Test Cyanotypes - One

Cyanotypes & Photo Emulsion Screen Printing

Two other methods that I am exploring at the moment are:

------Cyanotypes & Photo Emulsion Screen Printing.

Cyanotypes:

"Sir John Herschel, who coined the word photography which literally translates as "light writing", also invented the cyanotype process in 1841. It is a variant of the photogram and commonly understood to be "blue prints." It is a simple process that gives a continuous-tone image of an intense blue color using a sensitizing solution of ammonium ferric citrate and potassium ferricyanide, otherwise known as iron salts. These iron salts, when exposed to natural or artificial ultraviolet light, are reduced to their ferrous state, producing a high contrast blue image when oxidized. Oxidation is hastened by immersion in running water, which also washes away the unused iron salts. The example here from British Algae, 1843-1853, is by Anna Atkins who produced the first botanical work on seaweeds that was entirely illustrated with photographs." http://www.alternativephotography.com/wp/processes/cyanotype/cyanotype-classic-process

Photo Emulsion Screen Printing

"What Is Emulsion - Screen Printing Emulsions are a paste type substance, that when coated onto a mesh with a scoop coater, it dries to form a photographic type of film.
How Is It Used - When the art work is placed on the photo sensitive emulsion, and exposed to light, it creates a stencil of the art. The stencil creates a positive, of which ink can pass through onto a substrate. Emulsions are biodegradable." http://www.ryanrss.com/2EmulsionDisplay.html

Adhesive Results

On the 29th of April, around 16.00, I attempted my first trial of the stencil idea in my back-garden, on an vertical wall – East London.

The results weren't clear, no sign of a stencil was visible on the 30th of April, neither on the 2nd of May. Which led me to try out my next step on Commercial Road.

8th of May, at 23.00 I sprayed my Adhesive Stencil on a small area on the side walk of Commercial Road E1. The letter forms were directly visible at first instance, but that could be the result of the liquid settling in on the ground.

On the 9th of May, at around 18.00, the stencil was well visible except the top part which was further away from the main road.

And the same for the 10th of May, at around 11.00. The stencil is even darker, but the top part stays not so clear.

Adhesive Flyposter (Andrew's idea)

During my 3 week contract at Skew Studio I had a good chat with a colleague of mine – Andrew.

So I took on the idea discussed and have decided to apply it. This could probably be a push forward with my ideas!

A3 Posters

Good bunch of left characters that I could probably use for a prank!

Another Bunch of Resources

Accidental Lettering

Looks a bit burnt!

The Feel I would like to achieve!

The Urban Myth Catch On!

My last session I had found out a little Urban Myth about the whole Flypostering procedures. And I tried my best to through either to this so-called Mob of the Streets and to any other relevant information on that issue – I tried contacting clubs, bars and promoters to try and get me through, but seemed that they were all getting a bit defensive and are hiding a big secret.

And on the side, I kept thinking of different ways, forms and presentations that I could go through, end up with and expect through out the project.

I was pitching my brief to quit a few interesting characters. It showed great positive feedback and people loved the chain of thoughts, I even got asked to attend an interview for a design blog where they wanted to talk about my idea! WICKED!

Part of the feedback was really interesting and I had learned from one person that he had a good idea in mind and never was able to attempt it: Cutting out a stencil and filling it up with dirt and sand... This lead me to use his idea to develop mine. I therefore decided to see how pollution might be able to construct an image within the environment.

So I am going to try spraying out stencil with Adhesive spray and recording it through out a period of time to see its results. I will surely do a few and place them around the city, in areas where I think can have a great push to the whole idea of pollution and dirt!

I had a discussion with a friend, a MA Product Design Student in Milan. And I had pitched my idea to him and asked if he would be able to help me sketch-out one of my many thoughts: Which was a replica of a big flash light:

• Would have a slot to insert a negative slide of the poster or the image to be mounted. Using techniques similar to those of the Dark Room in photography, where a person, burns an image onto a coated semi gloss paper!
• Distance indicator that can help decide between different sized formats.
• Probably a spray system, where it ejects chemicals on the designated area to coat it and then be able to apply the image.
• A source of light?!

And after this absence, I've been noticing more and more that I am relating my production to Light. Either it being man made or natural, I am trying to achieve a result with Light acting as its main Stimulus!

Back After a Few Weeks Absence...

Wooohooo! I am back... No Fear! Guy is Here!

