Reflection on Term Two

In this post I will be reflecting on the Art Portfolio 1 module from this term. At the start of this term I felt quite uninspired and I struggled to come up with ideas for my project. I learned about techniques and exercises I could use to gain inspiration, such as the 'Crazy Eights' exercise, or to simply get things done when I feel uninspired. These techniques have been helpful, however, it was not the project itself that caused the fading of my inspiration. I discovered that Product Design would not be the best progression route for me and I would have struggled to enjoy my time at DMU had I continued on, instead I chose to change my progression route to Design Crafts. This course allows me to experiment with materials in a more creative way, whereas Product Design has a more technical approach. 

Through my artist research I have found new artists within the ceramics industry that have inspired me and my work. I would like to explore ceramics even more in the future, since I thoroughly enjoyed working with clay and glazes. I have learned a variety of techniques, such as pinching and slab pottery, over the hours that I have spent in the ceramics workshop. I could see my confidence grow with every visit, from not knowing how anything worked to trying to figure problems out by myself before asking for help. 

The main issue this term was my time management. I had to start working on my 3D outcomes before I finalised my 2D designs due to time constraints, this resulted in a chaotic workflow. I kept changing ideas while working on my 3D outcomes, thus wasting some time. Next term, I will have to finalise my 2D outcomes before starting on my 3D outcomes. I did not realise beforehand how time consuming the ceramics process is and overdid it by choosing to create four 3D outcomes, this resulted in a lot of stress and overworking myself to stay on schedule towards the end of the term. Now that I know how the workshop scheduling works and how often I can work realistically, I will change the amount of 3D outcomes accordingly. 

This term I tried making my own decisions and being honest with what I wanted to achieve with this project. It was not always easy, since I do want to get a good mark. When I had to make changes, for example to the background of my design boards, I tried to do what made sense to me instead of blindly following what my tutors suggested. After all, I made those design decisions with a reason. This improved my trust in my own decisions and made me feel more independent. Making my own decisions resulted in using my own style of painting for my 2D outcomes instead of doing what I thought was correct according to industry. 

I enjoyed applying the skills that I have acquired through hard work and practice to this project, it truly feels like a piece of myself and I am proud of what I have made. Obviously, it is not faultless and my skills with ceramics have not been perfected. However, this makes me feel motivated to improve and experiment more.