Thinking Large Scale...

I have began experimenting with acetate in order to experiment with the aesthetics of the origami kaleidoscope which would allow for the linear structure to show through the above segments which seems to work well, and in reflection on the previous maquettes, found that the origami kaleidoscope is more achievable on a larger scale which would therefore create more of an impact and take up more physical space. This would then represent the invasion of perception from the kaleidoscope itself into a piece of art, life becomes art and art becomes life.

 

In order to replace the acetate itself and the colours, I have decided to use coloured perspex which is more lightweight than glass and subsequently more manageable which would then allow for the viewer to see through the origami kaleidoscope and see the linear structure and geometric shapes which are characteristically seen within the images displayed in a kaleidoscope.

 

After speaking to a lecturer and showing my several maquettes and ideas for a possible final piece, I was filled with hope that my ideas could potentially be achieved on a large scale (4ftx4ft) with the use of a solid structure for which would represent the sharp folds and lines in my maquettes as well as provide stability to the piece. This will be achieved using 6mm steel rod and welding techniques which will allow the piece to become a solid structure which the perspex will surround. So far, the final piece is under construction and several coloured perspex sheets have been ordered which will be cut to size after the structure is successfully in place.

 

 

6mm steel rod cut to size- 14 were cut to 100cm and bent to a 90 degree angle, once bent the rod was trimmed to achieve 48cm at either side. 7 were then cut to 70cm and trimmed to 64cm to create two right angled triangles.

 

 

 

Before welding the pieces together, a jig was made up allowing each segment to be exactly the same as the last providing efficiency and precision which the piece requires since it has been developed from the origami maquette which requires mathematical accuracy.

 

The rods all set in place ready to be welded together with a tack weld.

 

 

One segment created, 8 more to go...

 

 

 

This is the top half of the piece created after being welded seperately and illustrates the piece upside down.

 

 

 

 

The piece has maintained the shapes seen from the original maquette and this is something I strived to achieve as it mimicks the shapes seen from a kaleidoscope but is brought to life and invades our surroundings through its 3D structure.

 

 

The Origami Kaleidoscope

Moving on from the origami firework design, I decided to explore another method of origami which is actually called the kaleidoscope. This time, I decided to focus fully on the structure of the piece then focus on the colours secondly to ensure that enough experimentation was carried out to deliver the right method of folding and most importantly, that the origami piece is achievable on a larger scale.

 

The fold itself requires precision and accuracy which thankfully, I enjoy doing and feel like I can deliver to produce a higher level of maquette and started off by using plain white card to really emphasize the folds and the transformation of the origami kaleidscope.

 

 

 

 

After a successfull attempt at recreating the origami kaliedoscope, I began experimenting with scale gradually increasing the overall size of the piece itself which is influenced more by the width rather than the height of the paper. The width needs to be 4x the height of the paper in order to create this, then half of the height needs to be folded horizontally, vertically and diagonally.

 

 

Out of the above three transitions successfully achieved through the origami kaliedoscope, I feel the first transition works best visually and would be achievable on a larger scale by focusing on one rotation to capture the essense of making the familiar unfamiliar as we are used to controlling the kaliedoscope to produce eye catching symmetries and designs and by disallowing this, I am ultimately creating an unfamiliar aspect of the kaleidoscope itself. By experimenting with materials, I could potentially create the idea of movement through the ability to see through the structure allowing the sharp lines to transend and project the perception of a kaleidscopic appearance through a focus on linear and geometric shapes alongside the unfamiliar elements of origami and a 3D appearance.

 

The Introduction of Origami

Since my last post I have moved on from experimentation with photography to a 3D based artwork as I continued to explore other ways of achieving the metaphor of a kaleidoscope. Through research, I discovered an origami kaleidoscope method which I found to relate to the idea of a perception through its continuous changing form which adapts due to the intricate folding technique it requires.

After watching various YouTube videos on origami kaleidoscopes, I particularly liked the technique of the origami firework which has the same effect as a kaleidoscope but required a lot of time and preparation of folding in order to achieve it;

 

 

 

 

 

 

I then explored this origami idea on a slightly bigger scale but found that when thinking of how to produce this piece on a bigger scale, the folds are too intricate too recreate on a larger scale to a standard that I would be happy with. In saying this, the colours are intriguing and act as a visual reminder of a kaleidoscope along with the centred star shape which mirrors outwards which is a development upon the kaleidoscope app which I originally started to experiment with. I feel that working in 3D will work better than 2D as we are used to seeing the output of a kaleidoscope as a flat 2D rotational image, therefore by transforming this into 3D, it then impacts our surroundings as well as our sight therefore further defamiliarizing what it originally was while maintaining all that the metaphor represents.

Distorting my Reality further

In my last post I experimented by distorting my surroundings using a reflective stone and since then, I decided that the next stage in my developmental process would be to explore distorting my reality further by defamiliarizing my morning routine instead of my college surroundings. I feel that by exploring this aspect using an app available on Apple's App Store called iBooth would combine the idea of kaleidoscope perception and making the familiar appear unfamiliar by distorting what is familiar to myself as an individual, but completely unfamiliar to a viewer and successfully achieving defamiliarizing whilst combining the aspect of kaleidoscopic perception and removing the automatization of life.

 

For this experiment I downloaded iBooth on the App Store which has a kaleidoscope feature which takes any selected image from your gallery and rearranges the picture into a kaleidoscope arrangement which I found to be quite effective. It allowed you to move and reposition the picture which would in effect create a different appearance dependant upon which section of the picture you were moving.

I decided to take pictures of the following things which occur on a daily basis before i leave to go to college;

• Waking up
• Showering
• Eating Breakfast
• Apply Make up/Fix Hair
• Prepare to leave at 8.30
• Get car keys
• Leave house

The following images are the original images taken in order that they occur;

 

and the following images are the distorted kaleidoscope images which have been manipulated using iBooth and the kaleidoscope feature;

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To an outsider, this would appear to be a series of images all taking on a kaleidoscope appearance but the nature of the images would be unclear and unfamiliar as this is only focusing on altered perception through the metaphor of the kaleidoscope through its appearance. The arbitrary patterns and rotational symmetries represent the reawakening of perception by disorganizing and recomposiing what we see through a distorted sense of reality. I feel that some images work better than others and that is purely down to personal perference and I particularly like the idea of a progression to illustrate an ever changing attitute towards our surroundings that may not be recognizable at first glance. I feel that I have expored this idea to an extent that I am happy with but feel unconfident about its potential to progress using photography and feel that certain aspects can be continued into further development such as the shapes and symmetries within the pictures and the idea of a progression.