Summative Project Report

Overall I am pleased with the body of work I have produced over the course of this module, and I think my portfolio effectively communicates the type of work I enjoy doing and am good at, and hopefully it will demonstrate my skillset to future clients.

I tried to tackle a range of different projects over the course of this module, such as live and competition briefs, self-initiated projects and work for mine and Katie Day’s studio, which we plan on focusing on after graduation. The work I am most proud of from this year is my publication. I think the illustrations and overall tone of voice best represent the sort of work I would really like to continue doing. This particular project showed me that narrative and characters are something I definitely really enjoy working with, and I think focusing on this is when my work is at its strongest. However, I really struggled with the graphic design side of this project, and I’m still unsure of how I want the text to be laid out. I have had a few tutorials and also spoke to a graphic design student about it, and I am still not one hundred percent happy with the outcome. This is something I am going to continue to work on after the deadline because I think if the layout and text works well with the illustrations then it could be a really strong piece of work.

Some of the other work I am really proud of this year are my posters for the Gross! Studio events. These were pieces of work created with an audience in mind, and I think they effectively communicate the laid-back, fun atmosphere we hope that our events have. This was another opportunity to used character-based work, and I think it worked well here.

I think the aspect of this module that I struggled with most this year was time management. Since me and Katie began our studio, we’ve been allocating a lot of time to that which made it difficult to focus on 603 as much as I would like to. I also ended up working at my job outside of university a lot more towards the end of this year (four days a week instead of two days a week), which again took some of my focus away from university. This is a job that I want to continue after graduation so I can afford to stay in Leeds, so I feel like it’s a compromise I had to make. Despite this, I think I have put together a relatively strong portfolio that will help me after graduation, and the time allocated to Gross will be very beneficial after university even though the time spent on it may end up affecting my grade for this module.

I think the main thing I have gained from this module is a new level of confidence in my work, and a wider breadth of skills. Making the posters etc. for the Gross exhibitions/print fairs has shown me that I am confident enough in my work to use it to market an event, and put it in the public’s eye. I have also become a lot more accustomed to video work this year which is an important skill that I am sure will be beneficial in the future. In addition, I now have a much better understanding of curating and project management from co-running all the events with Katie.

I would have liked to spend more time in the print room this year as linoprinting and screenprinting are both methods of image-making that I really enjoy, and I think linoprint especially lends itself well to the tone of voice of my work. However, these are resources that I probably won’t have access to as easily after graduation, so I think it was best that I spent more time developing methods of working that I will be able to continue easily after graduation without as many resources. The method I developed over this year is the ink drawings, and then bitmap textures. It’s a way of working that I really enjoy and I think it helps give my work a consistent feel to it, and it’s also straightforward and I will easily be able to continue doing this after I leave university.

I am pleased to be finishing this module with not only a portfolio I am proud of, but also some long-term projects underway that I can continue to work on after graduation and into my professional career.