SUMMATIVE EVALUATION

Throughout this module I have researched, understood, and put into practice what it means to be a professional creative. I have created an online presence that best showcases my work and who I am as a creative individual through a website, and the ongoing maintenance of social media platforms such as, Instagram, Pinterest and an online shop. I have also produced strong elements of self-branding which successfully captures my bold and figurative practice. This in turn has been applied to business cards, a creative CV, and other promotional items to take away from the end of year show and some print fairs. I feel these efforts have been successful in promoting myself as it has lead to a commissioned collaboration with a fashion brand and several sales of my prints/ products online.

Alongside my creative presence, I have also developed my practice as a professional in the real world by being involved in several exhibitions around Leeds, Print Stuff print fair in York, and networking with creative design houses in the area. These experiences have allowed me to showcase my work and myself to a larger audience of future clients, collaborators and customers. These experiences have also allowed me to gain confidence in talking about my work to audiences and in my practice in general. 

As part of this module I have been able to reflect on my successes and failures earnestly, allowing myself to plan a future career I am excited about when graduating. I now have a greater understanding of what I enjoy as a practitioner and what I am good at, which happens to be building a collection of illustrated products for retail and fairs.   

PRESENTATION

PRESENTATION SCRIPT

SLIDE 1

·      Introduce myself

SLIDE 2 – WHY ILLUSTRATION?

·      I came from a fashion design background but didn’t enjoy the extreme competitive nature of the course.

·      Really enjoyed drawing & designing & being creative and didn’t know where that would take me.

SLIDE 3 – TIME ON THE COURSE

·      During first and second year my practice evolved a lot.

·      The fact I was willing to try new things & be exhaustive with media trials helped me to understand that I’m an analogue maker.

·      In second year I especially enjoyed applying my practice to product as it meant I could combine my understanding of fashion with my fun image making.

·      I started to develop an abstract/ organic tone of voice which informs my practice even now.

SLIDE 4 – A YEAR TO REFLECT

·      I took a year out between second and third year which I struggled with initially but turned out to be the best decision I’ve ever made.

·      It gave me the time to reflect on who I am as an individual, what I want out of the course, and what is important to me as a maker.

·      This came from listening to a great deal of podcasts, audiobooks, and watching lots of comedy all in relation to being a woman in this day & age.

SLIDE 5 – A CHANGE IN CONTENT

·      This reading had a massive impact on the kind of content my work has focused on this year.

·      A lot of projects I have aimed my work at this year have touched on issues of femininity, feminism, well-being and existing in a time of huge social pressures as a young person.

SHOW SLIDES 5 – 8

·      On reflection, I feel the most proud of these projects than I have any others because I felt so engaged with my practice when I was producing them. Something seemed to click.

·      They really portray an earthy and honest tone of voice and I think this genuine engagement really shows in the successes of the final outcomes.

·      I definitely want to keep showing this tone of voice throughout my future practice.

SLIDE 9 – CONTENT VS CONTEXT

·      The fact I’ve focused really hard on the content of my work throughout the year has definitely meant my communication skills as an illustrator have grown.

·      However, I definitely think there is a way to produce both beautiful imagery for product and it still convey a message or tone of voice. They don’t have to be separate and I think that is where the projects before have been lacking.

·      This is something I want my practice to be known for therefore I’m going to capitalise on it in my end of year show project.

SLIDE 10/ 11 – SHOW PROJECT

·      My final show project I’m currently working on is inspired by being brought up in a clan of sisters. My personal relationships with them and the fact I identify myself as a sister has been really informative of my person and I think many other people can relate to this.

·      The project will take drawn imagery into fabric screen-print and hopefully a patchworked quilt showing how product can inform content and story-telling. I think it will completely bring together my practice and demonstrate what I am all about as a maker.

SLIDE 12 – OUT IN THE WORLD

·      How has my work progressed in the real world?

SLIDE 13 – VESTITUS

·      From my online presence I have been asked to produce designs for a paid collaboration with a clothing brand called Vestitus to make a series of printed t-shirts.

·      The project is still in the early stages however it’s been really nice to have been approached as a result of my content and professionalism online.

·      It’s also really reassuring that my work is driving future work within a fashion context as this is definitely where I want my practice to progress.

SLIDE 14 – PRINT STUFF

·      As well as live collaboration project I have been able to get my work out there in the real world by doing print stuff print fair in York with Aimee and Alex on the course.

·      Because my practice is focusing on product this will be a great opportunity to see how successful my products are with sales.

·      It will also allow me to network and get my name out there for future sales, and also future collaborations with other creatives selling there.

SLIDE 15 – WHERE DO I SEE MYSELF?

·      Having time to reflect in my year out and in the last couple of months I know I definitely don’t want to be employed by a design house, especially if that means living in London.

·      Therefore, I think being a freelance designer is the way forward for my practice.

·      I want there to be focus on starting up my own business selling products online and at art fairs, whilst if any collaborative projects, local exhibitions and or paid freelance design work comes up I will turn my hand to it.

·      I think it will be beneficial to apply for the creative in residence position here so I can make use of the facilities whilst I’m still growing as a maker.

DIGITAL PORTFOLIO

Thoughts:

• I think there's a nice pace to the portfolio and ties up projects well with having the majority on double page spreads
• I'm really happy with the fact the projects have an overarching aesthetic style, however show different skillsets and different contexts.
• I've left space for new projects that are going to happen over the next month or so and therefore the order may change. I know I want to produce some more textiles pieces so it'll be nice to have more variety in the page layouts, especially including photographs of my products in situ.  

