Jess' Art Blog

Website Analysis: Mary Lloyd Jones

Wed, 15 May 2013 20:57:58 +0100

My tutor suggested that I make my analysis posts less personal, so I decided to write a new one in addition to the ones that I have already completed. This one is about the website of an artist I have used in my secondary research, so it is also more relevant to my practice.

When first visiting Mary Lloyd Jones’ website, you are given the option to view pages of her website in either English or Welsh. This is a good idea because much of her work focuses on welsh heritage and the welsh language, so her target audience would probably be able to make use of both languages and putting both on her websites allows for it to be more inclusive. ((Having other languages as well as welsh would be even more helpful, but I understand that this would be difficult.))

The images used on the website display her work well, as they are high quality photographs with vibrant colours.

There are also images of the artist at work, and her explanations of her practice, which is nice, because it allows the visitor of the website to learn a bit more about how she creates her work, and what she is trying to achieve. This allows them to understand it more fully.

The menu bar is easily located at the top of the page, which means that the website is very user friendly, and easy to navigate.

Evalutation of my use of my online journal.

Wed, 15 May 2013 20:49:04 +0100

I have quite enjoyed using Tumblr as a place to share my work with people. I spend a lot of my time browsing the internet, so it is more convenient for me to just post an image here than it is to put it into a Word document, resize as necessary, print it out, cut it to size, stick it in my book, and then write about it by hand.

It’s also easier to go back and edit posts if you would like to add some extra information or alter what you have already posted in some way.

I have also enjoyed seeing what other people are getting up to for the course, as it has allowed us to communicate with each other in regards to artists that might be useful for us to research, or helpful tips on how problems we have faced could be solved. It is nice to see when you classmates ‘like’ you work on tumblr, because often we don’t get to discuss this as much while in the studio.

I will definitely continue to use my online journal after this module is over; the content will probably change slightly, as I don’t think that website critiques need to be read by anyone but myself and my tutor, but I do like to share pictures and information from my practice.

Another edited picture. This time it’s of my father. I...

Wed, 15 May 2013 19:44:06 +0100

Another edited picture. This time it’s of my father. I created the patch because this photo was one of the ones people seemed to like the most; they called it striking ((much to my Dad’s delight)) and pointed out how alike we look.

I used grease proof paper instead of fabric in this to try and start experimenting with more materials; it’s only a small jump, but I like how the paper looks old and rustic because of the colour.

I left out his face as a form of transformation to try and make my family history project easier for other people to relate to. I also think this adds to how striking it does look - because it makes his eyes the prominent feature.

To edit the photo, I cleaned up the background, altered the levels, and then boosted the saturation of the yellow thread slightly.

Here is yet another photo enhancement. This one is of my final...

Wed, 15 May 2013 19:07:37 +0100

Here is yet another photo enhancement. This one is of my final piece. To improve this photograph I cropped the image, removed paint marks and blue tack stains from the wall, and altered the levels.

This is the photo enhancement that I think has been the most successful; this was probably because I had tried to display the work well in the first place. The previous images had thumb tacks in them, and dangling threads, which made them look messy. This one is much better presented.

Here is another enhanced image. For this one I cleared some...

Wed, 15 May 2013 19:04:12 +0100

Here is another enhanced image. For this one I cleared some clutter from the background and altered the levels. I also straightened the edge of the patch.

This was one of my attempts at a solvent lift. For some reason, it didn’t work very well, despite the fact I tried multiple solvents, multiple methods of applying the solvent, and used rollers to try and make the transfer.

Mary Lloyd Jones - Scarred Land, dyes on calico, 1990, 3’...

Thu, 09 May 2013 12:08:00 +0100

Mary Lloyd Jones - Scarred Land, dyes on calico, 1990, 3’ x 6’.

I chose to include this work by Mary Lloyd Jones because I was interested to look at welsh artists using stitch. I find the bright colours really aesthetically pleasing, and the red mark on the left hand side intrigues me because it’s difficult to tell what it has been made with - dye, ink, something else? ((Edit: Clue is in her labelling, though. Doh!))

The texture is also interesting, because there are lots of layers and rough edges.

I thought it might be a good idea to include landscapes in my own work, as there are similarities between the landscapes in Wales and Somerset, which are the two places my family has originated from.

These photos show some editing work I have done in Photoshop, to...

Thu, 09 May 2013 11:48:00 +0100

These photos show some editing work I have done in Photoshop, to improve the appearance of photographs of my work. I still need a lot of practise in this, but hopefully you can see the difference between the two images.

