Studio Brief 1 - What is drawing? 3D AND LENS

OBJECT AS IMAGE

With modern technologies, illustration can be much more than the still 2D image. Three dimensional components can maximise the clarity of narrative and message through recognisable forms. Alternatively, found objects can add character and humour to illustrations, allowing them to foster the qualities and aesthetic of the media and object. Lens therefore become the means by which illustrators can employ craft in their work, using lens to render a 2D outcome that can operate under many functions. 

POLLY BECKER

The work of Polly Becker demonstrates a re-appropriation of found objects, and characterisation of found photographs through manipulation of 3D objects. Easily discernible within Becker's work is the playfulness and humour achieved through 3D components, these objects seem to inject such a great sense of narrative and character into the found photographs, creating a tone of voice that the images would not organically offer. I'm particularly interested in the way Becker has used the wooden toy, which already figurative, has been manipulated to create an entirely different narrative. The aesthetic qualities of the found photograph seem dull and isolated, allowing the bright colours of the wooden toy to create a new narrative and character, perhaps a character that would not be achieved in an 2D form. 

BRIEF

Imagine yourself as a mutant, with a specific mutation that reflects your own interests or dislikes.

In light of the work of Polly Becker, I have considered objects that I am most connected with and how these could be humanised. Rough sketches have allowed me to visualise potential 3D devices, but I have chosen to work with paper as a material that I can manipulate quite flexibly. Origami achieves a very unique aesthetic and so I have employed this to communicate an immediate sense of the 3D. Complimenting the origami, I've chosen to create the other components as collage to achieve a consistency and harmony between components. 

Making a paper doll with a photographic face seems to achieve a very different aesthetic to a drawn face. Re-appropriating the image of the face to create this comical paper doll subverts any pre-defined narrative and the contrast of media only enhances the humour of the image. 

Working on a grounding, the pencil scribble seemed to enhance the 3D qualities of the paper doll through the creation of shadow on the grounding, exploring the interplay between dimensions.

Studio Brief 2 - Visual Journalist MORRIS DANCER INTERVIEW

Transcript 4 – Moss Ambrose (Morris Dancer and Morris Fool)

 – BRITISH MORRIS TRADITIONS

A: How has or how is Morris dancing influenced by folklore?

M: Well every area of the country had a particular kind of folk tradition, so there are different types of dances for different parts of the country. So to say it’s all Morris dancing is just a huge generic term.

In Yorkshire, there’s a sword dance, called ‘long sword’ which is basically wooden swords which they weave into a knot. They follow each other round, with a hand at either and of the sword, and form a knot which is quite often a pentagram. So there is 5 or 6 men and they weave a pentacle lock at the end which is supposedly connected with magic.

In the North East, in Tyneside, they have a tradition called Rappa. It’s again a sword dance tradition, but with metal swords. What they did is they took the things they used to use in the pits to take coal dust out of ponies’ coats, pit ponies. Flexible, bendy swords which they scraped down the horse coats with to get the coal dust out. So they took these and made a dance with them which became this thing called Rappa, which is very fast. 5 men again, linked to each other by holding either end of the sword, but they weave incredibly complicated knots. It’s a show dance, much more than Morris dancing is usually. But it came from their trade as miners.

[…]

In the North West you’ve got Clogg which comes from the mills, it’s a workers thing, it’s a sort of Lancashire, Cheshire tradition. The clogs came from the mills so they used them in their dancing and then their work became part of the dance. Because the streets of Lancashire are long and thin, these are long dances, they fitted in with processions.

Coming down the country, there’s the stuff called border dancing which is characterised by the fact that the people black their faces, which is called guising, and guising is disguising. The idea behind it was that you blacked your face because your features then all seem to merge and you can get away with what you want. And they did do what they wanted, because the whole idea was that people did Morris dancing on a bank holiday, they’d collect money, drink beer and their landlords wouldn’t know who they were because they were blacked up. So the border tradition wear rag coats and it’s a very simple sort of stick dance, hitting each other with sticks. So that’s the Shropshire, Welsh border, coming down to Herefordshire.

