Development - Skateboard

I have been doing a lot of doodling and sketches of designs. That includes graphic designs inspired by tattoos and a few garments inspired by the shape of spirits and smoke (smoke is what I think best describe the visual image of a spirit). In my free time, I did a skateboard design and I really liked it. It was a pope with a bird skull as his head and in the background it was a diagram. It links with my project really well and I think I am going to incorporate my drawings into my designs. This drawing took me around 4 hours using only marker pens with lines and dots technique.

Making head dresses

Today I have been visualizing a photoshoot when I go back to my old school in Shrewsbury. I am thinking of a ritualistic photoshoot with a few friends of mine, Will and Jason. Will, the model will be quite androgynous because I'm adapting the idea of witchcraft, which everyone thinks only female can be witches. The idea is still quite vague, I have to start designing an outfit, creating a set, creating props etc. I am really excited about this.

Here are some photos of the head pieces that I've made.

These are very hard to make but I had a lot of fun making them. I did not follow my original designs but my designs gave me ideas to push things further. I am very proud of what I've made today. Few of my friends wanted to try them on. I basically used them as a model and see how it sits on a human head instead of a foam mannequin head. 

During making, the hardest part is to ensure that everything sits and falls nicely and even. It took me a while to figure things out but I finished these head pieces with trial and error. My fingers were hurting at the end of the day. I felt good about finishing them though.

Studying Crystals

 Here are a few photos of the crystals and gemstones that I own. Once again the colours and shapes that gemstones have blown me away. I actually do not think that anything can translate gems clearly other than gemstones itself. I did not have a proper camera which can take close up images of the gemstones so this took a long time to make the images as clear and close up as they can be. On top of that I am not a photographer, the colour is supposed to be more vibrant.

Sourcing materials

Today I have been trying to create a few samples using beads that I've been trying to purchase and collect during the holiday. There are still a few main pieces that I'm waiting for in the mail. I'm hoping they will arrive soon. I've also been trying to draw out a few designs to experiment with. I started off with head and neck jewellery. I had a few difficulties making the samples because it is very intricate. This is going to take me some time, but I'm happy with the sample that I've made.

Also today I took some photos of smoke from an incense. Since I couldn't find any useful image for my research on spirits, I think smoke is a good representation of them. It was quite hard capturing them because I have no proper lighting equipments. But I only need the shape and movement they have.

Research Week - Spiritualist Church

Yesterday night I went to a spiritualist church in Finsbury Park that my friend found out. What they do in this church is to have a conversation with a medium, who can communicate with spirits. I asked the person in charge of this meeting if I could record and take photos of this practice but I was rejected. Still, I stayed to attend the meeting and was hoping for another new experience. It was definitely something new to me. It was not like what films look like. It was calm, peaceful but also very weird. Afterall, what the medium said and described seemed to be quite true

After the meeting I went up to the medium and asked if I could interview him and record his voice. He said yes. So for my research I recorded his voice and did a general interview with him. One thing that was truly inspiring was when I asked him if he had ever contacted with the dead before. He said, 'I wouldn't call them dead people. They are more alive than we are.'

That line just blown me away. I was thinking about it for the rest of the night. This was a very inspiring experience. I enjoyed it a lot. Even though I did not get to capture any presence of spirits (which is going to be very hard), I still learnt a bit more about the spiritual world. I think this is the closest first hand research that I can get, but I will see what else I can do to get a bit more information.

Research- V&A

Today I went to V&A to do some research. I found a lot of things that relate to my project, that was very useful. I looked at the colour scheme that each piece of work has, even if it is just a statue. I am very curious about the materials that they use, especially using abalone shells and pearls. It gives a very nice and unreal look to a piece of work.
It is interesting to know that dragons has been around for such a long period of time and people or gods keep slaying them. However dragons were displayed everywhere, for example, iron gates, sculptures, tapestries, books, illustrations or simply ornaments.

