the image slightly, it did depend on each screen but it also changed depending on whether they were set to widescreen or not. Once I have decided exactly what screens I will be using I will be looking into this more closely to see if I can make changes or if I am okay with the way that this looks int he piece. The one part that is does effect is the readability of the subtitles as in some cases it made them a lot smaller than they should be. I think it is going to be a case of making the films, playing them all at once and then proofing, seeing what I need to change. The speed in which the films were changing didn’t feel too fast or slow, I think because you have a lot going on at one time this is not necessarily a problem, although perhaps it would be if I separated the screens. I was particularly pleased with the footage that I included that involved movement, and close up shots of people working, it definitely broke up the stationary figures and gave a flow and an energy to the films. I need to focus on gathering more of this type of footage for the final editing stages. I was pleased with the way in which you could make connections throughout. In some cases two screens would play the same people, and because the films run at different times the next time round this wouldn’t happened. I really enjoy this element of chance and it has been successful in some of the other things I have done with this project. I am not going to think about how long each film will be when I edit them. This could be effective however if I wanted to perhaps black out a few of the screens so that the audience would focus on just the one, if they were at different times it would work initially but then slowly come out of sync the longer that they were played. This is something that I feel will only add to this element of chance and happening, I like the way in which the conversation and the narration of the piece is constantly changing and connecting in different ways; it is very much like a Rhizome. 

My biggest issue on this Monday was deciding exactly how many TVs to use and where to place them. After seeing them all together play I felt that splitting them up would ruin that combination of narrations and the way in which the different texts bounced off each other. If I split them I think I might be risking taking that element of chance away that I find so interesting. These were all initial experiments however I did reach a stage that felt right for me but with feedback I am still not too sure. I built a plastic racking in my space so that I could try stacking the TVs and placing them in different positions easily to get a better idea about what I might want to build out of wood. I thought closely about different pairings I could do and placements. Whenever there was a three it felt like there was something missing in one of the gaps, there was a space that felt odd, and the way in which the films moved together seemed disjointed because of these spaces in between. The same went for when there was a five or the TVs were in a long vertical line (which was my initial plan, and one that I will definitely not be doing) the rhythm of the work went as your eyes followed a path that didn’t link clearly. It felt like you should be following the TVs closely in a round motion, like a constant connection, I didn’t want this to be difficult and when they were in a line this was. From the viewpoint of the audience it was not an easy thing to watch, I feel that you sometimes have to make things easy to enable someone to engage with the work. I have always been one to think in odd numbers which is why all my initial plans were odd. However, the longer I sat and watched the TVs the more I felt that there needed to be an even number. It is something about the squareness of the TVs and the aesthetic of them visually that leads to this assumption of even, and this is something that I quite liked about viewing them. The fact that everything is so symmetrical and even yet the footage, the TVs themselves and the subtitles are all disjointed, it is conflicting and it is this that makes it interesting. I still hope to get further feedback on this idea next week but for now I am stuck on the idea of having four TVs. Visually for me it was what felt right, it is possibly the first time that I got that feeling with a piece of my work that something is right. I have experienced this a lot also during editing. The four was harmonious, they worked together and it felt complete as one. 

I blacked out some of the open sections of the structure just to see what it would look like as wood. If I was to go through with this plan I would make the bottom and top half exactly square, the top would be solid at the front but in the back contain cupboards to store the DVD players, etc. The top would then be sectioned into four equal parts to size of the largest tv, and in it would sit the different TV’s. I would like the TVs to be at eye level, which I think will make them more engaging. What I did find interesting about exploring the different formats of presentation was the differing opinions of the other students. I asked people walking by what they thought of the different numbers of TVs and some said they liked them odd, some said they wanted five, others thought that there should be more, and some said six. What I found so fascinating was the way in which every opinion was different and this is something that is also reflected in the work itself.

I am still a tad unsure about how I exactly want to present the work, however I know that equipment will not be a problem, but I aim to have a solid view in my head by the end of next week of what I want it to look like. As for the films itself, I hope to use the transcripts and make storyboards of each of the films and attempt to cut together the basics of each of these, working from the writing and then considering the footage. The quicker I can get this done and right the longer I will have to add in more footage, include the subtitles and the final proofing and tweaking. 

Critique and filming

This week was particularly hectic. On Thursday we had scheduled in a series of group crits, where we get into smaller groups and discuss how we think each person’s work is going and what they could possibly improve on. I was particularly interested in recording or filming these because I think it is a very important point in our journey towards the final show. This is when we discuss if their pieces are actually working and if they need to change anything. You really get a sense of what everyones work is about, I wanted to record these as I thought it would end up being directly related to the show and I felt it would be interesting to perhaps incorporate some of the stuff recorded into the video, it would be a long day but in the end very much worth it. I also set out to film about 5 people this week, the last of the remaining students. This in itself was a difficult task as I wanted to also stay on top of transcribing the interviews and the documentation of the process. I felt that it was right to try and get the main filming done as quickly as possible, leaving more time to edit and play around with adding more footage in later. 

