Appendix 9

appendix 9

Anna Field Notes Excerpts

Anna interview 1: Interview with Anna, student at New College, Worcester (UK) (school for the blind), March 2000

I am registered blind. And my visual impairment is a condition called Cone-Dystrophy, which means the cones in my eyes don't work. Either that or they're not there in the first place. And this means that I cannot see any colour at all, and so my vision is purely black and white and grey.

I have Photophobia as well, which means that bright light can affect my vision. The brighter the light the worse my vision becomes. I'd say I have 75% of the detail that I need. 25% however is missing. I cannot see facial expressions from more than 6 metres away. I also… cannot focus very well. And because of this my eyes wobble around. And try and make up for that movement until they are actually in focus again…

I always found art difficult in mainstream because of my colour vision, or lack of. You know I was always having to ask people what colour things were, like paints. With my pens and pencils, however, I usually labelled them up and then took them into school, so I knew what colour was what. When it came to mixing paints and things I had real trouble. And I’ve never been very good at using paints, because I can’t even see when paints have run into each other on the actual painting. And sometimes they can turn out a real mess. So, yeah, I found that difficult. That got easier though towards GCSE. I was more independent, I could more, tell more easily, you know, what colours that I was using. Probably because I got used to recognising them, because they are shades of grey as I see them…

My art education? Well from a very early age, I've loved drawing. I loved drawing in primary school and secondary school. I did art GCSE for which I got an A. And I've always enjoyed doing art outside of school as well. I am a very imaginative person. And I find that I can express myself quite easily with art. I've still got some of my pieces from when I was younger, and looking at them now they seem quite funny, but at the time they were very good. Yeah, I love art very much.

I used to be the proud owner of plastecine, and {thymo?} and all that sort of, all of those modelling materials. And I used to go around to my friends' house and we’d make great big cardboard shields and then have play fights in the garden. And I used to draw dragons and all sorts of strange things on the shields. I used to love it...

Anna field notes 3: Diary/observation notes with art A Level student Anna at New College, Worcester (UK) (school for the blind), November 2000

Anna then.... describe[s] how she has planned the shape and structure of the wings by drawing them out first. She then tells me how she intends to make these wings using a mix of media, not mudrock like the rest of the body of the sculpture. With this use of a mixture of material, Anna thinks that the wings will be able to incorporate a range of colour and texture. She feels that this is important. To this end, Anna thinks that she may eventually use real feathers as part of the wings to provide the effect the she is looking for…

I asked Anna at this point about her colour perception, as I remembered that from her earlier reports that she said that she is completely colour blind. Anna gives me an example of how she overcame this problem whilst she was working on a previous project that involved the designing and making of various glazed tiles representing the sea with leaping dolphins as a motif. Anna states that she sees the differences in colour as she also sees different textures. For example, in the case of the tile project she saw the difference between the matt surface of an unglazed or even pre-glazed surface of a tile, and the difference to the tile after it has glazed.

I asked Anna to expand upon this point, and she gave a more detailed instance of the reflection of white. She said that this particular reflection gives the impression of lines on the surface of a glazed design- this appears to be synonymous with lighter colours. In addition, she can also tells the difference between shinier materials and lighter textures through their touch. It was for this reason that when Anna was creating the sea colour in her tile project she deliberately glazed the project, making it shinier, whilst the tiles surrounding it were deliberately left matt. (As Anna says, "I think in colour even if I don't see it.")...

During her Christmas holiday, Anna plans to take more black & white pictures. She says, "I really, really enjoy it." She also says that she would spend three hours after school in the dark room in New College if she had to, as the project is that important to her. Anna also said that it gives her real senses of achievement when she gets an image right the way she wants it.

Anna shows me a series of black & white photographs that she took during her previous half term holiday. This series is of what she considers interesting faces of people she either knows or found in London. She says that she particularly enjoys [her] images of old men with teeth missing...

Featured field notes in full:

Anna interview 1: interview with art A Level student Anna at New College, Worcester (UK) (school for the blind), March 2000

Hi, my name's [Anna] and I am registered blind. And my visual impairment is a condition called Cone-Dystrophy, which means the cones in my eyes don't work. Either that or they're not there in the first place. And this means that I cannot see any colour at all, and so my vision is purely black and white and grey.

I have Photophobia as well, which means that bright light can effect my vision. The brighter the light the worse my vision becomes. I'd say I have 75% of the detail that I need. 25% however is missing. I cannot see facial expressions from more than 6 metres away. I also have [Nystagmas/Eye Stagmas?] which means that I cannot focus very well. And because of this my eyes wobble around. And try and make up for that movement until they are actually in focus again.

I used to be the proud owner of plastecine, and {thymo?} and all that sort of all of those modelling materials. And I used to go around to my friends house and we’d make great big cardboard shields and then have play fights in the garden and I used to draw dragons and all sorts of strange things on the shields. I used to love it.

I find art A level better than GCSE in the respect that you have more freedom to do what you want to do. In GCSE you are given two options and you had to do one of those two; and if it didn’t fit into the brackets that you were given then it wasn’t included. I found that difficult at times. But then what I did find difficult when I started doing art A level was realising that I had this freedom and using it to the best of my ability, and now I’m relaxing into that, and I know that I can go in any direction that I please because its what I want to do. Its what I feel its, what I want to do. And you know, there aren’t boundaries stopping me from doing that.

Also in GCSE you only have a small range of materials that you can use: paint, clay, pastel or colour pens and pencils. That was about it. Whereas at art A level you’ve got all sorts of things. You know you’ve got the clay and the ordinary stuff, but you’ve also got things like silk screen-printing and other things like that.

I also used to find clay work difficult because I would try and do something that was far too complicated, you know, for the tools that we had at my old school and also for my sight. I’d just, I’d attempt something too difficult whereas now through my art A level I managed to simplify my ideas and I’m creating pieces that are successful, simple, and effective.

In the future I definitely plan to do art of some kind: animation, ceramics, I’d also like to go into drama. And that may include designing sets and props and things. So in a way, that’s art as well. Anything creative really. Creative writing, creative drawing. Another idea I had was doing psychology and using pictures and paintings to help people express their feelings, because that’s always been a good way for me in the past. If I’ve been angry, I’ve gone and I’ve drawn an angry picture of something or someone. And I think that might help other people, so that’s another way that I could go.

I do like going to exhibitions and galleries. I’ve visited the Tate, the National Portrait Gallery, and some of the other famous ones in London. And I enjoy looking at other artists’ work, and being able to comment on it. I’ve been to a few small art exhibitions as well and I also I like having artwork in my own bedroom. At home, I’ve got the lady of Shallotte and other paintings and photographs as well. Yeah, but I do like going to see exhibitions and going to galleries. Its peaceful and, you know, it gives me a chance to say what I think about pictures, what I think the artist was feeling when he or she drew it or painted it.

I definitely have my own tastes, though. Some of the abstract stuff I like, and some I don’t. I don’t really find a bicycle wheel stuck on top of a stool very appealing. Whereas something that is an abstract shape made out of marble or clay that can be given any name, you know, from one angle it could look like a person and from another angle it might look like a, I don’t know, a snake or something. I like that sort of art where you can really explore the feelings behind it.

When I started my A level in September I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. I knew there would be more freedom, but I really did not know what to do with it. I was unsure where to go. I was unsure what I was allowed to do. I started off with the idea of animals in motion and from that I swiftly moved on to dolphins in motion, you know. I narrowed it down.

I drew dolphins jumping out of the water in different medium: paint, water colour, water colour pencils, coloured pencils, magic markers and just ordinary pencil. I noticed, or I looked at them, and I realised that when the dolphin jumps the curve that it creates would, if you continued it, would make a circle. So I decided to draw dolphins jumping but carry on the line with my pencil crayon, carry on the circle. And then I ended up with a picture which I coloured in black and white of dolphins within circles. But unless you looked closely, you couldn’t actually see the dolphins you, you could see bits of shapes, you could see a bit of the fin, a bit of the nose, a bit of the tail. I liked the shapes that I found in this, and I made them into a collage. And stuck red, orange, yellow and black shapes, abstract shapes, onto a piece of white paper. And then using blue water colour pencil I shaded in between the shapes to create a watery effect.

I wanted to use ceramics and so I decided to produce a series of tiles with shapes raised from the tiles, so that they joined together, so that one shape would link with another shape in the next tile to form a panel. There were about nine tiles, however, I only did about eight. I wasn’t sure quite what to do for the centre piece. I decided in the end to do an actual dolphin jumping out of the water. Those were fired. I glazed them with very icy blues and greeny blues. I had experimented, however, before on whether to do the shapes raised, indented or whether to do them raised with a tactile surface, with ridges on. So I tried all of these things out and I preferred the raised ones without any tactile things on top.

After I’d had those tiles fired, my final piece, the set of nine tiles, I looked at them, I put them together and I thought that they made a rather cold, cold feeling. But I decided to make a series of smaller tiles, much smaller tiles, maybe an inch square to make a frame. And I glazed those with warm oranges and reddy browns. And once those had been fired I put them on to a wooden board and used something that was a mixture between grouting and adhesive, stuck them onto the board and then made a proper tile panel out of them. And that looks very good now that is finished. I felt very pleased with it.

