Sunday 19 August 2012

NOT YET BUT SOON

not yet but soon

MFA Publication 2012

"More abstract.
Like a visual mind map.
Or maybe more like an artist book.
An abstract book.
Mmmmm…"
Sinéad Bligh
Jessica Singer
Joanne MacFadyen
James Mitchell
Marios Fournaris
Rowan Richardson
Mirna Sarajlic
Mona Khatibshahidi
Wahj Jamjoom
Jean Floyed
David Aitken
Julie Reilly
Rongze Dai
Catriona Taylor
Led by Marco Stout (Stout/Kramer) with Professor Tracy Mackenna, MFA Director.
The collective MFA Publication 2012 was produced during Marco Stout's Masterclass in July this year. The publication is regarded as a public presentation platform, parallel to the Masters Show.Visually led, it is close to what has come to be known as an artist's book, and reflects the students' creative experiences during the MFA year and reveals aspects of their individual trajectories and collaborative moments.
Marco Stout brought his vast experience as a designer who works with publications in all formats and scales, with clients and collaborators that range from cultural institutions and government bodies to artists.
The digital publication was developed in paper format, between software, screen and printer, discussion centred around the changing draft pages. Each student worked to a structure of 8 pages, making up one section of the larger publication. These stand as unique printable publications for each student, yet whilst each section was 'inhabited' by one individual, the intentionwas always that during the creative making process unexpected combinations of images and text would arise, shifting between an individual student's presence and the conjunction with another student's images. This is represented in the digital collective publication.
‌Artists' books are works of art realised in the form of a book. Traditionally paper publications, we were keen to explore new digital media offerings of a range of possibilities for publishing on-line, and for print on-demand, enabling a publication to be ordered in a small number at low cost, and when desired. This opens up options around scale - artists' books are often published in small editions, though sometimes produced as one-of-a-kind objects or 'uniques' - and economy. In the early 1970s the artist's book began to be recognised as a distinct genre, bringing with it the beginnings of critical appreciation and debate on the subject. Institutions devoted to study and teaching were founded, and library and art museum collections devised new taxonomies with which to ‌order and catalogue artists' books, and collections began to actively expand.
DJCAD has its own unique collection, The Centre for Artists' Books, housed in the Visual Research Centre, where a printed version of this publication will be situated. A distinct object, it comprises 128 full colour digitally printed pages, with a silk-screened cover.

Monday 30 July 2012

Gameplay

'Gameplay' was created by a group of artists each with diverse practices. They are currently on the Master of Fine Art course at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design. Gameplay's main aim was to actively open up and engage with members of the public and to explore what is art is all about. Gameplay staged a series of these 'games' in different areas such as the Wellgate library, the Hannah Maclure Centre, Greylodge Settlement and the city square. There main question was "What is art?" Each answer varied depending on each player's thoughts and opinions. I joined them in the Wellgate Library to record the process. 
 
 

 

 
 

Friday 27 July 2012

Immortals

My etchings focus on vanitas; the transience of life and the certainty of death. Using animals that we encounter on a daily basis, either in the country side or the city, I draw attention to how precarious life can be in our world. Inspired by the Victorian photographs of the dead my etchings capture the animal in the initial stage of death before the inevitable process of decay can begin.