Belle Vue

We have also been focussing on the history of Belle View Zoological Gardens. After a couple of lectures focussing on Belle view this week I have become really interested in it and the way it holds both positive and negative memories/feelings towards it and the way some people never even knew it existed, due to a lack of history. The way that such a huge gardens can be demolished leaving no trace and not be spoke about much at all in Manchester’s history is unusual. 

Open from the 1820's up to the 1930's, Belle Vue was a huge attraction, filled with thousands of people each day from all over the country, made possible by the 4 train stations situated on the grounds. With everything from a circus and fairground too a ballroom and even a speedway track, there was something for everybody.

Belle Vue holds great family memories for people. When I questioned my Gran and Granddad about it, they spoke of how if they went their they felt like the where going on holiday, and although they can't remember it in detail they remember the scale of it and the different things available. This idea of it being like a holiday too people was very true, as back in the 1800's people would have 2 weeks holiday a year known as "whit week", the owner of Belle View at the time - Jennison, used this too his advantage and ensured Belle View was advertised in the right areas at the right time too increase popularity and custom. 

Although there is a lot of positivity when looking back on Belle Vue, there is also some negativity in terms of its collapse in the 1900's and its treatment of animals. Animals are said to have lived in very small cages for their size, including lions, giraffes, bears etc and many where made too perform/dress up. They were nervous animals due to the firework shows at the gardens each night, and only had about a 6 week life span which is disgusting in comparison to what their expected life span should have been.

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Unit X

Blackpool Pleasure Beach History & Archive Visit.

As a starting point for Unit X, we visited Blackpool Pleasure Beach for a tour of the park and the archives which hold thousands of old performance costumes and pieces from the park, collected over the centuries.

When walking around the park which was closed too the public whilst listening too a brief history of the park by the tour guide I was inspired and interested by a number of things.

Being in the Pleasure Beach without people filling it with noise, screams and queues felt peculiar, and in some ways eerie. As the tour guide explained the history of the park and the developments they have made too keep people coming back, I realised that people are not only important in keeping it open, but also too the overall feeling and spirit of the place.

Also, the contrast between the construction and design of the rides, both old and new was really interesting, as seen in the photograph above- the old Art Deco "big dipper" has a different presence compared too the much newer bright blue ride in the distance.

Old photographs from the Pleasure Beach.

Having the chance too look around the archives that Blackpool pleasure beach holds, including thousands of old performance costumes and old fairground pieces such as carriages was an excellent opportunity. When looking through the archives there's definitely a feeling of nostalgia and memory which really interest me, from the old photographs and ride design plans too the huge feather head dresses, all of these things represent something that used too be and what was. 

PE TASK

Contextual references to me are of great importance within any project that I produce, whether it is inspiring my ideas, drawings, sketchbook, samples or final piece. I think that without this research and inspiration my work would not be as successful as it is, as it would be lacking in focus and drive due to not being inspired by things I have seen.

Jeremy Wood.
My drawings for this Sampling project based on Data, have been heavily focussed on line quality and negative space.  One of my main inspirations for these drawings and further work was Jeremy Wood. Wood is an artist and map maker who pioneered GPS drawing too investigate the expressive qualities of tracing his daily movement digitally. The imagery that Wood creates from this process are so interesting and unusual, and the main attraction for me to his work was the inverted look of some of the imagery. Rather than being traditional black drawings on white background, he makes use of white drawings on a black background which look so effective. Also, the idea of a drawing being the outcome itself is something I find inspiring as a student, as drawing to me is very important and my main drive through a project.

Negative space map drawing.

Christine Mauersberger.

Another important contextual reference within the unit of work for me was the artist Christine Mauersberger. As I have said previously on my blog, installation art is something which I find really appealing and inspiring, and is definitely something I would love to do in future work. I think that if we were to create final outcomes of this project would progress into large scale pieces of embroidered fabric, rather than a garment or interior piece.  Mauersberger’s use of line and fabric is what attracted me too her work, as my samples and drawings have been heavily focussed on line and mark and the impact these have on a piece of fabric or paper. I love the way that her pieces look quite simple and plain at first glance, but at full scale they are beautifully embroidered and well thought out and composed.

Tailor tacking sample with satin zig zag stitch lines.

