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INDEXMy Practice Page 5

Research Page 7

ExtendedMajor Project

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NegotiatedPractice

Page 16

Self Promotion Page 18

My Inspiration Page 21

Conclusion Page 26

My PracticeMy t ime at AUCB has been a fantast ic experience and i t is undeni-able that my knowledge and skills in di f ferent medias has improved.Working at universi ty level has pushed me to take my pract ice to a new height, something I feel I have not yet done, but feel closer than ever. I admi t the majori ty of the work I have produced through-out my t ime here, I feel has not been completely sat isfying, as i t has of-fend been unfinished or rush. Time organizat ion is something i clearly need to work on.. Af ter my work experience tailing Mart in Krimmelbein at Chameleon Clothing (www.chameleon-clothing.com) I fel t I had more of a direc-t ion, af ter seeing now I could progress into the working world. Screen print ing i tsel f has always been something I have been passionate about and feel this process helps make my drawings come to li fe and have substance.

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Drawing has always been the focus to my work. I have always fel t more in control wi th tradi t ional materials. I st il l enjoy digi tal, as i t makes i t easy to change the composi t ion and empha-sis the drawing, but I would not like to rely on this. I would like to build my future work-ing most ly wi th screen print ing and paints.Ironically a future wi th a company like Chameleon Clothing would mean a computer generated work base.

ResearchIn the past, I have found when researching a project I oftenincluded my own interests where possible. My Extended Major Project would be a great example of this; my main priority was portraying the angels correctly, mulling asking myself; ‘what would an angel look like today?’ In modern entertainment they have of-ten been portrayed as well dressed beings, normally in suits. For example, the TV series Supernatural, 2005 filmConstantine and the short comic Girl by Jonathan Tsuei.

Questioning the idea of sexuality brought me to Neil Gaiman’s character Desire, from his graphic novel Sandman. Desire is de-scribed as a ‘strikingly beautiful figure whose gender ismutable, becoming male, female, both, or neither as the situation warrants. Finding that many angels were referred to as Cherubim I thought this to be fitting. Life Drawing played a very helpful part in my project, as I needed many different ways to portray my bodies.

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I found my chosen subject to be enriched with many mythologies, symbols, stories and beliefs. I thought these were important to in-clude, as it was these characteristics that builds up the personality of each angel. Many gods are found to have the same mytho-logically structure, generally believed to be because of Astrology. It was because of these similarities that I thought I could combine small mythologies like animal superstitions and other symbols. In one of my frames, titled Lost Things, I composed Odins ravens (Hugin and Munin) from Norse mythology. Their purpose was not to contribute, but act as a negative aspect, as in many cultures around the world the raven is considered a bad omen. Their pres-ence was to help round the story the image was to tell.

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The word Angel is thought to bederived from the Greek wordAngelos which means messenger.

Extended Major ProjectMy chosen subject for my Extended Major Project was Angelology. I was inspired by a friend’s media project, who took a darker turn and looked more into demons. I started briefly with renaissance art, using some postcards I picked up on my trip round Europe. Charminster Cemetery in Bournemouth also provided a interesting insight to the Victorian and Edwardian view of Angels, and also because of their location, what their purpose was for; love and comfort and protection in the other world.

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I was recommended to watch Wim Wender’s Wings of Desire. In which an angel by the name of Dammiel yearns to become human. In this film there are many angels who can not be seen by mortals, they walk amongst them, act ing as guides, hearing their thoughts and whispering back to them. The film is most ly in black and whi te, the symbolism of full colour linked to human feelings, as only the living can see colour. Angels can not feel happiness and sorrow, although Dammiel’s companion does show despair when a man commits suicide. Dammiel gives up an eternal li fe for a moral li fe, to feel love. Af ter this transac-t ion Dammiel’s hair has been cut and is is rest ing on a sui t of armor. In many cultures hair is considered sacred. The ideas shown in the film were very helpful, even though the film was based in a modern t ime Wender st il l included symbolic beliefs.

"What do I want to do?” Primi t ively my idea for my final presentat ion was a zine and large posters. From the start my ambi t ion was to il lustrate the personali t ies, act ions and purposes of chosen angels, through the media of combining photography wi th drawing. From Decem-ber I was determined to work wi th Pinhole photography, some-thing I had previously done in school and had enjoyed. Pinhole is a tricky and temperamental form of photography. Having no idea what what you could be creat ing, I feel i t is a refreshing step back from digi tal, an art in i t’s own form. I have enjoyed the idea of combining this less disciplined method wi th the drawing, a more controlled media.

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“Much art in any medi-um is produced without a primary concern for how it will be received, or by whom. It often doesn’t set out to appeal to a preded-fined audience but rather build one for itself."- Shaun Tan -

It was at this point I had to ask ‘What message do I want to portray?’ After watch-ing my media friend take a darker turn with her project, I felt I wanted to create a more positive essence. A prayer is a sign for hope, and the idea of hope being in everything is what I wished to capture.

