For our collaborative project we are creating each a Christmas box that links in with the themes: Christmas, the nutcracker, and Newstead Abbey. I am excited to do this project as we are collaborating with the other stage and screen classes, who will have a completely different way of thinking to me, and so will help me come up with ideas I usually wouldn't come up with.
To start of the project we visited the Abbey to gain inspiration from the actual building itself. As I walked round the Abbey what really caught my eye was all the different patterns I discovered as I walked round, from those on the wall paper, carved into draws, as part of picture frames, and on the ceiling. I was particularly amazed by the intricacy of the carved wooden panels that continued around most of the hall.
To start off working in groups, and to encourage us to be creative we given the opportunity to doodle whilst listening to the nutcracker themes and combine our work together in a group. We were also given a pile of rubbish to recycle into a Christmas scene. I really enjoyed this task as it allowed me not to worry about my final outcome but just to enjoy the process of creating stuff without boundaries. It also helped me get used to working in a group.
After me and my group had decided on the toymaker as our main theme I created a few initial ideas on what my box could be, and discussed these ideas with my group and tutors, so that I would gain a different view and understanding. I knew from the beginning I wanted to have miniature costumes in my piece but was quite sure on how to incorporate them. My original design was to have a dressing up box inside a room, however after talking to my tutor, I decided to have my box as the dressing up box as this meant my costumes weren't contained but could explode out of the box. This would allow my piece to have more movement in it, and gave a new definition to the box.
Ideally I wanted my costumes to look like they were dancing, so I did some quick ink sketches of ballerinas, in order to full understand the position of the body in dance. I enjoyed using ink to do this as its flowing quality helps you catch the movement of the dancers well.
After planning out my idea, I thought it would be best to sketch out the basic idea of the costumes I wanted to make, as this would mean I could collect the right material, and not waste my time trying to come up with ideas on the spot.
Before I started construction I created a model out of card and tape in order to know what size to create my box so I didn't waste materials and also I wanted to check to see if it looked in proportion.
Although I used foam board to create the box I covered the outside of the box in lolly pop sticks so that it would look like a realistic slated wooden box. However, when I had glued all the sticks to the box I realised that the wood looked too pale, and didn't have the antique feel I wanted. To try and rectify this I experimented with staining the wood with tea and coffee, and discovered that layering up tea gave the smoother finish. Before painting it on however, I very slightly dented the wood, using a hammer and a metal sink plug beaded wire. By hitting this all over the wood it allowed me to create small ,and most importantly random, indents in the wood. The tea then soaked in different amounts, causing these indents to stand out and, made the box look more worn . I also lined the inside of the box with a silk lining so that the whole box would be finished neatly. I had many problems over the course of making my box, one of the major ones was the fact that the thin wire, although it gave the impression that the costumes were floating, it wasn't strong enough to hold them up. To resolve this problem I ended up using unbent wire hair grips. These were very robust and I positioned them inside the costumes so they can't be seen. I also pierced one side into the side of the box so it would slot through the wood and into the foam, this meant it would fit the brief as it was required that our boxes are sturdy enough to withstand being moved and around and touched by visitors to the Abbey.
Overall I am very pleased with how my box turned out, I am pleased with the clean finish of the box. However, if I had more time I would add a bit more detail to some of the costumes, especially the ballet dress, and I would also spend more time finishing the edges off each costumes so they look more refined. Unfortunately, I didn't have this time, but I'm pleased with what I managed to achieve in the time.
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