From the Vault 02
In this the second instalment of From the Vault I’ve really dug deep and gone back to the early days; showing the diversity and richness of my practice. I’ve sifted through Polaroids, black and white negs, Kodak prints and drawings. Once again the process has been positively affirming. I have included a few descriptions for the harder to place projects and works. Enjoy!
House for Bachelard (1994). Design, models, drawings and photography by Christina Waterson 1994.
This exploratory project, House for Bachelard, was designed while studying Architecture at The University of Queensland in 1994. The 2nd Year Architectural Design Studio was run by Professor John Hockings.
PART 01: ABSTRACTIONS OF HOUSE. On reading The Poetics of Space by Gaston Bachelard, students were asked to communicate its essential concepts via a maquette (concepts such as curved space, corner/huddle, and progression between polar states etc) Through an intensive model making process I explored ‘hidden space’ and tried to capture the feeling of the spaces described in The Poetics of Space. Then in a series of exercises involving the abstraction, duplication and repetition of our original concept model we were challenged to consider the qualities of spaces revealed by this process and match them to the prescribed areas of a brief. The brief was for a weekend house for the author Bachelard.
Abstractions of House – Study Model 1 (1994). Photography by Christina Waterson 1994.
Abstractions of House – Study Model 2 (1994). Photography by Christina Waterson 1994.
PART 02: HOUSE FOR BACHELARD. My proposition for his ‘house’ was a camp-like structure providing basic necessities for Bachelard’s weekend stays. It was nestled within the landscape of Point Lookout and orientated to minimize oncoming winds. The long landscape wall allowed Gaston to survey the coming weather. It shielded his vegetable garden from the strong winds. The bookshelf was considered as a large ladder that stretched from the cellar, through the reading room and up to Bachelard’s sunny sleeping cone. The cellar lay within the earth and provided a dark cool retreat.
House for Bachelard – Sectional Project Model (1994). The model was 1.8 meters in length. The middle and bottom photos are taken from the same view but one shows the ground plane intact while the other reveals in section the cellar below. Photography by Christina Waterson 1994.
Peter Light 2000 lighting commission for Elision Ensemble’s practice space, South Brisbane. Photography Christina Waterson 2000.
Raku Test Patterns 2001. Made during a Ceramic’s Elective while studying Visual Arts at the Queensland University of Technology in 2001. Photography by Christina Waterson.
Ceramic Family of Vessels 2001. For a Ceramic’s Elective while studying Visual Arts at the Queensland University of Technology in 2001. Photography by Christina Waterson.
Array Study 01 (2007). Veneer. Photography David Sandison.
Array Study 02 (2007). Polypropylene. Photography David Sandison.
Fuzzy Dub (2010) the concept for my reloved – designer stories piece at the Sydney Powehouse. Concept and drawing by Christina Waterson 2010.
“Once desired and loved but eventually discarded, the essential furniture item – the chair – has a long, rich and often poignant past… Contemporary design and bespoke beauty merge to transform a tired furniture piece into a work of art.” Brief by Sydney Powerhouse 2010.
Find a chair, relove it and tell a story. My response to this brief explored the origins of my own creative spark. The first chairs I distinctly remember were our school chairs and at that time I was heavily into craft especially making pom poms. I playfully combined these two memories together to make Fuzzy Dub for the exhibition. By taking two discarded and outgrown school chairs and binding them with recycled materials (including fishing nets and fabric strips) they were reused to make a large-scale pom pom. The exhibition was held at Sydney Powerhouse as part of the 2010 Sydney Design Festival. It included reloved chairs by Andrew Simpson (Industrial Design), Liesl Hazelton (Jewellery), and Adam Goodrum (Industrial Design).
Fuzzy Dub the process (2010). Photography by Jon Linkins.
My complete Fuzzy Dub (2010). Every time I look at Fuzzy Dub it makes me laugh! Pretty fun and out there! Photography by Jon Linkins.
All works by Christina Waterson. If you would like to check out From the Vault 01, the previous post in this series, click on this link.
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