GCE Art and Design New Specification Personal Creative Enquiry

GCE AS / A LEVEL ART AND DESIGN
TEXTILE DESIGN WHICH FULFILS THE CRITERIA OF THE TOP MARK BAND
UNIT ONE PERSONAL CREATIVE ENQUIRY
In the first of three workbooks presented, the candidate considered several possible subjects for creative
enquiry, ranging from tea parties to English eccentricity, making contextual references to designer Vivienne
Westwood and designs from fashion magazines such as Vogue. Reference was also made to the knitwear of
Irish fashion designer Lainey Keogh and other contemporary designers, analysing selected examples of their
designs in appropriate depth and considering how certain aspects of their work might inform her own creative
enquiries.
A felt-making workshop further contributed to possibilities of designing and making a garment that combined the
theme of eccentricity with contemporary fashion, together with experimental knitting and shibori textile
techniques. This resulted in the innovative design and production of a garment knitted from strips of textural
fabric embellished with lengths of imitation pearl beads. A series of photographs effectively showed the garment
being worn by a model in a suitable setting.
In a second and third workbook, the candidate began with references to the work of Damien Hirst. From this
source, with particular reference to colour, pattern and line, she developed analytical observational studies of
shells, a sheep skull, beetles, flower heads and microscopic cell structures using good drawing skills and a
range of suitable media and recording techniques.
A visit to a stately home added a new dimension to her ideas, recording her thoughts and impressions through
words, drawings and photographs. Bold, large scale studies of flower heads provided a rich, informed basis for
an extensive range of computer-generated repeat patterns. Participation in a screen printing workshop opened
up a fresh variety of design applications that resulted in the production of a well-finished, large, printed scarf and
several other unfinished textile prints, some of which were embellished with machine stitchery.
Both final outcomes were accompanied by impressive design development. The whole submission
demonstrated high levels of application and achievement across all aspects of the assessment objectives.