Quilt Museum

In the first week of Easter I went to visit the Quilt Museum in York. I really enjoyed my visit and found the work of Jannice Gunner really inspiring. I really liked her combination of techniques and colour that really made her work stad out amongst the other more traditional log cabin pieces.

I also really enjoyed the contemporary quilt exhabition which gave me lots of ideas for using different techniques to create different affects.

http://www.quiltmuseum.org.uk/exhibitions/archives/cabin-fever-log-cabin-quilts.html

London Trip

I really enjoyed our class trip to London! I found the quilt exhibition in the Somerset House not too useful as the exhibition was very denim based and so was all a bit monotone in colour for me. Although it was nice to see quilts being displayed in a gallery context instead of interior design.

However I loved visiting all the different fabric shops between Soho and China town, the variety was fantastic although a little pricey. Finally I really enjoyed having a good rummage around Liberty. I found loads of inspiring materials and it was very comforting to see the kind of job prospects the future holds.

Investigation - Samples

I have learnt a few new techniques this week which have been good fun.

I have learnt Kantha stitching, which although time consuming, I think gives a very nice effect especially when using  some of the more colourful threads. Most of the other girls in the group opted to use plain fabric to stitch into, but I felt this checkered fabric gave me a geometric advantage.

This sample is an experiment using a see through front fabric, inserting ribbons and cord and experimenting with using ribbon as thread. I love the variety of colours in this sample and the idea of using some thing a little different to sew with. 

This sample is just simple bead work, I have chosen to use a fabric that has an opaque pattern with a transparent negative pattern and decided to experiment with wadding by knitting a bright pink middle layer. The beads really remind me of the little lights that light up fairground rides and I think the two contrasting colours really work.

Refining Research

Inspired by the visit to Blackpool Pleasure Beach and other research on Belle Vue, I decided to do some drawings and collage in order to engage with colour, proportion and pattern.

I have really enjoyed using such a vibrant colour pallette. I feel this fairground topic will really let me experiment with bold uses of colour which I usually like to use. I also feel like there are plenty of exciting shapes to work with that I hope to incorperate into my work.

I've also explored some of the textures found in my photos of the costume department at Blackpool Pleasure Beach, I was absolutely fascinated by all of the costumes and the amazing combinations of  fabrics and textures used.

I am really looking forward to learning the techniques to help turn this research into some interesting samples.

Blackpool Pleasure Beach

Blackpool Pleasure Beach opened in 1896, founded by William G Bean. Having survived financial hardships such as the 'package holiday' that took away their custom, Blackpool Pleasure Beach is still a successful fairground today.
Although they still have their oldest ride from 1904, they are constantly updating their rollercoasters in order to maintain a modern and thrilling park. For example the 'Thrill-o-matic' is a new Wallace and Gromit ride in the all new Nickelodeon Kid's Park.
The photographs I have chosen show my appreciation for the composition, signs for rides and patterns found in the fairground.

Black Pool Pleasure Beach - Costume Archive

Being given the chance to see the Blackpool Pleasure Beach Costume Archive was an amazing opportunity and provided plenty of inspiration for colour combinations and extravagance that I may want to use in my work.
The archive holds over 10000 costumes made for circus performers, ice skaters and burlesque shows held in Blackpool but also worldwide. There were some incredible one off costumes made to order, alongside mass produced costumes for shows. Within all the costumes there was a fantastic use of colour, feathers, sequins and ribbons.
We also got to see the workshop where the costumes were made and it held the most brilliant collection of fabrics, lace, beads, and much more.

Belle Vue Archive and Exhibition Visit

I found many interesting items at the Chetham Library Archive that tell us a lot of interesting information about Belle Vue.

These are some images advertising the zoo. Belle Vue originally opened as a Zoo with gardens until the 1920s when it was turned into a fairground. The zoo was a massive attraction, displaying lots of unnusual animals that people in the 1800s wouldn't otherwise get much chance of seeing. Unfortunately, the way they treated animals was without sentiment or care, often purchasing animals only for the season. This meant that animals had very short life span, the oldest being a chimp called Consul who lived to five years of age before dying and being replaced by Consul II.

Belle-Vue was also home to an elephant who was walked all the way from Edinburgh to Manchester to avoid it suffering cramped conditions in a train carriage.