My next project started unexpectedly really. I was looking through books for, you know, evidence of things to link in with my first project and I found a photograph of a girl sitting down and she was sat in sort of a crouched position, one knee up and one knee tucked underneath. And I very much liked the picture, it was very serene. It was quite dark olive skinned girl with dark hair. You couldn’t see her face she had her head buried on her leg. And I just thought that picture was absolutely stunning. So what I did was I drew it. I did a line drawing of it, and then developed that line drawing into a series of pictures in black and white, and colour. And it got more and more abstract as it went along, when I decided to eventually make a model of it. Not realistic, but in the fashion of Moore, the sculptor Moore.

So I made a few mockettes. I then tried drawing those. I drew them on, like, brown envelope material paper. I used charcoal, black crayon and white paint to create a black and white abstract image of the abstract mockettes. I then moved on and, using other famous sculptures that I'd found in books, I drew them in the same fashion with the charcoal and white paint. I drew them and made them abstract as well. And I intend to make those into mockettes as well. The other day, I found a sculpture with four people, its a family group. It almost seems like they're all holding hands, but they're intertwined, and its like abstract rounded shapes, and that got me onto thinking that, well, instead of just putting one person into a sculpture then you can put more than one. And I'm starting, I'm exploring that idea now. I've looked at a sculpture called The Rape of the [Sabine?], which has got three people in it. It is very emotional, and its a very emotional sculpture. And there's an awful lot of movement in it. And I've drawn that as a line drawing, abstract. And I hope to make that into a mockette, also design some more of my own. And then finally, I'm going to make one or two large pieces, which will be my final piece for that project. And then I'll move on again.

{Break}

My mockettes came out of the kiln today, the mockettes of the girl sitting down. And I've started to glaze those. I'm glazing them because there are three of them. One of them is tall and exaggerated. One of them is like slunk, and looks like its melting. And the other is more of a realistic shape. I decided to glaze them, well paint two of them and glaze one of them. I'm glazing the taller one a sort of reddy brown. And I've used stone paints on the other two, one of which is like a limestone or granite, and the other is like sand, slightly sparkly, sort of greyey, orangey, yellowey colour, which I like. I think they look very good so far. Because they are not man made shapes, they are natural looking shapes, you know, very smooth looking shapes. And I thought the natural looking colour would look best. However, I did try glaze, as I said, on the tall figure, just to see. I mean the glaze might look better once it is fired up. Its just an experiment.

{Break}

Well today, one of the English students in the school, Fiona, asked [me] to help her make rings for her Easter concert, Drama concert. Apparently she's playing a drug dealing fairy godmother. She has to have a pair of funky wings and she said that you're artistic, could you help me please. So I said yes. That's a small project I'm working on. However, I'm not quite sure what we're going to use yet. I think it might be, well, all sorts of things. Probably a bit of chicken wire thrown in, tracing paper, then glitter, I think, will be the basis of it. We're going to be pretty bold I think about just under a metre in length. We are yet to decide how we are going to attach them to her, however. It could be a difficult thing.

And also an email went around today from the headmaster that he would like people to design a new logo for the school. I've had a few ideas one of which is RNIB being written with the letters underneath eachother down the page. And then New College, Worcester, across the bottom of that. Then either side a hand coming in to feel the shape of the letters. Because visually impaired and blind people are..... {Tape ends}

Anna field notes 1: Interview with art A Level student Anna at New College, Worcester (UK) (school for the blind), February 2001

At the beginning of this month's meeting, I asked Anna, as I always do, how she was getting on with her work this month, and how much further had she progressed. In reply, she again started off by talking about her sculpture, Cupid and Psyche. In her own words, it has come on a great deal since she last worked on it. She also feels that the sculpture has taken its own direction. For example, "It has developed into the figures almost looking like trees." This is because the arms of the sculpture have become thicker, almost like the tree's trunk, and the legs have become thinner, again almost like the tree's roots.

I asked Anna whether the change in the sculpture's form had come about because of the changes in her design, or had they just occurred by accident. Anna felt that it was a complete accident. However, as a result she had produced a pair of forms that looked as if they were part of the base. That is they looked as if they were coming out of ground. She said that on reflection she likes this idea better than her original idea.

Anna then showed me the halo that she was making to go over the heads of the figures. The base of the halo is painted black and has the shards of smashed CDs stuck onto it. In addition, Anna has bought small multi-coloured mosaic tiles to stick to parts of the halo, over the CD shards. She said that the choice of these mosaic tiles was an attempt to stick to the theme of the ancient Greeks, and therefore the background of the story of Cupid & Psyche.

I then asked Anna how she was to colour the sculpture, and had she considered this element further after our last meeting. In reply, Anna said that after consideration she had decided to use canned spray paints. I asked her why she wanted to use these, and she said that it was because they were easier to use. She said that she wanted the effect of the colour to be a shiny bronze or copper on the figures which would then fade into grey or black. This, she felt, would form the ground of the sculpture. Again, Anna raised the point that the figures in the sculpture and the ground gave the appearance of being a single piece.

Anna then showed me the wings that she was making for the back of the sculpture. Originally she was toying with the idea of making these wings from real feathers. However, during this report she showed me that she is now making them with thick black card cut at the end to appear frayed. These are then stuck and shaped to make the form of the wings. Although the card is black, Anna has begun to spray paint them silver in places, which, like the copper/bronze of the figures fading into the black base, appears to fade from silver at the tips to black at the base of the wings. Anna said that the wings were now here favourite part of the sculpture. I asked her why, and she said that it was because they have connotations with fantasy. She said that she has always liked fantasy as a subject.

Anna then explained her experimentation with using real feathers to make the sculpture's wings. She also thought about using bright colours on these wings. However, on reflection she then felt that this would not be the right image that she was trying to portray for a Greek god. She also found that the feathers that she managed to collect for the wings would not stick on properly and fell off. And apart from everything else, she found that she did not have enough of them and they looked strange in such small proportions.

In the end, she said, after her aborted experimentation with real feathers she decided to create card feathers, and as a result had spent all of the previous night cutting the card. The effect of this cutting is to build up layers of the single card feathers in a pattern, as they are on a bird's wing. She said that this had made her hands very sore, and she had developed blisters. However this had not deterred her from the wisdom of her decision because now that they have all been stuck together, look very effective.

After discussing the structure of the wings of the project, Anna raised the issue of the colour and the method of application that she was going to use in her sculpture. She says that she is going to use spray paint, as she likes the effects that such media can produce. In particular, Anna says that she likes the effects that she has accomplished by merging colours together. In addition, she said that she also likes the way that spray shiny spray paint can bring out the features of a sculpture. For example, Anna had experimented by spraying her original clay mockette in a solid gold colour and had been particularly impressed by the outcome.

After discussing the techniques that she had tried recently during her projects, Anna then took the discussion to the timing of her projects. For example, on the subject of her sculpture she says, " I want to finish it by half term." She also says that she wants to two really sound pieces of coursework, rather than three little bits of projects.

After this brief discussion about the timing and plans for her project, I ask Anna how her photography project is coming along, as she had not mentioned it so far during this visit. Anna says that she has found a professional photographer to come in to New College and give her advice on the techniques that she hopes to use during this project. For example, she would particularly like to know more about the use of filters in photography. Say this, though, she says that she feels she knows the basics already. And as a result she is not hanging around until he arrives, and she continues to take and develop photographs by herself whilst she is waiting to arrange an appointment with him.

I then asked Anna what her plans are for the following weeks before my next visit. She says that she plans to finish the faces, which are to be drawn flat, and then stick them onto some stiff card. She says that she hopes to paint these faces in the traditional ancient Greek style (that is a line diagram in side profile.) After this she plans to attach this flat surface to the arms of the sculpture, which will then be formed to look as if they are the branches of an old, dead tree. After this, Anna plans to attach the wings to the back of the sculpture and then spray paint the base of the sculpture a bronze or gold colour.

At this point in my visit, I asked Anna what she felt that she had learnt from this project so far. She said that the main thing that she had learnt was that she could not stick rigidly to her plans. In this way she thought that the process of her making of the sculpture was very dissimilar to an engineering project, for instance. However, despite this change in emphasis during this project, she felt that the tactics that she had developed and employed had worked.

I followed this question by asking Anna what the best bit about the making process had been this month. She said that she had particularly enjoyed making the frame and the wings of the sculpture. I asked whether she would actually describe this part of the project. She replied, "Definitely."

Finally, I asked Anna what problems she had had whilst making the sculpture. She said that, as she had described earlier, she had had particular problems with creating the feathers for the project. For a start there had not been enough of them, and then they looked wrong when she had tried to stick them on. In the end, she decided that all in all they looked too fluffy and fairy like, and not the image she wanted to portray in her project. Despite all of this, however, she felt all of the other parts of the sculpture this month had developed well and "to plan."

Anna field notes 2: Diary/observation notes with art A Level student Anna at New College, Worcester (UK) (school for the blind), March 2001

When I first arrive at New College this week I find that Anna has finished her sculpture and, furthermore, it is not at New College at the moment. Anna and [Gerard] explain that this is because the sculpture has been taken to Malvern for an exhibition at the Malvern Guild of Decorative and Fine Art. This is this guild's annual exhibition for sixth form students in Worcestershire.

Anna first explains that as a result of the exhibition, she has had to finish the sculpture in a hurry. The reason for this rush was that she came back from her half-term holiday on the first of March, and the sculpture had to be submitted to the exhibition on the eighth of March. Within this time she had to finish moulding the mudrock onto the scrunched -up paper ball base, spray paint the finished form, finish the actual frame of the sculpture drawing the faces onto the paper discs that she had created for them, and then sticking these and the wings to the sculpture. As a result, Anna says that she had to work on the piece non-stop during all of her art and non-contact lessons on this project.

