Out of Kansas discussion event - Thursday 21st May 2015 - 1-2pm - The Lit & Phil, Newcastle

As part of our exhibition, Out of Kansas, Helen Shaddock and Jodie Dunnill will be hosting a discussion event on Thursday 21^st May 2015 between 1-2pm at the Lit & Phil in the main library. 

The event will be a way for library users, and visitors to the exhibition to join in a discussion around the work. 

We are eager to generate an honest discussion, and are inviting a number of people from different backgrounds to share their experience. 

 

We would be delighted if you would join us for what will be an insightful mode of engagement, and a positive way to conclude our exhibition. 

 

Refreshments and biscuits will be served.

From studio to Lit and Phil

After a few final touch ups, the sculptural forms were ready to be wrapped and transported to their new home: the Lit and Phil.

For the past week, the studio has been inundated with triangular MDF forms. The other MFA students  with whom we share the studio have been extremely accommodating of our need for rather a lot of space as we worked on the sculptures - thanks folks!

One by one we wrapped the triangles and then negotiated our way with them from the 4th floor to the ground floor through many a set of double doors!

Our initial plans to move the sculptures in Jodie's car now seems like a joke given the size and number of items we had to move.

We hired Robert, a man with a van to transport the work to the Lit and Phil in one easy trip. The van could not have been more fitting for the sculptures - it was as though he had chosen the colour to complement our artwork!

On the journey to the Lit and Phil I asked Robert what was the most unusual item he had moved. He then began telling me of the item of furniture that had been adapted on one side and turned into a snow scene with lots of miniature people and models. From the outside the item of furniture looked inconspicuous, but when the doors were opened, a miniature snow scene was revealed.

It turned out that he was a regular art handler, and it is not unusual for him to transport paintings by Damien Hirst around the country. At one time, he had over £3 million in the back of his van!

Once we had unloaded the items from the van, we put them in the Librarians office for unwrapping, and peeled off the film protecting the reflective surfaces from getting chipped or damaged.

We then began placing the forms on the tops of the bookcases. There are a number of different styles and sizes of bookcases in the main library and we had made specific forms for specific bookcases. We followed our plan of the positioning of the shapes, but made a few adjustments once they were installed.

The bookbinding group meet on Monday evenings and take a break around 8pm for a cuppa and biscuit. As they sat at the round table, with interest they watched us climb up the ladders and install the work. Their engagement was very encouraging, and they responded positively to the work. 

Trimming the reflective vinyl

With one day to go before the install of Out of Kansas at The Lit and Phil, Jodie and I had a busy day finishing the work in readiness to be transported to The Lit and Phil in the afternoon.

Trimming the excess vinyl off one of the moveable sculptures

Painting by numbers, and letters and pictures

Jodie and I are in the final stages of preparation for our forthcoming Out of Kansas exhibition at the Lit and Phil which opens on Tuesday evening.

Part of the exhibition will consist of sculptural forms sitting on top of the existing bookshelves in the library. These forms are constructed with 3 pieces of MDF which have been painted according to our colour scheme. Each form is one of three heights: high, medium and low, and one of 3 surfaces: yellow matt, warm yellow matt or/and acrylic mirrored.  

With lots of similar shapes and sizes, it is easy to get them confused with each other. This is problematic because we have chosen the colour combinations carefully and there are specific pieces that need to go against each other in order for the tapered edges to join neatly.

We developed a methodical system of labelling (using numbers, letters and pictures) and worked our way through painting all of the sides in a logical manner. It was satisfying to leave the studio tonight with the forms painted and propped up in their groups around the room. The next step is to apply the vinyl to the surfaces to be mirrored.                                                      

Out of Kansas - a collaborative exhibition by artists Jodie Dunnill and Helen Shaddock - Preview: 6pm-8pm Tuesday 12th May 2015 - The Lit & Phil, Newcastle

