Saturday 10 November 2012

Cross roads



The computer generated pictures here are a few more I have produced continuing with a current theme of interest, 'Focus and Conception'.

The amount of designs I have now amassed is in the many hundreds and while I do very little with them at the moment due other work commitments, the process of producing something totally different to what I am use to at the lathe has certainly helped develop the way I think about design and making as a whole.

Many new ideas for pieces have been developed into workable designs in the solid by working with computer design, together with more designs and ideas in relation to my Far Eastern inspired work I doubt, due to the volume, they will ever be transferred from my sketch book into reality.

Not working on all the designs is not a bad thing at all, certainly  has not been a waste of time. By working continually with new ideas that are far away from anything that could initially be thought of as being produced on the lathe, clears my mind from cumbersome ways of thinking.

The problem I am having at the moment is that the fulfillment from coming up with new ideas is enough, it is almost as if once my mind has worked around a problem that it becomes disinterested with the idea and wants a new challenge. This of course may be that I never really concentrated in school so did not come across the excitement of learning. In previous careers though I was never satisfied with just doing well at my job, I wanted to push the boundaries further,now I see this is part of my personality.

Is this a bad thing I wonder?, after all ten years ago I could only produce a bowl or a candle stick that had been featured in a magazine. Now I have so many ideas that the excitement I get from just challenging my mind is enough, hence the reason I am working more and more in computer generated designs/art or what ever it is labelled as.

Do we actually ever have to 'make' something for it to be reality, or is coming up with an idea in our mind enough. After all none of it matters. In fifty years my social security number will have been archived and another number born.

So I think, but do not know yet, that I am coming up to another cross road, hence the reason I am working on 'Focus' at the moment to try to get some clarity in my thinking. Does it work?, I will tell you in another ten years. !










2 comments:

Pud said...

Having lots of idea's and thinking through the making process but not actually making them is healthy in my opinion or I could just be defending what I do as well. Idea's and concepts are good.

Mark said...

Hi Pud

For me it helps connect in more depth to the design I am interested and hopefully start me off in a new direction.

I often find that a design initially thought to be the new widget, is after a few days or does not hold the same impact as I initially thought, however I hope the slow accumulation of ideas will dissolve into my grey matter for dipping into at a later date.

Thanks for your interest.

Mark