Lines of Investigation

08 June – 25 June 2005

A dynamic interdisciplinary exhibition of process-based drawings, Lines of Investigation highlighted the varied role of drawing in the research and development of ideas for finished designs and artworks.

Specially selected by current Stanley Picker Design Fellows El Ultimo Grito to coincide with the 2005 Faculty Degree Shows, the exhibition gave gallery visitors a chance to appreciate the development of drawn ideas – from doodles to finished drafts – that informed the production of works by a diversity of students graduating in Fashion and Fine Art, Graphics and Illustration, Film & Television, Product Design, Interior Design, Architecture and Landscape. This display of original drawings demonstrated how drawing remains a vital part of the creative process and provided a fascinating insight into the differing styles and working methods of individual artists and designers from a wide variety of disciplines.

The Faculty of Art, Design and Architecture at Kingston University has become internationally recognised for its interdisciplinary research into Drawing as Process that investigates the medium as a diverse yet fundamental process for a whole range artists and designers. Whilst transcending the boundaries of traditional disciplines, the application of new technologies and traditional techniques have created a constantly evolving panorama for the development of drawing practice. As part of Lines of Investigation, the gallery hosted the Drawing Research Network symposium where over thirty delegates, whose main practice is drawing, presented and discussed their current research projects.

A series of new drawings by the Japanese sculptor Mototaka Nakamura were exhibited alongside Lines of Investigation. With a long established career exhibiting throughout the Far East and Europe and as a Professor at Bunsai Art College in Tokyo, Mototaka has been commissioned to produce site-specific sculptural work for a range of prestigious public sites throughout Japan. In these drawings his focus turned to a more private domain. Landscape in a Kitchen, Departure and Arrival presented a series of still-life drawings of an apparently mundane domestic scene. Through the dynamic scale and energy of the drawings, and their repeated formal shifts, the artist invested these utilitarian objects with a sculptural monumentality that belies their casual composition and humble origins.