Sarah Daniels Interim Report
Sarah received one of our Arts Awards in 2014 to support a period of reflection and professional development.
"The St Hugh’s Award has enabled me to fully immerse myself in my personal practice and from this a number of opportunities, including initiating working partnerships with new contacts, have created several openings for me in my professional practice. I have been able to merger and develop the cross-disciplinary aspects of my work and I have had the opportunity to experiment with new materials, fabrication and production methods previously not open to me.
In the first instance I was very keen to learn additional skills in design construction and illustration software so the design concepts I had started to work with were more transferable. Up until this point, much of my professional practice and commissioned work came from an almost entirely photographic foundation and the software I regularly used had limitations in how transferable the artwork was. At the outset I understood that what I wanted from the new body of work was to maximise its manufacturing output possibilities so the concepts and subsequently the designs were fully exchangeable in their production element.
I started to have discussions with a very experienced digital illustrator and 3D visualiser based in London and together (face-to-face and over the phone) we worked through my preliminary design ideas. Initially he showed me similar concepts and how they were presented for production. He then guided me through the technical methods, which transformed my design concepts into files that are now widely accepted and easily understood by the software used by manufacturers, engineers, architects and interior designers.
Following this I was able to confidently present my personal work to an interior designer I had worked with on a health centre in the East Riding and she promptly requested that I send her digital portfolios of various types of work (both personal and professional) I had been engaged with. These digital portfolios later became part of a presentation package she showcased to clients. The designer successfully gained several large NHS Capital Build contracts where the interior schemes and integrated artwork were merged and I worked directly for the designer not the client. Collaboratively we worked together to create whole thematic design packages. She collated the details for the interior schemes including the procurement of the fixtures, fittings, furniture and colour schemes, which were then combined with specially commissioned bespoke artwork that enhanced the overall scheme.
This was an entirely new way of working for me and proved to be a very successful formula. Together we worked on the new eye centre based at Pinderfields Hospital in Wakefield, two separate paediatric assessment units and a health centre in Cumbria, and an intensive care psychiatric unit in Sheffield. Being one step removed from the client meant I could solely concentrate on the design elements required for the building and the opportunities have enabled me to nurture new working partnerships with manufacturers and contract suppliers.
The skills gained in digital illustration meant on a technical level I understood the file requirements needed so I could work directly (without a middle man) with contract wall covering specialists Tektura, who printed and installed my designs onto bespoke textured wallpaper for board rooms, corridors and entrance areas and Altro a company who specialise in premium flooring and wall cladding systems for construction and transport. Altro manufactured my artwork onto specialist wet room wall cladding for 18 en-suite bathrooms and this artwork became part of the fabric and aesthetics of the contemporary psychiatric unit’s individual bedrooms, which for risk reasons could not include any loose fittings or any other type of artwork.
The sections of wallpapers were 3000mm high and up to 20 metres in width. Previously I would have struggled to present the files correctly for expanses of wall this large. I also created the artwork and supplied design files to Tarkett Flooring and Muraspec, who specialise in commercial and high-end wallcoverings.
In addition, with the software skills gained I also worked on preparing graphics, which became doublesided digitally printed window film and expanded my partnership with the Hull based bespoke plastics specialist. Together we made a series of prototypes, which included escalating the work we had done previously with rusted and lacquered cut steel and these smaller prototypes were worked up and later became wall based artwork and signage for the Pinderfields Hospital.
Concepts that started life as bent and curled bits of card on my office floor, turned into acrylic prototypes where heat and simple MDF structures allowed us to bend and form the panels. These practiced experiments were remodelled and later became a complicated series of huge 3 metre curved photographic panels of 10mm of acrylic. This formed the backbone of a major commission and the panels were installed in the atrium of a new comprehensive school."
Click here to read Sarah's full interim report with images.
"Summary
I feel the St Hugh’s award has enabled me to expand my knowledge and technical expertise, which in turn has boosted confidence levels. I now feel capable of applying for commissions I would have previously shied away from. This has opened many new doors with interior designers, suppliers, clients and how I now approach my professional practice. I needed the mentoring from the digital illustrator and the expertise he imparted has proved invaluable. We came together with a different skills set and following on from me gaining additional skills in how to use the software more efficiently we have continued to work together. The Hull based plastic fabrication company who provided the prototypes wants us to create a series of designs, which will be produced for online merchandising. The illustrator, who now terms our relationship, as a ‘mutually beneficial collaborative partnership’ is very keen to continue working together. We are really interested in the possibility of developing further work, which will involve 3D particle systems and algorithms. This will lead to the 3D printing of patterns for the domestic market. We also want expand our practice to create new surfaces used in construction and for interior finishes.
In addition, gaining the City of Culture commission only came about because I was able to understand the engineering drawings and the commissioning team expressed that they thought I would be able to make the design and colouring process easy for the contractors to follow without the proposed work becoming too complicated and unnecessarily convoluted. This is definitely a major development for me, as I have never worked on an infrastructure project before. This became possible because of the collaborative work I embarked upon as a result of gaining the professional development award from St Hugh’s. I am excited by the opportunities which lie ahead."