At the beginning of the week I filmed Jess and Hailey. Jess and Hailey are working with projection, and projecting onto material, they have collaborated from quite early on in the degree so I felt it was fitting to engage them in a conversation together much like between Polly and Alison. I filmed both Jess and Hailey in the same shot as I have realised that in occasions like these it is easier to just have a few cameras as it is difficult to manage a load on my own. The interview went well and this was one of the more relaxed interviews I had done, Jess and Hailey were great in front of the camera and the conversation between them both really flowed naturally. Again there was a problem with the sound in the studio, not only was there a lot of talking but also the noise of the door slamming and people moving things around. This cannot be avoided and I am slowly coming to the conclusion that using subtitles for all of the work might actually benefit in many different ways however this will have to be tested. Jess and Hailey were working on projecting as I was filming, again there was something about the students working whilst talking that interested me. I filmed them sitting in the environment they had created; between plinths ladened with technology. The other camera was placed behind them and filmed partially the mirror image of the projection, this would have been an interesting angle however the sound in this one was terrible and also Jess had moved slightly meaning the other camera became visible, however there still might be a chance to use this footage throughout the film. The light and the dynamic of the conversation and the movements both Jess and Hailey made throughout the filming, like the gestures of their hands and turning towards each other, really make the film work. 

I recorded Takunda on the Tuesday. His space was right next to the window and the sun was streaming in so the main problem with filming this was getting the balance right between the camera being underexposed and overexposed. This gave me the chance to really play with the ISO settings on the camera, and it was reflected in the better quality image that I managed to achieve with the filming. I filmed TK talking straight on and also an angle directed to the side so that you could see his profile. I am particularly pleased with the angle as it is different to all of the others I have shot and it is interesting and flattering. Takunda’s space was filled with his work, a lot of which were portraits. I liked this connection with him throughout the space, being able to see elements of his work in the filming much like with Alison’s paintings in the background of her shot. TK said some interesting things, none of which any of the others had mentioned so this will be a good one to edit. 

I then filmed Klavs in his studio space. He felt most comfortable walking around and working in the space, which was good for me as I preferred the shots where the students were moving around, much like Connie’s where she moved in and out of the frame as she was drawing. Klavs was nervous about the filming, although I don't think it really showed. The sound was much better on this because there was no one really in the studio at the time, however sadly I can’t just make everyone disappear whenever I need to film. Klavs is from Latvia and it was interesting hearing him talk about the differences between art school there and here, this was something that will stand out from the rest of the interviews. Klavs’ space itself looks quite like an installation, which interestingly might be something that he is working towards for the final degree show, the reflection of this as a working space in the film and then having the presented space in the show could be effective. I also had the chance to film Ellie towards the end of the day. Ellie was nervous about the filming and so didn’t want herself in the work. Her work is about dolls and her connection to dolls, in her space she has this fantastic doll made out of tights and material, and in her crit she spoke of this doll as being a person and a character. It felt fitting to capture what she was saying with the camera focused on the doll, it was eery but I think the image worked well and there will definitely be a strong connection with her work for the show. 

In the morning I had a meeting with Jane to attempt to clarify some of the components of the two briefs. I also wanted to discuss my ideas for the presentation of the film for the show. I mentioned that I wouldn’t want the film projected as it would lose some of its quality as an image, and there was also quite a lot of projection already happening in the show. I also felt that I wouldn’t want it on a larger screen as this would just be a bit boring. I mentioned to Jane about using multiples as this is something I had discussed with Ruth previously. It would be great if the film could be split into sections and immersed into the show, where the audience could dip in and out as they walked around the exhibition. I spoke of using old style monitors, as I had used them in a video piece last year and loved the aesthetic of the old TVs. I think in this case, if I had subtitles, these would work really well. I thought it would be good to build a structure that fitted everything perfectly, however Jane warned me about visualising something before trying everything out to see how it works. Therefore, I thoroughly need to test the technology I am going to use and the possible problems I will encounter. 

The day of crits was insightful as it was great to hear what everyone was up to, with this project I have really got a feel about what interests the other students, however I haven’t had much of a chance to see their work for the show, and so this day was vital for me as I feel I need to be involved in the whole process. Although my crit was only in the morning I felt it was important to stay for the entire day and record everything that was being said about the different pieces of work. It is going to take me a while however I am going to transcribe everything that I managed to get as I think seeing the things that were said written down will be crucial to the film. My crit went well and I was really pleased with the feedback I got, I think everyone is excited to see the film. It’s difficult to remember everything that was said, so I will have to wait until I transcribe the recording as I did not take notes. One of the things that was mentioned was the way in which I will make the film, I explained that I would like it to be quite engaging and slightly jumpy, fast paced. I spoke of how it would be interesting to split the film up, and perhaps making different films with different ideas. However, I realised that this is something that will begin to form as I start to edit and is something I am going to really be thinking about over the next few weeks. They asked about subtitles, and I know that I will need to take into consideration how fast people can read and whether the subtitles fit with what is being said. I am quite used to reading subtitles so I will need to test what I try on others and see if it really does work. Jane asked as well about making the entire film black and white to try and make sure that the film flows well together, I am unsure about removing colour from some of the footage but I know there are a lot of other filters that I can try so I will explore the possibilities with this, I need to make sure that I explore a lot of different ways of doing things as well, not just stick to one. Jane also mentioned the way in which I need to get the balance right between it trying to look professionally filmed and failing, or purposefully being bad footage. The footage in many of the essay films I have watched is particularly poor, and I have mentioned previously about how for me it is not about the footage that is captured. Jane said that I need to make sure that the fact that it is not about the footage is understood, and I need to find ways to make that so. This again will also need some experimenting and this is definitely something that I will be keeping at the front of my mind throughout the editing. From my crit I understand that I will have to make a series of short tester films, working out a style and a format that fits and can work. I plan to do this by next week, and what will be great is if I can use these different films to test the equipment and at the same time see how they work together. I need to write a list of different ideas and possibilities and try and make these into a series of short tester clips. 