PRESS RELEASE Out of Kansas Preview: 6pm-8pm Tuesday 12th May 2015 Exhibition continues: 13th – 21st May 2015 Monday – Thursday : 9:30am - 7pm Friday : 9:30am – 5pm Saturday : 9:30am – 1pm The Lit & Phil 23 Westgate Road Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 1SE Out of Kansas is a collaborative exhibition by artists Jodie Dunnill and Helen Shaddock, in which they have responded to the architecture and atmosphere of the Main Library in the Lit & Phil. This is the first time that the artists have collaborated with each other, encouraging them to use unfamiliar materials and work on an ambitious scale. Out of Kansas is a sculptural installation that incorporates the upper and lower levels of the main library. Made from reflective and coloured surfaces, the work acts as a device for the audience to view the space differently, exploring it in new ways from different perspectives. Both artists recognised that the Lit & Phil is a library with a difference, and time in the library revealed particular aspects that help create this distinctive space. The artists sought to capture the essence of the library in their artistic response, as oppose to change it. Jodie Dunnill and Helen Shaddock are currently studying at Newcastle University on a Master of Fine Art course.  Dunnill completed her BA degree from Liverpool John Moores in 2014.  Recent exhibitions include 8BA2, St Helens (2014), and Snippet, Newcastle (2015).  Shaddock graduated from Glasgow School of Art in 2008 with a Degree in Fine Art: Environmental Art. Since 2014 Shaddock has been based in Newcastle. Shaddock has been involved in exhibitions nationally and internationally, and her work is in a number of public and private collections. Recent exhibitions include a solo exhibition of new work at 1 Royal Terrace, Glasgow (2014) and Snippet, a group exhibition at Newcastle University (2015). Forthcoming exhibitions include a group exhibition at the Hatton Gallery, Newcastle as part of The Late Shows this May. Out of Kansas is supported by the Alumni Association Student Initiative Fund through Newcastle University. Note to editors: For more information contact: Helen Shaddock, 07845 579706, out.of.kansas.exhibition@gmail.com To find out more about the Alumni Association Student Initiative Fund visit http://www.ncl.ac.uk/students/nclplus/funding/fund/

Copyright © 2015 Jodie Dunnill & Helen Shaddock, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: out.of.kansas.exhibition@gmail.com unsubscribe from this list    update subscription preferences

More playing with VPT

Jodie and I spent another day in the project space testing out video mapping using VPT 7. 

Yesterday was the first day that either of us had used the projection mapping software, but through a combination of online tutorials, web forums, software instructions and trial and error, we had managed to begin to learn the basics, and achieved some interesting results.

Firstly we tried projecting video footage onto a reflective surface. This was very difficult to see.

We then tried projecting onto the inside of a triangular form.

The video was different colours of silicone pouring down a surface. 

Later we projected different video footage onto the different sides of the inside of a triangular form.

The footage on the bottom of the triangle was difficult to see, and we decided that the colours needed to be stronger as the projector tends to bleach them.

Our last exploration was projecting onto a couple of forms, one of which was behind the other.

I've really enjoyed learning something completely new, and although it was very challenging, we managed to test out a range of ideas. 

Unfortunately we are not able to use this for our exhibition at the Lit and Phil because the equipment (a projector) will not be available as all the supplies in the media suite will be used for the undergraduate degree show. We will just have to hold onto our ideas and try them out later.

VPT in the Project Space

At the moment I am collaborating with fellow Newcastle University MFA student, Jodie Dunnill, working towards an exhibition at the Literature and Philosophy Library in May.

We have booked out the Project Space and a projector for a couple of days and today we have been experimenting with projection mapping.

"Projection Mapping uses everyday video projectors, but instead of projecting on a flat screen (e.g. to display a PowerPoint), light is mapped onto any surface, turning common objects of any 3D shape into interactive displays. More formally, projection mapping is “the display of an image on an arbitrarily complex surface”.

Projection mapping has many alternate names including the original academic term “spatial augmented reality” and 'video mapping.'"

We had never used the software before, and were both very new to the concept of 'video mapping', so we began by watching a tutorial providing us with instructions about how to work with the software. We also watched a couple of examples of 'projection mapping' in action - the results are incredible.

We began by creating a layer as a solid block of projected colour to fit onto a triangular form we had in the space.

We then added another triangular form of a different colour.

Our next challenge was to project an image rather than a block of colour onto a surface. 

And then combined this with the other shapes.

We then progressed to using a video source as the imagery for the projected shape.

