Militiary monoprints

 It was quite a surreal day...

Firstly I started looking up images of the british army, and monprinting from the print outs. Then I decided to look at my cousins regiment. Just as I was reading, the radio started to play "I Can See Clearly Now"  by Jonny Nash. This was the song Simon picked to be played at his funeral if he was ever killed in battle, and obviously his wishes were honoured and we did. Tears welled up in my eyes...of all the songs to come on while I'm looking at his batalion. It was a wonderful feeling. It was a sign. I don't care if people don't believe.I always have. Things like this happened to me when my nan passed away too and I have no ounce of doubt that they watch over me.

Then on my way home...the first two people I saw as I left the studio were two women wearing poppies, not that unusual at this time of year I know, but then I turned the corner....3 SOLDIERS IN FULL UNIFORM were at the train station. 

This all in the week of rememberance day, and Simons birthday which is saturday. Hes here. I know he is.

Anyway, with me researching my family tree, and the obvious family ties to the military, along with the pain it has brought the subject has been on my mind a lot the past year. It's has also been a regular topic in family conversation. I'm a true believer in making work about what I know best: myself, my family, my friends and the experiences that have effected us.  I wanted to channel this and I'm planning on making a stitched piece, like a tapestry with machine drawings, almost telling a story of my family and our military connection. 

Monoprints from family portraits

I wanted to leave out the faces and distinguishing features, so the images focused on the action or experience within the photo. As I've said I'm intersted in how situations, and experiences affect each person and mould them into the person they are.

Assessment time once again!

Well today was the deadline for my work to put up for display and to be marked etc. I'm so proud of what I've achieved this term. I've grown as an artist and my work has really progressed. I was kind of lazy the past year I've truly kicked myself up the back side and pulled through. The work looks so good now its up and been presented in a more professional manner.
I think its the first time I've actually enjoyed the run up to assessment, I was enjoying making the work...exploring the possibilities my ideas held. Moreover I am now even more excited to push my ideas even further after christmas...but right now I'm going to start think about some ideas for my print option module.
heres some photos of the final result:

This is a view of the whole space:

This is the large stitched piece of work I made...with some close ups following

This piece was the last thing I made...its a series of small mono prints on tissues paper...stitched together then onto a large sheet of fabric..then pasted over with a PVA water solution to create creases and tears.

These are the smaller stitched pieces I have posted about before...I decided to frame them in open frames with no glass..suspended by thread.

These are again a series of small mono pr

ints on tissue paper..but displayed as they were originally, fragile, delicate and moving with any slightly breeze or breath...

Drawings

Some of the drawings I did today

and a monoprint..