Since my last post a lot has happened and has distracted me of my Unit 14 project.

I got employed as a Freelancer on a 3 week contract; now that was on a full time basis. Working for Paperboat Creative and Guy Fox History Project, were also on the menu – So you get the drift after that!

Never the less, my project stayed in priority in my mind and in my daily life! Even though I wasn't able to work and begin to develop much, I had loads of discussions, gathering elements and ideas and so on... So still productive!

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'Invading their patch' – Need to get to them!

Session Quatro – Fly-Posters Around East and Notes

I know it's been quite a while that I haven't updated this blog, but a lot has accumulated over the past week. A bunch of freelance work and side projects have all been disrupting my actual unit 14 projects.

But also a lot of progress and diversion has been happening revolving my final projects:

After a quick tutorial with one of my tutors, it has come to our attention that a lot more potential lays in Flyposters rather than Dyslexia and Type.

He mentioned to me, that rumors have it, there's a mob that takes care of this flypostering scheme. So I am pondering on ganging up with this sort of mob and working their ways. Discussing issues around Posters and their deliverance. Pulling out their ideas of what is URBAN ART/URBAN FUN and so on... BUT THIS DOESN"T MEAN THAT I WILL LET GO OF THE DYSLEXIA PROJECT, it will just be a secondary/side project for the unit, where I'll crack on the issues I've wanted to deal with.

Q&A

Potential questions that I can ask about Dyslexia:

• What is Dyslexia by your definition?
• Can someone develop it later on in his/her course of life?
• Is there different degrees of Dyslexia, oppose to the different forms it manifest its self in?
• Do you reckon, to overcome Dyslexia, one must train as a child or as an adult?
• What can you tell me about:

1. The speed of processing and sequencing information?
2. Time consumption?
3. Adding and subtracting words?
4. Hard to focus?
5. Multi-tasking?
6. Numbers and letters?
7. Details?

Here are the minutes from a quick interview with Elaine Wallace* on the 12th of March 2010:

*Coordinator of the Dyslexic Department at Central Saint Martins Southampton Row.

... After a 5min talk, I had remembered that I can record the chat using my phone. The coordinator was talking a bit to fast for my likes, thus she noticed I was dyslexic in some form.

Is there a special program/steps for the dyslexic test?

'It takes about an hour and you ask all sorts of questions, they're to do with reading, writing... I often ask people: Ooh! Did you get lost in town on your way over here? And they say all the time. And so I ask: how do you work your way, 'coz you often can't read a map. So then I'll ask them for what they look out for then? Is it the name of the streets? Or do you look for another sort of visual landmark?

And they go from visual landmark to visual landmark,ooh! Mc Donald's is on that corner...

Yeah that reminds me of an exhibition I was looking into the other day, that happened a few years ago in the Serpentine Gallery. The exhibition was aimed at dyslexia and they had workshops where they would encourage subjects to draw their journey to the gallery, with points such as A to B... Interesting!

Back on track -

How would you define or recognize a dyslexic person from a first glance?

You can't recognize a dyslexic from just looking at him, there'll have to be an exchange of communication to notice dyslexic trademarks. So seeing somebody... No way will I know on spot...

I've read before that a dyslexic person could be a bit clumsy! Could you elaborate?

Yeah that is true, they might sometimes have something known as Clumsy Child Syndrome, and so sometimes they can't tie their shoelaces or catch a ball.

But that isn't with all dyslexic subject? No, no, some could be perfect in sync; you have to remember that there is different kinds of dyslexia.

Problem is now, some people think that dyslexics are those who can't read and write, and that isn't the case.

Some dyslexics read very well and there spelling is terrible and some vice versa.

Now that we are talking about different types of dyslexia, do you think there is different degrees of being dyslexic?

Yes, off course. You can have Mild Dyslexia, or you can have Very Sever Dyslexia.

And do you consider the Mild cases as disabled subjects?

Yes!

And why is that?

Because in a university and academic setting that mild disability will affect their way of learning. So you have to be able to support them

Even in a setting such as the University of the Arts of London?

Even more.

But don't they say that dyslexics usually use their left brain which is linked to the artistic tastes?

Well they are more into the image. And understanding the world holistically, but that degree as you might know it, requires more. It requires that you have to express yourself as an individual, express yourself as an artists, in speaking which many dyslexics have difficulties and in writing which many dyslexics can't do.

