After experimenting with clay, sand, plaster and then aluminium it was now time to see how casting concrete could work. As with the previous pieces it was all about the process and learning what could work and what would be problematical. The first thing to do was to create a box to create the cast in and decisions had to be made immediately as to the size and shape. I mainly prefer working like this, going with instinct, playing with materials and seeing how things work. Or don't. My first thought was to try and divide the box into two equal spaces but not as triangles, I wanted to add some curves to the shapes to try to come away from a block of concrete, to do this I glue-gunned in a piece of vinyl. I then had x2 voids to play with.
I also wanted to have a different texture for each piece, so chose different items to line the spaces. The items I started to play with were more about disrupting the surface and creating interruptions to the flat surfaces. The hessian sack I thought might get embedded in the concrete, which I felt would only add another layer, it was an old coffee sack and even had a few un-roasted beans in the bottom, so I incorporated these to see what would happen.
The other side I used discarded and torn pieces of foam, rubber and roofing. All quite similar sized and all from heavily manufactured material. I was looking for contrast in the surfaces as the shapes would mirror each other. Concrete in, leave to set and cook...
Once I had broken the form and eased off the materials that were stuck on the surface, some slightly embedded, it was a case of seeing how the final shapes worked. I need to play with them more in isolation to see if they should be stood up next to each other or laid down facing each other with the curves not quite touching.
I might yet cover them in PVA to seal them up and then take them somewhere to photograph in various positions to see how best to display them. This will allow me to look at the relationship between the two pieces.
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