Robert Bradford

This is a dog created by the artist Robert Bradford out of discarded plastic toys. He has a full exhibition of similar work, including an AK-47 made of toys, and several variations of angel sculptures. He claims that scrap plastic is a good material to work with as it’s tough, comes in many colours, and would otherwise take so long to biodegrade.
He states that he creates the work he does to change peoples perception and relationship with recycling and its uses. He also has a piece called the ‘Bombus Bee’ which is in the Eden Project. It is also made out of different recycled materials and shows that the artist has a wide range of pieces.

I don't usually like many sculptures because I find them to be either too large or lacking detail, or just irrelevant, but I really love Robert Bradfords work. I enjoy the fact that he uses old toys as this will appeal to children as well as like-minded adults. I also think everyone can appreciate the fun side of his work as the sculpture basis' are so unambigous. Also the range of different shapes he uses, but with the theme of the colour and the toys is very likeable and fun.

Source: http://www.robertbradford.co.uk/

Pete Codling

Peter Codling is an artist who works on public art projects and private commissions. He ranges from landscapes to sculptures to architecture, and is well known for the extensive variety of materials he uses. As a sculpture, his main aim is to contribute to the built environment and to make a difference to communities.

One of his better-known pieces is the 'Sun Sculpture', which he was employed to create by Bognor Regis Town Council. It was created to celebrate Bognor's claim that is has the most hours of sunlight in the UK.

Inspiration for the piece was from research into the history of Bognor, and also from interviews with college students, community groups, and the general public in and around the area. Several drafts of the final piece were created and opinions from the public were gathered so that alterations could be made. This is how it reflects my ‘Interaction’ unit, the way he had to communicate with the council and make several drafts of his work.

The sculpture is 25ft tall and is directly in the centre of town. It was Codling's intention for the piece to represent the town's Anglo Saxon origins, henceforth having a slight primitive and female feel.

He has also done projects that are quite different to this. One of his better-known works is the ‘One Million Pebbles’ project. This included the public working with a city-wide art project creating clay pebbles. The public personalize them, there is a number stamped on them, then they are thrown into the sea to be found in the future. The aim is to create one million. I love how personalized his work is, especially this pebble project, as I like the thought of the art living on as the pebbles may never be found, and some of them will continue to be found hundreds of years from now, all made by random members of the public.

Source: http://www.petecodling.co.uk/

Perfect Circle Art

Perfect Circle Art is a group of artists that provide bespoke services for all different types of organizations, from schools and hotels to churches. They do work such as fine art paintings, printmaking, mosaics, ink work, and murals.
They are relevant to my course as they specialize in consultation and interaction, as they make commissioned work in all mediums. To do this they would have to have a high level of interaction with their clients to find exactly what they want, as sometimes the art is very important as it will be a centre piece at a hotel or in a bar etc. I think they would need more interaction that an average company as they do so many different types of art and sculptures that it would be harder to refine and find exactly the right compromise with the client. I also thing this as they are one of the only companies in the UK who specialize in what they do, including charcoal, mosaic and fresco, as well as handling all aspects of framing, delivery, and installation.
To do this they have a sister company called ‘Strange Frames’ who are a bespoke framing company that collaborate with Perfect Circle Art for the installation.

I think this sort of company must have a lot of talent within it as they do so many different types of art. I'm impressed by the scale and quantity of works they have done and I think that bespoke art is what most people will be looking for. This way the customer will always be satisfied with the content as you will have finalised everything to the last detail rather than purchasing a ready made piece of art.

Source: http://www.perfectcircleart.com/2008/

JR

‘JR’ never reveals his real name, as his anonymity is crucial so he can travel and not get caught for the art he creates, as he does not ask permission from the authorities. In ways he is opposite to Christo and Jeanne-Claude, as they had to request permission from many different people and have to be very patient until beginning their work, where as JR completes work with no permissions whatsoever, which links him to my unit. He creates art in unexpected places, calling himself a ‘photograffeur’ as he went from being a graffiti artist to a photographer and combines the two. He pastes oversized black and white photo canvases in public locations, and doesn’t ask permission as matter of pride. He likes to exhibit wherever he likes which is the reason behind his anonymity.

For the second phase of one of his projects, JR went to the Middle East, where he mounted what is believed to be the largest illegal photo exhibition in the world. He constructed a border wall running through conflicted areas between Israel and Palestine, with an image pasted of a rabbi, a priest and an imam wearing deliberately comic expressions. About the piece, JR said ‘It's about breaking down barriers," - "With humour, there is life.' JR also went to third world countries, ‘Women Are Heroes’ is the third phase of the project and has seen him travelling to Kenya, where he covered 2,000m² of rooftops with blown-up photographs of the women who lived there. He did this because he said he had an interest in the way the men were out working and on the streets, while women were the ones ‘holding the community together’.
I think this reflects my current unit of 'Interaction' as JR holds exhibits of his work and has showed examples of him interacting with the community as he has views and opinions on locals in certain areas that are reflected in his work. I think his work is very original and I like his style of art, as it seems quite personal yet everyone can enjoy it.

Click on the images to enlarge.

Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2010/mar/07/street-art-jr-photography

Joe Pogan

Joe Pogan is a welder who creates animal sculptures out of 'found metal'. He gained his experience as he is a mountain bike frame welder by trade. He is relevant to my project as he also creates work especially for certain clients by commission, and hence forth has to interact with them. They send him the scrap metal they want to be used in the sculpture, then they sort out between them what sculpture/shape they want, and the size etc. However he only creates fish sculptures for clients as they are a good size to hide interesting items in. He uses things such as old watches, nuts and bolts, and anything unusual and interesting.
He says the originality of his work is from the way he hides these found objects over the sculpture for the client to discover. This is his goal, to achieve a model that is unique and eye-catching with many interesting objects to find. This also ties in with my work to do with sustainability, as all the materials used are scraps so hence are being re-used instead of wasted. He is able to use any objects he wants as he fills the gaps between the metal pieces with a special blending technique so that the sculpture looks solid.
I think Pogan’s work is extremely unique and original as the idea has not been done before in the main-stream, in the way that he creates the items with such detail and precision, and also in how he allows certain pieces to be sent to him to be included in the piece. It’s a very refined art and most people/welders would be unable to create the same amount of detail in their work as Pogan, as well as how he has the talent of making the subject matter very clear.
Reflecting on this research I think this could be a good idea to use for my interactive project, as I would be creating a new piece from old used materials. He is my favourite practitioner that I have researched as I like his style of work best. I think the way he creates new objects from scrap material is so different to previous work using the same method that it really stands out. His work is really stylized, and very unique and that's what I think any sculptor or artist should strive for.

Source: http://www.joepogan.com/