Besides her problem of timing, Anna went on to describe her problems in actually attaining the right size of face. The reason that she needed such accuracy was that she had to stick these faces to the set size of disc that would fit within the CD halo and onto the body of the sculpture. For this reason, she used a photocopier to resize them, and eventually stuck the resized photocopied faces to the discs rather than the original drawings. Furthermore, when she was actually drawing the faces together Anna said that she had trouble in angling and positioning the faces in profile so that they both fitted into the circle.

Anna also described her frustration in achieving just the right mouth and eyes in her drawing. For example, she said that she wanted to make the eyes only just open. In addition, Anna thought that she also found the whole concept of sketching a face in profile in the style of ancient Greek drawings "impossible." Because she found it so difficult, Anna ended up by drawing the male face looking down and the female face looking up, negating the problem of the proportional sizing of the eyes and mouth. As a result of this repositioning, she felt that the whole effect of the sculpture did not look quite Greek (or as she put it, "quite right").

Anna then told me that she had drawn the original ideas for the original Greek patterns for a prior project in October before she had even thought of this project. Anna then described this previous project and the influences that it bore over her current project. For example, as well as drawing Greek patterns, Anna also drew images of bodies in different positions, as they were moving. These drawings were also created in black felt tip pens, similar to the ones that she was now using to create her face profiles. In addition, Anna also described how she had designed her own designs for tiles that she made in the same project.

After Anna describes her previous project, she describes the way in which she developed her ideas of wings. Initially, she says, she drew different types of wings, and made notes by these drawings. Anna also says that she drew individual feathers of different shapes in different positions. (N.B. During this description, I asked Anna how she drew in different colours, to which she replied that she labelled each of her pencils with the colours that they related to.)

After describing her development of the sculpture, Anna outlines the progress that she made in creating the halo with the fractured CDs shortly before she went away for her half term holiday. She also describes the engineering problems that she encountered when actually sticking on this halo and the wings to the sculpture. Apparently the wings and the halo had to be kept very rigid as they were being stuck into position so that they would not fall off whilst the glue was drying. Again, Anna reiterated that this all had to happen the day before the finished pieces had to be submitted to the exhibition. Eventually, Anna said that [Gerard] had eventually come up with the idea of cementing or gluing a metal rod to the end of the wings. Anna then sprayed these wings silver while they were in the same position.

Whilst we discuss the subject with the problems of the making of the sculpture, I ask Anna what help she had whilst making the project. Anna said that she particularly had help from [Gerard] with the "technical bits" of the project. The rest of the development and making of the project, she says, she worked on by herself. Anna says at this point that she is good at engineering. I then asked Anna what the hardest aspects of the project that she encountered. She thought that the wings were the hardest things as they were very time-consuming. Indeed, Anna says that she thinks that they still need improving in some way. She says that when she looks at them now she still thinks, "[I] could add that bit and that bit."

After discussing her sculpture project, Anna and I discuss her photography project that she is pursuing as part of her individual study. Anna says that the photographs she is taking are mainly portraits. However, she also says that she also hopes to begin taking landscapes soon too. Anna points out that most of her photography is done by herself. However, as she told me last month a professional photographer (a man called Max Harper) now comes in to help her with technical advice. Additionally, Max is also going to help by taking her out to find landscapes that make good images. Anna says that she really likes this particular project. She also says that she sees scenes and objects now that will make good images, and keeps running away to get her camera.

Finally, I ask Anna whether she has heard any more about her college applications. However, she says that she has heard nothing further yet.

Anna field notes 3: Diary/observation notes with art A Level student Anna at New College, Worcester (UK) (school for the blind), November 2000

Since last talking to Anna, she has continued with her of the sculpture of Cupid and Psyche project, however now she is beginning to work on her full size version of the piece after previously only working with mockettes. In addition, Anna told me during the beginning of this interview, that her sculpture is becoming a pretty big project - although she had originally thought that it might not be. However, she said that this is because it is a great deal messier and is draining a greater amount of her time than she originally envisaged. The physical size of the sculpture is also becoming a great deal larger than she had previously thought it might be.

Anna then referred to and re-showed me the mockettes that she had made previously, and how the new full-sized sculpture had been based upon them, eventhough she said that these had been from an un-related project - she said that these had been made in the previous academic year. She then showed me the new mockettes that she had been working on recently, and she described how these pieces had had a direct baring on the current design she was making of her current sculpture. These new mockettes had mostly made of clay, and had only recently been fired by [Gerard] in the art-room's kiln. Unfortunately, because the design of them was unwieldy, the wings had not remained stuck to the original mockette sculpture as she had hoped that they would during their construction, and this had therefore become a major problem for Anna during her making process.

As a result of the construction problems that Anna had realised when she was first creating her sculptures, she has now decided to take a new approach to the construction of the full-scale version of her sculpture. To this end, instead of using the previously favoured clay and glaze, she has now decided to use a plaster of Paris type material called mudrock, and then to paint on top of this material when it has fully dried and formed. The advantage of this material is that is much lighter to use than clay. And in addition, mudrock can be formed around a based made of paper or card, and so an original of the form of the sculpture's body can be constructed before the sculptured material can be applied. (Anna has also decided to go straight to making her sculpture from this material rather than creating practice mockettes and honing her technique.)

To begin making her full size sculpture, Anna screwed-up paper into smallish balls and then she fashioned these balls into the basic shape of the sculpture. Anna then covered this paper ball foundation with wet mudrock. After this has fully dried, Anna plans to paint it to see how it turns out.

After talking about her sculpture project for a while, I asked Anna about her personal study. This is to be a black and white photography series. Anna appears confident about this project, and says that she has made a "very good start" on it. She says that she is currently working on the technical aspects of the project. In particular, Anna says that she is practising processing film, and Emile is helping her with this technique. I ask her how much time she is giving to either side at the moment, and Anna replies that she thinks that she is splitting it roughly 50/50 between the two.

I then ask Anna whether she has been drawing again during her current stage of the project. Anna says that she has been working on the technical side of the arms, and how they are to be represented in the sculpture. Anna say that she is thinking of how the arms and the faces in the sculpture can be represented three-dimensionally. Anna tells me that she thinks that all in all this will be the most important part of her finished sculpture.

Anna then goes on to describe how she has planned the shape and structure of the wings by drawing them out first. She then tells me how she intends to make these wings using a mix of media, not mudrock like the rest of the body of the sculpture. With this use of a mixture of material, Anna thinks that the wings will be able to incorporate a range of colour and texture. She feels that this is important. To this end, Anna thinks that she may eventually use real feathers as part of the wings to provide the effect the she is looking for.

Anna and I then discussed the photography study that Anna is now following. As a part of this study, Anna is continuing to practice her film development technique. As a part of this, she is experimenting with different filters and types of focus - making her pictures either softer or harder in places. For example, at the moment she particularly enjoys creating images with a blurred, soft focus. She also enjoys, for instance, distorting the focus on the development of certain images.

Anna field notes 4: Diary/observation notes with art A Level student Anna at New College, Worcester (UK) (school for the blind), October 2000

At the moment, Anna is conducting two projects for her art A level. Her first is a card and mud rock sculpture based on an idea she had which was influenced by a Canova sculpture called Cupid and Psyche – two Greek gods.

Anna’s approach to this project appeared to be very individual. She described the way that she had first looked at a book – which appeared black and white – with a photograph of the sculpture, and then taken photocopies of one of the pictures. She had then made abstract drawings in her sketchpad. Anna showed me these drawings, which appeared to be line diagrams – a fact that I commented to her. However, she said that these drawings and main focus of attention of the sculpture appeared to be the arms of the two figures, which were entwined – as Cupid and Psyche were both lovers. Anna said that she noticed that the arms of the figures were joined and appeared as if they were circles. Anna said that she liked this idea.

Anna then tried to draw abstract ideas representing ideas for eventual sculpture, and make mockettes – small sculptures of the figure she planned to sculpt. Anna also planned the making process through detailed line drawings - a system that she appears to prefer. (At first she also used no tone in her drawings.) Unfortunately, when she made the models, she said that she found that they became too much like the originals - which was not her initial intention. As a result, Anna conducted an Internet search and found the original story of Cupid and Psyche, and about the series from which the original sculpture was taken.

After finding this story, Anna redesigned the model, using clay at first. However, it became apparent that the clay did not support the wings as they continually fell off every time she tried to stick them on. Anna then considered simple fabric for the whole sculpture, but again dismissed this idea. She subsequently decided to make the sculpture multimedia, and create the main structure of the sculpture from mudrock and cardboard. She also experimented with the idea of using corrugated card from boxes with thread going through the hollow tubes of the corrugations. She thought that this would look nice. She then thought about using simple fabric for the wings only.

I asked Anna how she came to think about mudrock, and she said that [Gerard] had introduced her to the material. He had also helped with this project by throwing in ideas. However, she also pointed out that she had had relatively little help from [Gerard]. Her visual impairment is not too restrictive, and so she does not need to become dependent on [Gerard] for practical tasks such as cutting card and so forth.