I am excited to read through the transcripts of the group crits. I have a feeling that these are going to change things and possibly change the way that I format the film. I plan to have Thursdays crits transcribed by the time the next round of crits happen next Thursday. My aim for the week is to film the last two remaining students, and start to gather together some extra footage of the students working. This is something I would still like to be doing much closer to the time of the show so it is something that I need to think about like breathing, bringing my camera with me everywhere and capturing what I can. I aim to make these different tester films this week, to help explore some of the ways in which I can work, and try the different things out so that the following week I can source the equipment I need and test out these as well. Again it is going to be a very full on week but something I must say is that this really does not feel like a chore. I am so thoroughly engaged in this project and I am enjoying it so much that the time is just flying by. I need to make time this week also for writing a draft of both my PDP report and presentation, and also the questions for the scholarship at Goldsmiths! No pressure. 

Reflection

I have recently gone back through the briefs and taken note of some of the key points within those that I need to take into consideration over the next few weeks. The main module brief has made me consider this project as more of a whole, aiming for a completely refined, and selected body of work at the end where I understand what it is that I have achieved, who I am as a person and in a way the entire journey I have made throughout the degree. The subject of the Rhizome is about a never ending cycle of connections, the brief has encouraged me to really look back at what I have done up until this point and how this is reflected in this final project. I want to consider a few key moments and how these have effected not only my practice but also who I am today. I will be considering elements that have had a continuous presence in my studio work, and whether these are still relevant as to where I am now, as well as important moments that have continued to resonate with my studio practice. I also want to look closely at the first semester of the final year and the beginning of this semester as this was a turbulent but crucial time which led to a realisation about where my interests really lie and who I am as an art student. Finally, I hope to fully question where it is I am now and what it is I am trying to achieve with this final project and what exactly it is that I have learnt about myself as an art student and a person. 

I have always loved reading, history and writing. I was completely fascinated by the first year Contextual Studies module, it seemed to combine many of my interests. I loved reading through the various texts, attempting to understand what it is that the writers were trying to say. I think this itself is a really important part of why I am at where I am now in my studio practice. I always enjoyed working out what was hidden within the text, reading texts like I was decoding a puzzle, I think this is similar to the way in which I am interested in the relationship between the artist and the artwork, what it is they are trying to say, what is the purpose of the piece in front of them. This is extremely relevant to my most recent work. My work is often greatly influenced by some sort of reading or theory. In the second year my practice was largely based around Carl Jung’s theory of the ‘Shadow’, this remained a solid element throughout the second year. The first semester of the final year was influenced by the works of Susan Sontag like ‘On photography’ and also a book entitled ‘Contemporary Art and Memory: Images of recollection and remembrance’ by Joan Gibbons, both of which I found incredibly influential. Sontag is a favourite of mine and I am currently looking into her book ‘Where the Stress Falls’ (2001) for this final project. My dissertation was focused on Roland Barthes’ ‘The Death of the Author’ (1967), and also looked at the writings of Foucault, Joseph Kosuth, Fred Orton and Susan Sontag. This text had been one of my favourites right from the first year. Barthes's exploration of the role of the reader (audience) and that of the author (artist) and the work was often something that I referred to throughout my studio work, it seemed fitting to explore this text for my third year dissertation. This was also an incredibly important turning point for my studio work, my dissertation has greatly influenced my studio practice for this final year, and I am surprised about the relevance of the topic of my dissertation to where I am with my studio practice now. All of these elements pointed to an interest in others, in the relationship between their intentions, ideas, what they produce and their work. My studio practice has always been more closely associated with Conceptual Art, the emphasis on the idea and the concept linking well with the reading that I enjoyed in the Contextual Studies module. I have known that I wanted to continue to study art theory at MA level since the second year, there really was no other choice in my opinion for a subject to study further. After a challenging application process I was offered a place at Goldsmiths, London to study the MA in Contemporary Art Theory. It is evident that my interests lie in the work of others, what drives them and also in understanding. This course is not only something that will further future career aspirations but is also something I know I will enjoy every minute of, I feel it is truly what I am meant to be doing, and I find it surprising how so many different events and changes over the last few years have pointed me in this direction. 

