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| The sky was partly covered with dark clouds when my students installed their exhibition. Everything moved in the wind; spinning, banging - or flying away. But by 17:00 when we had the première/opening it was sunny and calm. They made a great exhibition! Tomorrow I'll show you the results. |
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| Today we printed the last frames on the summer course I've been teaching. On Wednesday 17:00-20:00 we'll present the results: Shakespeare's "the Tempest" as an outdoor installation. Here you can read about it on HDK's website. We'll put up posters [Stormen] everywhere around KKV so you'll find you way if you're interested in coming. Map Cross your fingers we won't get rain. Welcome! |
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| Only use silver cutlery to mix your screenprinting inks. (Does it make any difference when it comes to the results? No - but you feel so much more elegant.) |
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| I've been in the past here on my blog lately, but that doesn't mean I'm not in the present... Last week, the HDK (design school) summer course in screenprinting big format restarted after summer break. After several days of printing we start seeing more and more results! Next week on Wednesday, my students will present their interpretation of the Tempest at the ruins of Älvsborg's fortress. I'll be back with details! |
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| My idea here was to make a form that I could reuse like a sand cake form; when you turn it over and bang it a bit with your plastic spade - you get your cake out. I wanted to have this form to make different tests and variations in concrete in my studio. After making it I gave it all sorts of love, care and attention, I waited three days for it to dry before using it. But that wasn't enough ... I knew I was pushing it... ... the plaster hadn't dried enough ... and because of that the shellac (lacquer) didn't stick properly ... and the plaster sucked all the water out of the concrete over night ... and I got a "nice crack". (This might also mean that the concrete got stuck to the plaster and I can't reuse my form, but I won't know until I have the time to go to my studio in two weeks) Shit. Patience is a virtue. Hopefully I'll not make the same mistake again .... |
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| baking a little cake |
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| cutting away |
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| Ready for the Owen |
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| ... and then some cream [no - it wasn't cookie dough and cream] |
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| not anything ready-made this time. 100% Alexandra made. |
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| When I teach screenprinting I always try to get my students to understand that experimenting and really learning the new material and techniques is the main thing on a course and that you should never hope to make something good when experimenting. And then I very often show them my first totally boring screenprint (when I learn a new technique or material I always at first make awful or boring stuff). So at the concrete course I tried to keep that open mind myself (but of course I secretly anyway always - deep inside - hope to make a master piece). I made a lot of tests and experiment (I won't show you a horrible horrible little dog I made - good experiment though). As I got totally blank - not one single good idea - I just reused Snow white with accessories from my commission (she became a bit too sweet though). This piece isn't really finished yet - it should harden for 3 weeks and then I'll treat the surface in different ways and show you. |
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| a simple way of casting: a ready made form (old plastic cookie box) with my rubber shapes glued to the bottom. (if any one wonders: it's a basket with apples) |
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| two days later |
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| when the concrete is dry (and paler): colouring with copper sulphate |
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| the right one (isn't mine) is coloured with iron sulphate |
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| the schoolbuilding where the restaurant is also located, and where I had my room as well. Gerlesborg has an Art School (many of the students continue studying Fine Art a the schools that really count) with boarding. At summer and during school vacation - when the school is empty - they offer a program of art courses for people in general; mostly in watercolour. The concrete casting course is kind of an exception as it's more intended for professional artists/art teachers/architects. |
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| Gerlesborg was the watercolour master Arne Isaksson's place. |
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| there was a watercolour course going on at the same time. When I arrived they were painting sea creatures Even though the landscape was stunning, the food superb and the accommodation good - that was not my reason to be here. I was here to learn how to cast in concrete. And tomorrow I'll let you in on what I learned. |
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| For me the new year always starts after summer vacation - not in January. Going back to work I'm always astonished by everything I have to do. It's never a slow start. This new year's start was mounting my public commission and every single day in August I have something booked. On Thursday I'll go away a week for a concrete casting course learning something new. I'm so looking forward to it (and it's actually work - as art is my business)! On coming back the roles will be the opposite and I'll continue teaching the screenprinting summer course to the design students. But this is actually good planning - September and October will be only studio time! |
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| I looked at it and I thought it was good. |
| (I will come back another day and take better photos though - the bright light today didn't do the colours justice. Cloudy weather, like yesterday, is the best) |
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| I'm a bit too tired right now to comment the process of mounting, it will have to wait until everything is finished. We'll continue tomorrow. |
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