Studio Brief 2: Individual Practice

Evaluation

1.    Although I have really enjoyed researching the topic I have found it quite hard visualising the political metaphors. I really enjoy metaphors, puns and language. This is something I also enjoy when vocalising emotions through lyrics. In fact, on reflection, the refined list of my metaphors for the A2 boards could be turned into a poem.

2.    I have realised that I always use language as research. This project began from identifying words from news articles; cracks, dead ends and cutting ties. This is an important skill because, as an editorial illustrator, you have to turn things around quickly and having a strategy for identifying

 elements to stimulate creativity is crucial.

3.    Even though I feel more confident about strategies, I think I would struggle to do this kind of work as a profession because my brain can’t process the themes and ideas fast enough for intense editorial turn arounds. I guess over time and with practice perhaps this would speed up?

4.    I have realised that editorials are rarely seen out of context, hence the importance of mocking them up, but I appreciate in professional circumstances I would be working alongside a graphic designer to put the information into the text.

5.    I have always been interested in the processes of illustration/image making. I find that the choice of media can express a lot in its-self. Because my images are simple, the media used is very important and it subtly communicates part of the message. It makes the viewer have to consider what is being visualised.

6.    I feel that these pieces have been very thoughtfully constructed and really capture the main themes of Brexit at present; the anxiety and frustration that Remain voters feel. It has been a hard subject to tackle due to its complexity and I have tried to condense the atmosphere of over about a year in just 4 illustrations.

7.    I have found this quite a slow and stressful brief. I have been frustrated that I haven’t been producing a large quantity of work but I have spent a lot of time thinking, understanding, linking and considering process, media, visual language and theory.

8.    Following feedback, my goals for this module were to explore; simplicity/ refinement, developing digital skills and finding my place as an illustrator. I think that I have made progress in all these areas. These images include lots of thought and depth but are communicated minimalistically. For the first time ever I am submitting a digital portfolio and, although the images include analogue elements, it is significant that they were constructed digitally.

9.    I am glad that I challenged myself to do some political editorials because it has helped me develop as an artist, illustrator and image maker. I think next year I am going to focus more on music. However, I want to take forward the way I have not been too literal with the image making and really explore visualising the emotion, sound and atmosphere of music, using skills which I have developed through these editorials.