A tool... Borrowing an idea from the fishermen.

Managing the fabrication of the wireframe, I have been thinking about how best to connect to layers of the mesh together. After thinking carefully about what it is that I am trying to do, I borrowed the concept of net repair, that I have observed the fishermen of Northumberland carrying out not only on their broken fishing nets, but also on the lobster pots or creels that are used to catch crayfish.

I made this small tool out of a piece of right-angled quarter round moulding, that is often used in picture framing. With simple tools of a handsaw, chisel and drill, I was able to fashion a tool that I think looks similar to those used by the fishermen, and I suspect a similar tool has been in use since ancient times. I thought that this was a very fitting and poetic observation, that my fixing together of the wiremesh is not too dissimilar to the fitting together and re-interpreting of those philosophical ideas from nature and Heidegger that I have been wrestling with as a result of reading Simon Critchley's book, "very little,… Almost nothing: death and philosophy in literature".

This simple tool made a particularly effective method of being able to link and intertwine the wire netting, in a way that makes the whole object look very natural and professionally fabricated.

I am near to completion of creating the body substrate of the piece and my attention is mainly focused at the moment upon creating the undulations and crests to the facial features of the fragment of gnome which can be seen in the following photographs.

Conclusions;

1. I am reasonably pleased with the outcome of the artefact so far. I must be careful not to be distracted by outside interruptions, particularly from students that I have befriended and naturally have an urge to try and help them in their own quest of improving their own works.
2. Nevertheless, I remain careful not to lose sight of the many difficulties that I myself have overcome, which I will gently help others to see for themselves. It is this finding of solutions that they need to experience as part of their own process of learning, and I must be careful not to provide shortcuts which in any way desensitise other people's learning experiences.
3. I know within myself, that there are still very many obstacles to overcome within my own work and my renewed sense of focus that I was able to build up during the quiet period of the post-Easter weekend holidays and the last couple of weeks, must continue to be carefully managed.