visual communication: end of module evaluation

1.  What skills have you developed through this brief and how effectively do you think you have applied them? ·       The first brief was the first time I had properly considered animation beyond simple two frame two layer movements. I learnt a lot about the animation process by independent means, which itself is a good skill to have as it meant I did not have to rely on others so much. I think it was effective, as I produced some fairly technically successful animations (though they could have been smoother!). I had dismissed animation in the past, but I very much enjoyed this and would like to work with GIFs more, and can see how they are relevant to contemporary illustration practice. ·       This module was also the first time I have used vectors. As a skill I can see how it can be applied and should be used, even if it is not the most enjoyable process. I think the results could have been more effective, as I feel it looks a little dictated by the software whilst it should really just be a tool.

2. What approaches to/methods of image making have you developed and how have they informed your concept development process?

·       Working with vectors has continued my shape driven approach to image making, and has made me consider simplicity and the digitally made. Before I thought something looking ‘digital’ was a flaw, and that allowing the image making to be dictated by the software (or media) was a bad move. I still think that in some aspects, but being controlled by the limits of the software made me think in new ways, in the same way that being controlled by a brief is I suppose. ·       The task in ‘I See Faces’ made me approach character design in a less literal way, and as a result created more innovative designs and work. Creating so many characters in quite a limited amount of time pushed my approach to storytelling and helped improve my ideas generation process. And so I think being forced to do things quickly can help!

3. What strengths can you identify in your work and how have/will you capitalise on these?

·       Although I struggled somewhat with time regarding the “Persons of Note” brief, I found strength in it for “I See Faces” and “Greetings From” tasks. I do believe I worked hard in these, and really did find that putting in extra hours resulted in better work, particularly in terms of crafting. ·       I feel I am able to create groups of work that work well as a series. Curating consistencies in style, tone of voice and media have been beneficial in making series of work that, well, look like a series. As many projects involve a body of work rather than a one off piece, I think this is a good skill to have. Whilst consistency is good within one project, I think I need to be careful not to be too consistent across different ones, especially at such a time when I should be experimental and evolving!

4. What weaknesses can you identify in your work and how will you address these in the future?

·       I don’t think I made the most of the time given in regards to the Persons of Note project. I managed my time in that I was able to complete the project in good time, but I feel that I cut corners to do so. I will address this in the future by being more aware of potential lazy ideas and avoiding them! ·       I found that in a few of my projects that I created ideas that maybe weren’t recognisable or understood by the viewer. Whilst it is good to think of fresh, new ideas, there’s no point in them if the viewer does not understand and so dismisses them! For future projects if in doubt I will consult other people on their views or ideas of how the work works. This wouldn’t necessarily be in a formal setting, and shouldn’t take long as work really should be immediate, in one way at least.
5. Identify five things that you will do differently next time and what do you expect to gain from doing these?
·       Particularly in regards to the “Persons of Note” project I found myself cutting corners, and so next time I will be more aware of doing so and avoid it! I can’t hope to grow as an artist if I am lazy, so I hope to be able to develop more and get better! ·       I am aware of my lack of experimenting, but also in voice as well as methods used. I want to really think about what I want to say in future projects. By thinking about it, and using it, I will be able to discover what I want to do as a practitioner. ·       I did not spend a great deal of time testing media methods for any of these projects and I do think this will have impacted on the results! So if I was to do this again, or for any project really, I need to stop cutting corners on this aspect. By testing media thoroughly I expect to create more effective and refine results. ·       As mentioned earlier, in the future I will be more considerate of ideas and the audience that the illustration is intended for. The point of (most if not all) illustrations is to be consumed by a viewer, and if the viewer gets an emotive response from a piece, usually because they understand it, then the piece will be successful. ·       Even though I found quick idea generation to be helpful in the first brief I still found myself wasting time being preoccupied with ideas in the other projects, particularly the second. Ideas are very important, and as said should be considered, but thinking too much with words and no enough with image making held me back I think. I find I can actually generate more ideas more quickly by drawing, so I will do this more in the future.
6.How would you grade yourself on the following areas: (please indicate using an ‘x’)  5= excellent, 4 = very good, 3 = good, 2 = average, 1 = poor
	1	2	3	4	5
Attendance				x
Punctuality					x
Motivation			x
Commitment				x
Quantity of work produced		x
Quality of work produced			x
Contribution to the group		x
The evaluation of your work is an important part of the assessment criteria and represents a percentage of the overall grade. It is essential that you give yourself enough time to complete your written evaluation fully and with appropriate depth and level of self-reflection. If you have any questions relating to the self-evaluation process speak to a member of staff as soon as possible.

