This is my studio at the moment. this week i did alot of casting and made nagative- positive prints of my photo etchings.

I reall like this effect and think i may like to use it as a part of an instillation.

I cast several body parts and pieces and played around with different types of wax and different added in materials such as the string- which is indicative of lactation.

This is it in micro christaline.

Clear resin that i need to try again... it ran,...

At the moment im thinking about painting and drawing from the things in my studio space. i am also reading alot of feminist Art theory.

I have been using photography alot in my studio practice. I have been developing my own black and white film, setting up objects to photograph ect.. and have really enjoyed working in this way. Im using this medium to vaguely spur on discussion about sex in a modern context in relation to the female body.

I have found this subject and indeed the following images got a very strong set of reactions from humour to anger... I cant help but think what the reaction would be like if i was male- would it be different.

From thinking about feminism and reading Nancy Friday i have come to thinking that perhaps men are just as trapped in there roles and steriotypes as women... maybe its about a sexual revolution rather than feminism...

I have been thinking and reading alot about sexual development in children- how it can be stunted by parental interference and social tabboos, freud and friday both agree that children are sexual from an early age yet society finds this thought perverse.

Alongside taking and developing the photographs ive been thinking about material properties. the material i am drawn to again and again is wax- for its protecting and preserving qualities- i saw it fitting to coat the following image in wax to illustrate and visualise this thought tread to myself.

My photographic exploration started with digital. i am thinking about the interplay and visual connoctations of both forms of photography in order to increase myunderstanding of the role of photography in Art practice today

Both kinds of photography are set to become translated into a series of paintings and sketches over the next few days as this process will (hopefully) help me think and clarify my work in my mind without being to rigimental.

I have continued to etch and work into the photos and am really enjoying the effects. I need to look more closely at the work of Keifer in my research.

See Preceeding Post for details

I have continued to work with objects - mainly underwear to explore its connoctations in different mediums. I enjoyed the metal training bra because of the juxtapositions of the matal and the idea of a childs bra... trapping, enslaving, sexual, dominant, submissive, scary, daunting...

I think now that i have gained a little insight into this material i will probably use it again... recently ive been thinking about chastity belts...

I continued working with the casting of the lace thong- see last post... and have finally gotten the result i was after, i thing this piece will come together for me when i contextualise it. i think it needs to play off a variety of things- notes, written material, other objects, drawings, photos ect... maybe it needs a scent... i need a sculpture tutorial..

either way it needs to be better displayed.

This was done to clear up my space to work on other things

In short

I have been trying to tease apart ideas relating to the female body and indeed identity in a less formal way, exploring new or different ways of working. I continued with my casting and general object making. and set about to look at objects and there connoctations through the medium of photography.

From the idea of women and water, embros and human development (see last post) I started to think about the traditional views of the female in Art .... the male gaze, john bergers ways of seeing ect....

Research on the body

I found these images opened up my work alot as they were far more organic and ambigious wereas the images i was working from before were quite didactic and perscriptive. I feel this move has greatly aided my work

more research on the body...

I then, in order to broaden my process began trying to use photography more. I made these series of 'prints' -'photographs' by laying objects over photo paper and exposing them in the photography room.

I learned alot through this process as i had to experiment alot in order to get the maximum detail.

gradully i got good at it and was able to add and subtract objects or move them on the same sheet by splitting the exposure time..

These pieces have opened my studio practice back up and revived my passion.

i have bagun to think of the photo paper as just another surface... i can etch into it... im really enjoying this as it opens up possibilities for print...

im going to explore this further by exposing some pages to degrees of 'darkness' and using different materials on them in order to create images...

i enjoy the idea of printing -ie traditional printing using the photo paper instead of lino- with a print.

I made a few paintings along side this process... working with properly stretched water colour paper and less didactic images..

i enjoy the increased subtality of these works, and the interplay with the under wear... inside outside, the 'decorative' elements in each..

I have been trying to cast this thong... casting lace is very hard... but it is coming along... i also have plans for a lead training bra- see earlier posts for relavance..

im enjoying the interplay of images.. thinking of entering these into the drawing awards...

I tend to work alot from objects and with objects... i really enjoy the shock value of this object. im reading alot about womens relationships to there own bodies. eg 'Nancy Fridays Women on Top'... i fing this a very interesting area of thought discussion and perhaps future works

I have plans to shoot a roll of film and develop it myself using a series of relevant objects.. ie objects i associate with my body..