Alice Galvin | Portfolio |
Personal Statement The pieces in this portfolio have been selected to showcase my interest in landscape and architecture. I wish to push this interest forward and ultimately gain skills and understanding to work within the field of urban Landscape Architecture. Having just graduated with a BA Honors degree in Fine Art, I have accumulated a design background that spans a multitude of discipline and techniques. Confident in the field of Fine Art, Photography and Graphics, I have also had the chance to develop these skills professionally, gaining work experience in several galleries and a graphic design agency. I am fascinated by Urban Photography, Contemporary Architecture and Post-Modern Art, regularly visiting exhibitions to remain informed and gain inspiration. In turn, I hope these fields will influence my work in Landscape Architecture and produce the aesthetic, clean designs that the public find intriguing and enjoyable. Thank you for your time and interest.
Man v Nature
Section 1 | A Study of Textures
The Familiar
Contents
Section 2 | A Question of Landmark over Location
Public Surveillance
Section 3 | The Space, the Public and the Cameras
City of Light
Section 4 | The balance of Utopia and Dystopia
Man v Nature
A Study of Textures
These drawings were undertaken as a sustained project to capture the high level of detail seen within the texture of the wood and metal. Located on the coast of the Thames Estuary, the abandoned boat rack shows the natural decay of a structure and the materials supporting it. Particular interest lay in the reaction of the wood and the metal chain against the harsh, seaside environment and the results that entailed. The colours, textures and functional quality of both materials proved interesting to document due to the variation in maturity over time.
All three drawings were selected to feature in a group exhibition, "Lead," featuring over 30 different artists associated with Norwich University of the Arts, 2011.
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Fig. 1 + Fig. 2 + Fig. 3 | Rusted Chains on Wood | Medium: Colour Pencil on Paper | 2010
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Inspired by the work of artist John Stezaker, I wanted to create my own juxtapositions between architecture and nature, seeking to achieve the same disjointed harmony that features in his own collages. Focusing on his theme of subtle surrealism, the chosen photographs were selected due to the alternative ideas that could be projected on to them. Due to the historical and current context of the photographs, this allowed the pairing of imagery to retain traces of past and present but showcase them in a new light.
"Empire Tree" was selected to feature in a peer run exhibition, "Meta/Physical," hosted at Norwich University of the Arts, 2012. Meta/Phyiscal is defined as "in an objective world, refers to an idea of reality, posited outside human sense perception. A potentially abstract thought or subject, it relates to existence, causality, and truth."
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Fig. 1 | Original National Geographic photograph taken by Peter Carsten, located in an underwater cave in Vietnam | 2010
Fig. 2 | The Times
photography, depicting a bombed town centre in Iraq | Medium: Photoshop | N/A
Fig. 3 | Bombed Atlantis |
Medium: Collage Magazine + Photoshop + Screen Print | 2011
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Fig. 4 | Original source of image unknown | Medium: Photoshop | 2012 Fig. 5 | Original National Geographic photograph of tallest tree in the world | 2012 Fig. 6 | Empire Tree | Medium: Collage Magazine + Photoshop + Screen Print | 2012
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The Familiar
A question of Landmark over Location
Through a combination of play and intent, the photographic series below experiments with displacement from traditional location and landmark to see how they react when placed in a new environment or context. Dismissed from afar, the images hold a sense of recognizability due to their global stature, but also an underlying sense of uncanny when the location does not match the historical surroundings traditionally associated with the image. This task was generated from the initial introduction to Photoshop so it therefore acts a personal indication of how my digital design skills have improved since this first attempt but also reminds me of the importance of play when learning. Fig. 2
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Fig. 1 to Fig. 7 | Uncanny Holiday Snaps | Medium: Photoshop | 2012
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Fig. 8 to Fig. 10 | Uncanny Holiday Snaps | Medium: Photoshop | 2012
Public Surveillance
The Space, the Public and the Cameras
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Fig. 4 Fig. 1 to Fig. 4 | Shopping Flow | Medium: Acrylic on Paper | 2013 Fig. 5 | Panopticon Shopping | Medium: Pencil Transfer using Acetone | 2013 Fig. 6 | Escher's Escalators | Medium: Photoshop + Screen Printing | 2013
20% of the world's cameras are in the UK.¹ The UK has less than 1% of the world's population.¹ There is approximately 1 camera for every 12 people. ¹
“Our society is not one of spectacle, but of surveillance… we are neither in the amphitheatre nor on the stage, but in the panoptic machine.” ² Drawing on the theoretical work of Thomas Bentham’s Panopticon Prison, investigating the relation between space, the camera and the public became the drive of this project. As a model recognized globally, the public shopping centre represents a self-contained environment which is closely monitored and generates a tremendous daily footfall. Located in Norwich, the painted views of Chapelfield Shopping Centre imitate the gaze of a CCTV camera. Due to the close proximity of the cameras and the volume of movement they capture, are the cameras invasive or normality? And, under the assumption they are being watched, is the behaviour of the public altered in any way?
