The Context ​
The context of this project is to respond to and explore the theme 'weather' and make at least one outcome for it. It will then be presented in an exhibition at the college. Whilst this project is being shown I must consider health and safety requirements and ethical and environmental impacts (the work may be displayed for a year). I will begin by responding to my own personal experience with weather through a ‘sketchbook challenge’ and then explore the theme more thoroughly, relating it to my own interests.​
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The specialist pathways I want to explore in this project are illustration, set-design and animation. I am not sure what area I want to focus on yet, but exploring these will allow me to find out what I'm good at.
I am extremally interested in how the Vikings used to view weather as the work of their gods. I want to explore that because I am fascinated by Vikings and Norse mythology in film, tv and comics. I will approach the problem with extensive research and idea development to build a strong foundation for my work.
The Requirements
The deadline for this project is 27/05/22. The audience that will be viewing the work are part of the college community. My main age range will be between 16-30. I will cater to the people of the college who are interested in historical events, mythology and fantasy. Because of my chosen specialist pathways, I will create a scene, photograph it and edit it on Photoshop. My work will be printed onto a large piece of foam board. The work will be displayed on a wall for the entire college to see. I have decided to display it like this after looking into Jack Kirby's exhibition and how his work is displayed on white walls.
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The Research Plan
I will use primary research to support, inform and develop my ideas. I have visited two museums in London on a trip. I found different textures in the Design Museum that I could use to inform my work and use some of these textures to produce different outcomes.
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Secondary research methods that I will use to add depth to my understanding of the theme is that I've been looking into different Norse legends and decided which I wanted to base my work on. Thor will be a massive part of my work so I have also been reading Thor comics to see how he's shown as a hero and not just a god. I have also been watching a lot of Norse related media such as the Northman and Vikings, particularly how weather is presented in them.
I will use the work of others to support my work by taking parts of their visual language and styles and incorporating it into my work. This will keep my own original ideas, yet it will show how I have come to start these initial ideas. Artists like Olaf Magnus is a woodcut artist who's work I find interesting; it is also historical and links very well to my project.
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I will consider the ethical issue of copyright. I cannot copy other artists' work directly. I may take inspiration from artists but I don't want to be derivate. I also have to consider an environmental issue. The Vikings witnessed climate change which may have inspired a myth called Ragnarok. My work explores weather in Norse mythology. I want to show that climate change has always been and continues to be a threat to everyday life.
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The Initial Ideas
The purpose/aim of my artwork is to teach people the history of the Nordic gods and encourage people to look into the Vikings and appreciate how they shaped the world we live in today. The work will respond well to the theme weather and successfully link the Nordic weather gods to to the theme.
I will generate initial ideas by using collage and sketches to create characters. I will continue to do this with multiple characters and creatures I intend to use in my project until I have original designs. The materials I intend to use are cardboard, paper, and other smaller materials to build scenes from the myths and legends of the Vikings. I will also use foam board to display my project. I will explore the use of ink in my work and use ink to add colour to my work.​
The techniques and processes I will start with are creating the characters, props and scenery then use a camera to take multiple photographs until I have created a stop-motion animation. I will then put this into a video editing app like Premiere Pro and stick everything together. I will also take photographs of my cinematic Norse models and will Photoshop the photograph and print it onto foam board.
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Evaluation and Planning
I will record my reflective practice by doing a weekly review on what I have done during the week. I will achieve my aims by focusing on one thing at a time then recording it in on my Wix. I will evaluate my work by discussing and showing everything I have done and how I can improve.