Karen M O'Leary

Artist Karen M O’Leary’s paper cut maps have also been a big source of inspiration to me in this unit of work. Mark making has been a big focus within the drawings I have produced from start too end of this project, after a drawing workshop at the beginning of the unit I realised that mark making with objects not always associated with drawing is a very useful way of creating drawings filled with unusual marks and textures relating to ideas and themes we already have in mind. It was the use of colour blocks and the filling of negative space in O’Learys work that attracted me too her work, as use of negative space and filling or drawing with negative space has been the theme of my drawings and sampling for this unit.

Mark making drawing- map lines.

Embroidery: machine stitch week three.

This final week in machine embroidery has been spent using 3 different sizes of pin tuck feet, developing samples and sketchbook work, along with choosing 25 samples out of both my hand and machine embroidery samples too mount as final samples.

Pin tuck background with tailor tack stitch- map lines.

Of my samples this week, this is my most successful. I think that pin tucking the fabric all over to use as a background worked really well as something too work on top of, and then adding the tailor tacked lines inspired by the lines of my map drawings made the sample come too life. The addition of the white filling some of the negative space between the lines also adds too the success of the sample.

Pin tuck background with satin stitched pin tuck map-like lines on either side of fabric.

If I was too improve a sample that I have done this week, I would choose this cream with black stitched pin tucks. I think that the cream cotton doesn't give the look that I'd like it too, and this is because my research and drawings are heavily focussed on black and white and so the addition of cream doesn't look success. 

Pin tuck- avoiding mapped out lines.

My most unsuccessful sample of the week is this simple pin tuck sample, filling in negative space to create lines. Although this idea of creating a drawing my stitching around the lines has made some of the most successful samples of this project over the last few weeks with use of the other machine feet, the pin tuck foot on this fabric has distorted and made unusual lines and marks which do not look as successful as my other samples.

Embroidery: machine stitch week two.

This week in machine embroidery, I have been using both the tailor tack foot and zipper foot with the hairpin technique (making use of the end of an old coat hanger too wrap a thick yarn around then sew too fabric).

Both of these feet allowed me too develop my ideas and theme with more interesting and unusual samples rather than just normal stitch into fabric.

Tailor tack tucks from the back- negative space line drawing.

Of this weeks samples, I think that this is one of my most successful ones. Created by using the tailor tacking foot on a folded edge of the fabric, then opening it out. It is much more interesting on the underneath rather than the tucked side. Again i used the drawing from negative space technique by stitching around lines I mapped out on the under side- creating a drawing from the not stitched space.

Hairpin technique with zipper foot overlayed with satin zig zag stitch- map line drawings.

A sample which I think would be better with improvement is this hair pinned and stitched over one. Although I like the idea of having this background of pile like yarns too stitch over, I think that if I was too do it again, I would improve it by hair pinning the yarn closer together too avoid gaps and give it a bit more substance. I would also stitch much more over the top too add more line and structure.

Hairpin technique and satin set pattern 6. - negative space drawing,

My least successful of the samples I have done this week would be this sample.This is because it didn't work out like I expected it too. The parts that are "hair pinned" look too "thrown on" against the black background and variable thread stitch. I'd like it to have been much softer and that it flowed better than it does.

Embroidery: machine stitch week one.

Week one of machine embroidery- spent developing the ideas I have been exploring through hand embroidery with machine techniques using machine feet 6 & 21.

set pattern 6 with machine foot no6- negative space drawing.

My most successful samples of the week would be this negative space piece, done simply with different kinds of stitches using the number 6 foot. The success of this sample is due to the way I've drawn around lines/shapes in the negative space too create a drawing, rather than simply stitching lines too represent lines. I think this technique could be developed a lot further with all techniques I'll be learning in machine embroidery.

Satin stitch with foot no6- negative space drawing.

Although this samples is a nice idea and the fabric i have create with the satin stitch feels and looks nice on the chequered fabric, I think that too improve on this, I should re-do it but instead of leaving the squares, draw around lines inspired by my map drawings as I have with the above sample. I think this will make it much more interesting and express my ideas and theme.

Cording with foot no26  and straight stitch with foot no6- mapping lines on sheer.

The least successful piece of the week, is this chiffon sample with cording. The marks and lines that the different stitch types and threads/yarns have created in this piece don't look effective enough, however I think that the folds the stitches have made are quite interesting and this idea could be explored in other samples.