Wire and String Letters - Part Six

Up against a wall

Having the letters hung up against a white wall is not what I thought it would be, in the photos at least I think that the fact that they are hanging is completely lost. they look as if they are flat on a table.

If they are to hand up against a wall, I think they will still need some distance from the wall - but not enough for someone to walk behind them.

This distance would give the work shadows which would clearly show the letters to not be on a table, but in fact, suspended in mid-air.

I have moved away from the colour issue now, I am enjoying the raw state of the materials. I am not sure if both kinds of letters are needed or if this overcomplicates the work.

The wire has a silhouette quality due to its dark colour which is effective and I think would work well with the introduction of shadow work. Whereas the wire and string feel more substantial and object-like, they feel as though they have a weight to them, they would create more substantial shadows.

This will need to be explored further. 

Tiny Vinyl Letters - Part 1

This tiny vinyl letter series uses text from quotes interviews with Artist-Teachers in ACL as part of my Ph.D. research: Abbie Cairns - Norwich University of the Arts (nua.ac.uk)

I wanted to carry on from the A-T-R-S collection which focuses on my identity as an Artist-Teacher and a want to bring in other people having the same experience. 

As the work is coming from a different viewpoint it was important that the outcome looked different from the A-T-R-S collection. I landed on vinyl lettering as I had an abundance of white vinyl offcuts in my shed. As with much of my work, the text comes first and the material comes second.

The process is one that is long and repetitive, slow process is becoming a theme in my art practice - which is ironic due to my lack of time for art practice at the moment.

I am undecided where these tiny letters will live, as I am not thinking about it as an installation piece -mostly as I do not have an installation site in mind. However, they will need to be stuck down at some point to something...

Wire and String Letters - Part Five

Developing the idea

Putting the issue of varnish and colour aside I have started to play with how the work might be displayed. Their scale and lightweight-ness lends them nicely to being hung. 

Here I have used two types of letters, the wire, and the wire and the string, with each set of letters spelling out a different word(s). They hang together but remain visually apart, hopefully allowing each set to be read on its own.

They have hung alternatively, one letter of each set after the other, so that the initial reading is confusing and not overly obvious. I want the reading of the work to be something that is negotiated and worked out.

The background of the works will become important, the busier the background - as above, the harder the reading.

I need to consider the height of the letters too. Do I want people to walk into them? Do I want people to look up? Are they in the middle of a room or up against a wall?

Words with Found Letters - Part Twenty-One