008 Craft Work: [The Descent of Man] - Camouflage

Camouflage. Create or alter something so that it disappears into it's background.

MATERIALS: 2 printed copies of the same abstract image. KNIFE. Ruler.

METHOD: One of the images is used for the background, the other for folding an origami crane. Take the KNIFE and CUT one image into a square so you can fold the crane. I'm not describing how to fold a crane here, look it up, but if you make one thousand of these and you believe in nonsensical things - you get to have a wish to come true...

NARRATIVE: The spirit of the crane arises from the backdrop of crushed glass from a broken telephone box symbolising the transience of humanity and the inevitable resurgence of nature as humanity collapses into destruction and detritus:

Arise

Arise 

ARISE

007 Craft Work: [The Descent of Man] - The Wrong Hand

Work on the other hand. Pick a medium you’re comfortable with, then work with your non-dominant hand—if you usually favour your right hand then only use your left and vice-versa.

MATERIALS: Pouch of tobacco larger than you really wanted but the government thinks its better for us to buys loads and loads at once so there you go; One neat fresh virginal lovely pure as the driven snow white cigarette paper; A bunch of other, pre-rolled, fags to keep you going while you attempt this...

METHOD: Roll a cigarette using one hand only and in fact the 'non-dominant' hand as per the instructions above. That's it. That's all. As a rolling aid you might want a strong and stable surface, like a desktop or a rigour-mortis stiffened cadeverous corpse of a creepy yewtree conservative big-wig - I chose the former. I hope one day to progress to hand-rolling wholly in-hand, but frankly the whole process was driving me nuts and I needed a rolling surface.

NARRATIVE:  Turning that initial beautiful virginal paper into a twisted crooked screwy tobacco wrap is the perfect capitalist metaphor - let's turn everything to shit then burn it up in smoke; viva civilisation!

006 Craft Work: [The Descent of Man] - Mental Health Awareness Week

Make something with your breakfast before you eat it

MATERIALS: A plate of food, to include alphabetti spaghetti, with a knife and a fork.

METHOD: Using only the food on the plate somehow spell out a message for humanity.

NARRATIVE: Well, it is Mental Health Awareness Week so I thought I'd create a reminder of that, spelling it out by craving the words from two potato waffles... perhaps using the alphabetti spaghetti would have been the more obvious choice but

• I wanted a larger and a more impactful font; 
• I wanted to highlight how the immediate and obvious is never the only option; 
• I wanted to demonstrate how alternative ways of thinking can

Delight and

Surprise

005 Craft Work: [The Descent of Man] - She Loves You, Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!

Use only water as your medium/inspiration today

MATERIALS:  Ice cube tray with heart shaped compartments; Red food colouring; Martini glass; Freezing device akin to a domestic freezer; Water.

METHOD: Add a tincture of food colouring to a small amount of water pour into ice 'cube' tray and freeze. Fill martini glass with water (or else vodka if authenticity is a concern). Stir gently, don't shake. Await first moments of melting, ensuring the ice continues to slowly spin, until leakage of the coloured water occurs and grab shot, quickly - do not hold breath whilst awaiting the decisive moment.

Unexpectedly, but happily, a degree of separation takes place between the food colouring and the water as the food-coloured water freezes. The pure water then melts more slowly than the food coloured water which allows the coloured water 'leaking' effect to take place.. I should have expected this as impurities are known to affect the freezing and boiling points of water.

NARRATIVE: Whilst t'is true absence makes the heart grow fond so doth

ALCOHOL

004 Craft Work: [The Descent of Man] - Pop Cat

Make a stencil and use it in your work 

MATERIALS:  A digital photo of a kitten, Cardboard, Craft Knife, Spray mount glue, Spray paint

METHOD: Convert the image to 2-tone. In PhotoShop the Image->Adjustments->Posterise feature can be used, you may want to adjust the curves first to control exactly which parts turn white and which turn black. You can initially posterise to several (say 10) levels then use curves adjustment before finally posterising down to 2 levels to give more control over how the image converts. Print the image onto card. You will either then cut-out the white or the black sections (depending on the image) - when posterising look out for 'islands'. E.g. in this image I cut away the black areas to form the stencil so you will see I've ensured that the white crescent highlights in the eyes join onto the main area of white in the face, so that all the white areas are joined up. Before spraying use temporary spray mount to hold the stencil in place, or else the spray paint will lift the cut edges and bleed.

NARRATIVE: You may think of us as your beloved pets but we are watching you, always watching you, and if you don't move we will, we most certainly will

EAT YOUR FACE

003 Craft Work: [The Descent of Man] - Bananas!

Look in the kitchen and work with the first fruit or vegetable you spot. It could be in the form of juice, jam, or even canned.

MATERIALS:  A nice firm banana (not too ripe), a printed image, sellotape, pin

Since I can't really draw I made a tracing of a photo printed on to plain paper which I then sellotaped to a lovely firm banana and then using a pin I created a pointillist impression of the outline, trusting to the banana's ripening effect up on cellular breakdown... it worked out quite well given my clumsy paws. Given the theme of my challenge I'll let you make your own narrative:

The Descent Of Man

002 Craft Work: [The Descent of Man] - He ain't heavy

What do you collect? Work with a collection of objects you have in your home (or borrow a friend’s if you like).

MATERIALS:  an innumerable number of plastic cigarette lighters.

No. I do not. I have not.I would not.

Whilst it is true that property is theft, to deprive a fellow of the spark of fire is a greater sin than my soul can bear. every single one of these dead embers has been hard fought, hard won - least ways self bought... somewhere, along the line. Of this, I am certain. And this little collection is nought but witness to my undying honesty in such grave matters. IF you believe you recognise any here, IF you believe one of these may be yours, IF you believe I have ever, or would ever, steal a lighter then you are 

wrong

wrong

wrong

for I am NOT heavy

I'm your brother

001 Craft Work: [The Descent of Man] - What Design(')s This?

Take a five-minute walk, then make something using whatever materials are available where you’ve ended up. Leave it there for someone else to discover, but be sure to document it first!

MATERIALS: 2xDiscarded e-cigarettes (non-biodegradable), 1 Head snapped from body of cheap plastic coathanger, 1 long screw of good screwable service.

Standing as a question mark, an exclamation mark, and an equals sign and constructed from the detritous of the gutter this design layout allows us to ask a series of equality based questions. The carpenter constructs elaborate contraptions for the torture of modern man's* vainglorious attachments; productivity and skill do nought but construe more beautiful shit. What design is this? It is a questionable design that questions

What designs this?