Material & Process The cube

In this project we were asked to take a 15cm cube and use different materials and try different processes on it to create an end project. We could change the cube completely, moulding it into a completely different shape if we desired.The concept of this project was all about experimenting, with the starting point being a cube.
I initially looked at the cube as being traditionally seen as a mathematical and stern,hard, angular shape. I wanted to try and challenge this whole idea and transform the 15cm cube into something "organic "and "living". My plan was to take and experiment with different materials to transform the cube into a soft, natural and organic living form. I wanted to immediately challenge the idea and concept behind a "traditional" cube. I looked at primarily trying to grow a cube out of cress seeds or grass.Both grow quickly when heat, light and water are present. Growing the cubes proved to be challenging as I found this hard to do within the time period I had, as it was going to take a while for the cubes to grow in time. I tried growing the cubes in the studio , but found that that was not possible with the time scale that I had, also being in a studio environment did not fit well with growing seeds indoors.

 I also considered using natural materials such as, ice, plaster ( hand carved ), copper, wire and wood. At first I froze some ice cubes, and watched them melt; as they melted they turned to liquid, and changed shape. This acknowledgement lead me into wondering "How could I create a cube that could change on it's own?" by shape or growth, ( a natural process). 

I looked at working with copper, and made cube shapes out of copper wire, bending and changing the shape. I found this material expensive to work with and it didn't apply to the idea of "something changing by itself". I then looked at using plaster, as plaster in it's natural form is liquid like and then dries hard. I hand carved the cubes whilst they were drying, which did fit to my original idea. The cubes looked rough edged and "organic looking" once they had dried, which worked well however once they were dry, they were still and object like, so they didn't continue the idea of a cube living and ever changing.

I then decided to look at hand carving some cubes from naturally made materials such as clay and plaster. I found this a great opportunity to get to know the technicians, and experiment with the different materials and processes.

I made some clay cubes. I looked at using different glazes to create a mould effect. This turned out well and the  clay cubes could be stacked on top of each other, turning one sculpture into a different sculpture (ever-changing). 

Overall I want the audience to feel a link or similarity with something that is meant to be object-like ( the cube). If the cube is growing and changing daily, can the audience relate to that or do they find it abnormal that something object-like and still can be ever-changing and have a life of it's own? I feel I challenged the idea and concept behind a "traditional" cube with an artistic and philosophical approach in my art practice. For 2nd year I aim to give myself more time when planning out ideas for the final piece.