Coming into the degree I was a completely different person to who I am now. I enjoyed painting portraits and photography, my idea of what art was was incredibly limited. This showed in my work for the very first module, there was no direction, and it was like my mind had been completely opened up to something I previously didn’t know very much about. Being an art student isn’t just something you study, it is a lifestyle choice. Everything I have learnt over the last few years has completely changed the way I think about the things around me. It was never about just learning how to paint and draw, in a way I could already do that. What I have learnt is about the importance of other artists work, discussing these and learning from the way in which exhibitions are curated, the importance of meaning and the context in which the work is placed. I have realised the importance of art history, and the way in which what was done before us is what will be shaping us today and in the future. This meant that for me my studio work was often detached emotionally, as I mentioned my work was very conceptual and idea based. For me the idea behind the work was more important than the finished article. My love for reading and the effect this had on my practice often meant that the subjects of my work were not personal, but critical, they were based on thought and ideas. This lack of the personal element for me I feel is what distances me from the role of the artist. I make works to create a better understanding for myself, to question what I have read or something I have seen. In certain cases I have struggled to even make any work at all, as for me there was no desire to. I do not possess that artistic gut feeling drive that I see around me daily. I am fascinated by the other students, the way in which they put themselves into their work, I see the individuals as being the final part of the puzzle, they are a part of the work themselves. I have often been envious of this ability for the other students to just sit up in the studio and make something, and it be meaningful to them. I find this virtually impossible to do, and I realise now that this is because I find myself being more of a critical observer. I notice, watch and read from the things that are happening around me, I have always been interested in what the other students are doing and why, what drives them. I previously thought that it was because I wanted to be able to see if I could finally find that similar drive within myself, but I realise now that that is not the case. I now know that what I was doing then, was what I wanted to be doing all along. I wanted to uncover how these people thought, what inspires them, what they are really trying to say. I was bringing the enjoyment I found in art theory, into my studio practice. Translating how I work in that situation to my work in the studio, whether at the time it was effective or not. I feel that my misunderstanding of this would have caused a disconnection between what I was trying to achieve and what I was actually achieving. 

I am going to consider a few key pieces of work that eventually led to the understanding I now have about myself as an art student. The first piece is the work that I did for the Pop-Up exhibition at Firstsite. First site was showing a Bruce McLean exhibition, which I found incredibly relevant to my dissertation in the ways in which McLean worked and the concepts of some of his pieces. I realised that my greater understanding of some of his paintings and photographs could have been because of my dissertation research. I considered how someone who was unfamiliar to this topic would see his work when walking around the exhibition. I wanted to explore this further and took my Nan and my Mum to Firstsite and showed them around the space, recording their movements and the conversation that they had. My Nan was pleasant but critical of not only the work but the institution of art itself, she spoke of how if she understood things more she would have most likely found the work more interesting. She questioned the value of education and the miscommunication between art and the public. I found that everything that my Nan said was exactly what I had expected her to say, I have often felt a conflict with my family over what art really is. They have little interest in my work that is conceptual and idea based as they do not understand it. For the Pop-Up exhibition I used a manual camera and documented them interacting with the space, captioning the photographs with some of the things that my Nan mentioned throughout the morning. For myself I was unsure of the work, I felt that I was trying to accomplish something a lot bigger than what I could do, which had been a problem for me in the past. I was concerned that my small comment on the way in which art and the exhibition was very distant from the public was naive in it’s attempt. I was unsure of the format and the layout, and experimented with slipping smaller copies into hand outs and also explored working with film. There are many different reasons as to why this was such a key piece of work for my development. My tutor Jane thought that this was one of my stronger pieces of work, it was slightly humorous and subtly critiqued the institution, this distant and critical approach was what Jane suggested was strong about my practice. There were also connections with the media I used, I have loved working with film photography ever since we did the photography module. I loved the entire process, and working in the dark room. I felt that it was both distant and personal, I was apart from the studio yet by going through these manual individual stages of developing the photograph I was putting myself in the work. This process of photography, and the personal connection I felt was key for the next piece of work I wish to mention. This was the work I made for The Waiting Room exhibition, which happened at almost the same time as the Firstsite Pop Up exhibition. I photographed spaces in my Nan’s house, trying to capture the essence of her in objects. We were working for the brief ‘Hyperdrawing’ and I looked at the way in which drawing was a mark we not only made on paper but also on life. This was influenced by a text by Emma Dexter called ‘To Draw is to be Human’ which is also the name of my blog. I looked at the way in which my Nan made marks not only on the space around her but also my life. This was the beginning of my attempt to incorporate a more personal element into my work. Taking photographs of my Nan’s house was right for that piece, I experimented with a poetic artist statement as opposed to my usual formal piece of writing. The reception of this work was good, particularly by my family, I also had my safety net of a greater theory context behind the work. This experiment with adding a personal element was something that I felt I really needed to explore, I still searched to find that drive that I see in others within myself. That drive to work and to make. I continued on with the idea of this work for the final piece that I handed in for the second year. I was pleased with the work and felt it was one of the stronger hand-ins I had done. The work was a sound piece that was a conversation between my Nan and me when going through old photographs, it was an emotional piece of work, and I often found it very hard to listen to. At the time I thought that that emotional connection I was getting was finally what I needed for my work, that I might really be reaching that point in my practice where I found that spark. Feedback for this piece of work made me feel particularly negative about being on this course. Jane suggested that the work was not strong enough, that the pieces where I was distant and in particular the Firstsite piece were stronger. After feeling like I was finally getting somewhere with my practice this was a serious knock to my confidence, although it was hard at the time I now realise the importance of this moment. 

