Grant Proposal

This is my first Grant, any comments and suggestions would be useful:)



Tangible Therapeutic

Research Grant Proposal in fulfillment of Departmental Honors

Johanna Haydon


Introduction
In fulfillments for graduation with departmental honors I will create a cohesive body of work centered on the idea of comfort, relief and overall personal well-being. These objects will directly relate to these over arching themes and threw the objects themselves will aim to heal the wearer from whatever is burdening their mind and/or body. Whether it is worn for emotional, spiritual or physical reasons, I want my pieces to connect with the wearer on a level that will allow them to feel relief. Overall health is only achieved when a person's mind and body are sound.
I will use a variety of media and alternative materials that relate to the idea of health and well-being. As an interdisciplinary Crafts major I will incorporate what I have learned from my various classes to develop each jewelry piece thoroughly. Within several of the pieces I will be useing alternative materials that are used in medicinal practices such as Aloe Vera leaves. These alternative materials will be combined with traditional materials typically associated with body adornment, such as precious metals, thus blurring the lines of what jewelry is and can be. “Such materials are interesting for their own particular qualities, for the combinations in which they are used and for the degree of wit and skill employed in transforming the way we see such ordinary objects.”(Anderson)
Over the course of a year, I will be creating 8-10 pieces of art jewelry. Upon completion of these objects I will be required to organize and install my own show at an off campus location. Successful completion of the honors thesis project will ensure my graduation with departmental honors. Having a significant cohesive body of work to add to my portfolio will be a huge asset, if I decide to further my education at a graduate program. Along with educational benefits of a strong portfolio, this presentation of work will be a positive feature to my resume when applying for jobs with in the field.

Methods
I will be employing a wide variety of methods with in this body of work to achieve the varied outcomes associated with each individual piece. The construction of these pieces will require skills I have learned in my broad felid of study at Towson as an Interdisciplinary crafts major. I will draw on learned skills such as metal work, casting, mold making, enameling, alternative material study, printmaking, and stained glass. Along with these tangible skills I also have obtained knowledge with in the electronic field, I will uses programs such as Rhino 3D rendering, photo shop and illustrator, to
better express my ideas digitally. These processes will allow me to explore all the options and possibilities, behind the execution of this project. Because my pieces will be jewelry objects, and my primary field of study being with in metal work, they will all contain some type of metal, weather it is silver, copper, steel or gold. An example of this would be creating a metal infrastructure that alternative health objects could then be added too.
I will draw from my knowledge of metal working in combination with invaluable literary resources to create these objects. I will constantly be employing the knowledge found with in the Tim McCreight books, Complete Metalsmith (1994) and Practical Casting: a Studio Reference (2004), when creating cast fingerprints, to visually describe the relationship between comfort and the touch of another.
It is important to mention that the driving source behind the creating of these objects will be capturing the sense of well-being, all the materials used and design decisions will be made to reinforce this main idea. With this grant I will be able to fully express the need to fulfill and comfort, by creating these objects with materials that represent there underlying meaning.

Budget
Material Quantity Price Source

Oomoo Silicon Mold Making Kit 30Pints 1 Mold Making $28.00 Plaza Artist Material, York Road Towson, 9/18/08
Gold Leaf 1 Pack of 25 Sheets $34.00 www.lagoldleaf.com, 9/18/08
Silver Sheet 22gauge 1 6x4inch sheet $84.08 www.jatayu.com, 9/22/08
Silver Casting Grain 8oz. $176.00 www.armstrongtool.com, 9/18/08
Silver Wire 18gauge 10foot Coil $21.71 www.jatayu.com, 9/22/08
Bronze Casting Grain lb $20.00 www.armstrongtool.com, 9/18/08
Copper Sheet 22gauge 3 12x12inch sheets $42.00 www.armstrongtool.com, 9/18/08
Prizma Color Pencil set 1 48 pack $34.00 www.utrechtart.com, 9/18/08
Vellum Pad 1 50 sheet pad $15.00 Micheals Arts and Crafts, 9/18/08
Total: $454.00


Project Timeline
The Honors Thesis project is a 7 credit, two semester course. That will end in an exhibition of my work at an off campus lactation and a final 10-12 page thesis paper. I will be required to meet with my faculty mentor as well as an off campus committee member through out this project. I will make steady work progress throughout this time period, aiming to have the majority of my pieces completed in the fall semester, leaving final pieces and show organization for the spring semester. Below is a tentative timeline of this procedure.

Date Description
09/08/08 First day of honors thesis. Rough draft Honors Thesis Proposal due.
09/08/08-09/27/08 Steady design sketches and material exploration
09/27/08 Research Grant Proposal due to Office of University Research
09/29/08 Finial draft Honors Thesis Proposal due to Jan Baum, faculty mentor.
10/02/08 1st meeting with off campus committee member.
10/14/08 Mid-semester. 2 Pieces in finial stages.
10/15/08 Final Draft Honors Thesis Proposal due to Honors College
11/25/08 2nd meeting with off campus committee member. Majority of pieces in completion stage.
12/22/08 End of Fall semester. Majority of pieces complete.
01/3/09-03/25/08 Photograph work, organize show, work on finial pieces and Honors Thesis paper.
04/15/09 Honors Thesis paper due to committee
04/25/09-05/05/09 Honors Thesis show.





Bibliography

Anderson, Patricia. Contemporary Jewellery in Australia and New Zealand. Sydney:Craftsman House, 1998

McCreight, Tim. Complete Metalsmith. Portland, Maine: Brynmorgen Press, 2004.

McCreight, Tim. Practical Casting, A Studio Reference. Cape Elizabeth, Maine: Brynmorgen Press, 1994.