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In a direct response to theoretical understandings of Bentham’s prison, the transfer drawing (Fig. 5) demonstrates the level of visibility that can be shown across all levels of the shopping centre. There is also a sense of narrative that starts to appear from this focal point and on reflection, it could have been interesting to explore a stock motion project. Inspired by the architectural stair drawings of M.C Escher, the screen print emulates the confusion created by the vast amount of escalators present in Norwich Castle Mall. Trying to capture this never-ending view, digital manipulation and screen printing were selected as the tools to configure this concept. ¹ L.Smith, (2007) London Evening Standard ² T.Levin, (2001), CTRL: (Rhetorics of surveillance from Bentham to Big Brother) Cambridge Mass: MITpress Fig. 6
Partnered with Norwich Castle Museum, an annual project called Constellations requires students from Norwich University of the Arts to collaborated and produce an exhibition in response to the Museum’s collection. As an extension from the Public Surveillance project, it was proposed to feature CCTV cameras into the final exhibition to create a false sense of value and security. The illusion of value would then be placed upon the objects in which the camera would “monitor,” yet the actual camera itself would be a dummy, to further exaggerate this assumption. With the positioning of the camera show on this page, it was assumed by many of the audience members that the camera had always been there, unable to pin point its exact arrival. From the questions proposed on the previous page, this suggests that cameras have become a part of the Everyday and are universally accepted as normality.
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Fig. 1 to Fig. 7 | Constellations installation view | Medium: X2 Dummy CCTV Cameras | 2013
City of Light
The balance of Utopia and Dystopia
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Fig. 1 + Fig. 3 | Initial Sketch 0.1 | Concept: To produce an interactional cityscape
positioned on a mirrored floor with a mirrored ceiling. This producing a infinity reflection and allowing the audience to walk amongst the installation and engage with it | Medium: Ink Pen + Watercolour Paint | 2014 Fig. 2 + Fig. 4 | Initial Sketch 0.2 | Concept: Architectural exploration | Medium: Ink Pen + Water Colour Paint + Photoshop | 2014 Fig. 5 to Fig. 8 | Initial Sketch 0.3 | Inspired by dystopian and Gothic film sets such as Tim Burton's Batman and Sin City, I tried to emulate this feeling | Medium: Ink Pen | 2014
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Stemming from public surveillance, my research took me in the direction of city infrastructure and the process of city planning. Through this research I became interested in the notion of Utopian architecture and curiosity led to the proposed investigation of “Why does Utopian architecture fail to make the leap from dream to reality?� Wanting to reflect this research in my studio work, the materials of lights and mirrors were selected to produce an installation with an architectural focus. The images shown demonstrate the initial sketches exploring different cityscapes in preparation for the final outcome.
“The mirror has always been regarded as something magical.” Michelangelo Pistoletto | 2012
“A sense of theatre or spectacle has an impact on the audience. The end result is mysterious and seduction.” Jeppe Hein | 2003
“…Entice the viewer so they become a part of the work... as their image is fragmented across the mirrored walls.” Yayoi Kusama | 2007
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The transformational process from sketch to a three dimensional product allowed for a better grasp of the relationship between the space and the materials. In turn, this allowed for a clearer speculation between the narrative between the materials and interaction of the audience. In terms of process and techniques, by scratching away the silvering from the back of the mirror, natural and artificial light penetrate the marks made and reveal the illuminated city. This illumination in turn produces a cinematic feel to the installation. The freestanding buildings, seen from the previous page, are positioned in front of the backdrop mirror, with the aim of creating a mirrored city for the audience to walk amongst.
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The experimentation with the scale and positioning of elements concluded in removing the foregrounded buildings and to focus on a purer rendition of the concept. By focusing on the background mirror design, this allowed for a greater impact and a harmonious balance in aesthetics.
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Fig. 1 to Fig. 3 | Design Development 0.1 | Intention: To interact with space and arrangement | Medium: X2 Desk Lamps + Fairy Lights + X3 A4 Mirrors + Paper Building Props supported by Coloured Straws | 2014 Fig. 4 to Fig. 8 | Design Development 0.2 | Intention: Experiment with scale, material and support | Medium: X4 Desk Lamps + X2 5ft x 1ft Mirrors + 6ft x 5ft foil strips + Hanging Paper Buildings | 2014 Fig. 9 + Fig. 8 | Design Development 0.3 | Intention: Experimenting with the idea of facing mirrors and ways to support the buildings | Medium: X4 A4 Mirrors + x2 Desk Lamps + Paper Building Props supported by Coloured Straws | 2014
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Fig. 1 to Fig. 3 | City in the Dark | Medium: X2 6ft x 4Ft mirrors split into x4 parts + X3 LED Strip Lights + 1 Floor to Ceiling Double Window | 2014
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Showcased in Norwich University of the Arts’ gallery, the installation above uses glass, light and space to create an atmosphere that questions the theme of Utopian and Dystopian architecture. The choice of material also echoes the fragile nature our cities currently worldwide, with the exhibition itself being ephemeral. Created by scratching away the silvering from the back of the mirror, natural and artificial light penetrate the marks made and reveal the illuminated city. Interestingly, the alignment of the mirrors produced an unexpected phenomenon by where the spectator’s own eyes were never reflected back in the mirror. However, when looking into the mirror, you could see the eyes of a spectator standing next to you.
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Thank you for taking the time to look at my work. Alice Galvin alicegalvin@hotmail.com | 07855028911