BA (Hons) Ceramics 2006 |
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Michelle Aked
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My interest lies in the relationship between the field of fine art, fine art histories and ceramics and how engaging with philosophical debate can allow me to cross between them, in particularly applying methods of painting and drawing to the material of ceramics. Using my body, a number of actions were completed transferring colouring materials from my skin to the ceramic elements. After each application the work was fired and then reinstated for the process to be repeated. Every new set of marks used a different ceramic material increasing in intensity giving the work a real sense of depth. The aim was to animate the space, make all that is usually invisible, evident. Unveiling the subtle qualities of the marks and their causes. These traces are referenced in black and white, drawing from human acceptance of these tones being fact not fiction. The setting that I have chosen to work with is a public toilet. This is a ceramic space that most people encounter daily and it is an environment that has strong historical, cultural and symbolic references. People have very clear expectations of the space and it has become so much more than functional – it is a place to escape, experiment and interact. It was very important to me that the environment chosen retains a ready-made feel and therefore, the scale of the work has to be realistic. For the marks to be successful they have to relate to the viewers own body, the space they occupy and the movements they make within a given activities which will enable them to read the installation as a map. To create a dialogue. The artwork has been informed by the writings of Merleau-Ponty in 'The Phenomenology of Perception' and the artworks of Bruce Nauman, Arnulf Rainer and Christian Marclay. |
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The aim of this artwork is to evoke the notion of bodily interactions within a space by the recording of successive gestures and activities. To create an installation that has both a sense of immediacy and an irreversible history. 
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