End of Module Evaluation- OUIL501

End of Module Evaluation OUIL 501

Tilly Butters

This module has taught me so much about who I am, as a person and as a practitioner, and given me the guidance of where to take my practice in the future, which was something I was lacking at the start of the year.

Research was an important element for me, especially because I knew nothing about my subject when I started. Using the library resources really helped me this year, and helped me to take my essay down various routes that encompassed my subject.

The essay always seems a daunting task for me, but I found myself becoming so passionate about what I was writing that it was the opposite. Global warming and climate change are two things that I never thought would matter to me, which, looking back is the worst possible view I could have had. Understanding the importance of a sustainable practice will stay with me for many years to come, and I plan for this to be at the core of what I do from now on.

It took me a really long time to get the practical side rolling, and this is a definite weakness that I’ve picked up on and aim to improve heading into the next year. I didn’t let my practical influence my writing, I wrote my essay and then started to focus on the practical, which is something I want to avoid next time. I had ideas running through my head the whole time, I just never got them out, which meant my visual work had to be influenced by my essay.

Another weakness of mine during this module was having too many ideas that were completely different, and for a while I found it hard to find synthesis. I had the ideas but I wasn’t translating them onto paper, which was a big mistake. To improve this next year, I aim to keep a small notebook on me at all times, to jot down ideas, and rough from start to finish, so that I’m left with something that’s evolved with my written work, and that’s been on a visual journey along side the essay.

Time management was something I didn’t get quite right. I started the year with all intention of sticking to Friday being COP day, but I slowly let this go, which impacted my visual work and almost made me forget how much I enjoyed writing about my subject. However, towards the end I managed to pick up the pace and started to become even more passionate about it all. Making visual work that supported my argument made me feel like I could make a difference. Its easier to believe something when you can see it, even if it is just a drawing. I connected with my body of work on a far more personal level, and realised that raising awareness and making others understand what I now know, is something that really matters to me.

Making the book was something I wanted to get just right. I wanted to execute my tone of voice clearly. I had various ideas of how to do this, but went down the endangered animal route and made each one out of clay. Working with clay and recycled materials was something that I’ve wanted to bring into my practice for a while, and now that I have, is something I will continue to experiment with in the future.

The end product is something that I’m really quite proud of, as I feel it executes the exact message I wanted it to. It makes people think, it makes people realise. The book is clear, and not too complex, which means its suitable for all ages, making my my audience greater and meaning more people can learn about the critical condition our ecosystem is in.

This module has made me passionate about something for the first time since I can remember. Its given me a voice and a direction, and a great starting point for Cop3. I must plan my time more effectively next year, create a timetable and stick to it. I will keep a visual journal with me at all times and create work that influences my written work and vice versa. I plan to enhance my knowledge, gain first hand experience over the summer and continue to make work that has the potential to make a difference in the world.

COP3 Proposal

FINAL BOOK

The final completed book. 

Im really pleased with how this turned out, especially in the time that I put it all together. Slowly getting the hang of making books and making things to a professional standard (i think). 

Ive managed to include everything I wanted to, plus the little added extras like the folding insides and the belly band.

Evaluation of the book-

I learnt a lot when making it, about the planet and various species and how critically endangered some of them are. I researched so much before making it so as to execute it well and find my tone of voice. Making this book has inspired me in ways that I didn't think possible, and I definitely want to continue my studies in this particular field for COP3, which was something I was really worried about at the start of the year. Ive really taken on board the importance of research and how to research something that I want to know more about. My sole interests lie deeply in this field now, and I don't feel like I can ever know enough. 

The other idea I had for making the book is still something I want to work on, but Im glad that I went down this route this time round. 

I feel confident with clay and with sourcing recycled materials so much so that I plan to bring this into each of my modules in the future.

Final Essay

THINK ABOUT IT...

I made a small gif of the polar bear sculpture to show the change of the ice melting and temperatures rising. When inverting the polar bear, the effect was exactly what I wanted to achieve. Global warming is actually happening, just like this.

Making a belly band

I wasn't going to make a belly band, but I had all of these lovely stencils left over from mono print and I just had to do something with them.

I printed some on paper and then some on acetate, mainly because I didn't want to block the design of the cover. Im really happy with it though because you get leaves and ice in one cover now, which represents the climate change perfectly.