visual communication: persons of note evaluation

Overall:

strengths:

• consistent use of media and colour choices make different themed mini-sets look like they belong with each other as part of a larger series
• have been recognised as pieces on Larkin- even the poster which only has a quote
• except for the stamps, I didn't rely on portraiture / caricature to convey a person, which I think is a subtler and better take on the project
• my time management for this project meant I got the pieces printed well in time BUT...

weaknesses:

• ... it also meant I had cut some corners
• scanning / digital reproduction still doesn't quite pick up the nuanced feel of analogue media
• I wonder if the different themes / intentions interrupt them as a set

Postcards:

strengths:

• compositions create a sense of distance and observation from the viewer

weaknesses:

• Poor compositions regarding mood and line of sight
• I did not plan enough time to remake the postcards into the suggestions that were made at the crit. Although this might not be noticeable to others so much as the maker it bothers me greatly! And as such I feel disappointed in them!
• This was the first time I used these methods/ colours together and I hadn't planned them out! Instead I "made do" and carried on. It could be worse, but it definitely could have been better if I was more thoughtful about it.

Stamps:

strengths:

• textures and images came out surprisingly well despite scaling down and being so small!
• simple images suit such a small frame
• hopefully- there is a touch of humour and recognisability in here

weaknesses:

• if the joke is lost on the viewer then there is little point to have four whole larkin faces!
• I should have put more consideration into the number/ lettering. the hand drawn type matches the rest of the series but I do wonder if I should have considered digital typefaces.

Poster:

strengths:

• the poster is less based in reality than the other pieces, and I think this adds a more interesting touch, particularly to the whole project as the poster itself is so huge! It may well be the first thing people decide to view.
• the strange scaling of people to buildings adds to the sense of emptiness and distance, and also gives it a sense of character

weaknesses:

• the difficulties in scanning / digital reproduction are particularly clear in this piece (Larkin's head merges right into a wall!) (the smoke has turned yellow in tone and merges into the white background)
• although I wanted to emphasise the emptiness in the house I think the lack of detail / colour staggers the composition

visual communication: persons of note poster and stamps

I made the stamps with the same idea as before.

Although not necessary, I wanted to make the stamps like real stamps- with a class and a border. I also think this adds a touch of humour-  a suggestion of Larkin as a replacement for the queen! For me it also gave the images more of a context, and as a practitioner I find that more comfortable to work with.

I painted the stamps at twice their intended size. Although his face was still small, I had to find a new way of creating his face as the other people I have drawn were so tiny and squashed. However, using the same techniques and media brings the series together I think. 

As an image the poster offers something more metaphorical than the other sets, and I think this is a nice touch that makes the whole series more interesting. I wanted to make something "happen" but also wanted to emphasise the "nothing", with little going on and grey interiors. The "anywhere" I took to be a typical, everyday British town setting, as of Larkin's poetry. 

visual communication: persons of note crit feedback + postcards first draft

My intent:

To create a series of work that not only represents Larkin but explores the nature of his poetry and the environment he lived in and the inspired this.

Perhaps celebrating but certainly observing the mundane and everyday life, maybe with a sense of humour but definitely with the sense of distance I get from his poems.