You'll get them again and again saying I can't get my work done!

Do you reckon there is a way to overcome dyslexia?

There's something we call strategies.

Session Tre – A Week Later...

Into the second/third week of unit 14, I have decided to take on the blog once or twice (if needed) a week. I'll log on and update my weekly notes on Steps & Walk with all the comments/remarks that I have accumulated since the last log.

Been trying to contact the dyslexic department at CSM, I have reached one person that isn't responsible of the dyslexic students, but she has been nice enough to forward my email to the person who is, Elaine Wallace.

No Answer from Elaine yet!!

Below is a few links that a friend forwarded me:

NEVERODDOREVEN / Teachers' Resources

Serpentine Gallery: NEVERODDOREVENDyslexia and the Arts29 March – 9 April 2007

Dyslexia Action - UK’s premier resource on dyslexia education, assessment and awareness raising

The British Dyslexia Association | About Dyslexia | Parents

Spot Your Potential, the online Dyslexia test

What is dyslexia?

Notes & Key Words

• Dyslexia= Difficulty + with words
• short term memory system
• difficulties in: Processing sound, co-ordination, visual processing and sequencing.
• Time consumption
• Problem in adding and subtracting words.
• Difficulty focusing
• Communication is Multi-tasking, therefore short memory is trying to classify too much information.
• Problems in: remembering, oral skills, multi-action, numeracy, sequencing, concept of time, organization, time management, coordination, remembering detail, attention spam and concentration.

Session Due - Reaseach & Books

Now after searching over and over for books that relate to my ideas, wether it was posters, mounting, legal issues with posters and so on; I have discovered that for one of my subjects, the main Subject to search would be Flyposters and it's legal rules, books about the art of mounting and a bit of the whole history of posters (which I have a good knowledge about). As for the second subject, I am starting by searching about Dyslexia and it's relation to reading or writing, and I have been sketching ideas, where I am trying to figure out Typefaces that could be helpful for dyslexic subjects.

Books that I have at the moments and I am doing intensive search in, include:

• POSTER COLLECTION, Poster for Exhibitions 1980–2000, Essay by Stuart Bailey, Lars Muller Publishers, 2001.
• FLYPOSTER, Posters from the Anticopyright Network, Matthew Fuller, Working Press, 1992.
• UP AGAINST THE WALL, International Poster Design, Russell Bestley and Ian Noble, RotoVision, 2002.
• READ REGULAR TM, For More Effective Reading and Writing, Unknown/NotClear, Natascha Frensch, 2003.
• READING WITH WORDS IN COLOUR, A Scientific Study of the Problems of Reading, Caleb Gattegno, Educational Explorers, 1968.
• PRACTICAL STRATEGIES FOR LIVING WITH DYSLEXIA, Maria Chivers, Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2001.
• UNDERSTANDING DYSLEXIA, An Introduction for Dyslexic Students in Higher Education, Jill Hammond and Fabien Hercules, The Glasgow School of Art, 2000 (Research Report).

Final Year Project at CSM – Session Uno

Well I have arrived finally to the last stage of my education - for the moment I think - and now I have to sort out a final brief for myself.

Pretty Hard to be honest, as I want something to actually be very attractive, act as a punch in the face, something unexpected and professional.

–

Ideas that I narrowed down to: (1st part)

• 'There is no such thing as an empty space or an emtpy time. There is always something to see, something to hear. In fact, try as we may to make a silence, we cannot'. John Cage, 'Silence'
• Brazilian posters (Catherine Dixon talk) ==> Posters and illegal/visual pollution ==> solve or let be?
• Photographic burn – Link up to Posters
• Copyright: In songs, you're allowed to copy 8 bars from any commercial song – What about in Design? Copyright issues in question!!
• 'Aoccdmin to rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it doesn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny ipmoetnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a toatl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.' =====>>> probably look into typeface to work with this and dyslexia...... HA!
• Awkward moments and escaping them! A Guide.
• Music culture within an urban city: An interaction between the visitors and the city to indicate musical trends.

So after the workshop that happened on the 17th of Feb, it was narrowed down to working on the poster and photographic issue together, as one project. Perfect!

But I wasn't totally satisfied, some of those ideas seemed that needed to be dealt with soon, so I decided to take on also the Typeface idea /dyslexia!

So in the blog that follows, there were will be a division into those two projects.

Enjoy!