Unit 3

Welcome to my digital portfolio. Here, you will find subtitles unit 1,2 and 3. Unit 1 was my first coursework sketchbook with set themes being 'structures' and 'organic forms'. It was in unit 1 where I was first introduced to different forms of art as I had only studied Textiles in high school. Unit 2 was the exam sketchbook where the set theme was 'relationships'. I chose to explore the relationship between 'fears, phobias and nightmares'. Unit 3 is my current coursework sketchbook that is unfinished. I chose the theme of exploitation as I feel so passionate towards all kinds of exploitation, particularly animal exploitation.

This is my title page for my unit 3 sketchbook. I chose the theme to be 'exploitation' as this is something I feel passionately about and felt that I could put out a message using my art. I started by looking at different kinds of exploitation and creating a mind map of words relating to exploitation.

For my unit 3 theme, I chose to explore 'exploitation'. This is a collection of studies I created using photographs I had taken at the local butchers. Using water-paint and acrylic, I created two studies of a piece of steak. I then went on to create a larger scale study of a pig carcass. I used water-colour and acrylic to do this. My main aim was to focus on colours used to create tone within the piece.

I recorded artist research from the artist Arti Chauhan. I recreated some of her wonderful pieces and also interviewed her via email. I enjoyed how she paints with an almost free hand technique with bright colours giving across a sense of freedom. I painted both of my recreations using water-colour in the technique she instructed me to in the interview.

This is research I recorded from an artist named Tracey Emin who uses fabric in an applique technique to create installations showcasing her life events. I liked her style of work and I felt that due to the fact that words are unavoidable to the viewer this would work well for my theme as I want to boldly get my message across that exploiting animals is wrong. I used her as inspiration to create my own piece using fabrics and thread to create words.

This is a page of experimental work. I researched which famous brands had used child labour. I then went on to paint them and stitch into the paper using a sewing machine in the style of Chiharu Shiota's installations (which are almost like webs of yarn). After this, I went on to experiment with mixed media using the pictures from the butchers for inspiration. I stitched into paper and painted over glue and masking tape to experiment with textures.

Here I began to experiment using faux fur. I trapped fur using wax and I also used the wax to trap fur in teabags. I splattered paint on the fur(almost as if protesting) and I also splattered red paint on the fur to look like blood. I then made barbed wire and stuck it over the top along with newspaper headlines of animal abuse. On the opposite page, I created the word trapped using black and white fabric and also created a wire cage to stick over the top emphasising the feeling of being 'trapped'.

This is a 3 page study I created further experimenting using fabrics and mixed media. Using inspiration from Tracey Emin, I created a collection of words spelling out 'exploited'. The nine letters used all have hidden messages such as the 'P' representing being trapped in a cage. I think this style of work is bold and quickly gets the message across to the viewer.