In the central South, in the Cotswolds there’s the Cotswold Morris which is usually characterized by people wearing white. So white trouser and white shirt, and a baldric which is a cross strap with a badge on, and quite often straw hats, and bells. So the bell pads that you tie on your knees, that’s basically Cotswold Morris. But each village in the Cotswolds had a different tradition because there was fairly vigorous competition between the villages.

Then if you go to East Anglia, you’ve got something called Molly Dancing. Which is farm workers dressing up their working clothes with a few ribbons and bells and doing, like a country dance.

So that’s all the different types of Morris dancing.

[…]

We don’t know where the term comes form but some people say Morris dancing is Moorish dancing. But they term Morris also just means ‘let’s go’ or ‘let’s dance’. 

Transcript 5 – Moss Ambrose (Morris Dancer and Morris Fool)

-MORRIS AND FOLKLORE

A: Are there any particular dances that are specifically connected to a story?

M: Erm, some of them are connected to songs. Stick dances are presumably a remembrance of quarterstaff fighting, Robin Hood and Little John kind of stuff, so they’re a commemoration of that tradition. There’s very few that tell any kind of connected narrative. I was thinking about ‘Banks of the Dee’, which is a column dance where you have handkerchiefs waving which look like waves. But it’s the tune really, not the actually story, not in my experience.

A: Another things I’ve been looking into is Shamans and the Shakespearean Fool, that person that crossed over into the other world and brought information back. I wondered if you thought there was a connection between the Shakespearean fool and the fool in Morris dancing as a sort of story teller.

M: Well I’m a fool. The fool might well have been the Shaman, he is the dancer that sort of blends with the rest of the dancers, but I think in English folklore, he’s more sort of connected to the Lord of Misrule. Well you know the Lord of Misrule is connected to April Fool’s Day, in Medieval times, even in the church, they would turn the order round, and even the bishops would serve the lowest people. I’ve been a fool for about 30 years, and the fool has got a very particular role, he isn’t really a priest and he isn’t really, well there’s animals in Morris as well. We’ve got a black horse, which had originally been a horse’s skull. Really what people tend to have is animals that are local to them, so Leeds really should have an owl, my coat has got an owl on the back of it. But we ended up with a black horse. Leicestershire has a fox.

A: I wondered if Bradford had a boar maybe?

M: They should have but they don’t.

Burnsal in the dales have the Barguest, the black dog. Because Troller’s Gill, has got a Barguest legend.

So the animal is the god, and the fool is the priest. But he is also the bridge with the audience. To be the fool you have to know all the dances, so that you can run rings round them, bring people into them and not collide with them. So yes, the fool probably originally was the priest, but he has become a sort of licenced idiot.

A: So he has gone from being like a court fool, to the Lord of Misrule?

M: Yeah, like Shakespeare.

A: Is there a connection between folklore and the costumes that you wear?

M: They say that tatter coats are supposed to be forest leaves. Which are images of fertility, green in the midst of barren.

[…]

M: The horn dances are very strange, meandering dances with a very haunting tune. And they do these horn dances with clashes, obviously connected to hunting and fertility.

There are a lot of customs around but whether they sort of tell stories, I don’t know.

A: Are there any sort of rituals associated with Morris dancing and the landscape?

M: Some of them take their origins from seasons. Generally speaking, they are mostly transferable. But then for example, the Padstow dance is only danced in Padstow on the 1^st May, never done anywhere else. 

REFLECTIONS ON RESEARCH

Speaking to a Morris dancer who has danced for more than 30 years, I've collected some really insightful information into the culture and traditions of Morris dancing, and the specific origins and elements that inform it. I previously had no knowledge of the traditions of Morris so it was interesting to learn that the type of Morris dancing you practice is in fact based on your geographical location, and heritage. Learning how socio-cultural contexts inform modern day folk practice was particularly interesting as it sparked ideas for me about visually documenting a guide to Britain's Morris traditions. The contextual and aesthetic differences between the traditions seems to be something fairly unknown to non-dancers so this could be a ideal answer to the brief 'tell and untold story'. 

Considering the connections with folklore and the landscape, it may be necessary to explore media and material to mimic textures and experiment with a connection between the natural influences and the aesthetic of Morris. 