I asked Anna whether she had found any difficulties with this project. She said that the only thing she had found difficult was using clay to build the original mockettes of the sculpture. In addition, she found clay difficult to use to produce the effect that she wanted. However, she said that at the same time she found that using mudrock to create her second attempt at the model was easy.

I asked Anna what she felt she had achieved most in this project so far, and what she felt that she had learnt. She said that she had particularly enjoyed finding out about the story of Cupid and Psyche. She said that when she first saw a picture of the sculpture that she imagined that Psyche was dying. However, she then found out that the two lovers were embracing after being set several tasks by Cupid's mother. The purpose of these tasks was to test their love for eachother. This story gave Anna insight into the original theme of the sculpture that she was trying to create.

I asked Anna what she had most enjoyed about this project so far. She said that she enjoyed the making process. It was very messy. She also thought that this process gave her great creative freedom, by allowing her to experiment with different forms and materials.

I then asked Anna how long she had spent on this project up to now. She said that it was difficult to give a definite answer, because this project had evolved from an earlier project that she had conducted last academic year. This study was of the human form and the human body. During this study, Anna had particularly focused on the human face. To begin this original project, she had taken photographs of human faces and forms. She had then made these into drawings. Anna said that she particularly enjoyed drawing. - I asked at this point whether she found this difficult because of her visual impairment, but she said not at all. During this project Anna said she had abstracted her original drawings, similar to the abstracts of the human form produced by Henry Moore (Anna said that she particularly enjoyed looking at the work of Henry Moore.) She then developed ideas concerning human forms.

In terms of her starting point, when taking her original ideas into her new Canova study Anna said that she had originally seen the main Canova sculpture at the end of the Summer term 2000. She had then continued her research over the summer holiday when she returned to her home in London. After returning to New College after her holiday, Anna began to create original mockettes. Although she felt these went wrong, she then retried the eventual sculptures. I asked Anna how much she used her lesson time to develop this project, and how much of her individual study time was used. Anna said that she had taken 4 double lessons a week, each double lesson being one and a half hours long; these she devotes to the making experimental work. Anna thought that she would have to add an extra four hours of her own study time on to this for the research process. Much of the research she conducts is in her own room using a laptop - a facility that is extended by the college to each of the students. However, this laptop does not have Internet access. In order to use the Internet, Anna has to use the computers available in New College's main building, which are available for individual use until six in the evening.

I then asked Anna about her separate personal study, which she has decided to base on the portraiture of Ansel Adams. This influence set the theme of her personal study which developed her interest in monochrome photography. Anna said that she particularly likes Ansel Adams' photographs as she has no colour perception. This colour blindness makes her concentrate more on texture and tone in pictures - she particularly likes using such elements, she said.

Anna also mentioned that she was very interested in studies of people. She is now working on a study of individual body parts. For example, this weekend she took some pictures of her mothers' hands in front of the oak tree outside of the staffroom, which she feels is particularly attractive - her mother was visiting from London. However, she has not yet developed these films and so could not comment on their success.

Anna also said that she had not developed films before. Nevertheless, she had seen it done when she worked very closely with a photography technician in the Art College of Westminster University. Anna also said that when she was working in these dark rooms, she found that her sight dramatically improved.

I asked her about this phenomenon, and she said that she really sees better in half-light when she is in a normal environment. For example, her sight improves at dusk. In addition, Anna said that she had really enjoyed her work experience last year. She said that it was brilliant and it had really set her on to photography. She said that she hoped to start developing film straight after half term. There is a darkroom at New College already, however it does not have any chemicals provided by the school. Anna has had to buy all of these herself in Worcester city centre.

I remembered from my last visit that Anna had said that she was going to apply to art college, as she plans to apply for a photography degree in the long term. Hearing her talk about how much she enjoyed her photography project, I asked Anna whether she had been applying to art colleges about these courses. She said that she had been sending away for prospectuses and disability statements that colleges are obliged to provide. Taking all of this into consideration, Anna said that she was particularly interested in a three year BA at Falmouth College.

Prior to her degree, however, Anna was also thinking about doing an art foundation course in one of the London colleges. Again, when she was applying to the London colleges she always felt it important to ask for their disability statements. She found that Camberwell produced a very good statement, as did London Guildhall University. She said that because of this, she had a good feeling about the courses that these colleges offered. I also asked Anna whether she had heard of the well known photography course at Newport Art College. She said that she had written off for details about this course, but their disability statement was merely a couple of paragraphs long, and therefore it did not appear to be a proper disability statement as the other colleges had prepared.

I then asked Anna whether she had had many other negative experiences when asking for details from other colleges. Anna said of the twenty four colleges that she had applied to so far, seven or eight colleges had not sent a disability statement at all when they had been asked to do so. These colleges' prospectuses went straight in to the bin as a result. She also said that from its prospectus, another reason that Anna had liked the sound of the Falmouth Course was that this college would allow her to conduct underwater photography. This particularly appealed to Anna, as she is a qualified scuba diver. Additionally, in her initial telephone contacts with Falmouth College that they had appeared to be very friendly, and not at all negative about her disability. However, she has yet to book an official visit with them.

Finally, Anna said that she was currently building a portfolio to take to her interviews. She had never done this before, however, she said that she was not worried about it. When she had previously taken GCSE graphic products, she felt it had taught her to organise herself and organise her work neatly. Her next step now was to get a portfolio case, which she planned to buy over the half term holiday.

Emile Field Notes Excerpts

Emile interview 1: Interview with art A Level student Emile at New College, Worcester (UK) (school for the blind), March 2000

I had very little art education before I came to Worcester. It mainly consisted of drawing pictures with large felt tip crayons because they thought that I couldn't cope with pencil and pens. I can remember painting and drawing at home whilst at school [I presume Emile means junior school] because my parents thought that the school was not doing enough to stimulate my artistic side. Between the ages of eleven and fourteen I was at the school I am presently at now, and we did do art in lesson time. And for GCSEs we did do art. I did expressive arts [also]… that's near enough the same thing…

What I find most difficult about my… education at A Level is having to write things down and keep a log of what I am doing. And also to stick with one idea.

Emile Field Notes 1: Observation of art A Level student Emile at New College, Worcester (UK) (school for the blind), February 2001

Finally, I asked Emile whether he had done any more drawing this month. He replied “ [he had done] no free hand drawing.” However, he had done some more engineering drawings to show how that water will flow from the reservoir within the sculpture [to the outer faces] over the moulded front surface of the piece. I then asked whether he regarded this as an example of an engineering drawing, to which he replies that it was an [Emile] drawing. It won't resemble anything...

Emile field notes 2: Observation of art A Level student Emile at New College, Worcester (UK) (school for the blind), April 2001.

Emile then tells me that after these initial attempts at mask making, he had made a further mask based on an African tribal sculpture… He tells me that he can not copy very well [whether two or three dimensionally]. For this reason, the form… resulting from the tribal mask other following [models] were decided during their making process (that is he made up the form of the African model from imagination, rather than attempting a facsimile). Emile says that he has also used the same technique for the same reasons whilst creating his clay pots. As an example, Emile explains that when he was first making several clay pots they were supposed to be of a fairly conventional design. However as he began throwing them, he felt that they formed themselves into an unorthodox shape...

Emile field notes 1: Observation of art A Level student Emile at New College, Worcester (UK) (school for the blind, February 2001.

Because it is hollow in the middle, Emile explains, it has been constructed out of two basic flat slabs of clay. In order to build a more natural finishing effect to the sculpture, similar to a rock face, Emile is also cutting smaller pieces of clay and then sticking them on randomly in different places. In order to enhance the appearance of a natural surface on this section of the sculpture, Emile is also getting slip (an almost liquid form of clay usually used for binding or making dry clay more malleable) and throwing it at the clay's surface. After applying the slip in this way, and in order to again emulate a random and naturalistic rock shape to the outer surface, Emile then moulds its surface or cuts it with a knife...

I then ask Emile if he has been working on any other projects this month. Emile replies that he has not managed to get any done… [He] has not touched his Racu pottery project. His main priority, he tells me, is to finish his sculpture and his other pots… Emile also tells me that he has not worked [any] further on his Racu project because he is reluctant to write things down. On this point, I asked him why he is reluctant and he replies, "because I'm no good at it - grammar, spelling, everything." As a result Emile also says that, "I have a real rush to get things done now...

Other featured field notes in full

Emile field notes 1: Observation of art A Level student Emile at New College, Worcester (UK) (school for the blind), February 2001

When I arrived this month I saw that Emile has now completed the major engineering task of the corner piece of his sculpture. As I entered the studio with him, I noticed it in the corner of the room covered in sheets of transparent plastic. This plastic, as I have observed before, is to keep the sculpture moist whilst it is being worked upon. When I first ask Emile how his project is developing this month he says that unfortunately the wrong type (or at least a different type) of crank clay was used in his current making session of the sculpture. As a result of the use of this different type of clay, the appearance of the surface of the sculpture appears different in places, the colouration in particular. (Emile says, "[Gerard] bought the wrong crank clay.")

I ask Emile how he is engineering the sculpture at the moment. He replies that he first intends to finish the corner piece of the model. This is constructed by actually making the sculpture in the corner of the room on his table near the far window of the studio. In order to further keep this piece of the sculpture rigid whilst he worked on it, Emile says that he is keeping it propped up with breeze-blocks on its side surfaces until it hardens. Emile explains that before trying to make the full sized model, he practised his technique with a smaller version of the sculpture propped up on either side by a small cardboard frame, sticky-taped together in order to preserve its shape. He found that this technique worked well.