Things I am not pleased with:

I am not yet sure I am capturing the Larkin essence, it maybe needs some hints of dark humour as well as his famous melancholy

Postcard designs were intended to be finals but were not thought out well enough, particularly in media choices. It looks messy and haphazard, and I will also try to work on lettering. As it will be digitally composed I can luckily change things around. 

There is not yet a solid base for stamp designs yet.

CRIT FEEDBACK

Everyone seemed pleased with my intentions and how these were panning out in the images. The problems lay more in the construction of the postcards and I was given some really good suggestions for these that I completely agree with and would like to do!

However, considering the amount of time left I will prioritise the stamps and poster and if I have time to remake the postcards that would be great.

The lamplights are not necessary and making the light bigger from the house would draw more attention to this point. A more dramatic perspective could also be nice.

The composition in this feels split a little too 50/50. A 60/40 or 70/30 composition would appear more balanced.

Make the window with Larkin in more in the line of sight and more obvious. The path could be narrower and take up less of the image.

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I'm also concerned with the colour scheme of this series. The reds and greens seem a bit bold to be concerned with Larkin. I also put no time into experimenting with this type of media, which was a stupid thing to do! I could have made much more informed choices if I had.

Laura Carlin

But I did take this piece by Laura Carlin as an inspiration model. I was mainly concerned with how she seems to have layered pencil over paint, to suggest shadow but also as an aesthetic model.

visual communication: persons of note development

After the crit I set about trying to emulate the feel of Larkin. I used conte sticks for the first time. I like the monochromatic effect of just using the black stick, I suppose because it is reminiscent of the photography of Larkin's major era. The textures make everything hazy, kind of like a memory, which is sweet for poetry.

I'm struggling with the stamp ideas. I drew little motifs of Larkin's hometown but wasn't sure they represented them enough. On the other hand I drew a series of portraits titled "the four emotions of Philip Larkin". 

I had decided that for the postcards and posters that I would look at Larkin as a writer- the creations he produced and the environment that influenced them, but I think this idea for the stamps might be a nice, more personal  or at least more representational touch. And if these pieces are quite bleak I think this could add a touch of humour- which is important as Larkin himself, although known for being miserable, was also a witty (though sarcastic) man!

I experimented with paper cut outs a little bit. I purposely tried crude jaunty angles but I'm not sure such bright and bold shapes fit with the Larkin aesthetic. The final small test I did, the shape covered entirely in black brushstrokes was possibly the most fitting, as the brushstrokes muted the bright colour underneath. Also- the black marks remind me of smoke stained buildings, and it itself feels a little industrial.

For the postcards I have chosen to represent a poem per card. I considered representing one poem over the three but the truth was that I couldn't decide on one defining poem of Larkin! I chose three with different moods/ themes:

Aubade: observing death

High Windows: observing youth

Whitsun Weddings: observing love / family

And I thought some more about how Larkin is always an observer. I like the idea of him being present in each composition, but only as a small player in a larger world, as I think he felt he was.

I had two main ideas for these compositions. One was to include a window in each, with the viewer looking in/out of it, as an allude to Larkin as an observer. The other was to draw small scenes, but from far away/ above again, to suggest observation of a small world.

For the poster I wanted a quote from Larkin, to sum up my perception of him (and also- there would be more room on this image for more words!). One of the most common quotes from Larkin when searching on the internet was “What will survive of us is love.” which I find incredibly sappy and for me, not representational of a man so dry and yet preoccupied with death and misery.

For me Larkin's poetry is a quiet observation of the mundane. It is honest, as in, it is true to Larkin's feelings. And so I chose: "Nothing, like something, happens anywhere"

For me it sounded like a depressing title of a Richard Scarry children's book, so in a strange turn was inspired by Scarry to create some cut out illustrations- though much less busy and exciting than Busytown. I'd carry on the idea of distance/ observation by making everything really small.