Drawings from Hungate Dig

Drawing: process in layers of time:


The drawings are a response to the activity in the entrance hall, which I have been allocated for displaying my work. This is a changing, working environment where trays of finds are stacked to dry and safety clothing is available for use by those going on site. The objects in the drawings belong to different ‘layers of time’, from the Roman era to the present, the time span of the site itself. My drawing highlights the significance that these humble objects hold within a particular context. The act itself references the drawing process of mapping.





Object Map 1: Past,
Pencil, soil, tape on layered paper, mounted on board.
100 cm x 81 cm.
Catherine Scriven, 2007 - 08.

This drawing is based on a piece of a Roman mortarium, a large bowl with embedded grit to grind and mix foods. It is related to our present pestle and mortar. It would have been used in the daily routine of food preparation.
This object was found by Will and I, in the infill of a drain cut.



Here is a detail of the drawing, layers and mounting:









Object Map 2: Past and Present,
Pencil, soil, tape on layered paper, mounted on board.
100 cm x 81 cm.
Catherine Scriven, 2007 - 08.

This drawing is based shoes: the archaeologist’s steel toe capped boots worn for safety and an early 20th century female leather shoe probably worn for a smart occasion found in context 39000.
Shoes: humble everyday objects
Shoes: metaphors for activities, circumstances and
personality.



Here is a detail of the drawing of the laces:









Object Map 3: Present,
Pencil, soil, tape on layered paper, mounted on board.
100 cm x 81 cm.
Catherine Scriven, 2007 - 08.

Uniform gear for protection.
Unifying but protecting the individual.
Emphasis on the individual.
The individual as part of team.
Emphasis on the team.
Any of us, all of us.
Absent but present.



For photos of the drawings withing the dig context go to the installation view. Click on link: http://catherine-scriven.blogspot.com/2008/01/installation-at-hungate-dig.html

Site Photograph of Hungate Dig

This is the compostie site image from Block H excavation area at the Hungate Dig

Block H, 9/08/07 - 29/11/07
Photograph ref: 6688 6709 6710 6711 6737 6738 6761 6762
6855 6857 6966 6967 7023 7160 7162 7336 7844 7845 7848
4 Layered Digital colour print, 50 cm x 50 cm each.
Catherine Scriven, 2007 - 08.


Here are the individual photographs and like a composite plan drawn by the archaeologist, each layered photograph is part of the larger image, as seen above.









To view the photographs as displayed at the installation please click the following link: http://catherine-scriven.blogspot.com/2008/01/installation-at-hungate-dig.html





Installation at the Hungate Dig

The Installation is set up, ready for viewing and assessment. There will also be on Open Day at Hungate Dig on Saturday, 26th of January when you will be able to learn more about the archaeological site as well as view the installation.






Archaeology – Art - Process Statement of Intent


This installation was informed by my experiences during the student residency at the Hungate archaeological dig with the York Archaeological Trust (YAT). The intention was to respond to the finds, the ordinary domestic objects, their perceived significance and interpretation. As I was a novice in archaeology, I joined the volunteers in the summer and learned basic skills; how to correctly use a trowel to dig, to read the soil, to wash and sort the finds, to draw maps and describe contexts.

My artistic response developed through the process of using three separate media - photographs, drawing and papermaking – the unifying concept became ‘layers’, ‘time’ and ‘process’.


Photographs: layers of time and process:
The activity on site is fascinating and in constant flux. I intended to capture this activity, the textures, features and some of the archaeological processes performed on the site and in the HQ building. The resulting images are like palimpsests, reminiscent of the work of Indris Khan, with stratified, layered moments in time.




To view details of the site photograph click the following link: http://catherine-scriven.blogspot.com/2008/01/site-photograph-of-hungate-dig.html

To view details of the process photographs click the following link: http://catherine-scriven.blogspot.com/2008/01/archaeology-process-digital-prints.html

Drawing: process in layers of time:
The drawings are a response to the activity in the entrance hall, which I have been allocated for displaying my work. This is a changing, working environment where trays of finds are stacked to dry and safety clothing is available for use by those going on site. The objects in the drawings belong to different ‘layers of time’, from the Roman era to the present, the time span of the site itself. My drawing highlights the significance that these humble objects hold within a particular context. The act itself references the drawing process of mapping.


To see details of the drawings, click the following link: http://catherine-scriven.blogspot.com/2008/01/drawings-from-hungate-dig.html

Papermaking: paper core sample - a timeline of processed layers:
I am intrigued by the significance given by Cornelia Parker, Andy Goldsworthy and Arte Povera artists to ‘materials’ used within their work. I experimented with mud and grit, intending to embed the archaeological site into paper. This led to papermaking, thus recycling paper that was earmarked for disposal, either from domestic or corporate sources; representing various endeavours of humankind, such as finance, education, faith and music. Archaeologists refer to their activity as interpreting the rubbish from previous generations. The various soils used to colour the paper were also part of the spoils of the site, the rubbish from the archaeological process. Paper itself is transient. Recycling this rubbish is a way of investigating the significance of seemingly insignificant discarded material. It also questions the responsibility we have towards future generations, sustainability, and the legacy of our rubbish. The layers of paper are like a core sample of the site, the deposited layers of time, one millimetre corresponding to each year of the past.



