Experimental Practice

Planning:

• will investigate the resourcing of materials and potential manufacture.
• Organise access to facilities.
• Recognise timescales.
• Arrange meetings to discuss ideas and potential developments - networking.

Solo work:

• To start putting concept idea into reality through independent experimentation of surface materials and manipulation. Structural developments to address weight and balance - proof test and record durability.

Collaborative:

• Follow through with the potential idea of a collaborative exhibition involving art and nature/ environment.
• Shadow/ work alongside a garden designer on a live project.

Experimental:

• Investigate creating surfaces through fusing and layering.
• Manipulating surface through hand rendering and CAD
• Combining surface to structure- investigating potential ways of joining through a range of materials and technical processes.
• Experimenting with construction with the emphasis on weight and balance and the ability to withstand external forces.
• To investigate and record material suitability and durability.

Much of my work will encompass the potential of multi disciplinary techniques and materials.

Audience

Individuals:
Colleagues and Technical staff
Identified individuals from landscape design organisations - locally
Identified Garden Designers who inspire me eg. Cleve West, David Domoney, Tom Hoblyn.

Organisations:
RHS
Landscape Designers and Architects
Art Commissioning Agencies
AN Newsletter - postings for commissions.
CASS
Society of Garden Designers

Events:
Garden design events such as Chelsea, Hampton Court, Cardiff.
Local /National exhibitions of sculpture and gardens.
Craft /Sculpture workshops

An investigation into the function, design and contstruction of boundaries, it's physical and cultural impact with specific interest in the use of screening within garden design.

Objectives:-

• To gain an insight into the historical and contemporary use of screens/ fences/ boundaries.
• To investigate the function of screening in garden design.
• To identify potential users- question ' what is out there' - 'the norm'.

The rationale behind my research is to fuse my interest with garden design and my sculptural practice, creating and developing sculptural surfaces that provide structure and function within the garden/ outdoor space.

My focus will be researching into the historical and contemporary use of screens/ fences/ boundaries investigating and understanding their purpose and function, analysing their structure, form and relevance. I anticipate that this will feed into the cultural and social implications, with considerations of personal usage to delineate space and territory. As part of the research I intend to address the narrative such as 'talking over the garden fence', 'sitting on the fence' and 'the grass is greener on the other side of the fence', some of these sayings suggest that the fence could be the middle ground or that what is beyond is better, but how much weight does the word fence have in these sayings? are there significant meanings or is it merely a word?

I will endeavour to fully understand the purpose and function of screen structures within garden design, its use in creating visual or physical boundaries, etc. and to question the definition of screen/ fence. As a starting point my research will explore the work of specific designers whose work utilises screening and or inspire me through designs that have been showcased through high profile events such as Chelsea and Hampton Court, from here I will delve further into their concepts for designs, for example fulfilling a brief, personal desire and or ethos. From this I hope  to find  potential areas for networking and identify competition, it is also anticipated that this literal and visual research will help to resolve some of the physical problems posed and to provide a possible gateway for research into manufacture.

Through my research I intend to inform design and encapsulate an element of the narrative. But also open a doorway into the psychological, social and physical interactions between user and boundary, this could provide an opportunity to evaluate and expand investigations into our cultural and social interactions with space and society.

What is a Reflective Journal?

Dictionary definitions-
Reflect: go back in thought, meditate or consult with oneself, remind oneself or consider(that, how, etc.). (Concise Oxford Dictionary 1985)
Journal: A book in which daily recordings, happenings, etc is kept. (New Collins Concise Dictionary 1986)

I wanted to start with just a snap shot comment of what is reflection in practice within a more art and design context; someone who seeks to answer questions that are relevant to their working practice. 'A particular activity of professional practitioners and involves thinking about what we are doing and reshaping action while we are doing it, in a sense it is improvisational and relies on feeling, response and adjustment. (Schon 1983, chapter 3, p. 78)

I felt that the comment made by (Gray and Malins, 2004, p. 58) is a particularly succinct in defining the purpose of a reflective journal. 'Using the reflective journal as a tool for 'off-loading'- presumably because they allow the learner to take stock, evaluate and 'deposit' ideas and feelings about the learning experience. This kind of 'off-loading' enables the learner to continue the cycle 'unburdened'as it were and to be ready for new learning experiences'.

A reflective journal can be made up of different forms of information visual/ literal/ interactive/ object, etc.

It's a collection of recordings, not necessarily a book but it does tend to lend itself well to one, however some people of the more digital ilk may prefer to use video diaries or more open interactive devises such as blogs.

The journal should be interactive- something to be used regularly with an element of spontaneity, recording responses to issues of the now - the actions taken  to resolve or consider or future developments. It is not something to be created as an outcome; it may be added to indefinitely and informs the whole journey and experience good and bad.

The content of the reflective journal is multiple, it may include technical investigation, recording findings from experimental practice and developments to inform process and techniques, therefore allowing one to revisit and apply this information in recreating ideas.
A personal diary, commenting on the highs and lows of experimentations, an external recording of our thoughts and rationale for what and why we are doing what we do.'Talking to ourselves' - making sense of events, actions, feelings and rehearsing for new situations. If some of your 'converstations' can be captured and visualised this contributes to your growing understanding' (Gray and Malins 2004 p. 59)
Recording the progression of work, is it appropriate for the intention, evaluating the strengths and weaknesses but also allowing considerations for how mistakes have potential, positive attributes, inclusive of timescales, financial  and resource implications.
Contextual research a considered and reviewed inclusion to provide additional information to support your own ideas, included for a purpose not just a source of pretty pictures - visually it may act as a source of inspiration or may offer technical or theoretical advise and advancements for present and future work.

A reflective journal is invaluable, it offers others and oneself an insight into the journey lifelong of specific. It provides information to be reviewed, researched or revisited.




Bibliography:

Gray, C. and Malins, J. (2004) Visualising Research: A guide to the Research Process in Art and Design (Surrey: Ashgate pub. ltd.)

Schon, D. (1983) The Reflective Practitioner: How Professionals Think in Action  (New York Basic Books) 

Learning Modes

Results from questoinaire:
Reflector (7)
Activist(6)
Pragmatist (5)
Theorist (2)

I completed this survey quite spontaneously and in a particularly positive frame of mind and I felt that because of the very fine margin between the first three the running order could have altered had I have been feeling differently.

However having read all four descriptors I could see an affinity with the learning styles predicted from the results. My personlaity and attributes sit well with the reflector learning style, but I know that sometimes my heart can over rule my head making me more passionate about the context and therefore more verbal in meetings and arguments, this can lend itself to not seeing the whole picture and not allowing the words of others to inform my decisions, therefore definitive conclusions are not always met.
My Pragmatic side comes about when I have a concept that I believe in and has the potential for taking forward, I definitely strive to forge ahead with putting the ideas into practice, sometimes being more reactive than proactive.
As an activist I do need and gain confidence by involving others in my ideas and thoughts, feedback is invaluable to me, giving me focus and prompts for self evaluative critique in order to develop my ideas further. I also enjoy participating in collaborative ventures and recognise that different individuals have different strengths. On the whole I believe that I am open minded and I am enthusiastic about my ideas but I am aware that I can also  become blinkered and oversee valuable avenues that can enhance developments.

From the theorist point of view I recognise that this is going to be a challenge that I am going to have to address and learn to apply particularly within the MA.

mind map