pitt rivers

Visited Pitt Rivers, actually had the time to look round all floors.  So much to see. Relating to my interest of the use of animal skins, feathers and furs it was clear from the examples on display that people living in the arctic circle and  Greenland  need animals and every part of their body would have been used.  But what struck me most is how certain cultures showed respect to the animal at the same time which can be seen in the decorative caribou hunting cloak – the decorative patterns show respect for the caribou and  for the mountains they were being hunted in.   I came across cases of amulets and charms and many were for the protection of animals against harm or the Evil Eye or to ensure fertility amongst the animals.

Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford

decorated caribou hide coat, 1700

Amulets and Charms – Pitt Rivers Museum

Amulets gallery – Wellcome Collection

visibility

The down feathers are so soft, tactile, warm, they need to be more visible.  I’ve put them into a synthetic type gauze making the feathers much more accessible.  Tied off with leather, wool, feathers and copper wire (all insulating materials).

The sculptural form is soft and tactile.   I have placed the piece in the corridor where Jette has put her tester swarm of wool.  Interestingly the two pieces connect materially.  The feathers are so light they float around on top and catch the movement of people  along the corridor.  I’ve had feedback from passers by : how they have been ‘buffing’ the piece and watching as feathers escape.  As I stuffed the piece outside the building, feathers escaped everywhere, the breeze buffeting them upwards – bringing to mind a snowstorm.

MoMA | The Collection | Meret Oppenheim. Object. Paris, 1936

Looking at Oppenheim’s Object covered in fur, which is soft to touch and used for warmth. Does the tea cup and saucer represent warmth in liquid form?  Was Oppenheim commenting on the conventionally used hard sculptural surfaces used by the ‘male-dominated art world’ by using a sensually soft material and non vertically orientated object.

feathers

Feathers  have been associated with warmth in the form of duvets and insulation in jackets.   The lightness in texture and soft rich, milky, creamy feathers is something I would like to use to convey that sense of warmth and comfort.   The thought of them is very personal as my grandmother made quilts many, many years ago: feathers have been in our family psyche for a very long time.  Interestingly other students coming in to the studio can’t help but bury their hand into the soft, downy jars.

Another source of warmth and comfort to me is chocolate.  I thought the dark, richness, lush colour would add warmth and a sense of contrast to the feathers.  A double layer maybe. Time to experiment.  Beuys certainly perceived it on a metaphorical level as a source of energy for body and mind.

WAC | Joseph Beuys | Materials

Food was another important medium for Beuys. He enjoyed the immediate recognition of edible materials, as well as the metaphorical image of art as the essence of human nourishment. Chocolate, sausage, gelatin, margarine, and butter are all foods that Beuys utilized in his artworks. He often used foods that over time would transform, and welcomed materials that were not fixed, but rather had the ability to go through chemical reactions, color changes, decay, and regeneration. Beuys also recognized that specific foods had deep roots in certain religions or traditions, such as bread and fish, which carry symbolic meaning in the Christian faith, among others.

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The chocolate melted beautifully.  Testing how the down feathers would stick, because of the ball shape they had a tendency to slip down the sides.  I Added feather and down to the chocolate and mixed with my hands.  I wasn’t expecting the feeling of suddenly having warm hands covered in chocolate.  I then slathered it over a net covered ball to see if the chocolate would hold better using the net.  Interestingly the net and feathers completely soaked up the chocolate.  No contrast there,  just a mixture mess.  I’m sure the chocolate will take on change over time, will have to watch it.

some experimentation

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Trying to convey a warmth using feathers, leather, wools and fur.  Idea of wrapping the log in pheasant feathers as it can be burnt to create heat – so implying a double layer of warmth (food and fire).  Not quite sure if that works, although the birch wood colouring is beautiful against the natural colours of the feathers.  The sculpey log painted cadmium red for its warm colour – I don’t think it gives off a sense of warmth, its too solid  and dense looking for me.  The leather wraps, inspired by looking at Joseph Beuys, made on a small scale.  Leather, wool and feathers all materials used to insulate, wrapped with a copper wire, a conductor of heat.  Beuys’ Sled, 1969, wooden sled, felt, fabric straps, flashlight, fat, oil paint, string.