I had both my lowest and highest point all on one day. I was feeling incredibly down as I had lost my way with my work, I no longer had a subject matter, or any enthusiasm to find one. I figured that I really wasn’t an artist at all. That evening I went to Goldsmiths and found out about my acceptance to the MA in Contemporary Art Theory course, I never really believed that I could get in and during a lecture on the specifics of the course and the excitement I felt about studying this further, I realised that Jane had been correct about my studio practice. The personal element really wasn’t who I was as an art student. I was distant, I was critical and I observed to try and discover what was underneath, what something really meant. I worked with writing and texts, theories and ideas, exploring those visually to create a better understanding. The final physical thing was not important, it was what was being said, the concept and the idea that were vital for me. It wasn't long after this that I realised that I needed to attempt to explore adding the personal element to get to this point, I needed to see that it wouldn’t work, that there was a disconnection with it to realise truly where I stand. 

My aim for this semester has continued to develop into where I am at now with my studio practice. My original intention was to take the idea of the Bruce McLean critique further and document the public in a gallery space and the conversations they had. I felt a disconnection when I tried to put this idea into action, and because of the experience I have had with this feeling previously I felt that trying to persevere was pointless; it was not the right thing for me to be doing. I had considered when throwing ideas around for this to interview some of the students and get their opinion on the role of the artist, the work and the viewer and some of the more difficult questions associated with the art world. Jane suggested making a film for the final exhibition, similar to the one Tracey Emin made for her exhibition ‘The Last Great Adventure is You’. I volunteered to make this film as I thought that it would be a great experience, on reflection I thought about what Jane was asking me to do and realised that this was exactly what I wanted to be doing, therefore I proposed that I take the idea further. I have been reading ‘Making contemporary art: How modern artists think and work’ by Linda Weintraub and the book highlights the way in which different artists work, and the introduction started with what I felt were really key questions. Why are you an artist? Who is your audience? How do you communicate with your audience? What motivates you to make works of art? What is arts function in society? These were not only difficult questions to ask but linked my work closely with the reading that I had been doing. My aim for this project is to ask the students these questions, finally discovering for myself how they think and where they think their place is in the art world. I feel now I have discovered mine, I would really like to discover theirs. I plan to film and record their answers, editing this together into a short film for the final exhibition. I aim to work in an essay film format, which focuses on narration, editing, music, silence and found footage. The quality of the footage and the sound isn’t great in these, and this will work well with the noise of the studios, I hope to play with subtitles and exploring the use of sound and language. I am excited about this project and the more I continue to film and gather this information the more I realise I am doing the right thing. People fascinate me and I feel honoured that the students are being a part of this with me. I plan to continue writing, researching and reading. I aim to publish the transcripts along with the film, as I feel everything that is said is important, not just the small bits I pick out. I do not want any part of this information that I have gathered to be lost and forgotten, as I have come to realise every small thing can be incredibly important and I don’t want to lose any of it. Just like I wouldn’t change anything that has happened over the last few years, as these things have lead me to where I am now. 

More Filming

The more I continue to work with the filming and trying different equipment the more I am realising that what I am capturing really is good enough for me. After going through a load of books on DSLR filming, I must say that it is incredibly complicated everything you have to know, and expensive as well. There are a few tips that I have been able to take from the books like cheat ways of helping with the lighting and ways in which I can make the quality of the sound better. However, the more I read through these the more I think that I should just continue as I am, continue learning from mistakes. I must admit each time I have gone through the footage captured I have been incredibly pleased with how it looks and how it sounds. It’s in no way perfect. I can see the faults in it myself, the noise of the microphone, the footage being overexposed by the bright sunlight filtering in to the studios, these things for me though are not really faults. I think being a fine art student changes how you see things, and I have been surprised about how much this has come up in the interviews I have been doing. As a fine art student, I see those failures and I work with them, I accept them, they are a part of the process and the work itself. The format that I have chosen is essay film, and even then I will be following this very loosely. Essay films often work with found media, using subtitles and narration as well as music. The image quality is often poor because the footage is found, the noise is not great either. The only part that is often quite clear is the narration over the top. I plan on editing together the footage I have gathered, not really worrying about the quality of the sound or the footage, using subtitles and then perhaps narrating over. I am going to play around and work with what I have, instead of worrying about the quality of the footage. Although I know that there are a few simple things that I can do which will dramatically increase the quality. 

This week in the studio I also tried out a few more pieces of equipment with the cameras, taking some recordings and doing some tests. The first was an LED light, I realised very quickly that a lack of light was really not a problem; there was too much light. It would be difficult to block out the light of the studios without compromising the space that I am filming in, this is something that I feel is just going to change on different days. I also tried wiring a mic up to one of the cameras. The sound captured was definitely louder, however the microphone picked up a lot more of the noises about the studio, in a way it doesn’t particularly work out if I use the mic and the sound is sometimes too quite without it. Different situations with determine whether or not I choose to use the mic. 

I also filmed Conni this week. I was pleased that Conni was also excited about the idea of filming when she was drawing or working in the workshop. I think it is good to get more of a variety of filming, and students actually working was something that I was really interested exploring. Conni attached a few large pieces of paper to a wall at the bottom of the stairs, and using charcoal she stood and created what she plans to become a 3D drawing. I focused both of the cameras mainly on the drawing, capturing Conni moving in and out and talking as she was working. Capturing the movement of her hands is something that I wanted to continue to do around the studio, filming the students working in their spaces and with different materials. I was really pleased with the footage captured from Conni’s interview, some of the things she said were great. I find it hard to write completely about the different things that everyone said, however at the end of this I plan to look at all the answers together and write a short piece about my findings of this project, not just for the film but what I have learnt about the other students and how they think. Perhaps I will learn the answers to the questions I am asking through them. I have been starting off with the basic questions I presented to everyone however often I have been asking others throughout the filming that I feel were relevant to what was being said, I did this a few times throughout Conni’s interview. 

