21.12.07 - Still juggling!

I returned to college on Monday this week as Michel from the French company was arriving at 8.00am on Tuesday morning. He came over to bring some equipment and materials and to demonstrate the infiltration process.
Alastair had completed a second tureen base, so I now had one set, plus a tureen with thin handles. The equipment was set up in the cold glass workshop, first experimenting on some test pieces of tureen. By the end of the day all was infiltrated, cured with the UV lamp and dried in the oven, or so I thought.
I carefully packed the two pieces and took them to Paris by Eurostar the following day. When Michel inspected the pieces he thought that they should have been cured and dried in the oven for longer. There were tell-tale blotchy patches which show the uneven curing. Michel had made a second lid for me, so in theory I have two tureens.
The day in Paris was spent making some tests for the black ceramic topcoat. Michel also proposed to make another tureen on their Z Corp machine using 131 powder as it is stronger than the 130 that College uses. It was decided to produce it in black to make the application of the topcoat far easier.
The following day I brought the test samples into College and compared them to a Wedgwood artists proof of an Eduardo Paolozzi Newton sculpture that is in the office. Surprisingly the colour that I thought would be the closest was far too dark, an iron oxide stain being far closer. I photographed the samples against the sculpture and emailed them to Gilles who planned to make up the colour in the lab and send me the results over Christmas.
The next stage will be to return to Paris to collect the pieces some time in January.

Meanwhile, I also had to think about the main project - the M.Phil. Whilst I was in Paris the slip from Ideal Standard arrived, so on Thursday I set up a frame on which to place the mould for casting. The mould is large and heavy, heavier still when full of slip, so I need to be able to turn it over for emptying without the need to lift. The system works well, but the first cast imploded as part of the cast stuck to the mould when I was separating the two halves. The first cast is normally scrapped as it cleans the surface of the mould, for the second cast on Friday I decide to cast the piece slightly thinner, leave it in the mould to dry for longer and to lift off the other side of the mould which may be less likely to stick. As I write this the cast is still in the mould.

It's now 3.00 pm and the cast has been successfully removed from the mould. It looks OK and I'm optimistic about taking further casts as they should come out more easily.

Happy Christmas.

14.12.07 - End of term juggling

Last weekend was spent finishing off the design presentation for my RSA Design Directions, Ceramic Futures competition entry, the deadline for which is today.
I decided to document the project as a blog, reflecting the fact that the project use digital technology [rapid prototyping] and unconventional ceramic materials.
After returning to College on Tuesday, I went up to RapidformRCA to check on the progress of the build. A test piece had come through but was extremely fragile; one handle had broken, but the piece looked amazing. The next stage was for Alastair, the technician who has been assisting me on this project to strengthen the weak points in the FreeForm software and then have another go at building the piece on the Z Corp RP machine.
Meanwhile, I was also busy chasing the Ideal Standard slip that I’m planning to use to cast my torus form.

On Wednesday I had a tutorial with Martin Smith, primarily to discuss the section of the thesis on Perception that I recently wrote. Comments were positive, with some suggestions about topics that I need to develop or add.
He also said that I should work out what practical work is to be produced for the examination. I mistakenly thought that I had longer to produce those. So the pressure is on.

Over the Christmas period I need to start writing the Context section of the thesis, looking at artists who are exploring similar themes. Most of the work that resonates with me is non-ceramic, which Martin thinks is a problem as the project is rooted in the ceramic medium. I’m not sure how to deal with his own work and need to look more closely at whether should be a candidate for inclusion.

The rest of the week was spent organising my trip to Paris next Wednesday, and liaising with Michel, who is coming over from Paris on Tuesday to bring the equipment that RapidformRCA have ordered and to work on my piece. I have been anxious that the Wedgwoddn’t piece might not be ready in time and couldn’t keep hassling Alastair, as he has plenty of other tasks to be getting on with in the College.

Thursday evening was the department Christmas party, which apparently lived up to its long held reputation; so much that College insisted that we have a security guard!
I thought things would be quiet when I arrived in College on Friday morning but the place was awash with water, plumbers and cleaners. The radiator in the technicians room had burst at 4.00am flooding the glass workshops, clay store, corridor and research area with steaming black water. I helped to get the place straight and 90 minutes later it didn’t look so bad. However, the real damage had been done down below in the research offices.

