Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Leaf Sketch

September 7, 2010 (DORM)

This leaf is my most successful because it was not just the outline of a leaf with a few lines in it.  A great deal of detail went into this sketch ranging from the slight damage that it had obtained on the outer edges, to the texture, and even to the manner in which the light cast shadows upon it.  All of these details assisted in bringing the leaf to life and making it more than just a quick outline.

A Place for a Leaf

What exactly is a place for a leaf? It is not necessarily somewhere you go in this instance, but finding a way in which leaf and paper act as one in order to coexist successfully without overpowering each other.  I explored many different ideas throughout the time frame of completing this project, and in the end I have found a way to accomplish the necessary equilibrium for my leaf.
    


    In the beginning my ideas were running wild and has to be put down on paper immediately. Coming up with ideas was not difficult at all, but finding a way to choose one and translate it into a product proved to be much more of a hassle. Originally my ideas were literal. One of my first was to create an origami flower and instead of using paper as the stem I wanted to use the heart shaped leaf as that stem (top right/mid). Another was to give the leaf a peep hole through the paper so you only see some of the texture (bottom right).


I chose to go with the idea of curing my leaf and bringing it harmony. After doing research into different shapes and numbers that went along with my chosen idea I came up with the pyramid. They have triangular sides which is a shape of serenity, and is something I was hoping to achieve with the leaf. It is also a shape of healing and my leaf was damaged so the idea of a pyramidal figure fit very well.


On my original design a pyramid with extra triangles added in all pointed to the leaf which was held in at the top by the stem. This was not in the exact shape of a pyramid, but in order for the leaf to go perfectly in that one spot and no other, adjustments had to be made. It worked somewhat well at the beginning, but over time I realized that this would not be sustainable. The leaf changes when it is separated from its source of food and with this change came problems.


After my original pyramid design I came up with many different variations of designs that involved triangles. All of which were very different, but still had their similarities. One design was an abstract shape made of only triangles with a cut out that was only half of the front of the figure (top). Another one was a cone that I made triangular instead of rounded (middle). However, it did not just give the leaf a specific place that it belonged. The last pictured idea is the one I chose to go with. It is a triangle with rough edges like the leaf that would be sized in order for the leaf to be protected perfectly inside of it. My leaf however had other ideas in mind. Its eyes were fixed on destruction and it lost the battle coming to its death in the end. The poor leaf withered up and died. R.I.P.


After the loss of my first leaf I had to adjust. I went out and got a new leaf and decided that I needed a way to keep the leaf in a good enough condition so that it would be able to last as long as I needed it too. I put the stem in water during the day left it under a heavy book when i needed to use it so that it would not curl up. This was much more successful and added more texture to the leaf as it aged.

Finally I decided to go with the simple triangle design. When cut to fit the the it protects it well and gives across the ideas of serenity and healing without being too obvious. The final triangle that I went with was a bright white with edges that are somewhat damaged like the edges of the leaf.