02 December 2014

Kingston University: End of the Party

I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry for being a really terrible blogger as of late. I guess a lot of the time it's because I'm doing a lot of live briefs so I sometimes can't unveil until after the whole thing is finished!
I do have one teeny thing to show you though. We recently (and by recently it was like early November...) worked on a really short project called 'End of the Party' where we had to choose some kind of political stance on something. Otherwise, it was very open so I thought I would interpret in quite an abstract form. I decided to loosely base it on victim blaming, and how in crimes of abuse or rape, victims are lured into a false sense of security; for some reason this doesn't become part of the criminal offence, and becomes the 'fault' of the victim, 'they had it coming', 'why weren't they more careful' or 'it's their own fault for BEING vulnerable'.
I wanted to create something that initially seems harmless, and viewing something that looks somewhat equal or an act of heroism. You soon realise that it's a trap, and the hand above crushes the one in need. I thought that animation would be a good way to show action and movement, without having to use 'set up' or documentary style filming in live action. This I think comes across as much more sinister and destructive, and perhaps show exactly how we can be physically and mentally hurtful to other people. We all have the potential to destroy each other, but maybe we've become numbed to this violence because we've been able to remove ourselves from situations that you read about on the news or see reconstructed in video games.
It is our own choice to what we do with the power that we have; the hand is capable of both help and harm. It's our responsibility to use our hand wisely.


08 November 2014

Collaboration with Velvit Vault, YIN Exhibition

Ohmygod, I'm so sorry for these long hiatus' but THIRD YEAR so please please forgive me. I also promise I have been super busy on top on that what with fundraising, dissertation and getting asked to do cool projects so I just can't turn them down. And so, my baby that is the blog (it keeps my sanity when I have enough time to think about sanity).
So the latest adventure has been a project introduced to me through Josh Walker, my good friend from Fashion Scout days. He introduced me to the lovely Jaimie Lake of Velvit Vault, a concept boutique and gallery based in Chicago specialising in the dark arts, whether that be fashion, art or music. I was initially asked to create an image for the back of some article handouts that would be given out at an exhibition called YIN. As well as that, I also asked to design a logo for the exhibition, as I was thinking that it would be a perfect chance to me to try my hand at illustrative typography. I loved using my knowledge of the Chinese definition of Yin, and applying it to an exhibition that I feel  totally reflects me.
Hopefully the Chinese calligraphy enthusiasts out there will understand what I have tried to do... I'm trying my best not to offend anyone! My logo is meant to look as much like a Chinese character as possible, whilst using Chinese character shapes and calligraphy styles. At first, I also wanted to reflect Chinese ink paintings of flora as well, but it ended up being a little too illegible. Phase two (the last three designs) were my top three from the selection that I sent to Jaimie, and the chosen logo can now be seen on Velvit!
The image is the panoramic painting that I created for the handouts. It's supposed to be a reflection of Chinese ink paintings of mountain. I hope that I will be able to see them in print!
Check out the exhibition on Velvit, there will be some more exciting collaborations with Jaimie very soon!












20 October 2014

ANIMA Collective Competition: The Penny Drops

Rosa and I finally got to go to our screening for our film 'The Penny Drops'. Our film along with 10 others debuted at the Brunel Museum in the Brunel Tunnel Shaft. It was an awesome venue, and was amazing to go with live music too. 
It has been an amazing experience, and we've met some incredible people along the way. Big thanks to Adi Chase, our amazing composer who we've collaborated on this project with throughout the whole process. As two (past) musicians ourselves, it's been great to connect with that again. Watch The Penny Drops here.




19 October 2014

Cabin Fever: Square Peg Project

Over the summer, we were given a (potentially) live brief with Square Peg, an identity within Random House. The idea was to create an idea for a non-fiction book meant to make the reader think differently about the world.

I decided I wanted to make a book about our relationship to spaces, especially in the case of isolation, reflection and self-discovery. I decided to use some of my film photography and manipulate them to express my idea, which I still struggle to find words to describe.







This project has kind of side-tracked, and it's not quite fit for the brief they originally set now. However, it's moved on to collaborating with Josh Walker, my amazing friend and colleague from Fashion Scout, who also write poetry. It's taking on a new form, and we're now in the process of looking for people to write about their experiences. If you're interested in getting involved, please do let me know!

