What Am I DOING?!

Speaking with Matt today made me seriously re-evaluate my practice and what I actually want to get out of this degree. I've written a more detailed version of what we talked about on my SP page, but I've come to a conclusion of where I am now and where I think that I am heading.

Areas for improvement

• Do more of what I love and enjoy, stop doing work that I THINK that I SHOULD be doing
• Stop leaving projects unfinished, always see them through until the end. I already have so much 'unfinished business' that could have potentially been really great pieces of illustration
• What do I CARE about? Make this the driving force behind my practice
• Be confident!!!!! (that comes up every time)

Reflection

Being aware of my experimental nature and broad range of interests, it is important that I let go of my worries and really delve into the process of making. Although still being keen to play with materials and processes in my final year is somewhat daunting, as I still feel that I haven't properly found my tone of voice. At this stage in my practice I have realised that I need to focus on two things; what I care about and what I enjoy. 

I enjoy drawing and making things when I know that there is no necessary pressure on what they mean/what they look like because I actually have fun with the process. For example, I love to draw buildings but just don't do enough of it. I love drawing plants, and people watching, and playing with craft such as sewing and painting little plant pots and selling them on my shop, which is great because I am earning a small income from something that I love doing! 

Having a small shop isn't something that I want to do full time, because I feel like I have a lot to say about other things too. Challenging myself to create illustration to inform and create awareness about issues in society is something I think I could be successful at. It's just a thought as of now, but for the first time in my degree, this is something that I can really see myself doing in the future. It's amazing how quickly I have come to this conclusion due to all three modules being so closely linked, and I have really noticed how much they all inform and bounce off each other.

Conclusion

I've mentioned before that having a balance is probably one of the most important things that I need in my creative career; I need a good amount of time to work on projects where I might be best to work alone (for example if I get any freelance work), as well as regularly being involved with people whether this is just working part time in a coffee shop or doing voluntary teaching work.

So from this point forward I think it would be a good idea to have two halves to my practice. Illustration for areas I care about, and Illustration for enjoyment. I will need to reconsider a few of the briefs that I am planning on doing for extended practice to coincide with what I am aiming to apply to my practice, so I'll see how it goes!