What I used to be:
I first gained an interest in Art and Design after a piece of homework where we had to draw a selection of objects inside a matchbox. Concentrating on that really relaxed me, and getting probably the only praise I ever had throughout high school for it made my enthusiasm for drawing grow further. From that point I tried to use drawing as much as possible within my body of work. The approach during my high school education to Art and Design was very much image focussed, encouraging us to use painting and drawing and take inspiration from other artists. Concept and problem solving wasn't really mentioned within these lessons.
Assessments required us to show examples of "computer manipulation" which nobody understood. It resulted in the majority of us using generic filters on photo's and printing out, just days before the hand in date.
During sixth form I began to look at a lot of illustration for inspiration and it was at this point I actually tried to use software to help develop my work. I was determined though that I would only use the software to help try out different ideas and edit work that I had already hand produced. I felt that by keeping this hand drawn element the work was a lot more personal and less sterile.
Studying a foundation course at college was probably the best thing I could have done. For the first time I was actually taught how to use different materials and introduced to things like 3D and printmaking. I began to craft and produce animations, but also started to think more about design within a context and asked my tutors to give me very specific briefs to take on with tighter deadlines to try and prepare myself for this course.
Still being on an Art and Design course meant that the main priority for people was aesthetics, and so the meaning and clarity of some of my work probably got lost on the way.
Where I am now:
Since being on this course I have had to try and think a lot more about the message behind my work and how well it is communicated. To begin with the problems I chose to solve were very general or very difficult to try and communicate. I also tended to make things a lot harder for myself than I needed to.
Identifying a problem and making it specific and concise is a lot easier for me now. Doing this really helps when thinking around the problem and how to solve it appropriately. Actually giving my work a purpose is a lot different to how I've been used to working but I think it helps drive the ideas a lot further.
Somehow I've managed to get myself a reputation as a "crafter" but to be honest craft is just something I wanted to try out and I find it easier to work with materials then try and muster up patience for a computer. I do enjoy crafting things, and a lot of the designers that interest me deal with 3D - in particular installations and 3D type. I'm a bit annoyed with myself that I haven't done more drawing though, as this has always been one of my strengths. It was towards the end of the Visual Language module when I realised how much I actually missed it and I'm so disappointed that I didn't make more of that opportunity to get drawing again.
Where I intend to be in 2nd year:
From this point there are a number of things I want/need to do. Firstly, I have to make my work more clear and "not let my cleverness get in the way". I tend to over complicate things some times which reduces the clarity of the resolutions.
Also I think I've been avoiding using software too much, to the point that I'm not confident in using it at all. My work would probably benefit from me learning how to use it especially when it comes to presenting it in a professional way and finishing it well.
I need to start evaluating my work a lot more as I go along. When I'm actually told to do it, it really helps me understand why I am doing what I'm doing, and gives me a chance to think about problems I need to address. It's such a useful thing for me to do and yet I never think to do it.