TALKING TO PROFESSIONALS - VESTITUS CLOTHING

Unfortunately I haven't heard back from Stuff With Prints, however I've been approached by a fashion clothing brand called Vestitus which is really exciting. We've had some conversations back and forth and the brief sounds really exciting and really well linked to my practice. Hopefully this project can start soon and we can continue to work together if it's a success. 

CREATIVE CV

TALKING TO PROFESSIONALS - THE ARCHIPELAGO/ PLANT ROOM STUDIO VISIT

I got in touch with the design studio The Archipelago/ The Plant Room after speaking with them at various print fairs and events in order to keep building on our professional relationship. I organised to visit their studio to talk about any advice they had for graduating and to set in some ground work for a possible collaboration with them. 

KEY ADVICE:

• Keep the momentum going - They find that a lot of great designers they see coming out of our Uni take a break and end up having to start from square one further down the line. Either creatively they loose their bold way of working and go safe, or they loose their contacts and people forget who they are. 
• Get my work out there - Use the stuff I've been making for the last year and in the end of year show and take it to bars/ creative spaces in and around Leeds as an exhibition. It'll get my name solidly out there in the creative community. - They went on to say that they will support promoting my work, setting up exhibitions if this is the case
• Try not to get lost in being employed - Obviously I'll have to make some money to live, but don't let that take over unless it's something creative and is going to help me long term. 
• Take up a project/ set up a collaboration group - Make my own projects and work collaboratively with people I'm graduating with as it's easier to be confident and positive in talking about your work in a team of great makers. 
• Don't wait for stuff to happen - Follow up on anyone coming to see the end of year show/ invite them to it

This chat ended in them saying to keep in touch especially with future projects and anything that could fit in with The Plant Room.

MY THOUGHTS:

• Feeling really positive about this meeting and inspired to keep asking for help and putting my work out there. I need to have more confidence in my capabilities. 
• I definitely need to keep getting in touch with them as they have some great contacts in the area. 

TALKING TO PROFESSIONALS - STUFF WITH PRINTS

 

I wanted to get in touch with stuff with prints as I know they collaborate with artists/ designers to make their products. As I want my practice to eventually become producing product this could be a really nice insight into how my designs could work on clothing. I felt that this was a good brand for me to approach as they are relatively small and have worked with other designers who have a similar style and experience level as myself. I feel my work would fit seamlessly into the existing brand. Not only this but they have a really successful 'mood board' instagram that has a strong following, so it could be really great exposure for my work and could lead to other collaborative projects. Hopefully I will hear back soon.

TALKING TO PROFESSIONALS - DING DING THINGS

Ding Ding Things is a print designer based in Nottingham who's practice revolves around screen-printing products to sell. I feel her practice is a great example of where I see my practice residing when graduating, so I was excited to talk to her.

I came across Ding Ding Things at the Print Stuff fair a few years ago and we have had communication since she bought one of my prints. I decided to follow this up by asking her a few questions/ advice on how her practice has been so successful in a competitive industry. 

KEY POINTS:

• Product turnover - In regards to making products she said it's been really beneficial to her to hold up her signature style of shapely patterns, however to keep refreshing designs so her practice doesn't become stagnant. It keeps past clients interested and coming back to her.
• Keeping Inspired - It's really important to her to keep inspiration flowing all the time so her products feel personal to her practice. She visits new places for inspiration frequently and keeps mood boards on pinterest updated all the time. She mentioned that it's important to be aware of trends but not consumed by them as it shows in the outcomes.
• Tactile Outcomes - She said people really like the fact her products are tactile objects. It adds an extra layer to her process and people are more likely to want to take them away. 
• Craft - She thinks it's really important in her work to use crafting techniques such as screenprint as it adds gravitas to her brand. Customers appreciate it and will pay the money. 

ONLINE SHOP

My online shop is now live with a selection of prints of my best work from my portfolio. I think the website is looking really neat, it's easy to use, and hosts all the information it needs about my products. This will definitely grow and host an array of different products soon, but it's a positive start for now.

TALKING TO PROFESSIONALS - LUCY KETCHIN

I was able to talk to Lucy Ketchin at her beer collaboration launch with Northern Monk. I wanted to ask her advice for many reasons, but the main one being, she graduated from LAU a few years ago and has successfully been working as a freelance illustrator in Leeds with a variety of projects since. This is a very similar plan to what I want to do myself so this was a great opportunity for me. 

POINTS OF INTEREST:

• Follow up any interest coming from the end of year show - this lead to her working collaboratively with The Plant Room / The Archipelago in Leeds.
• If needing to work part-time (which I will) try and work for somewhere social, which could lead to collaborations/ work. For example, she works a few hours as a bar tender at Northern Monk which has lead to her beer packaging collaborations with the company.
• Get my work out there - Try and be involved with exhibitions in and around Leeds. People will start to know your name and this leads to more work or even sales if you have products.
• Always be nice - people remember and like to support friendly nice people. 

The chat ended in her looking at my instagram page, following each other and her saying that in the future an exhibition could be on the cards. She also recommended getting in touch with Zosia from The Plant Room as they're great for supporting exhibition/ projects.