Unfortunately Emile says that he thinks he has made a mistake making this part of the model so big. He has used around 50 kilos of clay to get the sculpture this far. He has also found that it is too bog to be moved by itself, and so he has to lift it on a large board with help from others. Emile also mentions during the course of this discussion, that it has taken him roughly a month to make this section of the sculpture so far.

Emile then goes on to further describe the structure of the model. Apart from the structure of its corners, the sculpture is to be hollow inside. This is to allow a reservoir in the centre of the finished piece. Another reason for the hollow section in the centre of the sculpture is to prevent it from becoming too heavy. Again, Emile stresses that in order to move this piece of the sculpture it has to be placed onto a board and then lifted from there. Emile also emphasises that he has moulded the whole piece by hand. As a result of this construction, "time has ticked on a bit."

Because it is hollow in the middle, Emile explains, it has been constructed out if two basic flat slabs of clay. In order to build a more natural finishing effect to the sculpture, similar to a rock face, Emile is also cutting smaller pieces of clay and then sticking them on randomly in different places. In order to enhance the appearance of a natural surface on this section of the sculpture, Emile is also getting slip (an almost liquid form of clay usually used for binding or making dry clay more malleable) and throwing it at the clay's surface. After applying the slip in this way, and in order to again emulate a random and naturalistic rock shape to the outer surface, Emile then moulds its surface or cuts it with a knife.

After describing his sculpture piece, Emile talks about the new cider jar that has been made by [Gerard] for Emile in order to replace his old cider jar. Emile says that this because [Gerard] made a mistake with his previous cider jar. This new cider jar, Emile further explains, is also to be coated with a different type of glaze to the previous one. His larger seed pod cider jar has also been coated with a glaze and both pieces are now ready for firing. Emile explains that in order to ensure that the correct effect is maintained this time small clay discs were cut out, coated with different types of glaze and then fired.

In addition to glazing his jars and working on the first section of the sculpture this month, Emile has also worked further on his Racu clay pots. In all he has made a further two pots on the wheel since I last saw him. As a result, Emile feels that his designs of these pots have really progressed. At this point, I ask Emile whether he had deliberately changed the design of the pots, and what was the reason for the changes in design. Emile replies that the changes in design were, "the way [that the] pot wanted to go. When I'm on the [potter's] wheel the pot chooses its direction."

Finally, Emile tells me that this month he has also cut further smaller slabs of clay for the second tiered section of his main sculpture. After he tells me this, I ask him whether he thinks that this second section will be made by next month. Emile thinks that not only can he construct the main shape and form of this second section by next month, but he should have it finished by next week. However, he feels that the rock surface and face of the sculpture will take longer. He reiterates that this is the time consuming section of the sculpture, and as a result he feels that this will take a couple of weeks.

After Emile has described the progress of his sculpture, I ask him what he feels are the good things about his sculpture this month. Emile feels that he has learnt and progressed from the difficulties he had in creating the slabs of clay for the sections of his sculpture. Emile also feels that he will be happy and it will be a good thing when he manages to get the pump hidden inside of his reservoir in the centre of the base section of the sculpture that he is currently completing. This pump is to achieve a flow of water over the front of the outer surface and give it the appearance of a waterfall.

I then ask Emile what problems he feels that he has encountered this month during his projects and what tools that he was using to create his projects with. He replies that his major problem was the throwing of the clay onto the potter's wheel during whilst he was trying to make his two Racu pots. In addition, Emile also said that he found it very difficult to make the Racu shape. However, as a result Emile said that as a result of these problems, he simply attempted to let the pot happen, and not change it too much after it had been thrown. In relation to the tools that he was using, Emile said that he mainly just used his hands to mould and sculpt. But in addition he also used a knife to cut shapes and slabs of clay and also a long cardboard tube to roll the clay.

Finally, I asked Emile whether he had done any more drawing this month. He replied no free hand drawing. However, he had done some more engineering drawings to show how that water will flow from the reservoir within the sculpture and out over the moulded front surface of the piece. I then asked whether he regarded this as an example of an engineering drawing, to which he replies that it was a Emile Hare drawing. It won't resemble anything.

Emile field notes 2: Observation of art A Level student Emile at New College, Worcester (UK) (school for the blind), April 2001.

When I arrive for this month's meeting, I go straight to the art room because I hear that Emile is already down there working. As I walk into the room, Emile is in the corner that he usually works in moulding his sculpture. It looks like it has come on a great deal since our last meeting and all of the sections are now constructed, although not totally complete as yet.

The first thing I ask Emile is how far has he got this month. He tells me that he has done a "fair amount really." Emile tells me that the second section did take a great deal of time to build. But the reason for this prolongation, he feels, is that he fussed over it too much. As a result, he thought that this particular section took him three weeks in all. However, after completing this section, Emile tells me that he felt that he would like to complete the rest of the sculpture pretty quickly.

His main reason for wanting to finish it quickly now is so that he can finish the main bulk of the project before Easter. After this holiday, he reckons he will only have the lizard sculpture to complete to fit to the front of it, and then the whole project will be finished. Despite his tight deadline (he breaks-up later in the week) Emile is confident that he will finish the rest of the third section very soon - he is still in his overalls and I assume will want to get back to work with it after I have left as he has only begun the third section today. Emile says, "I've had a very motivated day..... I've just got on with it."

I ask Emile what the fuss was about that he mentioned held him up whilst he was creating the second section of the sculpture. He tells me that it was problems with the small pool of water that he mentioned he was going to create during our last meeting. He reiterates that the water, from a reservoir in the first base section of the sculpture, is pumped up into the third topmost section. This water then trickles down the front of the sculpture and into a pool in a bowl at the bottom of the second section, which is also balanced on the front and top of the first section.

The trouble that Emile envisages himself coming up against are the pool could overflow unless the reservoir is right or the pool is the right size. For this reason, Emile has now decided to put holes into the pool to prevent any overflow. He says, it is "like the overflow in a bath." However, Now he has created the holes in the pool, he feels that they look unsightly. For this reason, Emile then decided to cover up these holes. And the process of making a camouflage took him a great deal of time.

As Emile mentioned moulding the lizard sculpture after his Easter break, I ask him what technique will he use to use to create this part of his sculpture. He says that he is still thinking about it at the moment. I decide to pursue the point and ask him whether he has any plans in mind for creating this piece. Emile says that he is thinking about buying a plastic lizard in a toyshop, making a mould from it and casting a clay model lizard in the mould.

I ask him whether he has considered moulding a model of a lizard of his own. In response Emile shows me a lizard that he attempted to make earlier on. It has to be admitted that it does not look very life like - the effect that Emile was hoping to achieve. But as he explains, "its not my thing." Emile also says that making a mould is also another skill. I gather that this is a sarcastic comment, because he laughs as he says it.

Because Emile has mentioned that he feels he is not good a representing lizards in clay, I ask him whether he has ever tried life sculpting in clay before. He tells me that he has done it before, in fact these were the first pieces that he ever created when he first arrived at New College. He then fetches two masks that he made during this period at school to show me. I asked Emile whether his interest in clay moulding had come from this period in his art education. In reply Emile says, "yes, that was it."

Emile then tells me that after these initial attempts at mask making, he had made a further mask based on an African tribal sculpture. However, he felt that the copy of this mask was not too realistic. He tells me that he can not copy very well. For this reason, the form of the sculpture resulting from the tribal mask and other following sculptures were decided during their making process. Emile says that he has also used the same technique for the same reasons whilst creating his clay pots. As an example, Emile explains that when he was first making several clay pots they were supposed to be of a fairly conventional design. However as he began throwing them, he felt that they formed themselves into an unorthodox shape.

Emile then tells me that the same processes occurred when he was making his cider jar. As he was making it he felt that this also went wrong and so he also made that into a clay pot that was not originally intended. In the end, Emile tells me that he feels that half of the clay pots that he has created have gained their forms almost by accident. After describing the making of this pot, Emile then tells me about how he made his seed pod pot. He tells me that when he was making it, it fell into itself. Instead of trashing it when this occurred, though, Emile says that he followed it and made the resulting piece.

On the subject of his clay jars, Emile then tells me that the seedpod jar has recently been shown at an exhibition (the same one mentioned in this month's notes from Anna). Emile also tells me that the man who owned the gallery where the exhibition was held wanted to buy the seedpod. In addition, and as a result, Emile tells me that he has also been commissioned to make something similar by a teacher at New College for his home. After Emile has described the making of several of his pots that I have noticed previously, I ask him whether they have been glazed yet as I remember he was discussing this issue with me previously. Emile tells me that [Gerard] did the glazing for these particular pieces. However, Emile also tells me that he has created a green glaze for another pot this month.

I then ask Emile if he has been working on any other projects this month. Emile replies that he has not managed to get any done. As a result he has not touched his Racu pottery project. His main priority, he tells me, is to finish his sculpture and his other pots. In addition, though, Emile also tells me that he has not worked further on his Racu project because he is reluctant to write things down. On this point, I asked him why he is reluctant and he replies, "because I'm no good at it - grammar, spelling, everything." As a result Emile also says that, "I have a real rush to get things done now."