The changes are small, but I have removed a mark off the wall, and also the top edge of another patch of my quilt that you can see below this one. I also edited the levels and colours of the image slightly, to try and improve the contrast, and also make the image look more vibrant.

This patch depicts the shop owned by my great-great-grandmother, as I found out in the 1911 census record for her family. I am quite proud of her for having her own business, considering traditional gender roles of that period; her husband was still alive and working while she ran the shop, so they seem like a hard working family in general.

I am happy with the aesthetics of this patch, and am hoping to develop my work to contain more layering of fabrics like this.

museumuesum: Vitas Luckus It seems nobody of them to be alive...

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 12:00:50 +0100

museumuesum:

Vitas Luckus

It seems nobody of them to be alive now, 1980

toned gelatin silver print

I chose to reblog this image because it shows how photographs can be altered to make something new. This is relevant to my work as it has been suggested that the photographs I have been using of my family could be transformed in order to make my project more relatable for other people.

I think I prefer this work to the previous one posted, as the multiple pictures create more of a narrative, which I find interesting. I think this is useful, especially considering my project is based around history, which is basically one big narrative.

museumuesum: Hans-Peter Feldmann Lovers, 2008 gelatin silver...

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 12:01:06 +0100

museumuesum:

Hans-Peter Feldmann

Lovers, 2008

gelatin silver print, 16 1/2 x 11 3/4 inches

benppollack: The Quilt Returns to Washington The Names Project...

Fri, 26 Apr 2013 12:00:00 +0100

benppollack:

The Quilt Returns to Washington

The Names Project will show the entire AIDS Memorial Quilt in Washington from July 21 to 25

I reblogged this image after my tutor told me about the AIDS Memorial Quilt in relation to my project, as I am also working on a quilt based on my family history.

I liked this image because it shows the quilt in its entirety, but I also think it would be useful to look at the individual patches as well.

ibelongtotheblankgeneration: christian boltanski

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 12:01:04 +0100

ibelongtotheblankgeneration:

christian boltanski

Last week we had a photography workshop, and for this module we...

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 12:00:22 +0100

Last week we had a photography workshop, and for this module we have been asked to include photographs of what we took during that morning. Most of my photos were of other people’s work, or other people’s faces, which I am a bit wary of posting, but here is a photograph I took using the techniques we were taught about during that session.

This is a very rough, very inaccurate WIP of Cymmer Colliery. I have included this in my project work ((based on family history)) as, according to some information given to be by my cousin, my great-grandfather was injured while working as a traffic manager in this colliery.

Website Analysis: Virginia Graham

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 11:31:28 +0100

As part of my university degree I am required to analyse the websites of other artists and art projects in order to improve my own web presence. I plan to be critical in these posts, but I wanted to put a disclaimer in here that even if I say something negative about the website, I still know that the design is still a lot more professional than I would be capable of doing right now; I don’t want to insult the designer, I just need to give my honest opinion for my course.

The second website that I will be looking at for my course is Virginia Graham’s website.

My first response to her website is that it is very feminine in terms of pattern and colour; the font has lots of decorative swirls, and the colour theme includes creams and different shades of pink. I assume this means that her target audience are females, but I think it is a bit limiting to design websites in a stereotypically feminine or masculine way, because this excludes 50% ((give or take)) of the population. I know, realistically, something like this isn’t really going to put people off the website - I doubt people will care what colour her background is, when they visited the website to view her work - but for me, gender neutral designs are preferable.

As with the PostSecret website, which was the last one I reviewed, the layout of this website is also quite simple. There is a little note at the bottom of the page saying that it was created using a site builder. Personally, I think this is fine, because she has customised the design, and again, I think the work is more important than the layout, really, but some people might consider this to be unprofessional.

The banner at the top of the page is also a little bit pixelated.

However, despite these criticisms, I do think the website is very nicely co-ordinated. I can understand why she has gone for the girly aesthetics, because her ceramic work, for the most part, is the same; lots of pinks and florals again. ((I do like shabby chic things.))

The photographs of her work is all of a good quality, and displays the work well. I like how it looks very clean, all with white backgrounds, and with the content box of her website being white also, this all works very well together.

