Hybrid Heroes (UWM)
Consumed 99cm x 90cm x 86cm Cardboard, tape and hot glue January-March 2021 Inspired by the art of Lauren Frances Evans and their use of cardboard in Knot Connected. Here an octopus is depicted over taking and engulfing my form. Constricting my movement and me as a person. This elegant animal is used to portray the notion that society put pressures on it youth and young women. Society being shown as the antagonist around me. |
Inspiration
A work from Lauren Frances Evans' Omphalos exhibition that stands out to me is Knot Connected. Here the use of cardboard makes a rigid, yet very organic, form that creates an unnatural and unorthodox looking sculpture. This work, along with others in their portfolio, makes me feel like I should not be looking at it. This sculpture is oddly organic and reminds me of organs. While some of their other works are based off of human anatomy, this one simply reminds me of organs, with its intertwined, elongated tubes. Which in turn reminded me of tentacles.
Knot Connected also is a huge inspiration to me because of the texture it has. The overlapping of ripped rings of cardboard takes the harsh edge off of the medium. It adds a very needed depth and more sporadic, or organic look to the sculpture. |
Another work that had caught my attention was a stand alone piece that was made with similar materials and technique as Knot Connected: Omphaloskapsis. Similarly, Evans uses cardboard to create an organic form that is layered with textured cardboard. This one differs from Knot Connected by it not being made of just rings, but layered strips. Still the ripped strips are used the build up the form of the sculpture. I also enjoy this work because of how obscure it is, once again it looks to be something of anatomy.
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Omphaloskapsis
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Omphaloskapsis
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Then my other main inspiration is octopuses. They are a very alien like animal, that is strange, but very beautiful at the same time. They are associated with fluidity, flexibility, intelligence, creativity, adaptability, and beauty. That is why I chose this animal; I wanted to display a delicate animal as large and monstorus. I wanted the animal to contradict the motion it was making; constricting and limiting. With the animal around me show casing the idea of pressures put on the youth.
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Planning
To the left is my original sketches and ideas for how the octopus would wrap around my body. My first idea was to have the body coming off my head, but struggled to find a way to balance it on my head and create the suffocating feel I was going for. So after I had decided to have the octopus wrap completely around me to closer represent my message of social pressures. This will would make it easier to wear and construct. It also makes sure I don't have to balance it on my head. |
After I made my first sketch (top left) I stared planning how I would build everything. I wanted The head to be light weight so I decided on a making a frame. I then had to decide on to cover the frame. I was originally thinking of covering the head with strips of cardboard, but that would have been to heavy, so the paper bags would be better. I also planned to make suction cups, but decided against it because I wanted to focus on the arms and their accuracy. Then for the tentacles I remade my plan. Instead of the very geometric and movable arms I had planned (bottom left). I then decided on the final organic arms.
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Experimentation
Throughout this whole project I was experimenting with what would work and would not work. I have dabbled in sculpture before, but I have not work with the medium of cardboard before. I just wanted the tentacles to come out similar to Knot Connected with the winding look it has. I learned from trial and error what worked best for bending the rings in place to give the arms their bends. I tested out different types of cardboard, but in the end more malleable and less stiff cardboard worked out ripping into strips better. This made the process much faster, but also made it easier to bend the board into shape.
