Friday 29 April 2016

Projection Work!


This is the last project, and after this week I`ll have only one week left until the three day long exam that I have to do. I`m looking forward to it now, I`ve kind of got a good idea as to what I`m doing right now and what I should be doing during the exam days and I`ve got a brilliant idea as to how I should be displaying my work during the next exhibition aswell... No idea as to if it`s going to work, I hope it is, if it doesn`t then I`m probably going to get rather frustrated. It`s got something to do with using an easel and then using a heat gun to burn everything I`m going to be putting around it... I think I`ll need two of them, and I`ve also thought of a way to somehow connect them, not sure if that will work either, but I`ll have to see later on.

The teachers have been suggesting projection work for ages, but I`ve never really taken to it after an artist came into out sixth form... and to be honest, I wasn`t to impressed with it, so I never ended up trying out anything to do with projecting my work or projecting my photography. But seeing as this is the final project, and I`m pretty much not going to have access to some of the equipment I have right now, I decided to give the projector a try for once.

Now if your English, then you`ll remember those big box projectors that the music teacher had to repeatedly change the film on so they can show the lyrics again... if that makes sense. Anyways, if your British then you`ll know what I`m on about, because I guarantee you that you had to sing terribly religious songs when you aren`t even religious. Yeah, primary school is rather weird over here.
Now, if you don`t know what I`m on about, the projector is a large metal box with a light inside, from the box there`s a metal pole that has a two way glass thing that then projects any image that you have on film that is then above the light.
Anything done with just normal paper will block out the light and nothing shines through, which means It`s also expensive because of the film we use at sixth form. It`s simple really, you just have to photocopy the image onto the film and it comes out perfect.

Because the film is quite expensive, and I don`t want to be using up the film that everyone else might need... So, I`ve tried placing solid objects over the top of the projector instead. They come out a lot crisper and cleaner than the photographic projections, most probably because they just came out as a greyish/black colour unlike the photographs.
The main idea for the projection work at the moment is to just use them to go over my final piece once it`s on display in the gallery at the end of the project. The problem that I have at the moment would be focusing everything correctly, on all of these images I`ve placed the projector about 6ft away from the wall, and then the focus is about 3/4 up... There`s just a little turny knob to focus, there`s no settings you can just change, you have to turn it until it looks alright. It`s also quite handy for drawing, you can project an image and then draw round it on a canvas or sheet of paper that`s up against the wall.

I`ve also used one of my friends, who looks slightly drunk on the image (but she isn`t don`t worry, the projector was too bright). It`s interesting, it gives such an old retro look to whatever you decide to project, I prefer using old fashioned things like this, rather than a brand new projector and MacBook... Just grab an old one and some film and see what you can do!
Quite enjoying this at the moment, it`s something different that I haven`t tried out properly before, and I do love the vintage themed look it gives out, and I don`t usually do vintage styled work really. I`m looking forward to what it`ll look like when my final pieces are finished and put on display with a projection over the top, I just need to decide on what to actually project..


The lovely Georgia <3 !

Instagram: amy_marshy_melons

Monday 25 April 2016

Redbubble Products!

And now, a post completely dedicated to Redbubble products that I have been producing lately...

As you may of noticed in the links at the bottom of my posts, I`ve been adding in my Redbubble link every time. Just to make sure you check them out some time...
Unfortunately, I haven`t actually sold anything on there yet and I am going to lower the prices so they`re more affordable; you don`t want to be paying £10 just for a notebook really. So tonight, I`m going to be lowering the prices by just a tiniee tiny little bit so hopefully, some of you will buy something.. some day.. Thanks.
I`ll be working on some more illustration designs soon, keep an eye out for them on Deviantart first!



I haven`t really shown everyone all of the designs so far, and I still won`t be able to include them all on here. If you keep up with my Redbubble account, then you would of probably seen quite a few of the newest uploads, and I`ll be updating with some more photography products soon.
I have been working on a lot of illustration pieces recently, none of them however are for my current nature themed project and they`re all in a separate sketchbook that I keep with a bunch of other ones underneath my bed. All of those sketchbooks are for private drawings and designing, and I never use them for sixth form work or studying, they all also have labels and are only used for one type of drawing per sketchbook.
I haven`t had that much time to be working on private work really, it`s quite sad since I thought I would be able to relax and draw whenever I want too. But I`ve started my new job and since my exam is coming up (which I won`t shut up about) I really don`t have the time to sit down and design small illustrations or mandalas.