MORRIS DANCERS AREN'T IN SEASON...

Unfortunately Morris dancers only perform in spring and summer so to further my research I will aim to explore the specific Morris traditions through video and photographic footage on the internet and hopefully I will be able visit a practice to get a better sense of the sound and movement of the tradition through photographs an experiential drawings.

Studio Brief 2 - Visual Journalist ZINE

PROCESSING IDEAS

As a means of processing my initial research, I made a zine that started to unpick the main discoveries of the day, and the main thoughts I have had about the direction of my project. The zine has really just served as an outlet for visualising my ideas, so I have worked quite playfully in collage, colour pencil and ink. While these are just simple experiments, I have found collage to be a process that suits the subject matter. Incorporating natural textures and colours this could be an effective approach to image making in order to achieve an image that is complimentary in media to its subject matter. 

The colour pencil also works well to achieve a free, playful aesthetic, perhaps echoing the fun and free nature of some of the folklore tales. Loose marks seem to also achieve textural details, perhaps suiting the natural subject.

INTENTIONS

As I go on to collect further research and start to narrow my project down, it could be valuable to explore media and how it relates to the subject matter. With the Morris dancers that I have studied briefly, it might be necessary to work with a very textural approach to echo their costumes and the movement of the dances. 

Artists Research - HENRY BOURNE

 

 ARCADIA BRITANNICA - HENRY BOURNE

In line with my initial research, I searched for books in the library on the subject of folklore. I came across this photo-documentary book, documenting Morris dancers from folk festivals up and down the country. As a starting point for visual research, these images could provide the base for some initial drawings. 

I am particularly interested in the way Bourne has captured the personality and playfulness of Morris through costume and character, documenting these people within the context of their practice. Covering several festivals, I am interested in the culture Bourne has channeled into his photo-book, documenting the plethora of traditions and character in Morris. While Bourne captures some rather candid images, others are more staged, documentary images. In light of my own work, I am interested to capture the personality and tradition of each character so will look to form characters that appear candid and more mischievous.  

While I have made arrangements to visit a Morris dancing practice, this book will aid the initial visual research I will carry out into Morris dancers and Morris cultures. 

Studio Brief 1 - What is drawing? COLLAGE

Continuing to build on the work explored on shape and texture, working to my visual subject of pirates, I have developed these skills through collage. Considering the re-appropriation of images and how images can be altered to form new messages and aesthetics, I used photocopies of existing ephemera as the base for my collages. 

Across the 8 page booklet I have tried to work in restricted colour palettes, keeping to 2 or 3 colours per image. This has worked effectively in several of the collages to give prominence to textural details and the use of layering. Colour has also served to add a contemporary feel to the aged imagery I have used, showing the changing possibilities offered by collage.

The layering of paper has worked well to introduce depth in this image, the composition and construction of the image seems to interplay with the imagery to infer a new narrative. I am pleased with the way the fragmentation of the head in this picture has introduced a level of humour and characterisation, almost ridiculing the pirate character a little, suggesting the ability of collage to challenge meaning.

I am interested to explore how collage can be used in my practice to alter the aesthetic of my drawings. Perhaps I could fragment and tear or distort my own drawings to challenge the characters and narratives that I have created. In the collage above I considered the emotion in the face and how the lettering challenges this to create a satirical element. Enclosing the figure in the torn textures, with the word across the mouth, seems to force the character into a new narrative and this could be something to explore in light of story telling. How can I change the narrative and tone of voice of an image without changing the focus of the image?

My other outcomes explored more fragmentation and layering, however I felt these were not as successful through their slightly busier compositions and feel some components could have complimented one another better. As I develop my practice I may value from creating multiple collages from the same components to explore the different ways in which I can approach image making. 

Studio Brief 2 - Visual Journalist FIELD TRIP

COTTINGLEY & BINGLEY

Having done more research, I discovered that Cottingley Woods housed a cup and ring stone, associated with folklore as a means of telling stories through symbols, alongside it's history of fairies and woodland landscape. I already knew about the Cottingley Fairies so this seemed like a good place to start my research, taking in Bingley and Cottingley Woods to explore a relevant landscape.

