Initial Phase:
For my final project , I first shared three of my main ideas with my professor and she got back to me letting me know which one suited my theme the best. I then further designed a rough layout of what I want my final to look like, I made rough notes in my sketch book.
I started working on the visual aspect of my work on photoshop, after photographing my suite mate. I manipulated the image to suit my final idea :
This is the photograph I chose to be the focus of my work.
Here’s a couple of my in process shots. I used opacity, and played with the colour backgrounds in my work, manipulating the images of the “drugs”.
The final :
Exhibition reaction :
Going into the exhibition I was pretty happy with my work, at the same time I did get some amazing perspectives and constructive criticism on my final.Few of the comments I got from different people were
– I love the saturated use of the color, and perhaps the background being more bright and saturated would give it an even more “crazy” look , and possessed look.
– I love the text and I feel the visual aesthetic may even be taking away from the text. Perhaps you could have worked more on the text and enhancing your interviews than on the visuals of it.
– There seems to be a disconnect between the flag text and the text at the top of the poster. Perhaps link the two somehow, or present them in form of two different posters because there already seems to be a lot that is going on.
The one thing I did get a positive reaction out of , is the fact that almost all my viewers understood the message I was trying to convey, which I felt was the pain purpose of my work. I incorporated what the critics said, and edited my final to make this new piece with slight changes :
I linked the text with the images in this edit, which I feel conveys my message more effectively. As well as gives breathing space to my work.
Reflection and take- away thoughts
In conclusion, my journey with Fake Studio, has really taught me how to work around a specific topic in a range of media. From the first project, sequence/ two truths and a lie, I was always excited to play with the theme of fake. Working with poetry as well and the bridge between studio and seminar, I feel, helped me a lot in organising my thoughts. This class really taught me a lot this semester and I am grateful to have been able to learn so much about the topic fake and to really challenge myself.
Describe what you feel you have improved upon by keeping a daily visual journal (drawing, observation, memory recall, etc.)
I think I really most of all improved on noticing things I never have. I learnt it is actually so great to just stop and observe the things around us, and get inspiration from anything at all. Even my consistency improved with it.
After iterating several times on the same (final) project, what things did you notice about yourself / your creative process?
I noticed that improvements are endless, and there is always something you can do to make your project more effective and creative. I also noticed, that I do like hearing about how other people see my work and how they interpret it. Also, my work will always be a reflection of myself, and that the critics all want to see my work the way they see it. So at the end of the day, you have to incorporate everyones thoughts into the making of your piece and take criticism positively.
What skills / blind spots do you think you can work on strengthening as you move into the semester ahead?
I think most of all I could work on not being too emotionally attached to an idea, and think out of the box more. To make a range of ideas for my work rather than settling on one so quickly. Creativity has no limits.
What discoveries or surprises, if any, did you experience this semester?
Nothing really in particular, but I was surprised that I was capable of doing as much as I have this semester.
What did you learn to “integrate” in this Integrative Studio/Seminar?
I learnt how to connect readings from seminar and incorporate it in my studio. I learnt how to integrate what I thought about and spoke about in Seminar and link them to my studio classes whether it be readings or podcasts. When I spoke about the similar topics in both classes it helped me correlate my ideas in both classes which I felt was extremely helpful.
