Robot Self Portrait

I drew this to show what a robot modeled off myself would look like in the Kraftwerk style. I really like the mixture of mechanical arms and the realistic head and I think I will follow this idea further.

Life Cast Photo Edits

I particularly liked one of the photographs that was taken whilst I was having my face moulded so I decided to experiment with it in photoshop. I used curves, brightness and contrast and the invert tools to edit these photographs, and although they don't fit in with the robot theme very well I think they look good and they do show the creation of a robot.

Raw Life Cast Plaster Cast

This is my life cast straight from the mold. I need to smooth the back of the head by sanding it and filling any holes with filler. I also need to resculpt one of the ears and dremmel away the closed eyes so I can sculpt open eyes on top.

Life Casting

These are photographs of my life cast being moulded. I used a swimming cap and masking tape to cover my hair and I covered my head in vaseline to make removing the mould easier. I made especially sure that my eyebrows and eyelashes were covered in vaseline so that they wouldn't stick to the alginate. I covered the back of my head in plaster bandage as there is not as much detail to capture. After the many layers have dried we rubbed vaseline on the bandages so that when the two parts of the mould are made they will separate. We then put alginate on my face to capture all the detail and pressed bandages into it whilst it was wet so that the plaster bandages would stick to the alginate. We then covered my face in plaster bandages and when it was dry I removed the mould. I then sealed the mould together and filled it with Crystacal plaster. I had to pull the mould apart to remove the cast.

Statement of Intent

The title of my project is ‘Robots’ and in the project I will be exploring the technological and social issues of advancing technology. I will be thinking about the dangers of advances in technology and its social impact, for example people wanting to replace their own body parts with robotic replacements. I want the end result to be a 3D robot that incorporates electrical components and moving parts.

For my research, I will look at the work of artists such as Nathaniel Mellors,

 H.R.Giger and Ron Mueck as they have all done lots of work with the human form and Nathaniel Mellors and Giger have worked a lot with merging the human form with robotics. One of the things that inspired me to do this project is the robots Kraftwerk use on stage and in their music videos, so I will also research these and create work from them. For primary research I will take photographs of people, electronics, mechanisms and dolls and by combining these elements I can create work based on robots. I could also edit the photographs together into robots in Photoshop to create digital outcomes.

Time Scale

Weeks 1-4: In weeks one to four I plan on gathering all my primary and secondary research, such as photographs, mood boards and artist research. I will also create some work from this research, such as drawings and Photoshop work.

Weeks 2-4: In these weeks I plan on doing media experiments that will be a very important step as I plan on creating 3D work with unusual materials. I will experiment with found electronics, moulding in plaster and alginate and casting in latex and silicon. I will also be creating sculptures with clay, parts of toys and plasticine.

Weeks 5-6: In these weeks I will be doing developmental work such as refining my most successful experiments. This will involve experimenting with composition, scale, positions and context.

Weeks 7-9: These weeks with be spent on creating my final outcome and then evaluating how successful my project was.

To evaluate my project I will think about whether I achieved my intentions and created a successful final piece. I will discuss the successes of my project and also where I could improve. I would also like to gather peer feedback and see the viewer’s reaction to my piece. I will also use annotations in my sketchbook and on my blog to evaluate each piece of work as I work through the project.  All of this will then be wrote into my final evaluation that will summarise my projects journey and its successes and areas for improvement.