Route followed.

Initial observations took the form of photographs and rubbings, documenting the landscape and capturing natural textures and curiosities. 

 

Tree rubbings.

The rubbings and sound maps I made could be used as applied textures within collages to introduce a sense of the landscape in media.

Following a trail from Bingley park, through Cottingley Woods, to Cottingley Beck, I was able to take in the river, woods, streams and parkland, encountering a wealth of natural curiosities, two of which were trees that seemed to look like faces. It seemed fitting really that close to the beck of the fairies, were these two trees, one which looked like a witch's face and the other like a gnome's nose. I documented these as photographs and simple line drawings but they could inform more developed illustrations if I was to pursue a focus on mythical landscapes.

I had also gone in search of a cup and ring stone but had no look finding it so made observations of the journey and audio recordings of the location in which I hoped to find it instead. 

CONCLUSION

Having spent a day observing the landscape and location of folklore evidence, I've collected a wealth of rubbings, audio recordings, line drawings and photographs to inform the next stage of my research. Hopefully I should be able to find out more about the cup and ring stones from my interviews, but I intend to develop my collected work through collage and more developed drawings. 

Studio Brief 2 - Visual Journalist CONVERSATION

Transcript 3- Mark Hewitt (Yorkshire Dales National Park Conservationist)

-FOLKLORE AND THE LANDSCAPE

A: We’re any of these stories told by the pagans to sort of warn against the Christians?

M: Not really because, sort of, what we call pagan religions and customs were so ingrained in people, they were used to multiple gods as we would call them, or spirits, sort of things in the landscape. So, in a sense, even though Christians were making Jesus to be above all, to a lot of everyday people it was just one more god, and you know, if the lord of the manor was around, something like that, you would just make sure that you spoke more about that than you would any others. And you would keep quiet about things…

Over time, erm, these things get pushed and pressed and people take a different view because, just the normal way of things seeming into your everyday life. And when it gets to that point where you need to attend church, or you need to go to this festival then, things start to drop of the end. But a lot of what we do now in the Christian religion, you can go back and find lots and lots of examples of the same things, just with a slightly different twist. Christmas is really that festival of the end of the darkness and start of the light coming. It’s the same with Easter. It’s all about the seasons. That’s what people were absolutely tied up in, there very survival was based upon. The whole landscape would speak to them, myths, stories, folklore, folktales, they all have kernels of truth in them, and they all have, well one of the things that comes from it is how people can relate their everyday life to things. If you couldn’t rationally explain something, you would fill that void with something else. So you would start talking about witches, you would start talking about dragons, and they seem fanciful and people believe in these things, but they’re worlds were smaller in lots of ways, although not in that they were connected across oceans by various trade deals. But there was a lot of things that people couldn’t explain, so you would fill that with things.

A lot of stuff was literally just word of mouth. People couldn’t write, they couldn’t read, so everything was by word of mouth. You would find out news that taken place, maybe a year ago, or a few months back, because it takes people time to travel to your village to tell you those things.

M: When we w look at the landscape now, the landscape is very changed to what it was, even a few years ago, but certainly centuries ago. So the landscape was key to people, it was what they lived in, it was all around them. Woodlands, wetlands, rivers, hills, they all hand specific, almost meanings to people that we probably don’t see in the same way now.

Ilkley Moor, and the cow and calf, Ilkley Moor is also known as Rombald’s Moor, and Rombald was supposedly a giant, one of a lot of giants who lived in that area, and they were arguing and Rombald was the most argumentative of them all, and he had a wife who was pretty tough on him. So legend says that she was in a fearful mood with him, and was chasing him, and he stood on a rock, which cracked and broke, which is why we have got the cow and the calf. And they would fight with giants on the other side and so that’s why Almscliff Cragg looks like Almscliff Cragg does, and it’s why the rocks on the Chevin are all split because they’ve been having these fights.

A: So do you think people make up folklore stories because they didn’t understand the science of the land?

M: Yes, that’s how we would say it now, but for them it’s not making a story up, for them it was very real, as far as we can tell.

