cmyplay

Laura Jordan’s work came to my attention during an outing to the Portabello Road Market. The images were striking enough to make me want to take a photo of the website details to see examples of her other work.

The intricate linework and the unexpected juxtaposition of imagery evokes a believable reality that seems to have a lot to say about society. Consumer culture; quality of life; the isolation of modern city dwelling; these are all themes that are visible at a cursory glance over the work.

The “recycling” of a number of elements in the works take a critical look at the reality of mass production and the myth of individualism. I posed some questions to her and here’s what she had to say:
Considering that your work examines the themes of consumer culture and city living, do you aspire to any specific lifestyle/subculture?

I’m a quiet person, but I seek out bustling places where I observe my subject, society. I’m quite absorbed in my work which I share mainly with my partner and we find enjoyment in creating, expanding and developing what we see. I don’t enter into consumerism in a massive way but I’m not that holy, I have many vices.

What do you see as your primary influences and motivations for creating your works?

My images are based on real situations so I constantly need to be fuelled by the sights round me and new situations. The East End is my primary source where I find many interesting characters, and find particularly inspired by the raw nature of the area.
Artists who inspire me are photo realist sculptures such as Duane Hanson, Ron Mueck.

Do you consider yourself an illustrator, an artist, or both?

I’m very lucky because in technical terms of the words used to describe different practices I have a foot in many pots right now, including working on an everyday basis with a gallery developing my fine art skills as well as working on projects as a commercial illustrator. Working at the market gives me the freedom to create the work I want and it means that I receive direct feedback from customers which helps to develop myself as an artist and cope with constructive criticism as an illustrator

How do you produce your work? Is it hand-drawn and then digitally treated?

I use a range of tools to create my work and can’t say one is used more than another, nor what the future holds in the development of my technique, as an artist I am constantly excited by new and old media’s and enjoy collaging them.

Gill carved these for a book, Manuscript and Inscription Letters for Schools and Classes and for Use of Craftsman, compiled by his former teacher, Edward Johnston. He later gave them to the V&A so they could be used by students of the Royal College of Art. Gill’s typography, which included his own font, Gill Sans, was highly influential.

-Victoria & Albert exhibition information

The highlights of the Victoria & Albert museum had to be these hand-carved tablets and the photographic section. We took a hasty glance through the fashion section and the plaster casts of the Medieval architectural detailing.
Looking at the amount of work and concentration that went into producing work like this made me wonder about the divergent nature of design today. There are countless people around that seem to be doing it all. They compose scores for the short film they shot and edited according to the screenplay they wrote, which in turn was inspired by a canvas they painted for a poster promoting their upcoming sculpture exhibition.

My question is this: with the proliferation of this do-it-all-yourself culture in creative pursuits, especially self-initiated work, are we losing touch with the mastery of disciplines.

Checking the market indicators today made me grateful for being back home. This time last week we were checking in at Virgin’s self-service kiosk at Heathrow. The both of us were relieved and surprised to have fit everything into our luggage with 10kg to spare. This time around I’m returning pretty light in the gadget department. While the Dreamcast is a replacement purchase, the headphones were an absolute necessity. There is a theme to most of my DVD- and all of my book purchases. Zombies featuring quite prominently. More on that later.
While this all looks like rampant consumerism in the face of a recession, we spent what time we could with friends. A lot of planning and some saving (with the convenience of a pair of credit cards) saw us off to London Town in economy, crashing on the couch; off to Split (Croatia), in the Hotel As; and back home again with ease.

I say with ease but I really mean we’ve got some work to do. I say we’ve got some work to do I mean we’re living on end-of-the-month Salticrax for a while.