Smoke photography.

I decided to try and photograph smoke and develop a starting point for my practical from this. I don't think I realised how difficult that this would actually be.

I set up a mini-studio situation in my living area, providing a dark backdrop and angular lighting. I decided to use an insense stick as this provides constant plumes of smoke that are quite thick, much thicker than the smoke that is created when blowing out a matchstick or candle.

Technically, the photographs were difficult to capture for a number of reasons. The constant movement of the plumes of smoke meant that a fast shutter speed needed to be set on my DSLR. Aperture also needed to be adjusted accordingly. For a full breakdown of technique, see technical file.

I also discovered that by refrigerating a glass and allowing the smoke to fill it, it thickens it dramatically, giving it a viscous liquid appearance that is easier to photograph and is much more dramatic and obvious, perhaps not the right look if I want a more subtle photograph.

What am I protecting the people from?

I decided to look at the gas mask previously as it is a traditionally tried and tested method of protecting the wearer from smoke and poisonous gas.

I envisage a world that is enveloped in chemical war and that protection must be provided for this. This has been a catalyst for the beginning of my practical work and I felt that an appropriate starting point was to look at smoke.

Face coverings in fashion

Maison Martin Margiela Couture.

I have already looked into the functionality of protective wear, but now I wanted to look into examples in fashion that offer a decorative view of 'protection'.

The image (left) shows a decorative head piece that featured in Maison Martin Margiela's Couture show. The decorative and elaborate detail on the piece are both bright and beautiful. The use of colour and scale is very impressive, especially when you consider that the entire piece was constructed by hand. I am aware that the piece is not providing any actual protection, however I feel as though this is a prime example of the type of protective wear that my 'TomorrowCulture' would like to wear, rather than the traditional, generic and rather ugly protective wear that is currently available.

The image (above) also shows another contemporary example of facial protection. The Givenchy S/S14 show saw a selection of the models in glimmering face masks, complimenting the opulent aura of the garments.

Style vs Function

I also felt that it was important to address the style vs function debate that has arisen when developing my context. This idea came to me after visiting the Miles Aldridge exhibition at Somerset House, London (see blog post).

I felt that the gas mask was a good place to explore this topic and decided to look at the traditional and functional gas mask and compare it to other variations that can be found in art and fashion.

The image (left) shows the German World War II gas mask that was widely distributed to both soldiers and civilians. The glass eyes and rubber shell provided a level of protection and respiration against chemical gas attacks that were a regular happening throughout the war.

I then tried to find a stylised version of the traditional gas mask and then discovered the "Mickey Mouse Mask" that was designed and manufactured for children to wear during the war.
I feel that this particular mask shows that functionality can be retained and left uncompromised, whilst being aesthetically pleasing and quite dramatically different to the traditional mask that can be seen above. I want the work that I create to be functional and provide protection, but I want the audience to WANT to wear the gear, not just because they have to.

The Plague Doctor's mask.

I decided to look at protective wear through time as a starting point.

In the 17th and 18th Century, this beak-like mask was worn in order to protect the doctor from contracting the plague whilst treating ill patients.

The beak like tip of the mask was traditionally filled with dried lavender, mint or rose petals in order to "get rid of the bad smells".

I find the shape of the quite eerie but the function has over ridden the style of the shape, but the dark theme of the plague marries well with the disturbing appearance of the mask.

The materials are also something of interest; leather, glass and metallic studding. I may also look at the stitching of the leather and the techniques used, as they must have been particularly strong structures in order to protect the wearer.

My 'TomorrowCulture'

I have decided to create my own world that I need to create a range of textiles to sit within. I feel as though this is giving my work context, even before I have created any practical work at all, which is a positive way to start the unit.

I have decided that tomorrow will be bleak. In a world of consumerism and wastefulness, pollution is at an all time high. Smog, acid rain and a darkened sky are an every day event. As a planet, we are on the brink of chemical war, think Syria. We are becoming increasingly image conscious yet have to protect ourselves from the situations that we have created for ourselves as a society- so how am I going to tackle this?

I plan on developing a range of protective textiles that will allow the wearer to feel stylish but does not compromise against its ultimate function of protection.

I plan on looking at examples of protective clothing that are already broadly in use and filtering out what I feel would be relevant to my own world. This may be the fabrics and materials, the techniques used or simply the shapes or function of the pieces.

Intentions- initial thoughts.

I have started the new unit by deciding that knit would be the discipline that I will be specialising in. I feel that knit is the discipline that I enjoyed most during first year and I feel as though my ideas can be translated into knit with ease.

I read all of the extended versions of the briefs and decided that the 'FuturePast' brief would limit me and would not suit my way of working as I do not feel that looking at pre-existing textiles to generate new work will advantage me at all.

After eliminating that option, I then decided that I was going to look at the 'TomorrowCulture' brief. I feel that this brief will push me further than any of the others and it was the one that automatically made the little cogs in my head go round. I find the idea of trend forecasting and predicting what we as a society will need really interesting. I also feel that this may mean that I need to create some form of scenario or narrative in order to generate ideas to satisfy the people in my 'TomorrowCulture' world.