I now ask Emile what difficulties he feels that he has faced this month. He replies that he would not way that there have not been any this month, but "everything has got easier." The only thing that he can think of that he might construe as a difficulty is the directing of the water down the front of his main clay sculpture. Apart from that he feels very confident about the technical progress of everything else. However, Emile also says that there may be some difficulties that he has not seen as of yet.

I then ask Emile what has been the most enjoyable thing that he has found about the project this month. Emile says that he has enjoyed the way that the he can "see it progress so quickly, really." He says that he is also pleased that he can see it now that it is almost finished. Emile feels that at first it took him far too long and he did not enjoy this aspect of the making process. For this reason, he felt that the project was simply too hard to achieve. I decide to pursue this point, and ask him what was particularly hard. He replies that the hardest element was trying to get it to look like a rock. He says that, "its like painting. It knowing when to stop and give up, and say 'that looks like a rock.'"

Finally, I asked Emile whether he felt that his visual impairment has held him back at all. In reply Emile says, "not really."

Emile field notes 3: Observation/diary notes of art A Level student Emile at New College, Worcester (UK) (school for the blind), June 2000.

The project I have continued this month is my ordinary coursework, which continues throughout the year. This is an organic pot. I have only faced problems about what colours would look good, and a few structural problems with the pot itself, which I am currently working on.

Also this month I have made a good start to my personal study, which is Racu pottery. I made a good start to this by going to visit someone who does this professionally. I found it much easier to gain information on this subject by researching in books and on the Internet because I find this easier because of my sight difficulties. I found the visit to this person quite helpful because I found out many new things about the subject and it was very educational as well in an informal setting.

My visual impairment, in the effect that it has taken on my current projects, is that most of my research is done through speaking to people and looking at other people's work, because of the reading aspect of the books and the internet as all of the information ...., is very hard to do.

The only technical difficulties I have come up against are in the construction of the pot, and how best to continue the construction of the pot.

I haven't come up against any more, though I can foresee a lot of technical problems with my visual impairment and just because they are difficult to make my own kiln to do my own Racu firing which would involve me digging a hole in the ground and getting the vents and airflow for the heat to be distributed evenly throughout the kiln plus taking the pot out of the kiln while the glaze is still molten and then placing it into a bucket of sawdust so reduction can take place. Obviously I reckon I should have a member of staff present when.... doing this. But I can still foresee a lot of problems doing this and actually seeing when the pot is ready to come out, so I'll have to get help with that obviously.

Emile interview 1: Interview with art A Level student Emile at New College, Worcester (UK) (school for the blind), March 2000

[Emile H] aged 18 at RNIB New College, Worcester. My visual impairment is congenital Optic Nerve Hyperplasia.

What I most enjoy about my art education is the freedom to express myself without having to write things down which I find difficult.

What I find most difficult about my art education at A Level is having to write things down and keep a log of what I am doing. And also to stick with one idea.

From my art education I feel that I have learnt skills in ceramics and also that it is not a bad thing to take other artists' work as stimulus and to continue the idea.

I'd love to continue art at art school but I cannot see it being a practical option, but I will definitely keep it up as a hobby.

I do visit galleries and exhibitions of other people's art work when I get the chance but it is often difficult to get to them.

Log of what I have done and up to date in my A level art course. I started off making masks out of clay to practice different techniques and uses of clay to get an idea of what I could do with clay. I then continued this idea of experimentation by digging up my own clay from a field and processing it. I found that this clay was not very good and not very useful unless it was further processed by adding other ingredients to it such as grog or china clay to change [the] colour or strength of the clay whilst it was in its plastic state. I then took a visit to Winchcombe pottery and I was inspired to try to build a cider jar. This I found difficult and half way through the pot it changed into an ordinary vase with a natural looking form. This idea I continued into two other pots which both took their own form as they went along. I eventually started experimenting in my own glazes. This I found very difficult because I have little experience and knowledge in this area

I started looking at a different kind of pottery called Racu. Which is where the clay is biscuitfied [biscuit fired?] and glazed and dipped in sawdust in an outdoors kiln, fired by wood. This is for my personal study. For this I also went to an exhibition of artwork consisting mainly of Racu pottery to get some idea of what it is all about.

Emile field notes 4: observation/diary notes with art A Level student Emile at New College, Worcester (UK) (school for the blind), March 2001

When I began my visit to Emile this month, I noticed that, despite the belief that he would have the sculpture finished by our next meeting, the second section of the sculpture was as of yet unfinished. I started by asking Emile how he was getting on with the sculpture, and he started by replying that he was having problems. The major problem, he thinks, is getting the sides of the sculpture level. In order to ameliorate this problem, Emile is using a spirit level and a block of wood to try to engineer and level the sides. Another technique that he is using is to place a flat piece of board on top of this section of the sculpture and push clay underneath it. This he feels will create a proper join on the sculpture's base section. Again Emile takes this opportunity to describe that the sculpture is being made by creating several slabs of clay and joining them to make side pieces to the sculpture. He then creates a rock effect on the front of the sculpture.

Emile says that he has however made fair progress since our last meeting, and that he has now moulded the back slabs onto the main form of the frame of the sculpture. However, he is also worried that when the top section of the sculpture is finally moulded on it will make the entire piece too heavy. As a result, Emile tells me that he has cut bits away from the top of the sculpture. He also tells me that he is going to keep the top section of sculpture hollow both to reduce its weight and also to fit the pump into it to suck up water from the reservoir and trickle it down the front of the sculpture.

Emile then describes how the bottom section of the sculpture is to maintain a flat level surface on top, created by a further slab sitting on top of the reservoir. This flat upper surface is to be prepared so that a hole can be cut and a further piece of concave moulded clay can be placed inside. This piece of concave clay will form the pool in the cliff's surface, and will then feed the reservoir underneath in the hollow base. Emile again explains that it is from this reservoir that water will be re-pumped back up to the top of the sculpture and down the outside again.

Emile then explains the fact that he is to mould the back surface of the sculpture with slip, as it has to be malleable. He then explains that in order to create the slabs for the back of the base part of the sculpture, and to allow them to align properly, he has to line the up as far as possible and then beat them into shape. This allows a final curving of the joins.

Emile then explains the reason that he is creating the back and sides in this way because he had had trouble with the original mockettes of the sculpture, and the way they stood back diagonally. This, he explains, created a problem for him at the time because this diagonal surface pulled the back panel of this section of the sculpture forward. In turn this pulling of the surface meant that he had a reduction in the top area of the pond, and therefore cut out the area available for his pool above the reservoir.

In addition, because he is trying to give this flat area on top of the bottom panel, it means that the front surface of the top two sections when they are combined is almost vertical. This factor, he feels, makes the front of the sculpture difficult to create. In addition, and despite the fact that he regards it as the incorrect way in which to prepare these surfaces, Emile tells me that he is to mould in the front and side panels with slip, using it almost like glue and keeping the joins malleable.

At this stage in his description of his sculpture, I asked Emile what proportion of his work he had carried out independently, and what proportion he had help with from [Gerard]. Emile replies that he has no help at all with the actual making and engineering process of the sculpture. This has been wholly independent. However, he does say that he has help with lifting the sculpture to work on it, as it is far too large, unwieldy and heavy to carry by himself.

I then asked Emile what difficulties that he had had when working on this sculpture since our last meeting. Emile replied that he has had problems "getting it right." He says that the main problem was actually building the two sides of the base of the sculpture because it is so heavy (each of the two panels, he estimates, is approximately twenty kilos each). As he described it to me previously, Emile said that he overcame this problem by propping the slabs up in the corner of the room so that he could make them there. As he also mentioned previously, Emile says that he has also had trouble squaring each of the slabs at the back of the base of the sculpture. He explains that if these two slabs do not join precisely, then they will seep water from the reservoir. Again Emile reiterates that the whole sculpture is to be made from this base piece acting as a reservoir and tow further smaller sections placed on top of this.

In additions to his problems of the fixing of the clay slabs, Emile continues to explain the exact making process of base of his sculpture and how these are presenting him with further difficulties. He first explains that these slab sections were made with twenty-five kilo sacks of clay. As a result of the scale of these sections, Emile explains that his usual method of rolling the clay flat with a single cardboard tube usually designed to keep posters safe was difficult - the tubes were simply too small. In order to overcome this problem, Emile describes how he placed batons either side of the lumps of clay from the large bags so they are level and then cut them with a very thin sharp wire. After cutting the lumps of clay into thinner more manageable slabs, he rolls them thin with his hollow poster tube. This he finds makes each of the slabs squarer. However he says that he finds this process very physically difficult and often spends a whole morning simply rolling the clay.

Unfortunately, Emile tells me that as a result of all of the methods that he is using, the amount of clay that he has to waste is high. However, he is trying to minimise this wastage by placing the excess clay in a bucket of water, which keeps it wet and workable. Further, Emile says that he now finds that all of his time is spent on the practicalities of this project. As a result the whole sculpture is progressing very slowly. Saying this, Emile feels confident that the whole of the base section should be finished by next week.

Emile then explains the trouble that he has also encountered with the pumps that he plans to use for this project. He tells me that one pump had been tried by [Gerard] but had "blown up." Indeed as a result of the defects in the pump, Emile said that the electrical circuits in the room had tripped. He and [Gerard] are, as a result, are looking for another less dangerous pump at the moment.