My plan of action for the next week is to attempt to have filmed everyone in the group by the end of the week. This is a bit of a mammoth task but I think it will have to be done if I plan to have enough time for editing and also for doing various others parts towards the end. I want to continue on with the reading and researching, trying to refine and contextualise all of the work I have been doing, attempting to fulfil the brief’s requirements. The transcribing does take out quite a large chunk of my time however I realise now how necessary it really is, I think I plan to publish the transcriptions in the collection of essays and writings that I plan on handing in, although I am not sure whether this will be in the final degree show. I think the writings themselves are as much a part of the work as the filming, which I realise now I have always found in my work, I don’t know why I didn’t expect it from the beginning. I don’t want all of the rest of the things that were said and spoke of to be lost after the film is edited, I feel it has been an important process for everybody and I want to show that in the work. There are group crits going on throughout the next two weeks, I hope to film some of these and transcribe some of the meetings, as I feel these will be a perfect add on to the film. I have set myself up with a lot of work to do this week but it will be worth it in the end!

Filming and editing

The past week has been relatively difficult as we are not allowed to be alone in the studios, I’ve had to plan with the other students what days we are all going to come in and it often hasn’t worked out as planned. I have been trying to get as much filming done as possible over the Easter break as we just simply do not have the time left to waste two weeks. The first few days of this week was dedicated to getting the inductions in using the necessary equipment in the college and working out exactly what they have available there. I have also been doing research in the library about filmmaking in order to find a way to overcome some of the problems I experienced with my first week of filming. The first was that I often had an issue with sound, particularly when the filming was in a very busy place like the studios, as the studios are such an open space sound really travels making it particularly difficult to capture one person speaking. After realising that I would need to source some sort of mic in order to capture a more direct sound I asked Markus the technician to see what kind of mics they have available, he said that they have mics

that you can mount on top of a DSLR camera and it will pick up a much more direct sound, which will definitely make it easier when filming in the busy studios. I also inquired as to what kind of lighting set ups were available, as although the natural light of the studios is good, often it’s not particularly flattering so it will be good to try and balance this out a bit, the college has a set of lights that you can take out which is something that I will consider depending on where I will be filming the different students. After having an induction with the college DSLR cameras so that I would be able to take a few out at a time, I picked up quite a lot about adjusting certain settings on the camera to work with what I am recording, specifically for the light like manually adjusting the white balance and changing the ISO speeds. I also realised how well it worked out that I got so into film photography last year, as a lot of what I learnt in that module and working with manual cameras is also relevant when filming. 

I filmed two students Polly and Alison in their studio space this week as well. I wanted to film them in their space because it is such a busy and exciting part of the studio, Alison is a painter and Polly a sculptor; there are mounds of books, materials, paints and canvases everywhere and it is also where they spend a vast quantity of their time so there was no question really as to where I would be filming their discussion. The filming was also very much a conversation, I thought it would be interesting to film the two together, bouncing off of one another, not only because it made them more comfortable with being in front of a camera but also there was more of an opportunity for them both to question why they are answering in a certain way and how that compares to one another. The footage from this was the most dynamic footage I have taken so far, the conversation pushed the limits of the question and that is what I really wanted. I did struggle with the cameras for this as it was only me and it was a larger area that I was filming over. I had one focused on Alison, another on Polly and her space and the third capturing a view of their section of the studio, allowing for a better look at their surroundings and the context in which they are speaking. It was particularly difficult to check that all the cameras were working okay, as the DSLR’s stop filming after about 12 minutes so you have to press record again. In order to avoid this issue, where it was possible, I would stop in between each question. This helped not only with making sure that they didn't cut out but I think it will also be better for the editing if I wanted to separate the film into the different questions I will be able to find the discussion points much easier. I also realised the importance of checking all the batteries and the memory cards of each camera and matching up all the settings, as there were a few mishaps throughout all of which I now know that I need to avoid. I had trouble with the sound in this situation as the noise was really travelling however the footage isn’t too bad although I know that a mic would have improved the situation. The light as well was also very strong as the sun kept coming through, however you notice this when you watch them through and see the brightness of the footage constantly changing which is due to the space that we were in and I really like this about the film. It is realistic to what we often get when working in the studios, its always difficult to see computer screens or sit around a table when the sun is bright because in that white space it is dazzling, I like this element of real that the footage had, untouched by computers, natural. Filming Polly and Alison was very successful and I am particularly pleased with the footage that I got from the conversation. Although it took a while I did transcribe the entire thing as I have really come to see the notes from the meeting important, not only for me when editing but also for those being questioned. It is a situation that you are not often in and I believe that some of the students have been surprised by what they have actually said. 

