Written Proposal

The main objective I have set myself for this project is to conceive, design, and execute a compelling online exhibition showcasing new drawings produced solely for this exhibition. The underlying theme of the exhibition will be strongly feminine but will combine animal imagery to express feeling of nurturing and camouflage. I am interested in the way we effect and are affected by the environment around us as well as the animals that attempt to survive alongside us.

My current interests lie in storytelling and narrative through drawing, usually combining animalistic imagery with nude of almost nude human figures. I am very much inspired by the work of Christina Pettersson and the way she reenacts and recreates well know fairytales and stories, modernizing and personalizing them to reflect her own thoughts and desires. This play with narrative and the way Pettersson takes often child like themes and gives them a sinister and sometimes sexual undercurrent is fascinating to me and I would like to work in a similar way within this project. I will search for inspiration regarding ways of executing and displaying the collection of work I produce specifically for this exhibition. I am motivated by popular culture and communication, which I feel directly relates to the Internet and the way in which I am proposing to exhibit my work. I have decided to work individually and will be undertaking all aspects of organizing the website / blog myself. I have no prior knowledge of setting up or operating webpages so this in itself may be a challenge, but I see the benefits of learning these new skills, as they may be valuable in the future.

My main focus for this elective will be on the production of a new body of work to be displayed in the online exhibition and it is my intention to use the Internet as the main platform for my proposed Exhibition. I will need to research and investigate the most successful way in which I can exhibit the work I produce online. A large part of the blog will be the documentation of the research I undertake relevant to this project, as well as key pieces of information from the Exhibition Elective seminars I attend. I will document research, including photography of exhibitions and the finished body of work, exhibited online for an indefinite period. The Internet is an increasingly accessible and popular tool in self-advertising and promotion. I intend to familiarise myself with blogging sites available online as these are particularly efficient and inexpensive ways of displaying work and encourage feedback or comment – similar to an online crit.  I hope to create a blog that not only shows the final pieces I produce for the exhibition but is an online diary of the progress I have made during the elective. The Internet can be an incredibly useful learning tool and I want to use it and share the information and knowledge I gain with others. The final Exhibition will show the flyers and posters I design to advertise the blog and its address as well as the piece I draw specifically to be exhibited online.

I chose this specific elective to learn as much as I possibly could about how to show work in a public space, either on a small or large scale as well as learning about how galleries are run and the commission they take. I am going to take advantage of all the advice given during the Seminars and set myself a realistic timeline to work within, setting mini deadlines for myself until the February 3^rd hand in. The exhibition will be shown online, accompanied by the research and relevant information from the elective Seminar at the web address, www.friends-in-formaldehyde.blogspot.com that will be active for an indefinite period of time and may even be something I decide to continue with if it proves to be a success.  I hope to use this elective as an opportunity to get my work out into the public domain.