Overall I have enjoyed making work for the module. I feel my ability to produce professional level work is much more consistent. I've developed new methods of working by adapting to problems faced with each brief and feels like a definite progression in my all round craft which is really pleasing.
The Zine brief I reverted back to a collage making process which felt lazy and led to my decision to embrace drawing for the next brief and the determination to have faith in trusting myself to create good work based more on drawing than collage.
I was pleased with the final outcomes for Idea Pictures. I was able to create interesting outcomes with; layering and collaging the drawings. At this point of the module I was convinced this was the way I needed to work but although the editorials were aesthetically and conceptually successful I needed my work to have more power, variation and flexibility. It was nice recognition to have two of the editorials selected for the university NEST magazine.
Learning After Effects was a new skill gained and I intend to master it more as it makes sense to play around with the software and use the technicians' advice while at university. I've improved my knowledge of Illustrator too and it became a vital part of Printed Pictures, using Wacom tablets to trace my drawings.
For the early stages of the module I certainly felt a bit lost in having a quick and fluid way of approaching briefs but as it's progressed my process has become more streamlined and efficient because of the way I've brought all the hand drawn and digital tools together.
Whilst happy with the outcomes for the briefs I want to eradicate my tendency to be underproductive for the first half of each brief. I've confidence in my ability to produce a good final outcome but need to resolve ideas much quicker for a more professional approach.
I struggled keeping up with the work load and not spending enough time in the studio in the early stages of each brief I'm sure was the reason for this. I avoided some group crits and studio sessions as I felt I could get more work done at home but after spending more time in the studio environment for the last parts of the Printed Pictures and Moving Pictures briefs I now see how the studio can be a quiet place to work, focuses me and being around my peers stimulates a better work ethic. Experimenting in the print room is something I need to do more of as using printed textures is something I definitely want to become a feature of all future work.
I enjoy the image making process as a whole much more now I can see overall improvement in my standard of work. Last year I'd often feel relief at just managing to produce a final outcome and tended to enjoy the visual journal drawing process more as a sort of procrastination but now feel excited about the journey as a whole and enjoy the challenges more because of the new skills and techniques I've gained over this module. I hope to take this more complete approach into the new modules.
Wednesday 17 January 2018
Tuesday 16 January 2018
Monday 15 January 2018
LAUIL503 - Moving Pictures - Reflective report
https://vimeo.com/251138684
I was concerned I'd not left much time to create an interesting sting but found the process surprisingly easy to manipulate and bring the illustrations to life.
The workshops were really valuable and playing with the basic tools was enough to create the story board I wanted.
I should have spent more time generating ideas in my visual journal after finishing the Printed Pictures but once I became comfortable with the tools I felt able to figure the final sequence out as I went along.
I was careful to have a loose storyboard idea in my head but still let the sound dictate the movement of the images.
There's such a thing as singing sand dunes and this eerie sound fit perfectly with the mood I wanted of experiencing something unnerving. The good depth of research meant I found a soundtrack that captured the feeling I wanted perfectly, being careful to only use free sound effects.
The feedback from peers and friends was very positive which was good to hear and it's ignited a serious interest in creating more animations. It's also exciting to see what is possible with just a very basic knowledge of After Effects - making the animations I researched look less intimidating.
Spending more time in the studio had a positive effect on my overall productivity. The studio environment was a nice change from my usual habit of doing the bulk of my work at home and because I needed to use the After Effects software at university it was another long term positive outcome of working on the brief - the general atmosphere was bright and professional giving me the confidence to come in to the studio more knowing I will be able to concentrate and have a solid environment I can come in to purely work in and treat my home as more of a place to relax.
After spending time playing with After Effects and seeing the outcome after just a few hours work I'm shifting my preference to a more digital process of working. I intend to research more simple but effective animations as it will be a useful skill to have, if only to animate my own illustrations as well as promoting my work in a more diverse way. Any illustrations I do from now on I will be conscious of how I can play with them and might move but will be conscious of applying the same principals I've learnt making images as it is a different craft all together.
Sunday 14 January 2018
LAUIL503 - Printed Pictures - Reflective report
I'm happy with my final outcomes for the brief even if time management and organisation could have been better. I stuck to the initial proposal idea, developed it and realised the outcomes successfully without too much deviation from the core conceptual themes of hallucinations experienced by Oliver Sacks' patients.
The first few weeks had been unproductive. I focused heavily on creating drawings without enough thought about how to eventually combine them with print processes.
The drawings were linked to the themes and concepts but early combinations with print testing felt forced together with no subtlety.
The drawings were linked to the themes and concepts but early combinations with print testing felt forced together with no subtlety.
A few days in the print room speeded things up. It was a good experience using the print room properly and trying different colours. The mono print marks and patterns started to become the focal part of the images. However, it was still clashing with the drawings I'd done and around the Christmas crit period they looked clumsy and lacked a solid background base to hold it all together as a composition.
A useful experience has been the problems faced when scanning the prints for digital use. Bright and vivid printing inks felt appropriate to set the tone for an unsettling vision a patient might have but even high resolution scanning couldn't capture the fluorescent colours so I had to rethink my colours. Advice from my tutor and peers led to a more muted colour choice.
The most significant thing was tracing the pencil drawings in Illustrator which gave more refined clarity and allowed me to contain the printed textures.
Although peer crits were helpful for feedback it seemed right to change direction despite positive peer feedback on some of the early testing. The work was perhaps commercially friendly but I didn't like them aesthetically and felt it was important to go with my gut and continue pushing myself to create work I loved myself.
Despite spending a long time working with reds and yellows it wasn't working for the themes and moods I wanted to convey so even though a last minute decision to change to black and red it was right to do.
The skills and experiences learnt have been a step forward in terms of my practice developing. The new process of taming my loose, abstract drawing, using Adobe Illustrator is genuinley an exciting breakthrough for me and is a technique I want to expand and explore more in future projects. It meant I was able speed up my image making significantly and spend more time towards the end putting finishing touches to the textures and tones.
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