Defining Context and Process

 

This week my intentions were to establish a context for my work, and knitting samples that represent the work I have been producing in my sketchbook. I started by generating more drawings, maintaining the same concept however incorporating a more figurative approach using shapes to annotate more of the everyday common sounds of the city such as passing traffic and loud sirens.

  

Creating a yarn wrapping proved useful as it aided me to make decisions in terms of proportions of colour and placement. It consists of mainly soft pink and blue as the background colours of my knit samples that relate to the subtlety of my drawings, and hints of vibrant orange and fuchsia to represent the interrupting sounds of everyday life.

The yarn wrapping itself is intentionally not in clear and precise rows of colour as I wanted it to be representational of the structure of my work.

In terms of producing work in my sketchbook I have been struggling to move forward with my drawings, producing more of the same instead of developing my initial ideas further in order to improve them. Therefore next week I will aim to broaden the way in which I work in my sketchbook, allowing me to make more informed decisions when knitting.

The samples above are two examples of how I have been transferring my drawings into knit. My intentions were to replicate the shapes and patterns that occur in my sketchbook, attempting to use knit as a drawing tool. The difficulties I faced this week was establishing the appropriate types of yarn for the effect that I wanted to achieve. I have been working mostly with cottons and manmade yarns, and although the colours are successful in certain aspects, I believe the quality of the yarn weakens the appearance.

I intend on improving my knit samples by utilising a wider range of techniques instead of only using e-wrapping as a form of applying hints of texture and colour, and developing a more considered approach to process. Designing my own punch card would make my samples more individual, and will allow me to apply more detailed and figurative shapes to my knitting.

Researching designers has helped me to relate my samples to a particular audience, and this week I discovered the knitwear label Leutton Postle. The intricacy and detail gone into their wearable knitwear has encouraged me to produce samples that requires a lot of skill but which also brim with creativity. By contextualising my practice I have been able to generate ideas with an audience in mind, using the appropriate processes and finishes in order to make them interested in what I am producing.
  

Sarah Boyts

The artist that has inspired me in terms of drawing and colour this week is Sarah Boyts. The subtle way in which she introduces flashes of florescent colour creates an instant atmosphere of intensity in her work. I will incorporate this technique when knitting as it will be a tool of representing the hints of interrupting colours that derive from my concept.