GREENWICH

PERSPECTIVES

INTERIM REVIEW

B A B E T T E WH I T

I NG

CONCEPTUAL AND CONTEXTUAL RELEVANCE The wooden forms on the beach at Greenwich have

provided a key source from which the physical elements of my work so far in the project have been derived. Both sometimes jagged, smooth, somewhat feminine forms; essentially worn wooden posts, are littered along the beach. When removed from their location they could be transformed into monolithic forms. Their appearance has been naturally deformed by force exerted on them as a result of the rising and falling of the tides of the Thames. This idea of naturalistic manipulation of materials has fed into consecutive works.

I have also considered the context to facilitate the generation of further ideas. The wooden forms can be presumed to be the remnants of a jetty. On visiting both locations; Trinity Buoy Wharf and The Royal Naval College, a great disparity is apparent. The Royal Naval College with its imposing grandeur while the Wharf in contrast an area of hard labour, working men producing buoys, sea marks, light houses and light ships, however let us not overlook the intensive labour many endured in the building of the Royal Naval College.

This has lead me to consider physical labour and interaction with materials, alongside natural manipulation of natural material (e.g. burning, erosion, etc). In this sense I have been experimenting with sculptural works in plaster, my hands interacting with the clay to produce forms texturally not unlike those on the beach.

IDEA 1 Sculptural forms created by physically scraping out the inside of a large lump of clay,

using no other tools but my hands to create a mold. The outcome is somewhat grotesque, writhing forms with a sense of movement. Potentially an arrangement of many of these forms or a considerably larger scale singular form. (Documentation of experiments so far below).

IDEA 2 More literally interpreting the idea of physical labour

another idea would be castings of hands but distorted in such a way that it suggests movement, somewhat like a Futurist work. (Casts of my own hand below).

IDEA 3 The third idea is essentially a combination of

the two ideas previously proposed. Again a sculptural piece with the gestural qualities shown in the 1st idea alongside the more representative and recognisable casts of hands perhaps emerging from the jostling forms as one piece. A demonstration of movement, interaction with materials and distortion of sensory contact (through the hands) and the world around us. Perhaps alluding to the interaction of mind and body in a dualist sense.

IDEA 4 The idea comes from considering the

history and contexts of both areas, and having seen the array of objects (including many animal bones) washed up on the beach. This coincides with ideas of archeology and he discovery of aged objects. In this way I could present the forms made from plaster as though they were found objects dug up with a sequence of photographs, essentially creating a mock excavation; presenting the pieces as though they would be in a presentation case or museum with pinned labels etc.