My Evaluation

Pumphouse has been entirely different to the projects I have worked on before. Primarily, the brief for the Pumphouse project was to design for a site-specific production; this mean't that the Pumphouse building had to be completely taken into consideration as part of the design process, and the design work we produced for the production of 'The Great Rinsing' is specifically designed for the space, actors and narrative. Furthermore, I have not had the chance to have my design process turned into a live production of this scale before. The ability of doing this is what I wanted to get most out of the Self- Directed project; to see my ideas develop from a sketchbook of initial ideas and be transformed into the significant visual element of costumes and set to be a part of the production. The concept of having the Pumphouse production- organised by the Wimborne community- to work towards gave myself, and the rest of the group, motivation and an aim to achieve. We had been given an important role as part of the Pumphouse team, therefore, we all wanted to work to the best of our abilities.


Pumphouse had also appealed to me through the idea of group work. I feel grateful for being able to work with three fellow peers who I feel I got on really well with. We were able to communicate with each other, as well as the pumphouse team, throughout the design process and we knew eachother's individual ideas for the costumes and set. This resulted in complimentary design work; where we had used influence from our research, as a team, as well as bouncing ideas around at tutorials and other meetings, meant that similar aspects within our costume and set designs worked well together and the combination of our individual ideas creates a harmonious collection for the performance.


Although- as part of the Pumphouse team- this project is in a way only just beginning as we have started to source different elements of the production, I have enjoyed the process so far. I feel that I have taken this project more seriously than I do in 'hypothetical' projects, as I had an important role to play as a designer. I feel that my design skills were put to the test for the first time with a site- specific production, a director and cast. I had to make sure that the director was happy with my design ideas, therefore, would share my designs in each stage of the development to both the director and assistant director (Peth and Pip). I also needed to take into consideration the actors, and their comfort while wearing the costumes; this challenged my abilities as a designer and I had to adapt my design process to the needs of the director and actors. I also had to take the location into consideration, which is where the challenging aspect of site-specific performances takes place. I needed to consider the set in which the actors will be performing on and the accessibility and movement of the space around them; the costumes needed to be practical within this space, as well as being aesthetically pleasing and complimentary with the set.


I found the design process and the development of ideas exciting in this project. I found that the adapting of design aspects of my ideas resulted in further development and new ideas to work with throughout the project; as soon as I changed direction with one aspect, the design process would be introduced to a different concept and would lead the whole project to something different. My project began researching different eras of factory uniforms, from 1900's to the 1950's and finished with the research of surface textures such as barnicles and rust.


If I had more time in my sketchbook, I would have developed my ideas of surface and textiles design further and experimented with the character I took influence from in Pirates of the Carribean. I intend for the characters to look like they have been washed up from the sea and have started to rot and decay. This is an element of the costumes I can develop as I go along when it comes to making them.
Making the costumes is something I am apprehensive about, although most the costumes will be sourced, therefore, it is just a case of breaking down and working into the fabric.


The director intended for the 'Mechanicals' to be "Earthy" and "Realistic", which meant that the design process was restricting to my individual style, however I am really pleased with my overall designs and can’t wait to start creating the costumes and set, and to be involved with the performances.

Experimenting with textile design

Today I have spent the day in the dye room experimenting with different surface and textile designs for my costumes. I intend to break down the final costumes, and make them look worn and damaged. However, I want to exaggerate this idea through the elements of water damage on surfaces. I took the influence of this character from Pirates of the Caribbean:

I want to create the idea of 'barnicles' and re-create this surface design on my costumes. I want the characters to become a part of their surroundings and to portray the idea that they have been effected by the water, both on their costumes and through their characters and the significant role they play in preserving the memories of the water.

I have also looked at the visual textures of rust and mould. These are also elements, which I intend to influence and incorporate into my costumes, that connote the concept of water damage and the idea that it was once there, and now has gone but has left it's wreckoning.

Design ideas for Set

During the development of costume design, I have been working on ideas for the dressing of the set of 'The Cave' within the Pumphouse.
My intial ideas of what I wanted to create visually for the set of 'The Cave' were:

• Dingy
• Dark
• Abandoned
• Tatty

This cavern from Pirates of the Caribbean inspired my design ideas:

My intention for the cave was to make it feel as though it was once inhibited and used to store water, perhaps when it started running out. It was once a sacred place, and a santuary for the reservation of water. But after the water had completely run out, 'The Cave' would have been deserted and abandoned, left only are the remains of 'personal objects' and instruements that contained and stored the water. These instruements would be dusty as they haven't been used for years.

I researched imagery of hanging objects that collect water, and found this image of hanging bottles:

These bottles would be suspended from the low ceiling of 'The Cave' using rope.