The rest of Friday was spent trying not to check on Alastair and start thinking about the work I need to produce.

07.12.07 - Ceramic Futures & the Future of Ceramics

The RSA project has been the focus this week, though on Monday I drove through very heavy rain to the Ideal Standard factory at Middlewich. The containers had arrived so we filled 6 of them. I hadn’t realised that they would be so heavy, but the slip is 1.9 kilos per litre so one container weighs about 40 kilos.

On Tuesday I arrived at College to Tavs Jorgensen enthusing about the lid of my Wedgwoodnt tureen. I rushed upstairs to Rapidform feeling like Christmas had arrived early! The lid, had turned out really well, far more beautiful than I expected. Alastair was finishing the preparation of the base section on Freeform software though his time is spent juggling other projects as well.

On Tuesday afternoon I had a meeting with Jeremy Myerson in Innovation for advice on the questions that should be asked at Wednesday’s meeting with the French company. He gave me a list of very practical points to clarify. I also asked about how Research Associate positions operate within the College. He mentioned Innovation Fellowships where sponsorship comes from various sources for the project. In this case there would be the French, possibly someone from within the industry here, made {DTI] and possibly the London Design Festival. I need the backing of the Ceramics & Glass department as the project would be based there and there may be some cost implications. Martin is interested in the materials, but needs to know more before committing himself.

Wednesday’s meeting with the French company to arrange collaboration went very well. Both parties are enthusiastic about working together. There will have to be a non-disclosure agreement between College and the company as some of the materials are still in development and haven’t been patented yet. This may need to be mutual in case the RCA develop new applications or products.

Martin Watmough from Rapidform kindly invited me to a meeting with Robin Levien and his team on Friday. They were over at College to discuss Rapid Manufacture, Martin giving them a tour and talking them through the various systems. It was a great opportunity for me to talk about the French ceramic materials and their potential. There was a bit of a disagreement about just how revolutionary they are and whether they are truly ceramic, according to the definition of ceramic [made of clay and irreversibly hardened by heat]. That seemed to pass and when I mentioned my interest in an Innovation Fellowship he offered to be the Industrial partner. For me, that is a very important part of the jigsaw.

In the afternoon, Grace came down from Middlesex University and after having a look round the C & G Work in Progress show we went over to the Serpentine Gallery where there is a stunning show of light installations by Anthony McCall. They are computer programmed moving images of lines and wave patterns projected through smoke. The effect is mesmerising, the light appears as gossamer thin material that you can walk through and engage with. Each viewpoint gives a different perspective, looking from within a shape is quite different from observing from outside. We were both stunned by the magic and beauty of the art. I need to go again, now that I know what to expect and be more analytical. Maybe the exhibition would make a good topic for a research seminar meeting.

30.11.07

It was another busy week of juggling my main project and the RSA Ceramic Futures entry.

In addition the Ceramics and Glass department is holding the Work in Progress show. Tensions mounted at one point, but the show looks great, the bonus this year being the inclusion of the First Years. They have completed one 7-week project and the results are very accomplished.
I was disappointed with the last couple of kiln firings; the black glaze is too thin, uneven or blistered. At home things haven’t been any better as most of the work has cracked!

The RSA entry has taken quite a few hours work, partly refining the design to help Alastair in RapidformRCA to be able to apply the texture. I had been thinking about how to submit the design work to the RSA, the guidelines suggest sketchbook, mounting work on A3 board etc. but that doesn’t appeal. The project is all about the application of new technology and innovative materials, so I wanted to reflect this approach in the supporting material. I have decided to present it as a blog- http://www.wedgwoodnt.blogspot.com
that I can print off sections from as necessary. It can also be put onto CD that I hope will be interactive.

My torus mould has been sat gathering dust since it was made. I was away in France, and then my contact at Ideal Standard has been on holiday. In addition I had some trouble finding plastic containers for the fireclay slip. They should now have been delivered so I plan to go to the factory next Monday.

I have also managed to continue writing my essay on perception, just over 2000 words so far and not finished. I must canvas the opinions of some of my fellow researchers.

I have missed a few potentially interesting lectures at College and there are one or two exhibitions that I must see. However well organised I try to be, there never seem to be enough hours in the week.