Oonagh Devoy
  • Home
  • Masters Works
  • Photography
    • Alternative Processes
    • Pinhole
    • Digital
    • 35 mm
  • Film
  • Sketchbooks
  • Blog
  • Events
  • Get in Touch

Finishing touches

28/7/2017

 
To date I have made two brass sculptures using the lost wax process for my MFA Show. It is truly a magical moment when they are born from the investment mould. Your baby has arrived into the world intact! However, there is still much preparation work to do before each cast is ready to be shown.

Firstly they must be cleaned to remove the investment, slag and wax that is still stuck to the surface: for this process I used the sand blaster.  I then employed a wire brush to polish each building. Great care must be taken and protective goggles are essential. A quality wire brush is a must also as inferior tools can result in stray wire projectiles penetrating your soft skin at speed!

This could have been the final stage but I required a finish that made my buildings look old. To achieve this I used an antiquing fluid applied with a brush to a grease free surface. 
Picture

Moment of clarity....

21/7/2017

 
Picture

Dare to expand your definition of beauty

15/7/2017

 
Picture
It is my main intention that the artworks in my final Masters Show may inspire a viewing audience to wonder. That they might ponder upon an object set before them and consider its origin is another. This second intention though is one that I would forgive if you couldn't be bothered asking. What I do wish though is that you begin to appreciate an artifacts aesthetic qualities. That you dare to expand your definition of what you think might be termed as 'beautiful'. If you do however consider an object origin the rewards can be exciting......

After around a year of collecting a number of large round metal lids, I realised I was finding them in a small stretch of coastline. Scattered adjacently I noticed lumps of tar. An internet search to interpret these finds led to an Angus Council report:


2:1 This report describes proposals for extending coastal protection works at land known as Dowrie Works, located on the coast about a mile south of Elliot adjacent to the Arbroath Golf Club........The site occupies an area of grassy sand dunes sandwiched between the main north-south railway line and the beach, and covers an area of about 3.2 ha.

2.3 The factory itself was established in 1890 and has produced bitumen products that would most likely have been derived from coal tar, a by product from gasworks. Over the years of operation the bitumen factory was expanded several times and historic maps show the expansion of the site over the beach as a refuse tip.



Further research revealed that the factory sustained an attack by a German Heinkel bomber in WW2. The demise of the factory ended in closure in 1970. Decades later the remains of the demolished factory await discovery by keen wondrous eyes.

These metal lids are interesting enough for me to be viewed without revealing their secrets. However the bequest bestowed by their ancestry does add to their beauty.

Let there be light.........

12/7/2017

 
When I first displayed my glass cyanotypes for the January review I used magnet spacers to displace the support from the wall enabling natural light to illuminate the image.
Picture

Since then I have been searching my favourite online auction site for vintage darkroom lamps to convert into light boxes. To date I have procured three lamps plus an old carbon carbide bicycle lamp found on the beach in Shapinsay, Orkney.

To make them Health and Safety compliant I have been rewiring them with two core cable. The lamp is illuminated by a bayonet type led bulb, cool white. I have used a led bulb to reduce the temperature inside the lamp so that the gelatine in the cyanotype is not compromised.
​

Picture

Investment casting - Round two!

10/7/2017

 

pilgrimage - final edit

1/7/2017

 
out of pain something beautiful is rendered............

    Archives

    January 2023
    September 2022
    November 2021
    October 2021
    August 2021
    February 2021
    December 2020
    August 2020
    June 2020
    April 2020
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    November 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015

Proudly powered by Weebly
  • Home
  • Masters Works
  • Photography
    • Alternative Processes
    • Pinhole
    • Digital
    • 35 mm
  • Film
  • Sketchbooks
  • Blog
  • Events
  • Get in Touch