I thought that Charlotte Smith's work with colour was very interesting. She uses blobs of acrylic paint to create small 3D structures that rise up out of her work. I thought that this was a really interesting way of using paint because it isn't usually used to create 3D forms, but to decorate flat surfaces.
Looking at her work inspired me to broaden my use of materials. To create a 3D effect I have used window paints, used to make decorative stickers for windows. When it dries it creates a raised surface, and it forms a plastic-like texture. I can create the same effect by layering up blobs, but I have also used it when recreating my photos on paper. The paint has a shiny surface and creates some interesting outcomes when I was copying the blurry shapes onto paper.
I like this 3D effect, and I hope to experiment more with it in order to take it further.
Leonardo Ulian
This artist has been creating a series of 'technological Mandalas'- reinterpretations of the Hindu and Buddhist symbol of metaphysical enlightenment, made using electronic components arranged in intricate patterns and soldered together. I think that these pieces look really initiative, and I especially like his 3D tree-shaped one. I think that the shapes he has created would work really well if they were printed onto a flat surface as a pattern.
I think its really interesting to see how different artists can create different outcomes out of the same objects. Most of the components I have retrieved from my collection of circuit boards are bent, mangled or broken, whilst Ulian uses mainly new components.
Young Min Kang
I thought that this artist created a really interesting piece that represents moving traffic through displaying it as pixels of colour. In this piece he has used printed strips displaying a row of pixels, and he has weaved them through wire mesh, creating a huge 3D image. I think I was drawn to the green colours because they look like the greens displayed in my circuit boards. Even though the concept is completely different from my own work, this has given me some ideas on how I can investigate the colour of the components more by creating colour strips and possibly rearranging them in different ways.
BRC Designs
I wanted to see how other designers literally used electrical equipment in their 'up-cycled' designs, and I came across BRC designs. They created the Binary Collection, where they created a range of furniture pieces by recycling circuit boards. I think the chairs look particularly uncomfortable and all the pieces look really sharp, but again I find it interesting to see how the electrical components can be used to create different objects when they are manipulated in different ways. The company has also created a range of different collections where they have created pieces of furniture by using weird and wonderful recycled objects. The link to their website is here, which I'm sure I will refer back to in the future.