I wanted to try and capture some of the students working in their spaces. I didn't like the idea of all of the film being from a camera on a tripod. That feels to formal for me and would not have the overall look that I would want, I needed the jumpiness of a camera moving. I decided that when filming the students working for a few extra bits throughout the film I would use the DSLR but hold it myself, this will not only give the desired effect but also allow for me to get right up close to what they are doing. This footage will be really easy to gather around the studio when everyone is in, the shots do not have to be very long, just long enough to get a sense of how everyone works. For example this week I filmed Polly playing with some different materials in her studio space, I focused closely on her hands doing the making. I think the use of hands will contrast to the straight shots of everyones faces. I also recorded Jess and Hailey working with material and projection, and them discussing the different effects of the protection on various surfaces. It’s those smaller things that as students we do regularly that I want to try and capture in this way. 

On Thursday I caught up with Ruth and showed her all the footage that I had gathered over the previous week. She liked what I had managed to get and calmed my worries about the quality of the footage, reminding me that we are fine art students not film students. For me it really is much more about what is said and how that is all edited together than having extremely high quality footage, if I worry about this too much i will get so lost in trying to achieve that that I will forget  what I really wanted to get out of this short film. Ruth agreed that the use of mics will be important, particularly when the studio starts getting really busy as we are nearing the final show. I mentioned to Ruth about how important I am starting to think the transcriptions of the film are, I planned to do a series of short essays on various texts that have influenced me throughout this term and I thought it would be a good idea to include the full transcripts within these, if everyone was willing, as I plan to have this put on display in some form for the final show. It will be good for the audience to know that there was a lot more behind the short video that they see. We also discussed how the film would be shown in the final show. I was originally thinking about projection but I feel in the light space you will lose the quality of the image, I would really like the film to be in the main part of the studio, within the space and the work as the references for the film will then be surrounding it. I considered splitting the film up and showing it in different locations throughout the space for the final show and considered the old box screens, and the way in which these can be stacked and placed easily in corners. This is definitely something I will have to think about a bit closer to the time and discuss with our Tutor Jane, I have a lot of ideas for this but I think that these will develop further as the film starts to take shape. 

Although I never intended to, I ended up spending a good few hours in the computer room editing some of the footage. I originally just wanted to play around with some of the stuff I had and try and work out how to use the software a bit more, however I ended up going through the footage I took of Sarah’s interview and using the transcript I picked out certain aspects that I think were important and cut these down to the small sections. I am not sure whether this will work for the final editing, however I can see no harm in going through and pinpointing the different parts that I would like to use from each one. Mostly it was good to practice a bit with the software and see fully how good the footage was and what it looked like when cut down and having different aspects of it highlighted. I think I learnt a lot more in those few hours than I had previously. I realised how difficult it was to sync together the different angles and discovered the significance of having the clap sound at the start of each take to help with this process, this is something I will definitely be doing when I next film. I experimented with turning the footage of Sarah black and white as I was really not sure about the bright green of the TV studio, however I think I will be able to work with this a bit closer to time, on it’s own I felt the footage was better in black and white as the bright colour was not so distracting from the words. I have always felt that colour is distracting but I think that with some of the students work it will be important, however the essay film format allows me to play with dipping in and out of the use of colour, so it could really be very interesting. 

My aims for next week are to continue on with some of the reading and research relating to the film, as I have become very focused on getting as much footage as possible in the time frame that this has been slightly left behind. However, I am not worried about this as this is what we are supposed to be doing at this point! I plan to record one more student this week, hopefully Connie in the plaster and clay workshop, I am worried that if I do not get another student done in this second week of easter I will be cutting it fine. I hope to take on board all of the things I have learnt this week about filming and the equipment which I am sure will lead to an improvement in the footage that I am gathering. 

The beginning of filming

This week I presented my final degree show project to the rest of the students, their participation is vital to the work, so the idea had to be pitched soon and as clearly as possible. After watching a series of Tate Shots and noticing the relevance of these short films to my work I explained to the rest of the group what exactly I needed their help with. 

My intention for the final degree show is to make a film that focuses on the research I have most recently been doing. Linda Weintraub’s Making Contemporary Art: How Modern Artists Think and Work talks of the way in which artists are able to survive in the art world, in relation to the audience and generally making a living. What intrigued me about this book was the many different examples of the way in which artists went about surviving, the scope of opinions and ideas is astounding. My work has always been theory based, so writing is extremely important and is something I will also be doing that will end up working in tandem with the film. I have been looking closely into essay films, as this is a format that has always interested me. The power of the found and abstract footage, combined together with witty narration and clever editing interests me. The way in which these films are almost subliminal, the intention of the filmmaker is difficult to see but towards the end pieces start to come together and the overall “message” of the film is revealed, the way in which these films are manipulative of the viewer is both clever and funny. I hope to question the students of the Fine Art degree and discover more about who they are and why they are where they are. I will be filming them in a very relaxed and conversational interview setting, based in locations that are significant to them. The questions will aim to uncover the aspects of the artist that you might not necessarily see in an exhibition, enabling the audience to question in a much greater context what it is they are actually looking at. 

The questions are:

Why are you an artist?

What motivates you to make art?

Who is your audience?

How do you communicate with this audience?

What is arts function in society?

The questions are particularly broad but also rather hard to answer and I have come to realise that they are revealing about the person answering. These interviews will allow for an insight into what an artist really thinks, and most importantly the differences between where the students feel that they stand. 

