1. My chosen subject for my learning plan this year is going to be on the subject of body image and self worth, I feel this is a topic that many people are bringing awareness to and feel I could contribute quite well as my view of my own self image is that of the negative variety.
I want to be able to expand my practice into sculpture and life casting as I was unable to do so in my second year of studying due to Covid19, this particular subject area will allow me to experiment with a variety of materials as well as using a wider range of techniques.
The work I have previously created has been on varying subject matters such as mental health, isolation and fantasy, the mental health subject I feel was where I created work of a more profound nature and despite it being more difficult to work on I found myself falling in love with the work I produced.
This year I wish to revisit my work on the mental health topic and to take it further, My main concerns are that I still have a lot of missing knowledge within the area I wish to work in (sculpture and casting) and I don't have a great deal of time to learn this from my current institution.
2. With this project I wish to spend some time experimenting with casting materials such as clay, plaster, silicone, and wire on small scales before transferring that knowledge into a bigger body of work.
I'm going to start with casting my own face as it's the basis of any and everyone's view of themselves, this is the starting point of my new series of work which focuses on the distorted view we have of ourselves and how fragile beauty and opinions can be, thus leading to what is now known as Body Dysmorphia Disorder or BDD.
3. I have begun my research by visiting the library to source out books on similar projects as well as books on the subjects of how the body has been used within other industries such as art, fashion, and media. This will hopefully help me to identify more easily where the negative views of our own bodies have developed and how we can overcome them through the therapeutic nature of art.
The books that have caught my attention so far are as follows:
The Body in Contemporary Art - Sally O'Reilly
Body Art - Nicholas Thomas
Extreme Bodies - Francesca Alfano Miglietti
Bodyscape (art, modernity and the ideal figure) - Nicholas Mirzoeff
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