The thing with Redbubble, is that any of my work from this current project can be easily added onto any products I want. So right now, it doesn`t matter if I can`t do cute little illustrations, sugar skulls or mandala patterns... I can use anything from my current project and then just transfer it over easily. One slight problem that I have been having, is how blurry it`s been making some of my images and some of my photography work. I`m still trying to get it all sorted out, and I don`t know if it`s my terrible photoshopping skills that are coming into play, hopefully it is cause I know how bad I am at photoshop and hopefully one of my friends can help me out.

Here are the other three latest designs, that I`ve literally only just uploaded; hopefully I`ll be able to sell some when I lower the price and I`ll be trying to get my artwork out there again on Deviantart aswell!



Live Diary Blog: http://melonheadamy-livediaryblogging.blogspot.co.uk/
Art Blog: http://melonheadamy-artblogging.blogspot.co.uk/
Anime Reviews: http://melonheadamy-animereviews.blogspot.co.uk/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/melonheadamy
Wattpad: https://www.wattpad.com/user/AmyWatkinson
Live Hereos:
https://liveheroes.com/en/brand/melonhead-amy
Redbbble: http://www.redbubble.com/people/amywatkinson
Deviantart: https://amywatkinson.deviantart.com/
Instagram: amy_marshy_melons






Monday 18 April 2016

Exam Preperation!

This one is definitely the biggest prep piece so far!
Within 3 weeks time, it`ll be time for my three day long art exam... Which I`m still not looking forward too at the moment since I haven`t prepared myself for it at all.

So up until then, I`m afraid that you won`t be seeing much that`s different on here, mainly all the same colour palettes, Canvas based pieces of work and a looooot of mixed media and abstract work that I haven`t done in quite some time.
For this project, I`m also trying a new approach to the kind of work I produce, my final piece last time has thin layers of different paints and papers so it wouldn`t appear a very bulky... But this time, I want everything to be bulky and quite over the top really!

But when you think about, I can`t go too over the top for the time being, I`ve been working on some small preparation pieces for my final exam piece and have about 6 preparation bits too finish off, but at the moment I`ve only done three... yeah, I really need to do some sort of catching up with the preparation work, even though I seem to be the only one who`s started it at the moment.
Also, when you think about the kind of theme I`m going for (the decay of nature) it would be rather awkward if I was to go right over the top and mess a lot of it up, plus I could possibly go way off of the subject at hand.

At the moment, only three of the preps are almost done, and the thought of leaving sixth form and heading off to University is starting to scare me just a little bit now. Once this exam is completely finished, we`ll have another week or so to get all of our other bits of work finished off and then we leave for good! I know it`s earlier than we`re supposed to leave awell, but it`s because there will be nothing left for us to do; in year 12, we started the third project, carried that on over the summer holidays and then finished that off after a loooong time, then moved on to this one... So yeah, nothing for any of u to do after this has been done, so it`ll be bye-bye sixth form! (for good yayyy).

I have been a bit worried about how I`m going to be uploading illustration pieces over the holidays if that`s the case, since I`m at sixth form, all of the printers/photocopiers are all hooked up to the "papercut" system in school which also has a scanner programme which allows you to scan in a drawing, and then the scanner e-mails it over to your account. Easy as that!
So I think, when it comes to the summer holidays, I`ll need to buy just a small A4 scanner to use so I`m still uploading bits of my work.
Enough of that anyways, and back to the prep work. (I do realize that the pictures so far are also quite blurry, these are the only pictures I have at the moment, so I do apologize for my lack of preparation in the update).