My short term aims for the next few weeks are to try and gather as much footage as possible, I will make a habit of taking my camera everywhere with me, as there are so many opportunities where I can capture people working. The easter holidays have made it reasonably difficult to get a good head start with this as we are only allowed in when another student is present, however I plan to make the most of the quiet in the studios and film a minimum of three people. I have come to discover that I really am not a film student, and it is going to be impossible for me to learn everything about film in just a few weeks. After taking a few books out from the library and having inductions with the technical learning resources department, I know there are a few things I can improve on to get a better quality of image and also a few other things that I am going to have to consider as well. However, I am not going to stress about the perfection of the film. The essay film format is loose and often very abstract and unclear. The quality of the footage itself is not relevant, it is what is being said that is. I am also going to continue researching some more techniques that I can use when filming, by sourcing books and getting feedback from staff at the college. Having met at the beginning of the week with a member of staff who is no stranger to film and equipment, I realised that it is incredibly technical. The look I hope to get for my film is not going to be polished, it wouldn’t be possible to achieve a perfect technical film, so I will aim to do the best that I can possibly do in the time we have left. 

I experimented with filming Sarah’s studio space and seeing how good the cameras were at filming in the bright light of the studio. I also wanted to test out using different angles and editing together these to create the different perspectives. At the time I only worked with the one camera, however when filming for real I plan to have at least three cameras at a time. 

I realised that the DSLR camera image quality was excellent and the bright light of the studio was reflective of the atmosphere that we work in daily, which is something that I felt was important as the film will be shown in the same space but it will look very different. 

I wanted to film the students in areas that they were working, or have worked previously and felt most comfortable. Sarah is a close friend who works with installation, sound and film, questioning what it means to be a female artist as well as her relationship with her children and family. Sarah’s work is confessional, and she has often taken refuge in the TV studio on campus and recorded various diary entries or pieces of writing. We managed to book out the studio for a few hours on Thursday and gathering together a DSLR, a flip camera, an iPad and an iPhone I set up with the intention of filming Sarah in this space answering the questions. This was much more of a trial run than actually getting a load of footage as it will be possible to film Sarah again quite easily. It was a way of testing out the lighting in the space as well as the use of different cameras and equipment. The TV studio had brilliant lighting although I am not sure about the bright green of the background screen. There are many ways that the use of such a bright colour could go, it might work well in the film as a contrast to the white of the studio, or it could clash terribly. I was interested in experimenting with using black and white and a mixture of colour images, so I could perhaps change this to black and white and make the whole image softer. As for the cameras, the quality of the footage on the iPad was not very good compared to the other cameras or even an iPhone. The DSLR was by far the best but there is something about the mobility of the other cameras that I really liked, I was able to put them in small places and position them in more ways that the DSLR. The sound for the piece was quite good but this was due to the room being isolated, in the busy studios and workshops capturing the sound might be problem. Nevertheless, I have considered the use of subtitles, which are often used in essay films, this could be an easy solution to the issues with sound as well as using microphones and recorders. 

A part-time student Arlene said she’d be interested in being filmed without having looked or thought very much about the questions. This spontaneous honesty is something I was interested in capturing, being able to see what people truly think instead of something they have spent an entire evening thinking up! Arlene is currently crafting a large model aeroplane, and is in her second from last year at the college. I scouted her out in the wood workshop with just the one camera and found her working on the model plane. She answered the questions naturally and has a gentle temperament, the loud noises of drilling from the workshop contrasted completely with what was being recorded. Noise was an issue with this recording, as often someone would put on the extractor fan which drowned out all audio. However, I feel that these small things work with the space well and make it realistic. The DSLR was also on autofocus for this recording as I didn’t have much time to set up and think about the equipment as it was an impulsive shoot, this meant that it often focused off of Arlene and what she was doing and then onto the people working in the background. I personally really like it when it did this, however I guess technically this is actually very wrong. These are the differences between what I want to do and the making of a completely technically sound film. 

To ease the process of editing I will be transcribing all of the individual recordings, and shoots as this will make it easier later on when I want to see everything of what was said by the individual people in order to sync them together. Although this was the main aim, I realised that having these transcribed was not only good for me but an excellent thing for the person speaking to have a record of, sometimes you do not quite remember what you said and it can be strange seeing that written down. The process of transcribing is slightly time consuming but necessary I believe. 

From my experience with the first few recordings I have realised that it is important to consider the noise around the area, as this can have a great effect on the recording, and sourcing some mics for the recording in the studio will be important. I have also realised that it is incredibly difficult to film all of these things on your own, particularly when I had the three cameras going at once. Not only is it hard to keep track of what each camera is doing but it's difficult to focus on what is being said as well. I will be glad after easter when Ruth will be around to help with this, as I think it will make the entire process a lot smoother and the quality of the footage will also be better. After a few mistakes with recording I understand the importance of checking that all the memory cards have space, that the cameras have battery and that all the settings are in sync and correct. There is nothing worse than one camera stopping halfway through as you lose that part of the film that could in the end be crucial. I need to focus on learning some more techniques and getting together the correct equipment, as well as taking more time to set up and checking that everything is okay with the cameras. I am looking forward to continuing with the filming and taking on board the things I have learnt from the first few attempts!