A: Do you think pieces of landscape that are shaped like animals, do people tell stories that they are animals?

M: Yeah, and trees. So what Tolkien did with Lord of the Rings, that’s not somebody with an overactive imagination, that’s somebody who has looked at old manuscripts, he’s looked at the landscape, and he’s come up with stories as we see them. If you like, our own modern myths, but they are very much couched in the terms of what people would have talked about in the past.

So there’s the story of Semerwater, in Wensleydale. Semerwater is one of the very few glacial lakes that we have left, and it’s got a big blockage at one end, and a small river that comes out of it, called the Bain, supposedly the smallest river in Britain. If you look at it in purely historical terms, glacial lake, if you go back far enough, quite rich in fish, great place to go hunting. But these areas would have been used for offerings, to Gods, water was a hugely important thing for people, for pagans, as we call them, for all kinds of reasons. Because water has got such a transformative power, so you would put things in there and hope things would change.

M: At Appletreewick, there’s a place called Troller’s Gill, which is lots and lots of limestone formations. […] People see these and their imaginations get going… so you get different stories. If you go to Troller’s Gill, there is supposed to be this big dark dog called the Barguest, and the Barguest is something that is quite common to lots of places.

A: Yes, I read about this.

M: They just fit to the landscape of particular people. And I think the Barguest, was an influence in The Hound of the Baskervilles.

A: Do you know what the stones are that have got the cup and ring markings on? What is it about?

M: So they’re called cup and ring stones, which means, basically, the cup is a depression which has been formed, and these are clearly man made, as opposed to natural weathering. The whole of this landscape has masses and masses of them. And, the ring, is a series of patterns, and so people have said, maybe it was where people sharpened their stone axes, but it’s not that.

A: Yes they have a very uniform fashion.

M: But it’s just the wrong kind of pattern. Some people have said that it’s a map that we now can’t understand. That might well be a good argument, the features you put on a map are the features that are important to you to navigate a landscape. They might not have needed a map in the say way we do, they might have needed a map to say; ‘avoid the dragon’s lair’, something like that.

J: Because they were more connected to the landscape.

M: So us, we need a map to show us where the footpaths are. They knew where the footpaths were.

A: So it’s like a sort of visual language then isn’t it?

M: Well other people have said it might be a kind of language, which I think might be a harder one. But other people say it might be like marker stones. I think that’s a hard one as well because they are not that prominent, and they are likely to have not been that prominent when they were first done. […]

Now, some of the patterns of cup and ring stones, appear to show caves.

A: Nearby caves?

M: Well like the Caves in France, the Lascaux caves, you do see some of these kind of patterns. So again, is that a language, is it a map, I don’t know. They’re really enigmatic. But one of the things we can say is, quite clearly the meaning of those stones was lost years ago, because nobody has ever found anything about it.

A: Do you think it is because people started to learn to read and talk to each other, so they didn’t need that language anymore?

M: It could well be. It may have been a language of symbols.

[…]

J: what’s the most visually interesting thing, for you, connected to folklore?

M: From a folklore point of view, to some extent, what I think would be the most symbolic thing for folklore, is a picture of a fire. Because that’s where people sat and talked, that’s where people made the stories, that’s where people sang the songs. So the most tangible thing is a fire, because folklore is about the people. Something that might illustrate folklore, might be gargoyles on a cathedral, you might see sculpture of the green man. […] The green man is a mixture of all kinds of things, but it is basically the spirit of the woods, he is nature. So symbols like that, would be universal across countries, maybe not the same name, but similar images.

A: Do you know anything about Morris dancing and the green men? I read about sides of Morris dancing that dress as the green man.

M: Well you do have different groups of Morris dancers who take on different roles and have different dances for that. You might say from an illustration point of view that Morris dancers and a very good way of illustrating folklore because they are doing exactly that, they are communicating to the community through dance and music.

A: Do you think their dances are a sort of method of communication as well?

M: Well you’ve got to remember that a lot of the Morris dancing is a revival, so a lot of it was really born out of the Victorian times. But what we can see is where elements of those things have come from, our interpretation of what has come before. So there was some kind of community group dancing. Story tellers were revered, because they were the people who brought news, who entertained.