It has become an ongoing project now, and I'm loving creating these photo collages and I hope to keep making these regardless! As for third year, I'm really getting into the swing of things now. Although I cannot wait for it to be over, I'm feeling like I am actually preparing myself for the future. There's so much I want to achieve!

03 October 2014

South East Photographs.

Straight after Fashion Week, I was on a train to Poole to spend some time with my family. I have to say it had been a really long time since I had seen my family so it was great to go on a little adventure by the sea with them. A week later, the girls and I went to Brighton for a stopover on a boat and a bit of a break for us. For Rosa and I especially it has been a wonderful and hectic time in London, but it was the perfect time for this trip. Brighton was very nice to us too, with lots of sun and sea breeze.

I guess all I'm doing is showing you holiday pics but whatever. Just a reminder that summer is now over (boo hoo).













Fashion Scout SS15.

I'm finally back into a stage where I can blog again! I have been working/holidaying/working for the whole of September, and it's been pretty tiring. I promise I haven't had a spare breath until now so I honestly apologise for the late notice. 
SO time for a big catch up. I was at Fashion Scout again for Friday and Saturday. Honestly, I would say the days that I went to were a little disappointing, and I guess that this season has had many people questioning the fashion system. You can only have a look at the Chanel show to see that it's starting to crack. So I can only say that I didn't enjoy it so much this season, purely because I'm starting to get a little bored... harsh? Possibly. But I'm not important enough for people to care.
I've always known that I couldn't continue fashion illustration forever as my entire career; I can barely keep interested in drawing for other people. But either way, I got some nice pieces out of this season... but it is possibly time for me to move on. That doesn't mean I'll be leaving the fashion world at all! I've met too many incredibly kind and innovative people for that. Besides, I will always love clothes, I will always love the performance and concepts of shows.

Ashley Isham

Cassandra Verity Green

Marianna Jungmann

Min Wu

Ong Oaj Pairam

Yujia Jin

Bernard Chandran

Dora Abodi

 
Kiev Showcase

Little Shilpa



Merit Award

Zeynep Kartal

07 September 2014

Freiburg Photography.

I developed a few films last week, including while I was in Freiburg. I'm obviously not doing as well on the photography side, I'm getting a little impatient with it. But I'm enjoying looking through and reflecting on the sense of space. Our summer brief is to create a dummy book and concept for a non-fiction book that is meant to provoke thoughts and represent an ideology or opinion. I'm finding a lot of inspiration from spaces that I've photographed, places and moments that I feel are worth reflecting. I still need to work on wording the actual concept (it's a bit wishy washy and flowery at the moment). Either way, hope you like the photos. As usual, more will be added to my Tumblr page shortly.

Also, if you're wondering, the first two of the Vitra Museum (GO and visit, it's small but really great).






01 September 2014

Freiburg Sketchbook

Another fairly long hiatus from me, as I've actually been away for about three weeks visiting home, visiting Germany (quickly becoming kind of home from home), and working. Rosa and I decided that in those three weeks we would have a wee break from filming, which part 1 is now finished... just part two left! We have all fingers and toes crossed!
But I decided I would take a small sketchbook to Freiburg, a small city in the South West bordering Switzerland and France. It was refreshingly green, mountainous and cool, and I would love to go back again. There is a quiet serenity in Germany that just calms me, and I just feel like I need it somewhere in my future. The pressures of third year have admittedly got to me, and I guess I'm just not suited to the lifestyle. I find it so much more satisfying to feel like I'm making work for myself, and for an audience that isn't looking at me as a set of qualifications and tick boxes, and more for experiences, enthusiasm and loves.
For this sketchbook, I decided to only bring colours. I have found that I automatically go for black and grey when I'm panicking, and I love colour so I should be using it more. Looking back on it, I feel like the work is expressive, free and... very me. This is the kind of work I want to be making from now on. I eventually gave this to Jonas' godmother, who we were staying with. I figured that I ought to share my work, and not be too precious. I need to throw things away, paint over the top of work and move forward. Each section of a different surface is a small concertina; I had meant to be fully flowing, but it made an interesting sketchbook in the end.
Another apology for the lack of posts, but I'm sure they'll come rolling in soon. We have plenty of deadlines this month, so plenty of work to share!