Frame

Date: November 2019
Material: Photographs digitally drawn over

Manipulated photographs were used to get a better perspective and idea of the scale of bamboo and how to use it appropriately within the environment that it would be used in. With the flexibility of the larger bamboo initially experimented with, it was decided that smaller lengths of bamboo were to be used in a layering manner, such as in Masked Cube. For the sculpture to reflect the shapes of the building, photographs of the inner architecture were taken and then digitally drawn over to gain a sense of scale and shape of the building. From these cubes, cuboids and triangular prisms, several designs for the sculpture were drawn up. Once again taking inspiration from the work of Tulio Pinto, there needed to be a sense of using gravity, tension and the surrounding architecture. Because of the unknown strength or fragility of bamboo, the structure was chosen to be close to a wall for support, whether that be with a nail or to lean against. Going through an awkward space or a doorway was a choice within the design of the sculpture that wanted to be taken forward, much like Imponderabilia by Ulay and Marina. The audience, or participators, had to walk between Ulay and Marina to go through to another part of the exhibition – there was no way of avoiding them, much like what the bamboo sculpture wishes to achieve. It is not until the structure is built that we will know what it will look like and balance like through its own tension and gravity. It is thought that the strength of the bamboo will also hold the plaster natural forms.