The organisation of her website is also impeccable; all the pages can be easily found because she has a nice, easy to use menu on the side of the page, and the content within these pages is organised well, too. As I said on my analysis of PostSecret, I find that justified text is a lot more aesthetically pleasing than regular paragraphs, and although Virginia’s website does not have justified text, I like how the right-aligned text works with her website, because there is a nice straight line running down the side of her page next to her photographs, so the area of white space between the text and the photos is parallel all the way down.

Overall, I think the website is very well laid out; there may be small flaws in the banner of the page, but aesthetics are all about personal opinion, and as long as a website is well organised and easy to use, I can look past the way it looks. ((That is, as long as it isn’t covered in colours so bright they bring on headaches!))

demaupin: Christian Boltanski, Sans Souci, 1991 “I made a book...

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 12:00:40 +0100

demaupin:

Christian Boltanski, Sans Souci, 1991

“I made a book four or five years ago called Sans Souci. It’s a photo album which I bought at a flea market in Berlin. Some of these nice-looking people became Nazis. We see Christmas trees, music, babies: they were just like us. If the monster had been different from us, it would have been easier to deal with. But it was us. I did this book when I was in America, just after the Gulf War. I remember watching television and seeing the pilots returning from the Middle East; they were so young and sweet, kissing their girlfriends and babies, yet only the day before they had been killing women and children. It’s a book with no text, but if you ‘read’ it, it leaves you with a question. Perhaps this is a question about whether one is guilty or not guilty. About being a victim or a criminal - or both.” -Christian Boltanski

(quote from the book ‘Christian Boltanski’, part of the Phaidon Contemporary Artists series)

magical-vagina: Material Possesion (by Lissy Elle Laricchia)

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 12:01:03 +0100

magical-vagina:

Material Possesion (by Lissy Elle Laricchia)

Photo

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 12:00:40 +0100

Website Analysis: PostSecret

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 21:55:46 +0100

The first website I chose to write about is the PostSecret website. This was an example given to us by our tutor, and it seemed as good a place to start as any, since it is already a website that I am familiar with and have used in the past.

Personally, I don’t find this website to be particularly attractive. The design is simple, and the text is a good size and easy to read, but it’s pretty basic. Personally, I have a thing for justified text, ever since my secondary school art teacher made it mandatory on essays, and ever since then I find lumps and bumps coming out of the side of a paragraph to be slightly unappealing. ((This is the part where I have to go and check whether or not my blog theme is justified, or else look like a massive hypocrite… I think they are. That is good.))

Saying that, I think the basic “unprettified” blog post look complements the project, too, because most of the postcards submitted are just photographs that someone has written their secret over. There are rarely ones that are flawlessly beautiful, but that works. I think it makes the project more personal to see the range of different styles, and to experience the home-made feel, and so it makes sense for the website to be basic, too - as if it were coded by one of the secret givers.

The logo follows this theme, too. Being that of the name of the project, in handwriting, with slightly worn areas as if a pen were running out. This fits the project well, and is aesthetically pleasing, in a rustic sort of way.

It is hard to choose what the target audience of PostSecret might be. I think it has a very broad audience, because many people have a secret to tell. It’s certainly not aimed at children; some of the secrets aren’t exactly worded for the innocent viewer, and the website couldn’t be less colourful if they tried; but I think it would be correct to say that the website is targeted to every other age group.

I think it’s a shame that past posts are not viewable after they are pushed off the first page, but I understand why this has been done. Or, at least, I think I do. The secrets were submitted to be included in one of the PostSecret books, and if every secret submitted was available easily online, there would be no reason for people to buy the books. Some of the secrets need to be kept private if it is going to be successful in terms of business.

There are lots of helpful links on the website to follow the project on other websites, and to subscribe to the blog. Some of the links are lost within the blog posts, so perhaps it would be better if they were all in the sidebar, but they’re not too hard to find if you skim the page.

I also like that email responses are posted beneath the secrets occasionally. I think this helps to build a sense of community which is a really fun, and really useful tool on the internet. People are more likely to support you if they feel like you respect their opinions and take their thoughts into consideration.

Overall, I think the design of the website it quite boring, but it functions well, and simplicity can be a good thing.

Over the next few weeks...

Thu, 21 Mar 2013 10:55:06 +0000

For my degree course, we have just began our first self directed project.

I have chosen to look at family history, and different ways to display genealogy that are more creative and visually exciting than the traditional family history charts.

Ideally, I would like to incorporate a range of materials and media; especially solvent lifts and stitch, which I began to use in my practice last year but didn’t develop it as much as I would like to.