Monday, 6 May 2019
Summative Project Report
Much of my approach to 603 came from the work I made during summer, where I made more work than I expected and enjoyed doing it much more than I expected. That meant I came into level 6 with a goal to make the most of the year and work as intensely as possible without becoming burnt out. Although I made a start on 603 in the autumn semester, it didn’t really feel like it kicked into full swing until the new year.
From the outset, I felt a big part of the potential for success of the module was to find a project I could immerse myself in and get carried away with. I decided that I needed some kind of research project to help drive this, and I settled on a project based around the village of Birchover in Derbyshire. Although there have been a few other projects and little bits I have done, this has been the main focus. The project has allowed me to push my image making and processes and fully engage in play.
I have enjoyed engaging with a range of different research techniques (museums, books, online articles, location visits and first hand experience) and really investigating a subject as far as possible and then responding to that visually. Getting engrossed in research has helped me realise that this is somewhere that I definitely see my practice going, whether it is part of a broader illustration practice or not.
Although I’m happy with my research, I do think it could have been more extensive, with potentially more public engagement and use of museum archives. Equally, I’m not sure I have fully responded to everything I researched and set out to yet; but, with both of these, I see the project as on-going and they are things I may well address in the future.
One possible downside is that at times I think I’ve got too carried away in play, and I have forgotten to push imagery to the next level and finalise things into prints as well as push things into other media and processes. Another criticism of the work I have made is that it sometimes lacks communication and becomes purely visual. In previous years I have wrestled with communication in the context of the playful, more abstract ways that I work best. This year, part of the freedom I have given myself means I have not focused on this so much. The outcome is that I have enjoyed the work much more than in previous years, but it may have a smaller potential audience.
Another thing is that my way of working can become quite internal and I think presenting my work to the world (whether that is digital, in the form of exhibitions or contacting people) is one way this project may not have been as successful as it could have been so far. Much of this comes down to a continued apprehension and lack of confidence in presenting my work. That said, making work I am happy with goes a long way to help solve this.
These two issues come down to a lack of knowledge, research and consideration of potential audiences and applications. A greater focus on competition briefs and more commercial work may have solved these issues, that said; the freedom I have allowed myself with this project has let me to push my work as far as I can as way to develop my own voice.
I think a more commercial approach is something that I can re-introduce into my practice, and I now have a new excitement to approach more commercial briefs, with a greater confidence in my own visual identity. The skills of research and image generation I have developed during 603 are definitely transferable to more commercial contexts. From work in 603 and at level 5 I feel fairly confident in my rudimentary design and layout skills.
I am most proud of keeping a momentum and work rate all year, which has helped more than anything in creating a body of work I am happy with. A large part of this has been down to maintaining a routine, which in turn was made easier by really enjoying making work. I’ve mostly avoided periods of inactivity and lack of motivation that have harmed my work in previous years, which feels like I’ve taken the lessons of previous years and used them for good. I am aware it will be very important to keep this momentum up post-graduation, and this is part of the reason I’m viewing the Birchover project as ongoing.
From the outset, I felt a big part of the potential for success of the module was to find a project I could immerse myself in and get carried away with. I decided that I needed some kind of research project to help drive this, and I settled on a project based around the village of Birchover in Derbyshire. Although there have been a few other projects and little bits I have done, this has been the main focus. The project has allowed me to push my image making and processes and fully engage in play.
I have enjoyed engaging with a range of different research techniques (museums, books, online articles, location visits and first hand experience) and really investigating a subject as far as possible and then responding to that visually. Getting engrossed in research has helped me realise that this is somewhere that I definitely see my practice going, whether it is part of a broader illustration practice or not.
Although I’m happy with my research, I do think it could have been more extensive, with potentially more public engagement and use of museum archives. Equally, I’m not sure I have fully responded to everything I researched and set out to yet; but, with both of these, I see the project as on-going and they are things I may well address in the future.
One possible downside is that at times I think I’ve got too carried away in play, and I have forgotten to push imagery to the next level and finalise things into prints as well as push things into other media and processes. Another criticism of the work I have made is that it sometimes lacks communication and becomes purely visual. In previous years I have wrestled with communication in the context of the playful, more abstract ways that I work best. This year, part of the freedom I have given myself means I have not focused on this so much. The outcome is that I have enjoyed the work much more than in previous years, but it may have a smaller potential audience.
Another thing is that my way of working can become quite internal and I think presenting my work to the world (whether that is digital, in the form of exhibitions or contacting people) is one way this project may not have been as successful as it could have been so far. Much of this comes down to a continued apprehension and lack of confidence in presenting my work. That said, making work I am happy with goes a long way to help solve this.
These two issues come down to a lack of knowledge, research and consideration of potential audiences and applications. A greater focus on competition briefs and more commercial work may have solved these issues, that said; the freedom I have allowed myself with this project has let me to push my work as far as I can as way to develop my own voice.
I think a more commercial approach is something that I can re-introduce into my practice, and I now have a new excitement to approach more commercial briefs, with a greater confidence in my own visual identity. The skills of research and image generation I have developed during 603 are definitely transferable to more commercial contexts. From work in 603 and at level 5 I feel fairly confident in my rudimentary design and layout skills.
I am most proud of keeping a momentum and work rate all year, which has helped more than anything in creating a body of work I am happy with. A large part of this has been down to maintaining a routine, which in turn was made easier by really enjoying making work. I’ve mostly avoided periods of inactivity and lack of motivation that have harmed my work in previous years, which feels like I’ve taken the lessons of previous years and used them for good. I am aware it will be very important to keep this momentum up post-graduation, and this is part of the reason I’m viewing the Birchover project as ongoing.
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