In addition to his sculpture project, Emile also explains that he has been working on his Racu pot project again. As a result he has made further pots on his potter's wheel. However, these are yet to be fired. However, Emile tells me that he has yet to finish the write up for this project. In addition, and after my asking, Emile also tells me that he has made further attempts to sketch the pool with a pencil, he has not made any more attempts at drawing this month. Emile also tells me that the drawings that he has made of the pool are very rough and very minimal. He goes on that they are only to show the technical specifications of this pool as it is to be made.

Emile field notes 5: observation/diary notes with art A Level student Emile at New College, Worcester (UK) (school for the blind), November 2000

This month as I arrived, Emile first told me that he was firing his pots and so that they could not be seen. However, he had tried to make the lizard that he was planning as part of his sculpture. Emile told me that Gerard had created one first, and then he had tried to copy it.

In terms of Emile's Racu project, he told me that the first pots that he had created had now been finished and fired. In addition, Gerard had also coated the pots with glaze. However, Emile thought that this glaze may have been incorrect - he was not happy with it.

Emile also showed me drawings that he had made of the lizard with its position on the clay sculpture. However, rather than freehand sketches these were technical drawings made with rulers, and contain measurements to scale. Emile also placed measurements next to these drawings as a guide to the making process.

Emile said that he was not very happy with the progress of the making and designing of the lizard for the sculpture. However, he realised that getting the lizard right was adding to the first mockettes that he was creating of the sculpture. Again, Emile mentioned that Gerard had fired these, and that they would soon be ready for viewing.

Emile told me about preparations that he was making for his sculpture at the moment. To begin with, he brought in a lizard from the shop where he works. Emile then took photographs of the lizard sat on rocks in the classroom. He said that he took two types of photograph: a set of colour photographs for the project that he is preparing, and a set of black and white photographs for himself.

In order to make it easier to make, Emile planned to experiment making the final sculpture by creating a further mockette. In order to do this he is going to put the sculpture in the corner of the room. This is supposed to suggest, he says, that the sculpture goes on and on. In order to be able to create it in this way, Emile planned to build the mockettes with cardboard plates in order to sculpt the corner as strict right angles. However, when he had tried to first make this, he had found that one of these cardboard plates fell apart. As a result of this experimentation, Emile has decided to go ahead and create the larger version of the sculpture.

In addition, as part of his Racu project Emile has contacted a specialist in this form of pottery who lives close by for information. In addition, Emile is also continuing his research by getting information about this form of pottery from books and the Internet. On top of that, Emile has decided to set the target of completing his large cider jar by Christmas. By this time he thinks that the course work will be done.

Sharon interview 1: Interview with Sharon, a student at the Richard Attenborough Centre for Disability and Arts, Leicester University (UK), November 1993.

There was no painting, no sculpture, no clay. What I do remember is trying to have piano lessons, at which I was a failure... [which was] about [at age] nine or ten.... I don’t know. I think I’ve blocked it out. I didn’t enjoy it very much. PE [1], Physical Education, was always a part of the curriculum as far as I can remember, even it was only sort of climbing frames, and things like that, and benchwork, and this sort of thing...

There were people at the local grammar school in [my local town] who used to do what they laughingly called pottery, and make things. I remember going up there once and being given a lump of clay, and not knowing what on earth to do with it, and given no encouragement whatsoever. It was just simply on the curriculum of the community centre there to give a group of visually handicapped people something to do for a couple of hours on a Thursday afternoon. I was taught nothing and I only went once. I hated it and didn’t go again… I actually thought, “I am not capable of making things, I do not know how to do it, so if I do not know how to do it, I can’t possibly do it” – because it was beyond comprehension, and I thought it was beyond my ability as well. I couldn’t make the two link at all, so I thought, “I won’t bother going anymore.

Hugo interview 1: Interview with the student Hugo at The Richard Attenborough Centre for Disability and the Arts, Leicester University (UK), November 1993.

I’ve been a great fan of music all of my life. Ever since I can remember I’ve wanted to be involved in music, and I was involved in music to a lesser or greater degree. From the time I was very young we used to have a piano at home, as a very small child, and I used to like tinkering around on it. And I remember the first thing I managed to play with just one finger was a melody “On the Street Where You Live” from My Fair Lady. And I remember being able to pick the tune out just literally one note, playing just one note, just the tune.... And I was always very interested in music. I used to play the mouth organ as well…

I had one or two [piano] lessons [at school], but I could never really seem to ... do what they wanted me to do. Probably it was a little reluctance on my part, probably it was a little reluctance to play the things they wanted to teach me. And because of the sort of person I am, and it’s still true to this day, I am basically a very shy person; I’m an introvert I’m not an extrovert at all, and I find it difficult to perform to people, and therefore, I suppose because the other people, some of the other people at school were far, far more in a way more competent and confident than me, I suppose I sub-consciously decided that perhaps I couldn’t actually play the piano, and I couldn’t actually do it like they could. Or I suppose I lost heart and lost the desire, shall we say, to play…

[At school] maybe the teaching I was receiving wasn’t very good. They didn’t teach Braille music, or anything like that, at any of the schools I was at because the people there weren’t capable of learning the, you know. You must realise that I went to schools for the multiply handicapped blind where we had children with all sorts of other disabilities apart from blindness... a real mixed bag of abilities of intelligence and so on... But most of the people there had some sort of behavioural or learning difficulty... so they didn’t really teach Braille music, they didn’t even seem to teach Braille much. I’ve had a really strange education really...

I never got the opportunity to learn the piano as I would have liked. And, strange as it may seem, and strange as it may sound, I think initially, until relatively recently, and I mean… within the last… year, I’ve almost, in a way, been scared of the piano. It’s something I wanted to do, and rather than treat the piano as a friend (and that’s what you have to do)… I almost thought of it as an enemy.

……………………………………………………………………

Field Notes Emile & Anna 1: Field Notes collected during a meeting at RNIB New College, Tuesday 26th September 2000

Meeting at New College with Gerard, Anna and Emile

This meeting began a Gerard before 5.30, after being dropped off by Richard on my way back from school.

I met Gerard on the way in. he was just getting his dinner. I went to wait in the staffroom, and talked to the teachers left there. When Gerard had finished dinner, he came back and we chatted about the new term, and his new duties - he is taking a trip every Tuesday now. He then called down to the hostels for Emile and Anna - Katie was away.

Anna arrived, but Emile was doing Prep duty, as he is a Prefect - as is Anna.

I went to the art room with Anna, and we talked about her work. She told me that she is going to do photography as her A Level personal study, and that she wishes to study art at college after finishing at New College but she has not decided where to apply yet - she is just in the process of deciding and applying at the moment.

I had a conversation with Anna about her current work. I asked her where the tiles were that she was producing and she had shown me during one of our previous meetings. Anna told me that she had taken away her other work, although she was developing it for her previous study. Also in the room was Katie's painting of a still life. I recognised the style from one of Katie's last set of drawings and paintings that she had shown me in our initial meeting. Anna commented that the work was Katie's and that it was carefully constructed. We walked up to the painting and Anna looked at it very closely. She also mentioned that she was colour blind.

During this meeting I also asked Anna if I was able to photograph her work as part of the research. On hearing that she was also doing photography exercises, I asked her if she would mind allowing me to copy some of her negatives for my study. She agreed to both. I mentioned to Anna that I would give her a copy of the photographs that I took of her artwork if she wanted, and said that these might be useful for her eventual A Level coursework. She said that it would be useful.

During our conversation, she also commented that the thing that she liked most, or found most interesting, about her current photography project was the red light - I assumed she meant in the dark room. Because it she was colour blind, she liked this light because it turned orange. When we were talking about Katie's painting, she also mentioned that she liked the picture and the colours that Kari used, despite the fact that she was also colour blind. However, Anna also said that she was very worried about how se would develop the film for her photographs during her individual study.

During our conversation, I also mentioned that I really liked the art room in New College. Anna said that she really liked it, as well as really enjoying the school. She also said that she enjoyed it since she was new to the school and therefore had not seen any changes. She also mentioned that some people who had been at the college for a period were unhappy with the change. However, I did not elaborate on this point, and I certainly did not push the point any further. Nevertheless, I did ask Anna were she had gone to school before, and she mentioned her previous schools in London. I plan to cover this issue with her further in future meetings.

After a short while, Emile arrived and said that there was a problem. He said that he was down to do prep duty, and that he would have to find cover - I also noticed he looked different because he had shaved off his trademark beard from before the summer. Anna said that she would cover his prep duty for a while, and so he could stay and talk to me. Anna then left.

I first asked Emile how he had enjoyed his holiday over the summer. He said that he had enjoyed it, but did not get the opportunity to do much. I then asked him what he was doing at the moment during his work, and he told me that he was working with pottery again.

During the meeting, Emile and I went to look at his pottery. I had seen this before but he described how he had either developed or was going to develop two particular pieces that were not yet glazed. I asked him during this discussion whether the pots that he had made and was to glaze were made from the clay he had dug himself - as I had remembered talking to him about the digging of his own clay before. Emile said that these pots weren't, and that I could tell because the clay that had been used to make the pots had been rigid and was light in colour. This is because commercial clay had powdered clay added to it to maintain its rigidity. The clay he had dug was far to wet to mould a pot from. He had tried to make and then bake a tile with this clay, but the tile had melted in the kiln during its firing. He showed me the result of this melting, a round, flat pancake looking shape baked solid on the stone that it had been fired on. I commented that this effect looked like a gaze, rather than a piece of fired clay. Emile said that it was and that he likes the effect, which he put up close to his face to have a look at.