I started an experimental print-ing course, exploring the idea ofworking with etchings, think-ing I could print my drawings into photos. I even played with aqua tinting, but I found the whole process too time consum-ing and with the amount of im-ages I wanted to produce, I did not think it would be possible.

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NegotiatedPractice

Negot iated Pract ice was a good turning point for me, even though I had many problems wi th my project and I could not resolve all of them to complete all my ideas surrounding this project, I st il l fel t I had achieved something. Introducing colour was my main concern. I had wished to screen print my images, but due to t ime constraints and personal is-sues, this was made impossible. However the project, as a whole, helped me get into a mind set of what is demanded from chil-

dren’s books. Having to plan the full image layout, thinking of how i t would be viewed by the child and the adult. W hat goes into an image? Not just the pract ical but also the thought. W hat would make i t enjoyable and even sellable? Changing i t into an interac-t ive flap book made i t something more than just images. Wi th no doubt, this project is something I will cont inue in the future.

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Self PromotionSel f promot ion is something I did not want to rush. I fel t that I could concentrate on this properly af ter our EMP hand-in, giving me t ime to throughly think about what i t is I want to say about mysel f. Last February, I visi ted Birmingham’s Spring Fair, an Internat ional retail trade exhibi t ion, one of the largest retail trade exhibi t ions in the UK. Though i t is a place where ini t ially compa-nies desire to sell, I found i f an ideal place to create some contacts. I then forwarded a mock port folio to F lame Homeware and P lay-wri te, from which I both received a reply. Following this success, I plan to visi t the Progessive Greet ings Live, this May. Before hand in I will have prepared a more professional port folio, both printed and P DF, as well as other promot ional materials, such as a press pack, which will include a business card, CV and other promo-t ional material. Blank cards I thought would be sui table for this

si tuat ion. Leading up to this I will also produce a websi te, again something I did not wish to rush as I want to get every thing just right, to boost my confidence and help me promote my sel f.

Ideally in the future I would like to work as a freelance art ist. Though at present I feel like a more stable job would not only benefit me at present but help me achieve contacts that will hopefully one day allow me to successfully work as a freelance il lustrator.

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My InspirationIt was Marcus Oakley who expressed the importance of collecting things. This is something I feel I do very well. As well as keep-ing magazine cuttings, postcards, tickets, stamps and so on, I also keep numinous notebooks scribbled with odd statements and ran-dom poems. I feel it is be very important for me to keep working through-out the summer and it will be these small inspirations that will keep me forming new ideas.

I enjoy photography as much as I do drawing. I feel that is artists like Dave McKean and David Hochbaum that make me want to push the combination of the two.

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Jennifer LewisLewis has been one of my favorite painters since college. I feel she has been a huge in-fluence, as we both have a similar style. Her work is often very elegant but sometimes with an untidy twist. It reminds me of gothic fairy tales, sweet but with an edge, holding something a little unsettling. The sketchy lines hold the bleeding paint in place, i believe it was these beautiful textures that first attracted me to Lewis. She gives her images a beaten and bruised, dated feel, almost like they have lived their own stories. Each image holds it’s own attitude.

Dave McKeanMckean has vast experience incorporating a mixed of different medias; photography, drawing, painting, sculpture. His work por-trays an unsettling beauty, using a palette of rich colours and textures, he manipulates and twists the subjects anatomy. Always creating an erie uncomfortable scene, or sometimes even sorrow, capturing raw energy and dark emo-tions. The construction of each image is inspir-ing, everything flows together so beautifully. Angelic and stunning, but each image always holds it’s own dangerous and unbalanced secrets.

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David HochbaumThe mix of photography and paint create a surreal dream. The flush of pastel colours strengthens the figures of the women, most of who are clutching objects to their chests, maybe creating a sense of desire and longing, or maybe a flaming passion? Each image holds it’s own strong feel of femininity and an aura of burning romance. Birds are normally a key aspect in a lot of Hochbaum’s paintings; in a dream this could indicate joy, harmony, ecstasy, balance and love. Experiencing spir-itual freedom and psychological liberation.

Lara JadeAn internationally represented fashion,editorial and advertising photographer. Jade bends light to create her intense and dramat-ic scenes. She feeds the backgrounds to weredetail is needed, each environment eating upthe texture. There is always a sense ofmovement, everything seems to flow throughout or around the image. The colours she is able to create, blend and control the mood. Creating emotion and captur-ing the essence of beauty, loss, joy, peace, what ever the image calls for, it completes.

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ConclusionThe last three years at AUCB have pushed me in the right di-rect ion, but I st il l feel I have a lot to learn. I love what I’m doing at the moment. My aspirat ions as an il lustrator is to have fun and enjoy what I do for a living. I want to see my work out there in the real world, viewable and influencing others, just as others have influenced me. Finding a professional and commercial form for my work will be a challenge. But from my work experience wi th Chameleon Cloth-ing and possible full t ime work wi th P laywri te, I feel I have a good insight to designing for a demander, be i t band merchandise, to magazine and packaging work.

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