The making of the paper became a repetitive process, with a performance on site shared with the volunteers and archaeologists. Through this performance I realised that the focus of the work shifted from objects to process and sharing of work practice. The emphasis was on the process itself, the tactile practical involvement, the human interaction, the social space. Paradoxically, the process produced an object, the paper. Interestingly, going full circle from object to process back to object.

This tactile paper also resulted in a book. To view images of the book and more of the layered paper please click the following link: http://catherine-scriven.blogspot.com/2008/01/timeline-of-processed-layers.html

A timeline of processed layers

Dust to Dust (Paper Core Sample),
Recycled Paper, various soils (incl.
red and brown clay, ash, charcoal, silt)
and debris, flax.
Individual Sheets: 30 cm x 30 cm,
height: variable.
Catherine Scriven, 2007 - 08

With contributions from Chris, David, Gary, Janet, Jon, Margaret, Martin, Susan and Toby.


Papermaking: paper core sample - a timeline of processed layers:


I am intrigued by the significance given by Cornelia Parker, Andy Goldsworthy and Arte Povera artists to ‘materials’ used within their work. I experimented with mud and grit, intending to embed the archaeological site into paper. This led to papermaking, thus recycling paper that was earmarked for disposal, either from domestic or corporate sources; representing various endeavours of humankind, such as finance, education, faith and music. Archaeologists refer to their activity as interpreting the rubbish from previous generations. The various soils used to colour the paper were also part of the spoils of the site, the rubbish from the archaeological process. Paper itself is transient. Recycling this rubbish is a way of investigating the significance of seemingly insignificant discarded material. It also questions the responsibility we have towards future generations, sustainability, and the legacy of our rubbish. The layers of paper are like a core sample of the site, the deposited layers of time, one millimetre corresponding to each year of the past.







To view the installation view at the Hungate Dig Site Building click the following link: http://catherine-scriven.blogspot.com/2008/01/installation-at-hungate-dig.html


The texture and inclusions of the paper are very tactile and varied. The colour is subtly different in each batch of papers. For me the dense layers where there is less gap between the sheets is still the most attactive. So this really spurred me on to make a book for the Book from Book project for Leeds.


Archaeology Process Photoworks

Photographs: layers of time and process:
The activity on site is fascinating and in constant flux. I intended to capture this activity, the textures, features and some of the archaeological processes performed on the site and in the HQ building. The resulting images are like palimpsests, reminiscent of the work of Indris Khan, with stratified, layered moments in time.





Room with a view, 9/08/07 – 5/10/07
6679 6751 6779 6826 6841 7190
Layered Digital colour print, 50 cm x 50 cm.
Catherine Scriven, 2007 - 08.

This print allows a glimpse into the process of the digital layering of the photographs.







Washing finds, 5/10/07
6778 7191 7192 7199 7201
Layered Digital colour print, 50 cm x 50 cm.
Catherine Scriven, 2007 - 08.






Trowelling, 4/10/07
7160 7161 7166 7168 7169 7170 7171 7351
Layered Digital colour print, 50 cm x 50 cm.
Catherine Scriven, 2007 - 08.





Bagging, 11/10/07
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Layered Digital colour print, 50 cm x 50 cm.
Catherine Scriven, 2007 - 08.






Recording, 9/08/07
6726 6752 6753 6755 6756 6757
Layered Digital colour print, 50 cm x 50 cm.
Catherine Scriven, 2007 - 08.

To view the photographs as displayed at the installation, please click the following link: http://catherine-scriven.blogspot.com/2008/01/installation-at-hungate-dig.html

York St John Uni Dinner Set



Commissioned dinner set for York St John University. The dinner set is based on the new Universtity Logo. I wanted to incorporate the experience of being at uni, the working against the wind, still belonging to a guiding branch, knowing that one day you would fly away and have to take your learning and skill into the wide world by yourself.


The dinner set was used at the Conferment dinner of York St John as a Universityon 8th of November 2007 . Hope the set will be enjoyed for many years to come.

Tanka Seasons






Autumn, Winter, Spring and Summer from the Tanka Seasons Series, based on Japanese Tanka Poetry, a ancient form of poetry with a rigid format of 31 syllables divided over 5 lines (5,7,5,7,7 syllables per line). The symbolic images used in the poetry is often based on nature and closely related to the seasons, something which seems lots in our urban 24/7 society.


Layered digital photographs, 2005
Prints of these are available upon request, 585 x 470 mm.
£145 each framed, 10% discount for the set of four
£85 unframed, 10%  for the set of four.