Whilst looking at pieces that Emile had made previously, I pointed out to him that two of these pieces had cracks in them. He said that he realised this and that he would have to fix it himself. He showed me a chemical that he had used to paint on two of his pieces previously, which he said that he had painted on a couple of pots. However, when he had put this chemical inside a yoghurt pot so that he could paint it on the cracked clay from before, he found that the chemical had melted through the yoghurt pot. Emile said that he would have to learn to use this chemical properly in future. (However, Emile did not say where he had come by this chemical.)

During our discussion, I also asked Emile about the Racu pottery that he was making for his personal study. He said that he had found a lady in Worcester through another teacher at the school, a food technology teacher that would help him with his project. He was going down to meet her soon. She was, however, a very reputable artist he had heard. He showed me some of the pottery he had been trying out when he had tried to develop this Racu style of pottery. He showed me two pieces of this Racu, one he commented was very accurate and was the one Gerard had made in order to demonstrate the Racu technique. The other he showed me he commented was less accurate and had a very rough base. He said that this was one of his first attempts at producing Racu pottery on his own.

Emile then described how he was going to develop his project by making his own kiln, which had to be of a special construction to heat the pottery to a very high temperature. In order to make this kiln, Emile said that he would have to build it in a corner of the playing field. I asked Emile if he had been given permission to create this kiln, and he said that he hadn't. However, he mentioned where he wanted to build it was in part of the biology teachers patch of land he left for his nature studies, and seeing as he had helped the biology teacher by digging out some of this land for a pond some years ago, that he was owed a favour by this biology teacher. However, he did not mention how he planned to construct the kiln himself.

During this meeting, I also asked Emile what he planned to do when he left New College, and did he plan to apply for Art College. He said that he wasn't going to, but instead he was going to try and apply to college to study reptiles. I asked whether he planned to take a degree course, but he said not. I also asked him whether he was taking biology A Level, and he said that he had begun this course in the lower sixth, but given it up because the writing was too hard. For this reason he was thinking of applying to an agricultural college that he had heard of that ran an HND in this subject. He also mentioned that he had always been interested in this subject.

At the end of our meeting, I asked Emile about his previous school experiences, mentioning the comments that he had made in his tape. I also asked him how long he had been at New College. We carried on this conversation as we left the art room and made our way back along the corridor. Emile commented that he had been at New College ten years now, but when he had first arrived he was very behind in his studies - he reached the age of eighteen when he was in the lower sixth form, and so I presumed that he has been put back a year. Emile said that when he reached new college aged nine, he could hardly read or write. Emile also said that this previous mainstream school had not taught him well. He said that they had only taken him on for the money, and that although they had tried to teach him Braille, it was not very expertly done. Emile then when he had reached New College he had had to work to catch up with his studies.

Interview with Gerard, the Head of Art, New College, Worcester, February 2000

Me: OK, so the first question is, what is your experience in art education before becoming a teacher.

Gerard: I was interested in art at school. I went and did then O level and A level. Then I went and did foundation course at art college. And then I worked for a year. And then I did a three year course as a specialist art teacher, to train - a specialist art teacher training college. Two years in art college, there were different disciplines, and then a years training. And then I got my first teaching post.

Me: Right. And if you don't mind me asking how long ago was this.

Gerard: You can ask, but I don't know the exact date....

Me: ....roughly in years.

Gerard: .. I would have qualified in ....I've got to think..... twenty four years ago.

Me: Twenty four years ago. Qualified...

Me: So you qualified and then... and where was that. Close to here was it. In the Midlands.

Gerard: No. No I did my specialist art teaching in Swansea. Swansea College of Art and Design, and Swansea Teacher Training College.

Me: And when did you move to New College.

Gerard: Fifteen years ago..... I started here.

Me: And when you started were you head of department.

Gerard: No, well there was only me in the department... and it wasn't just art and design then it was craft, so a lot of woodwork was done and some ceramics and apart from the wood working side of things there really wasn't a specialist for art teaching. And it was looked upon in not as the way it is today as a part of the national curriculum. It was an activity. It had no direction to it....

Me: And is your background more painting or sculpture.

Gerard: Ceramics mainly.

Me: What arts have you practised outside. have you had exhibitions. Obviously you visit galleries. What is your interest when you visit galleries.

Gerard: My main... personal interests are wide and varied. I mean I visit galleries to view paintings or ceramics or sculpture. I visit... small galleries... I was self employed for about three, four years when I produced ceramics and sold to galleries.

Me: Did your previous [experience in] art education involve teaching blind students.

Gerard: Previous to coming here, none whatsoever.

Me: What changes did you envisage when you first taught visually impaired and blind children at New College.

Gerard:.. The honest answer to that question is that... I didn't have any sort of preconceived ideas or ideas about it. I basically continued with what my predecessor was doing and over the years it just expanded outwards very, very slowly and gradually until what I do today to what is a broad based art education. Its taken place over a very long period of time. So its been a slow sort of evolving process. And so if I think back to my first coming here I honestly don't remember what my preconceived ideas were. I mean it just seemed I was teaching. That was it.

Me: So you looked on it just like any normal teaching job.

Gerard: I looked upon it as a teaching job. And though I then had to do a distance learning course to be a qualified teacher of the VI. And that involved all aspects other aspects of visual impairment as well, and then I was basically teaching the subject. I kept looking at ways in which I could teach what I could what I would call a normal art activity to a group of children some totally blind some with visual impairment. So I experimented an awful lot. And some of the things I did then I still do today. And some of the things I don't. So again it was a long process, looking at things, trying things out and seeing if they worked.

Me: What did you try and find was the most effective method of art education at the time.

Gerard: Whilst I was teaching mixtures of blind and partially sighted I think probably three-dimensional art. And, I mean, ceramics is a, is a very sort of accessible medium if you like for visually impaired [students], because of the making process. But I looked at other ways… form and shapes could be built up by using a variety of materials and so on. And I sort of wanted to give some of the students the opportunities to say paint, draw and of course we got masses of drawing on [German] film which is what the VI can use. So I just tried to keep it as normal as possible.

Me: How did you find drawing on German film which is obviously very different to drawing on paper which you'd experienced before?

Gerard: It wasn't for everyone. You know some could do it very well indeed and others not at all, basically. So it became just a simple aid process, although there was no product at the end of it. And so I would say it perhaps wasn't appropriate for particularly congenitally blind children And I became to question whether it was perhaps an appropriate activity to push forward.... If it was working then fine, but if it didn't seem to have any sort of value in terms of the process then I could look at other methods of say working on prototypes models and to explore an idea... to develop an idea.

Me: Just going back slightly to when you said you first started at New College, why did you actually apply for the job. I mean, was it a decision that you actually decided to, or were you just looking for a job, or did you say I am going to teach blind children?

Gerard: No I didn't say I was going to teach blind children. No, far from it. I was a supply teacher. I was teaching for about three years on a supply basis, and I happened to know my predecessor on a social level, and I finished the supply, and he was seconded off, and I came in for I can't remember how long it was... a term or two terms to cover for him. When he came back he applied for the vice-principal's position and got it, so obviously there was a vacancy. I didn't actually put my application in until the very last minute, because in those days I thought that they were looking more for a design and technology teacher, not an art teacher. So I said at my interview my aim would be if I got the position to develop art and design, to eventually have it as an examination course running at the college. And I got the job, and that's how I got it. Well, yeah, that's how I got into it. It wasn't planned. I mean I'd lived in Worcester for a number of years, and I didn't even know there was a college here for the Blind. I'd driven past it many, many times, I didn't know it was here, until I met this friend. It came about by accident.

Me: What changes did you encounter that were different to your expectations.. you said there were no expectations, but what changes did you encounter as you were sort of developing your courses? I mean did you find many students were very nervous or did you have expectations of the children being nervous and then you found they overcame them, or did you......?

Gerard: No, No, Nothing, I just looked at things that they might be interested in. Themes that they might be interested in. Things common to them, not things that were totally alien to them, so that they were at least working on something that might have an interest in, even if they weren't particularly interested in art. You know, I have kids that are fairly bright and set them problem solving exercises, practical problem solving exercises. You know, they were useful to do, because again there didn't necessarily have to be an artistic outcome. There were also getting a process, so you know this had taken up a long period of time and wasn't always being successful, but I think I put things like involvement and interest and enjoyment at the top of the list of what I want to achieve from the lesson. Obviously there are obviously hopefully learning outcomes, and they will differ from pupil to pupil, but unless you can engage them in an activity then you basically aren't going to get anywhere. So I was looking for that involvement, and I tried to tap in to what ever they were interested in.

Me: Right, how do you feel your current attitudes towards visually impaired students have developed. For example, what was your.... do you feel that you came in with a picture of art that you wanted in any student, I mean, not in terms of whether they were blind or whether they were not blind, and how have your... even in the course of your own teaching development, how have your limitations, capabilities lived up to your expectations?

Gerard: Well, I mean I've had four maybe five students that have gone on to further education in art and design. Including a totally blind student. And so, I've started with nothing, not even an exam course, not even a sort of recognised slot on the timetable as I remember it, and onto a stage where, you know, where the students are now... some of the first students on the A level that have gone on to further education are now coming up with degrees, hopefully from further education. So that is how much it has developed…

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[1] Many students and teachers from old fashioned special schools described PE as a creative activity. It appeared often to be thought of as the only creative activity.