For my prep piece, I`m mainly using canvas` and I`m trying a lot of different things that I haven't tried before on them. The layers I`m creating at the moment are drying a lot thicker than I originally thought, and after looking at artist research and by becoming inspired by different people... It`s given me a slight idea.
It`s not absolutely life changing so there`s nothing to be madly excited about right now.
After looking at a lot of artists, who I won`t be naming, I`ve decided not to be so literal with my work. At first I wanted to draw in the backgrounds, and I wanted the drawings to be of different things that we use to pollute the world and destroy the nature around us... So instead, I`m going to be recycling a lot of materials and old tuff I have lying around, to instead create a decayed nature piece, that`s made out of items we waste on a day to day basis!
I`m struggling to make sense of that myself after reading that back...

So far; I`ve been using a lot of dying flowers that my family members where going to throw out, old plastic bags and wallets for plastic fusion, old CD` from when we where redecorating and we re-discovered them (I`ve been smashing those up), a lot of old fabrics that I`ve been cutting up and turning into a paste, dirt and sand... And then, old tiles from when we re-decorated the bathroom aswell.
So I have been rather busy when you think about it all, even though I have been quite laid back with the blog uploads, I`m slowly getting round to uploading all of my art related bit and pieces now.

I can`t really tell you much from this point on since there isn`t that much to tell you all... Literally. The next time I`ll be doing any form of art work to do with this project is either when I`m painting a some sample and practice work, or when I`m doing my three boards for my final piece.

Live Diary Blog: http://melonheadamy-livediaryblogging.blogspot.co.uk/
Art Blog: http://melonheadamy-artblogging.blogspot.co.uk/
Anime Reviews: http://melonheadamy-animereviews.blogspot.co.uk/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/melonheadamy
Wattpad: https://www.wattpad.com/user/AmyWatkinson
Live Hereos:
https://liveheroes.com/en/brand/melonhead-amy
Redbbble: http://www.redbubble.com/people/amywatkinson
Deviantart: https://amywatkinson.deviantart.com/
Instagram: amy_marshy_melons


Tuesday 5 April 2016

What`s coming up then?

As a lot of you may know by now, at Easter we get two weeks off of sixth form and I`m now on my second week... Which is also why you haven`t seen as many uploads as usual.
if you don`t keep up with the live diary blog then you probably wouldn`t know, but I`ve got a new job! and out of the two weeks sixth form have given me off, I`ve only actually had two days off since I`m trying to get all of my shadowing shifts at work finished.

All of this also means that I haven`t really had any time to get my coursework done, and I bought quite a bit home to do over the two weeks off. All I`ve got round to doing are Illustration requests that you guys have sent me on facebook and other requests I`ve received from other social media accounts like Meowchat and Meetme. If anything, I just want to get a load of requests in because it`ll then keep me rather busy on Deviantart for when I get back to sixth form. Also, when I go back to sixth form I`ve got to get a lot of preparation done for a three day long exam that I have, so I am going to be rather busy.

Right now I`ve got some collage work on the go, and a lot of mixed media stuff planned for my final piece (which I can`t put together yet because I have to do that within the exam). Whilst I`m preparing everything at sixth form, I`m going to be doing a lot of drawing requests at home and in my illustration book. These also give me amazing ideas for when it comes to uploading designs onto Redbubble, and I`ll probably start making pattern repeats out of them and then putting them onto notebooks and stuff like that.
Keep on sending your illustration requests in!

So if you keep your eyes out on here you`ll probably see a lot of; Collage work to do with the project I`m on at the moment, Illustration work that`s been requested by you guys, a lot more watercolour drawings and a LOT more redbubble designs and products that are available for you all to buy!

Even though I have been pretty busy with the new job and getting used to working there (see the Live Diary Blog for more) I`m trying my best to fit everything else in when I`m at home, but my older sister is also moving house so everything is just everywhere at the moment and my family is quite busy aswell.
We`ll get there eventually!

Live Diary Blog: http://melonheadamy-livediaryblogging.blogspot.co.uk/
Art Blog: http://melonheadamy-artblogging.blogspot.co.uk/
Anime Reviews: http://melonheadamy-animereviews.blogspot.co.uk/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/melonheadamy
Wattpad: https://www.wattpad.com/user/AmyWatkinson
Live Hereos:
https://liveheroes.com/en/brand/melonhead-amy
Redbbble: http://www.redbubble.com/people/amywatkinson
Deviantart: https://amywatkinson.deviantart.com/
Instagram: amy_marshy_melons