I had the idea of using dead flowers instead to make it seem eerie and deserted, and to emphasise the fact that it is a place that has been left abandoned for a very long time. I also want to use jars that will hold battery powered tealights in them, as the only source of light it will be dim to create a dingy and gloomy atmosphere. Old watering cans and buckets, will be suspended, which will be filled with 'personal belongings' such as old jewellery and letters that have written on them the memories of water; this will lead the narrative into Room Two.

Development of design for female mechanic

I have recently been working on the development of my design for the female mechanic.
Although I was really happy with my initial design and wanted to keep it as a final design, with a few adjustments and developments, the director felt that it wouldn't be comfortable for the actress wearing the costume, and that a dress would be more comfortable. In the research for the intial design, it was the practicalities of the bloomers that i found would work best for the female mechanics costume, and would appear more practical and professional. However, I agreed with the director in making the actress feel as comfortable as possible, therefore, I have changed my initial design and have been working towards a finalised design for the character. Although I haven't completely made up my mind on which design I think works best, I have a rough idea what my final costume design will look like.

Design for female mechanic

I researched into female factory workers from different eras, and developed my ideas by taking influences from the imagery of factory fashion for women. I also took ideas from my initial designs of the male mechanics; I intend to create the costumes for the main male and female characters similar to each other, as a way of complimenting the two costumes and representing the relationship and similar characteristics of the two mechanics.
In the development of the design for the female mechanic, I bought back the influence of Steampunk and used this image as inspiration.

I wanted to create a feminine shape for the actress playing the mechanic, and wanted to incorporate a sense of femininity. I looked at using straps and belts at the waist to create a feminine figure and silhouette, yet still portraying a practical and realistic operative uniform. The bloomers would also convey this idea; they have feminine connotations, yet would be practical in a working environment.

Initial Design meeting at Pumphouse

 After developing my research, i have spent the last week developing my initial designs for the mechanics. Lois, Louisa and I took a trip yesterday to the Pumphouse to show Pip, the director and the actors our initial design ideas for the costume and set. We talked through our ideas with the team and we discussed our overall designs. The team seemed really happy with what we had come up with since the last meeting, and were comfortable to discuss what they liked about our designs and what we could develop.

This meeting was useful as the team had decided on the cast and how many characters would play in which scenes. By the end of the day, the director had decided that there would be two main mechanics who would be speaking, one extra mechanic, and two child mechanics. One of the two mechanics is played by a female, therefore, i will research female factory workers and incoporate this with the research i have already produced. A challenging prospect is that the female mechanic would prefer to wear a dress, so i will combine the practicality and sensibility of a factory worker with a feminine style.

The director had also mentioned to me that my costume designs were a bit too comical for the characters, so i intend to develop my designs and make them more 'earthy' and 'realistic'.

• I intend to develop my analysis of the two main characters and make them more similar to each other, as their characteristics include finishing each others sentences and speaking in unison. I imagine them to be old friends, that have worked with each other over such a long space of time that they have become each other, both visually and mentally.
• The third mechanic will look very similar, but will have slight differences.
• The children will look similar to all three mechanics, but will be toned down and won't be as broken down as the mechanics due to the fact that they haven't been working in the Pumphouse for as long. I will incorporate both past and present styles into the costumes of the children.

Steampunk

After researching 'The City of Lost Children', I went on to research the concept of Steampunk. Works of steampunk often feature anachronistic technology or futuristic innovations; cogs, machinary and mechanical tools are visual aspects that make up the style of Steampunk. However, Steampunk is not just the visual elements of brass and watchparts, it is the incorporating of futuristic technology with the past. It combines the past with the future; creating an old-fashioned, yet futuristic style.

This play between time periods is influential for the designs of the mechanics, due to the fact that they are set in the future when water has run out and all is left are 'the memories', yet they have been operatives of the machinery for so long that they have become the past of the Pumphouse.

I intend my costume designs to be timeless, but with a hint of different eras from the past, therefore, this style of clothing would be influential. The idea of cogs and old watches of this style represents the narrative of the Pumphouse production and the way that time is going backwards as we move through the journey of the performance. The concept of time would be represented through the mechanical elements of watches, such as cogs.

The steampunk style would portray the mechanics as 'inventors' as they are in charge of maintaining the machinery of the Pumphouse and keeping it in order. They are in charge of 'the memories of water' and i believe that a steampunk-esque uniform would reflect their importance and significance within the Pumphouse.

The use of metal and steel would help me develop the visual element of rust on the costumes, as well as using nuts and bolts to hold their costume together, to create the appearance that they have been working there for a long time and are trying to maintain their clothing, as well as the machinery.