A: I think the storytelling originates from the courts. Like the fool in Morris dancing is like the jester of courts…

M: And yet the jester changes over time as well. While he was seen as a figure of fun, he served a very important purpose. Jesters were quite probably a cross over with the shaman. They were revered because they could cross over and bring messages back to help the community.

[...]

A: Do you know about Fairy dell on Ilkley Moor?

M: Well, fairies, elves, leprechauns, they’re all a certain type of folklore creature. They are a metaphor, but they are real to people, people believe that these things can exist. So fairies are usually seen as being relatively benign creatures, unless you cross them. So if you cross them, imposing yourself on their time, then essentially something bad might happen to you. There are all kinds of ways that people tell the dangers of fairies. There are similar stories across different traditions.

REFLECTIONS ON RESEARCH
This interview was so useful!

I've gathered some really valuable and interesting points on the role of folklore in history and how this connects to the landscape, and more specifically how it connects the landscape to people. I'm particularly interested to further this idea of folklore and landscape within modern cultures, particularly through Morris dancing. For me, Morris dancing seems an iconic image of folk cultures in Britain, so I would like to develop this dialogue between folklore and folk practice within my project. To do this I may need to get in contact with some Morris dancing groups and perhaps watch some dances to collect ideas surrounding narratives and traditions.

Studio Brief 2 - Visual Journalist CONVERSATIONS

Transcript 1- Grandma and Grandad on Yorkshire Folklore

L: First one, do you know any folklore tales about Yorkshire?

J: You told me the story of Rombald’s Giant.

GD: Well I only know how the calf… he strode across the valley and his heel knocked off the calf of cow and calf rock, and that rolled down the moor.

J: What was he running from?

GD: I’ve know idea…

J: You told me Grandad that he’d had an argument with his wife and she was chasing him.

GD: I never did!!

J: You did, she was chasing him with a rolling pin… and that he trod on the calf, broke it in two and then there’s a footprint on the other side of the valley.

L: Yeah, Almscliff Cragg

[…]

L: What themes or things do you associate with folklore?

GD: Witches, oh, Pendle Hill, the Pendle Witches

L: Is that true then? I thought you had made that up.

GM: They used to say there was a Witch living in Bingley when I was little.

[…]

L: My friend is convinced there is a Bradford beast thing.

J: Oh yeah the Bradford Beast.

L: What’s that then?

J: You know the pig, the boar that’s on everything in Bradford… so when it was just a castle, the town of Bradford, the village whatever, were scared of this giant pig in a forest. And then the king at the time fell ill and he said whoever kills the pig and brings me back it’s tongue, will be the next king. And then, some girl was out, loads of men were out trying to kill it, and the girl put a stake in the ground and the pig accidentally ran into it. She ran away, a knight came along, chopped off its tongue, went and claimed the glory for himself and then the girl went and told the king that she was the one the had killed it and he didn’t believe her. So the knight became the king. Nobody know’s who the girl was, but she is the rightful queen of Bradford.

[…]

GD: There’s Old Mother Shipton as well isn’t there? That’s a folk tale.

J: Oh yeah, but she was real though.

[…]

GD: Then there’s trolls again, the trolls used to live up there. Near Appletree Wick, over Simon’s Seat and up that gill where the river went underground.

J: So what’s Simon’s Seat?

GD: Must be some legend about it, but I don’t know.

[…]

L: Otley must have some folklore tales…­­­­

GD: Guy Fawkes comes from Otley

J: It’s hard distinguishing between folklore and stories, because some stories are real so they’re not.

L: So what are the 12 apostles? We walked past that on Rombald’s Stride.

GD: That’s a stone circle

L: Oh right, I suppose it’s more about how meanings change when you tell stories then.

Transcript 2 - Not Growing Up Club (Over 60s Drama and Story Telling Group)

M: There is the Rombald’s Giant, I don’t know what he was supposed to have done, I know there was one.

