project report,

For this project I was drawn to the ‘hortus botanicus’ theme. I became very interested in natural, organic wall-coverings. This became my starting point and I ventured out in search of ivy, climbing roses, wall flowers and various other plants to collect, sketch and photograph.

I was mostly inspired by climbing plants and the way they grow across, over and around any object, undeterred. In particular I was curious about the way plants reclaim old or abandoned buildings, I went in search of decaying and run down areas. I was drawn to the earthy colours and organic shapes found in ivy and other climbing plants. I began thinking about the secret garden, and the notion of hidden places and secret things that become lost and covered up over time. Sometimes rediscovered, but more often than not, they are just left, hidden. 



I explored the outskirts of abandoned buildings, and walls crawling with ivy and other plants in my local area. I began by taking photographs, drawing loosely and sketching quickly without taking my eyes away from the object. I liked the way that the loose drawings interpreted the plants; it gave them a life like fluid quality, as opposed to historical stiff detailed drawings. I also visited Loughborough, where I came across a variety of different kinds of ivy and overgrown buildings and objects. It was here that I took a majority of my photographs, in particular I came across a lamp post that had become completely overgrown with vines from a near by garden.

I visited Golden Acre park in search of climbing plants and wallflowers, but given the season, there were not many plants in bloom. However I did discover a type of ivy had not seen before, with really interestingly shaped leaves, I also began to press any flowers or leaves that I collected in an old book. 


I then attended a flocking and foiling workshop, having never experimented with either of these processes before; I found them very influential. Especially the flock, as I thought I could use the fuzzy texture to create tactile leaves and areas of pattern in the plants I had started looking at.

I started to focus on a particular couple of artists and designers for my inspiration, I looked at the work of Catherine Hammerton, Claire Coles and Cole & Son. I am very interested in tactile surfaces and interactivity in design. I tried to incorporate vintage and antique elements in my work, which tied in with my theme of overgrown and decay. Catherine Hammerton’s uses vintage and found objects in her work; the colours and composition of her work initially attracted me. Hammerton has also created some layered wall coverings using cut papers in the shapes of flowers, leaves and twigs in dark earthy tones. It was this that inspired me to investigate layering within my own work. I began by using my drawings and photographs together, to create smaller pieces. I also looked at the stylistic work of Claire Coles for inspiration; she explores lost traditions through stitch. Her use of stitch is very unique, she layers antique wallpapers and stitches them together to create very delicate patterns and drawings.

I created collages of papers,drawings, text and photographs, on to which I stitched. I intend to pursue these further, and on a much larger scale, but I became more interested in exploring layering techniques. Experimenting with leaves and drawings and hidden secrets underneath, that would stretch organically across a wall.



During the visit to the Whitworth Gallery in Manchester, we were shown collections from the wallpaper archives, and a new exhibition in wallpaper called ‘Putting on the Glitz.’ The archives housed a huge collection of antique wallpapers in various styles. ‘Putting on the Glitz’ helped me creatively, as the techniques used on some of the papers were very interesting, especially some of the foil effects. I enjoyed the wallpaper archives and sample books from the 1800’s. They were in desperate need of restoration, the pages were discoloured, torn and falling apart. It was those qualities that I liked the most, they had been forgotten in an attic, and discovered decades later. This was entirely the idea that I wanted to communicate in my own work; I wanted people to look at my work and get a sense of curiosity, and of the notion that it had been abandoned. That it was waiting to be moved and parted and explored to reveal something else. I took many photographs of the books, and it was from here that I got my idea to stain pieces of the wallpapers I had collected to create an aged effect.

I went to the discovery centre in leeds, and drew from their archives; I had been expecting plants and flowers, but there were only beetles, fossils and butterflies. This was not initially inspiring, I made some quick continuous line drawings of the various insects. I later returned to these drawings, after a crit with the intention to create a ‘living wall’ inspired by the work of Catherine Hammerton. I hid the insects in amongst the layered pieces I was creating; I was exploring brown paper, tracing paper, line drawings, paper cuts and torn book pages to create my own surface. Looking through my sketchbook, I came across the foiling samples from the workshop, and decided to apply this technique to my line drawings of insects. This gave them a new life, and they stood out amongst the layers of leaves and flowers I had begun to create, I applied the same techniques to some archival drawings of butterflies. The juxtaposition of perfect form in the archival drawings and the loose, organic lines of my drawings seemed to work well together, mixing old and new.



On returning to my research and inspiration folders to further my ideas, I became increasingly intrigued with the images of overgrown houses and discarded rooms. I had a couple of antique looking gold frames lying around, the kind you might find in a period home. My initial idea was to create textured and layered three-dimensional ivy; out of my sketchbook. I began to hand cut paper, using phrases and words in stead of plant forms, I later stained them with coffee and worked them over and around the frames. In a way that suggested a room had been left abandoned, and had become overgrown over a long period time. I was creating the outside, inside. I used a combination of foiled insects, ivy paper-cuts, archival butterfly images and a luggage tag in my first piece. I liked the luggage tag in particular, as it evoked ideas of researchers and explorers, who document and tag samples with numbers, it became no 5.

The idea quickly took off, and I developed my hand drawn paper-cuts in to adobe illustrator images, so that I could become more productive and use the laser cutter to create pieces of all shapes, sizes and colours. I sourced more antique and old frames from charity shops to draw from and manipulate. I constructed a large scale installation piece at home in my room, and a smaller piece that encompassed my desk. I suspended five empty frames of all shapes and sizes, and began to work over the top of them, adding images, prints and paper-cuts in any way possible. I wanted to create a living wall that could shift and change with each new piece that grew upon it.

The development of the laser cutter pieces led me to look at the work of Tord Boontje’s engaging installation pieces, he creates forests indoors using laser cut papers and fabrics. I thought about how I would develop the piece further, not just as an installation piece. I had created a living forest, the pieces make you feel as if you have fallen through a large hole in the undergrowth, reminiscent of the rabbit hole from Lewis Carrol’s ‘Alice in Wonderland.’



I drew from the ‘living wall’ in an attempt to capture it, and translate it in to another media, such as print, which I could manipulate further. With the intention to combine screen printing, laser cutting, foiled drawings, flock and stitching to create something new. Wall-coverings that captured the energy and the intrigue of the outside,inside; without losing any of the impact. 

I wanted the pieces to grow and stretch across the wall on their own, as if they had been planted and left to take over and encompass any interior in its path. I created a screen, with drawings I made from the installation piece I constructed. Making large-sale prints, I experimented with the composition of the frames, overlapping colours and images. I worked back over the top of the prints with stitch, laser cutting, foiling and flock. I stained the prints to give them a weathered appearance. The combinations of layering, pattern and neutral colours complimented my theme, and I feel that the project developed steadily and successfully. 



Alice Newman.