I am interested
in presenting an exhibit in your gallery and ask that you would take
the time to examine the following proposal.
I believe my proposal
can work as a stand-alone exhibition, a workshop program, an artist-in-residency,
or a combination of these.
To initiate the
project I have received an RADF grant from Arts Queensland and Toowoomba
City Council. This is being used in producing & documenting sample
work and securing an exhibition venue. The CDRom is part of the latter
stage.
Exhibition
Proposal
I am an artist/craftsman
currently developing an exhibition of hand made furniture.
The process of
making is characterized by the intimate relationship between the maker
and their tools. Tools become an unconscious extension of the hand,
enabling the creative process to continue from inspiration to reality.
Tools become personal, taking on a history: some are changed by their
use, some during use through modification; others again are made to
fulfill a specific purpose.
To explore the role of tools in the creative process, I am proposing
to exhibit a small collection of furniture(three simple pieces, made
like much of my work, from recycled materials) along with the tools
I use to craft the furniture. To close the circle on what takes place
within the process, the tools will also be made by me, again from
recycled material. These tools will be the limit in the process.
The items of
furniture will be a suite, pieces to be used together. There will
be a chair, a side table and a bookcase. It is possible that alongside
the tools will be a cabinet, workbench and shaving horse which constitute
the workshop furniture. Available space could determine this.
I believe that
such an exhibition will offer an insight into the creative process,
one that could sustain interest for a broad range of viewers. It is
linked to both environmental and historic concerns. The act of creating
from recycled materials is now seen as being environmentally responsible.
The crafts of blacksmithing and bush furniture are of historic interest,
and the self-sufficiency aspect of my proposal is reminiscent of the
old pioneering ways. These are elements that are central to my art
practice.
Workshops
The hand skills
I use in the construction of tools and furniture have been learned
over many years, in a number of jobs and courses. Some of them, like
blacksmithing, are waning in popularity as a trade. As an integral
part of this exhibition I propose to run workshops to share some of
these skills. This could be a tool making workshop, a stick furniture
workshop, or a combination of both. It may just be possible to make
them financially viable.
Cdrom/Internet
I intend
to continue with the CDRom format as an adjunct to the exhibition.
It will allow for documentation of the exhibition itself as well as
the construction stage of the project. This could work as an introduction
to forging tools, and making basic furniture.
There is the
possibility of marketing the disc as an educational tool. Another
advantage of the CDROM format is in compiling a database of links.
The Internet has many exciting sites on handmaking tools and equipment,
as well as websites of various craftspeople. Often the problem lies
in sifting through the many possibilities.
©
Andrew MacDonald. 2000 