L: It’s his foot step isn’t it? I thought his footstep was the cow and calf and the toe…

J: No, his wife was making a pie or something and he ate it so she chased him, she chased him with a rolling pin. He stepped on the cow and calf and broke it in two and then the next foot print is on the other side.

L: Is the next footprint Almscliff Cragg? It’s the next footprint.

  […]

L: What about the frying pan on the Chevin? That must be but I don’t know.

S: Would that stone that’s on the wall by St Oswalds Church be one?

L: Yes, the wishing stone

J: How did the wishing stone come about?

M: It’s always been there since I was at school, and you used to touch the stone and make a wish.

[…]

L: So what things… creatures are associated with it?

M: Dragons

D: Giants

S: Unicorns

S: Is there a reason why that Fairy Dell place near the elephant trees is called Fairy Dell? I don’t know if there is but that would make you assume there was some kind of stories about the fairies round there.

J: I thought it was wear they buried all the kids from the plague.

[…]

J: Is Ilkley Moor Baht ‘at folklore?

REFLECTIONS ON RESEARCH
These first two transcripts document a dialogue with an over 60's drama group and Grandma and Granddad, aiming to collect information from a nostalgic approach. Considering the subject of folklore as storytelling and attempting to gather information about local curiosities. 

While these discussions may not form the base for my visual exploration, it is interesting to see how from just 2 dialogues, different interpretations have been made, demonstrating the transient nature of folklore and story telling. 

An issue which seems to prominent in local history is the Rombald's Moor giant. This is perhaps a story that I could consider when forming my initial visual responses, possibly exploring different ways in which it can be relayed visually to encourage new interpretations.

Studio Brief 2 - Visual Journalist INITIAL IDEAS

FOLKLORE...

Out of my 3 themes, WATER, FOLKLORE and CONFLICT, I've chosen to explore folklore as I feel it is possibly the subject which will invite the most interpretation and opinion. 

My only initial knowledge about folklore is that it is based on story telling, myths and legends that are passed through traditions and characterise certain places and things. I don't know of any folklore tales myself, and I'm not really aware of any particularly mythical places so some peer feedback has helped me a lot. 

Conversations with 3 peers started to unravel ideas about landscapes, animals and stories that are accepted to be connected with folklore. Suggestions included fairies, goblins, wolves and witches, castles, woodlands and forests, and fairy tales and haunted tales. We started having some conversations about locations that might have folklore connections, considering heritage and culture surrounding these.

For the field trip I am thinking of visiting some woodland areas, perhaps documenting sensory details and observation and considering how these might be interpreted as narratives.

The definition of folk has having unknown origins is an element I am interested in exploring. Perhaps I will find some curiosities on my trip that invite speculation and lack explanation and I may be able to collect some interviews with people discussing their interpretations and tales they know. 

PLAN

-research local history/ local folklore

-identify places of interest and topics to research

-go find out

INITIAL ZINE - FORMULATING STARTING POINTS

From the initial peer discussion, I put together some broad initial ideas in a zine, as a starting point for the themes and approaches I may consider. Just using pencil and charcoal I have documented some initial considerations, prompts which I may follow on my field trip to exhaust different paths of the subject. 

Studio Brief 1 - One Week Map SCREEN-PRINTING

CREATING POSITIVES

Processing the research and observations we had collected, we made the decision to use the 2 parts of the screen print to communicate 2 senses. The base layer documented a linear journey through sound, using experiential sound mapping marks to create base textures, marks that provided clues to characterise to 2nd layer. The top layer ended up documenting the activities and places more literally, applying drawings from all of our sketchbooks to create one map of the day.

While this separation of sensory observations worked well to provide clues and textures to support more representational imagery, I feel it may have worked better had the positives either been produced with a consistent media, or with more minimal details as the end positives seemed to fight to much for attention and the journey seemed less coherent.

SCREEN-PRINTING

The final prints seemed to achieve more clarity due to the choice of colours, however I feel to develop the outcome, we could perhaps look at creating more complimentary positives. Playing with inks provided some interesting qualities. Merging primary colours with their corresponding secondary colours achieved an interesting marbled effect, seeming to compliment the textural qualities of the chinagraph. Experimenting with registration and overprinting created some nice depth and textural details.