In this exercise I am to look back at Part 3 of C.A.T and consider what function Straub’s textile is serving other than providing something hard wearing to sit on.
The reason I wanted to use the upholstery from the London Underground as my assignment subject is for it’s use as an identity piece. I’ve ridden the Underground for years but have only noticed, probably in the last 5, that each Underground line has different motifs within it’s upholstery. I was blindly staring at the empty seat in front of me when I became aware that I was looking at a very small stylized London Eye, since then I have been actively looking out for different ones and it is fascinating to see how many there are.
In terms of what functions this textile is serving besides being sat on;
Identity – Each line of the Underground network has a different signature upholstery pattern
Communication of message – By maintaining the same visual identity within the carriages through the years, lines give off a sense of timeless service. What I like about these designs is that I cannot tell what era they are from. I remember most of them from being small, I’ve noticed them in more detail now I’m older, but they don’t look dated to me.
Visual Stimulation – In juxtaposition to the dirty, dark cold underground network, a splash of colour brightens up the whole environment. Straub’s use of blue and green is interesting, potentially these were chosen to reflect the colours of the natural world? This could be to subconsciously remind people of the word above, or the colours could just be thee becauase they are thought of as calming.
In 1983 two artists (Christo and Jeanne-Claude) surrounded eleven islands with 6.5 million square feet of floating pink woven polypropylene. According to their website they did this to ‘underline the various elements and ways in which the people of Miami live, between land and water.‘
At a guess I would assume that they did this so that people could view their artwork from different angles and through different methods. Flying over it might give a different message from approaching it on the causeway which would be different again to approaching it by boat. It would certainly be classed as a piece of land art on the scale that it interacts with its environment.
The course manual asks me if I agree with the given analysis. I do, but then I find the analysis very factual, facts are hard to disagree with! “Surrounded Islands sees textiles used on an extremely large scale to both define and cover aspects of the natural environment”, in response to that I think that they have certainly used a lot of fabric, the fabric is sewn to highlight the contours of the island….and it’s covering the water….so yes?!
Wrapped Trees took place in Germany in 1998. Approximately 178 trees were wrapped in 592,015 square feet of woven polyester fabric. This is apparently a technique used by the Japanese to protect trees from heavy snow each winter.
The course manual instructs me to respond to the following quote from the point of view of the textile rather than the trees;
“The ‘wrapping’ is NOT at all the common denominator of the works. What is really the common denominator is the use of fabric, cloth, textile. Fragile, sensuous and temporary materials which translate the temporary character of the works of art.”
To be honest I’m stumped. I understand that the fabric will blow with the wind and that the tree within will contort it into different shapes, I suspect that there is probably a statement in there somewhere about mans interaction/control with the landscape. But try as I might I just do not understand why someone would want to bag up a tree. So confused.
I was a bit miffed to see the upholstery for underground trains turn up in this exercise. I want to use them for my Assignment at the end of this module and thought I’d come up with an idea that was a bit unique!
events, F., CollectionsCollections online The collection Stories Vehicles Posters Photographs People Sound recordings Uniforms Archives Drawings Equipment Infrastructure Maps Ephemera Vehicle parts Artwork Models Library Relics Signs Technical documents Tickets Timetables Film & Video Projects and partnerships Battle Bus Edward Johnston Frank Pick Moquette Project Where are all the women? District 150 Q stock restoration LGBT+ collecting Depot Discovery Rail vehicles Road vehicles Engineering and technology Design and environment Maps, f., Depot Discovery Rail vehicles Road vehicles Engineering and technology Design and environment Maps, f., Maps, s., Photography, f., blog, M., partnerships, C., partnerships, P., Friends, L., members, C. and members, C. (2019). Photographs. [online] Ltmuseum.co.uk. Available at: https://www.ltmuseum.co.uk/collections/collections-online/photographs/item/2001-5225?&apiurl=aHR0cHM6Ly9hcGkubHRtdXNldW0uY28udWsvYWxsP3Nob3J0PTEmc2tpcD0wJmxpbWl0PTQ4JnE9c3RyYXVi [Accessed 16 Dec. 2019].
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