It's been a productive and fun day with a lot of learning and problem solving taking place. I'm looking forward to a further day of experimenting tomorrow.

Many thanks to all who came to the preview of SNIPPET

I would like to thank everyone who came to the preview of SNIPPET at Newcastle University last night. There was a great turnout, a really good atmosphere, and people were very generous with their comments.

Here is a little insight into what was a brilliant evening.




A fragment. A glimpse. A squint to unveil the work of artists exploring painting, sculpture, textiles, sound and video. Geometric colourful shapes along with abstract moving images and experimental sculpture are brought together in SNIPPET. The works shown are manifested from the tensions between painting and sculpture, society and technology.

A central feature to this exhibit is the artwork emerged from the exploration of new approaches to the artists’ usual practices.

Whether they are textiles or paintings, Mirela Bistran’s works start guided by instinct and intuition. Then evolve into journeys of emotions and feelings expressed through lines and marks or cut-outs and stitches. Sometimes playful, sometimes shy or bold and other times solemn and melancholic, they take on a personality of their own.

Starting with collages, Jodie Dunnil creates 3D models that help her understand the depth and illusion she later represents in painterly images that inhabit a space between figuration and abstraction. Her methodology explores the representation of space on a two-dimensional surface introducing sculpture and exploring ideas of perspective, depth and angle.

In a burgeoning momentum of excessive technological consumerism and electronic mediation, Bartira Sena's work attempts to juxtapose the idea of nature, spirituality and technology. Her installations create situations in which we experience alternative cultural representations.

Helen Shaddock’s playful approach invites us to enjoy surfaces, textures, forms and colour. Process is a central aspect to her practice, whereby she strives to make art that embraces chance and the unpredictable. Objects made from coloured plaster are juxtaposed with other, more mundane materials such as cardboard. Her work investigates dynamics between the audience and the space.

Yein Son is concerned in finding the right balance between consciousness and unconsciousness. She depicts images from the theme of absorption in art. Her artwork narrates with a confident mark, a very fluid and dynamic story that seems to have endless possibilities. In her new paintings, the atmosphere becomes more enigmatic and calligraphic.

Liying Zhao is motivated by her life experience and emotions which become the main characters in her artwork. She is interested in using video and different kinds of materials to create an illusory sense. The contrast between the real and the fantasy becomes more dramatic and amusing in her current artworks.

Interested in the bond between art and reality, Tan Zou creates documentaries about household affairs and level of societies. Currently based in Newcastle, the artist creates narratives through film and photography in an attempt to grasp the significance of her own experience in between two different cultures.

Qingchan Li explores the complexity of human emotions with an emphasis on enigma and horror. The artist uses different shapes and patterns to explore the delicate mental activities of human beings. Using simple shapes she presents us a video in which the sound takes on the main role. The purpose is to embark us on a frightful experience.

SNIPPET introduces... Jodie Dunnill

https://www.facebook.com/snippet2015?fref=ts

SNIPPET - Preview: Tuesday 24th February 2015, 6-8pm, Fine Art Department, Newcastle University

A fragment. A glimpse. A squint to unveil the work of artists exploring painting, sculpture, textiles, sound and video. Geometric colourful shapes along with abstract moving images and experimental sculpture are brought together in SNIPPET.

Human emotions are expressed through subtle images creating an immersive environment. The works shown are manifested from the tensions between painting and sculpture, society and technology.

Artists: Mirela Bistran, Jodie Dunnill, Li Qingchan, Bartira Sena, Helen Shaddock, Yein Son, Liying Zhao, Tan Zou.

PREVIEW: Tuesday 24th February, 2015 6 - 8pm  
25th - 27th February 9am - 5pm 
Long Gallery, Project room, Tic Space. 
Fine Art Department. School of Arts and Cultures, Newcastle University 
Newcastle upon Tyne. NE1 7RU.

SNIPPET - Preview: Tuesday 24th February 2015, 6-8pm, Fine Art Department, Newcastle University

PREVIEW: Tuesday 24th February, 2015 6 - 8pm  
25th - 27th February 9am - 5pm 
Long Gallery, Project room, Tic Space. 
Fine Art Department. School of Arts and Cultures, Newcastle University 
Newcastle upon Tyne. NE1 7RU.