#the feeling of real wood and stone and clay around me instead of plastic

[butts-bouncing-on-the-beltway]

Honestly, there's still a lot of things to do around the house before I'm happy with how things are, but improvements are being made, slowly but surely.

My hope is that every step forward makes the next easier. Having the supplies to make our own laundry powder is a big one. I suspect the next will be eliminating our reliance on paper towels and toilet paper (bidet and knitted woolen scrubby cloths ahoy I guess). I also want to make myself a woolen knit wrapped chainmail scrubby for cleaning with. So much easier to wash down the counters and appliances with that then paper towels or cleaning rags. Maybe I'll even get fancy and make myself mopping slippers out of a pair of those panels. I would love to be able to finally abandon the mop and bucket approach.

[bertiebrocki]

British Museum

It was really fun going to the British Museum as I got to see different sculptures and artefacts from throughout time up close. There is Definitely a difference seeing something in real life compared to on a screen. The art definitely shared similarities to the primitive theme of the brief with it’s simple resources and look.  

Assyrian Friezes

We started off in the Egyptian era of art which used a lot of primitive materials such limestone and sandstone. I was amazed by the large Phoenix which had the head of a human and body of a lion. Even though it’s quite a hard material the use of texture makes the stone look quite alien with it’s boned tubed legs. The hair looks plated with half circles that give the illusion that the hair is long and  flowing beside the face. Opposite from the phoenix was a statue of a goat,  fur is normally quite hard to convey in art but with a simple triangle it looked like it had  fur. 

Throughout the museum I made sure to draw what I saw. When doing observational drawing it allows you to focus more on what you are seeing, You definitely notice more details than if you looked at a glimpse. You got a reference to look back on in your book and by drawing what was around me it helps inspire develop ideas of your own. 

There was a room full of Assyrian friezes which were put in the throne room in what would be today modern day Iraq , the sculptures kept in a cool room to help preserve them. They are very old and fragile so they could break easily in room temperature. I enjoyed looking at the images of battles and people working. Although some use very basic shapes for bodys for example a triangle for a robe, it gives the impression of what it’s trying to represent. They are like the first comic books but instead of a piece of paper with panels they are carved images in limestone walls. 

The Hindu God Shiva 

After I had a look around the Egyptian section of the museum I went to see the Indian art which is also related to the primitive theme. I was fascinated by the many religious statues. One of the ones which I recognised was the Hindu God Shiva appears as the Lord of the dance Nataraja, in a ring of fire. This is one of the principal deities Hinduism made of copper alloy which has verdigris from oxidation. 

It is intended to be movable. That is why it is smaller in size and has a circular base for lifting and placing on the shoulder. It would be used in parades with priests chanting prayers and blessings. It is encased in a circle of fire representing the cosmic circle of fire a continuous creation destruction of the universe. It is a cosmos of mass, time and space. 

It’s appeal to me is it’s complex hidden meaning, it is easy to see it as a decorative statue but it is much more than that. It is like it is telling a story through shapes and symbolic meaning. Although my pollution concept is very different I feel the use of meaningful objects can make my dharma stand out. This would definitely get my message across to the viewer. 

Guardian Lion carved in limestone

The Guardian Lion were placed in front of temples or palaces to protect the buildings. Usually in twos, typically in a seated position with bulging eyes and a gaping mouth. This gives a sense of majesty and awe showing strength, power and a sense of courage.

The concept of Lion Guardians was prevalent all over West Asia, Greece and Egypt. The Lion like many symbolic images continues over many years and cultures. I have learned that sometimes meanings of objects can be widely interpreted everywhere and without written

 explanation it still conveys to all its message. I can see that part of designing a sculpture is understanding that the audience needs to read these clues and come up with their own conclusion and understanding.

Making a bowl 

To make a bowl I first rolled out the clay to an even thickness and layed it over my bowl shaped mold. I needed to gently ease the clay into shape over the mold and finally cut the excess off at the bottom rim. I was very inspired by the fish patterns I saw on the Assyrian Friezes and decided to add fish to my bowl. It related to my diorama theme of pollution and was a good way of testing a new medium.  It was important to leave it in wrapped up in plastic afterwards so it didn’t dry up. When I came back to my bowl on Wednesday I tipped it out of its mould with a piece of wood underneath so it doesn’t damage the table.