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Process
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Making the Tentacles- To create the tentacles I used a layering method, similar to what Evans used in their Knot Connected and Omphaloskapsis. I used about one large box to create one arm. I separated the large panels first, then I would score the cardboard (if it was tough) and rip it into long strips. After the whole box is ripped up I bend the strips so it is easier to roll into rings. Then I roll the rings so they fit into the one larger then the one before it. I tape or glue the rings together and position them so they create a more organic form, by bending and curving them. For the limbs that wrap around me it took more time to get them to be in the perfect position. The only difference these limbs have to others is that they are more part of my persons, connecting more to me. They were more difficult to make because I had to keep checking if the tentacle bent with my body, positioning them to fit around my neck, my wist, my arm and both my legs. |
Making the Head- For the head I created a dome-like structure to make the head more bulbous. I then used 8 long strips of cardboard to make a frame for the head. I used a measuring tape to make the line straight, then I used a blade to cut the strips out. I then used the left over strips for the rings to build up the form and give the head more structure (shown later). After cutting all the strips I cut out a circle and divided it into 8 separate portions. These were then cut out and glued together to create the top, round part of the dome. I then glued the strips on to the dome, creating the start of the skeleton. I them made ring from the left over strips for support. I taped it together to see how it would all fit, then completed the frame it by gluing it all together. Then to finish the head I used crumpled up paper bags to give the head texture. I glued the bags, finishing the hollow head. |
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Putting the body together and eyes-
This part was hard to document as I was trying to work quickly so the tape and glue would not give in to the weight. I bent and situated the excess strips of cardboard from the head into each arm. I had to bend many of the strips at the base of the head to make all of the tentacles fit into the desired position, but to also make the legs not all be one-eighth away from each other. This gave the sculpture a less stiff feel. After I marked where I wanted the strips to be positioned I glued them into place, taking heavy emphasis on the arm wrapping around my neck; also it being one of the main supports. After finishing putting all of the legs on the head, I then made the webbing in between each of the arms with paper bags. I ripped chunks of the bags then glued them, while layering, in between all of the arms; trying to blend the head into the arms and the arms into each other. Then I made the eyes by taking inspiration from Omphaloskapsis, and making forms with holes in them. I did this by making one lager ring and one smaller, then connecting them with a small strip of cardboard. I then took more paper bag and ripped thin strips of it and overlapped the strips to create the domes. I then used the same technique as the webbing and blended the eyes into the head. |
Reflection
I think I have really improved with my hands on skills with cardboard as a medium and sculpture making with cardboard. I have never done anything to this scale before so that was a challenge working on something so large, when my usual sculpture are smaller and made of very different mediums. I am now in love with the texture cardboard can make, but also using it as a versatile medium for 3-D works. I am proud of how it turned out. I was worried I was going to be unable to make it stay on my persons because of the size, but I found a way in the end that did not involve me having to hold the work.
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Critique
Similarities:
-Cardboard was used as a medium -Similar techniques were used to create the tubes/arms -Off putting feeling from both works Differences: -The direction of the works, Evens meant for their work to be based off of the body, and body image; while mine is meant to show pressures cause by society -The use of the technique in Evens' work is the whole entire sculpture, while mine is only using part of that technique. -Evens' work doesn't not have direct connections to a specific object, and mine has a connection the octopuses. |
ACT Responses
1) Clearly explain and describe how you are able to identify the cause-effect relationships between your inspiration and its effect upon your artwork.
My inspiration was Lauren Frances Evans, their works influenced my art and how I made it. Evens' art and techniques allowed me to develop new ideas and interests I would not have found otherwise. Her art has given me the opportunity to try new techniques with cardboard. 2) What is the overall approach the author has regarding the topic of your inspiration? The authors try to take an unbiased view on the work and the artist, they take a positive look on the art. 3) What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, cultures, etc. while you researched your inspiration? One generalization about people I have come to is that everyone can see something in a different light and interpenetrate the work contrasting to someone else. 4) What was the central idea or theme around your inspirational research? The idea around my work was the pressure that society put on the youth. 5) What kind of inferences (conclusions reached on the basis of evidence and reasoning) did you make while reading your research? I made the assumptions that the authors know much about the works, and that all of the information is correct. |
Bibliography
Lauren Frances Evans. (n.d.). Retrieved March 11, 2021, from https://laurenfrancesevans.com/
Lauren Frances Evans. (n.d.). Retrieved March 11, 2021, from https://promptpress.org/contributors/lauren-francis-evans Skylar Alexander. (n.d.). Retrieved March 12, 2021, from https://promptpress.org/contributors/lauren-francis-evans/skylar-alexander |