I also looked at the religious works. The fact that these works bring out a sense of holiness and people instantly know that this is something we should respect as a religion, is very important. It almost seems like there are marks on everything that makes a particular object belong to a religion. The idea of using colour, symbols and a certain way of creating an image, to represent a belief is very interesting. I think I will use this same approach to develop my ideas.

Research- Crystal Shop

Few days ago I went to a crystal and gemstone shop in Camden Town, and I took pictures of a few interesting crystals and stones. My favourite gemstone has to be Opal. The colours inspired me the most. I love how the stones look with light going through it. It gives a really soft and calm atmosphere. In the shop I also spotted quite a few mystical pieces of jewellery too. I thought that might help me with my designs at a later stage. I also would have bought a few big crystals so I can examine them in details but they were too expensive. So instead I bought several smaller ones which were cheaper. I will be experiment and draw from them soon.

These photos are not in good quality. It is very hard to capture a close up under such dim lights. I guess I will have to look at some books with gemstones in it. However this research is still very interesting for me, I get to touch each stones. I cant experience that from just looking.

Research- Spiritual world

Today I spent my time on computer researching for the spiritual world. That is things related to the supernatural. I was also looking at spiritual practices like a seance, fortune telling, witchcraft, Ouija boarding etc. I do own 2 decks of Tarot cards so hopefully that is going to help me.

It is very easy to get 2nd hand research, but very hard to get 1st hand research, since capturing spirits is almost impossible without the right equipment and luck, also it can be dangerous. However I still want to incorporate the description of spirits. Sometimes they look misty, they can look like a half transparent piece of paper, or they can just be black.

Luckily a friend of mine told me that there is a spiritual church near to where she lives. I'm planning on going to one of the services where they perform a seance. I might record and take photos of that as my 1st hand research. The atmosphere might be very interesting too.

During the Easter holiday I'll be going back to my old school in Acton Burnell, Shrewsbury, Shropshire. I've always known that Shropshire is a very haunted area, just my school alone, it has a lot of weird occurrences. I didn't just hear the stories from friends, but from my vice principles and from staffs that have been working there for a very long time. I'm planning on visiting a few sites that is well-known for paranormal activities and hopefully I'll get some interesting information from that.

St. Mary's Church, Acton Burnell

St. Mary's Churchyard, Acton Burnell

Ruined gravestone in St. Mary's Churchyard

Acton Burnell Castle

Research- National Gallery

For my final major project I've chose to work on paranormal and myths. I've always been interested in the subject of supernatural. I watch a lot of horror films, had a few weird encounters, learn about witchcraft and fortune telling etc.

I went to National Gallery to look for inspirational paintings and found a few interesting ones. However I wasn't allowed to take photos in the gallery so I had to write down the name of the paintings that interested me and searched online for images. 

Witches at their Incantations - Salvator Rosa

I love this painting a lot. It described the activities of the witches and it looked surreal. The giant dinosaur looking skeleton made the whole painting even more unreal and eerie.

Christ rising from the Tomb- Gaudenzio Ferrari
I like how the fabric on the Christ surround him. Out of body construction will be very interesting.

Angelica saved by Ruggieno- Jean-August- Dominique Inges
In this painting it clearly showed a creature that Ruggieno was riding on. Creatures are created by combining parts from different animals together. That concept might push my ideas further in a later stage.

Perseus turning Phineas & His Followers to Stone- Luca Giordano
A painting that tells a story which has my favourite mythical creature- Medusa. I love the story of Medusa even though it angers me. Medusa used to be a very beautiful woman until she got raped by the 'Lord Of The Sea' - Poseidon, in Athena's temple. That enraged Athena and she turned Medusa's hair into serpents, made her face so horrible that whoever looks at her, will turn into stone.

I realized there were not many paintings that illustrate mythical creatures. I have to find a few more places to go so I can gather more 1st hand information.