Above - ones on paper
Below- acetate

Printing mishaps

Luckily I booked two print slots because I realised I had a few mistakes on one of the inside folds. Always make sure I'm backed up for when things like this happen. It was also good to have two print slots because the folding and stapling together could have gone wrong. I also cut some of them a little wrong, so take more time and allow time for mistakes like this to happen.

Cover design

Past present future is the chosen name for the book. Its simple and effective, and it encompasses what has been, what is happening now because of it and what will the future be like, if there is one at all.

Its rather fitting for the book, but doesn't give too much away which is what I wanted. I was going to call it something like, 'Consequence' or 'The consequences of our greed' but I felt like it was too harsh.

This will go on the back, i know usually peoples names are on the front but I want to keep it simple and to the point, to make it as eye catching to the viewer as possible.

My aim is for the cover to longer than the book itself so that there are two folding sides on either end with small amounts of info on each. This is the ink drawing I've done to sit with these.

So when printed it will look like this, and it will be folded in 3.

Gathering text

I got the majority of the text I was going to use in the book from the wwf website. Which means I'm going to have to give credit to/reference them within the book somehow.

Choosing the right type was an important decision for me, considering half of the book would be made up of it. I wanted the book to look professional, so it was important I made all of the right decisions.

LL brown - I usually use this type, but wanted a change

Helvetica- many options within this which I like. Clean and easy to read- this is the one.

Arial- A little boring

Final imagery

Final images ready to be made into a book! Im really pleased with the outcome of these, and the feedback I've got. There were times when I thought it wasn't possible, and times where everything went wrong, but I got there in the end. 

Using the wacom on these to add details was actually extremely enjoyable, and not as hard as I thought. I'll definitely be using them more often from now on.

To do-

- Make the cover

-Gather the facts for the inside pages

- Layout on indesign ready for print.

Peer review

This crit came at a great time and was done really well. It was a good motivational boost for us all to get going. There was still enough time to edit small things if needed, and everything that I got back on my sheet was really useful. I changed the texture of the orang-utan's leaves after this, which made it so much better.

Trying to be more critical was actually so much easier when discussing with someone and working in a pair. I think we should use this technique in a few more crits because I personally found it really useful.

The comments I got were great. I wanted to print onto recycled paper as someone commented, but James doesn't supply it in the print room because the quality isn't as good apparently. Plus I just didn't have enough time, but I will recycle my own book once its done.

Working into them digitally

Once I had all of the photos that I wanted, I started editing them slightly on photoshop to enhance them or get rid of any unnecessary marks. I then went on to use a Wacom to add small amounts of digital work. This gave the images a little more context as well as depth.

Like this. It combines traditional with digital, which is something I want to look further into in the future. Because I know I love analogue, but I want to learn to love digital too, and in this case, I actually have. Its added a little extra something to the images that I couldn't have achieved without it.

More work on the book

Because our lighting inductions weren't until the Friday, I had to make some kind of my own studio set up to photograph the sculptures, otherwise i would have been pushed for time and it would have been a crazy manic rush.

Pressed leaves that I pressed last year. 

Will in third year showed me how to set it all up which was great, and it worked really well.

I brought in all of my own props and what I wanted to include in each picture. Each one is really delicate, so transporting them from my house to uni was a little scary but I managed it.

There are obvious little things that go wrong that perhaps wouldn't have happened in the studio, but its nothing that photoshop couldn't help with. The main difficulty was trying to get the same amount of light in each one, because when using natural light, it changes so quickly.

Now that I've had my lighting induction, I feel pretty confident that I would be able to use the studio and lights next time. But its important that i stick to my time table and get what I can done with whats available to me. 

Time management and thinking through problems is coming a little more naturally to me these days.

More making...

The polar bear was the first one I made out of the sculptures, and gave me the confidence to know that making a book this way was possible. This one took me the longest, but I gradually got faster at making them. 

After the bear was baked, I cut out individual snowflakes from old recycled envelopes, and I was going to use them as they were, but I ended up mono printing with them, just to see if I would get anything good out of it. I want happy with any of my mono prints but the snowflakes turned out great.

Took a while to glue them on in the right places, following the curves etc, but it came out really well.

The snowflakes fade out on one side, to show the decrease in ice thats caused from global warming and climate change.

If I have time, I might try make a gif with this one, or one of the other animals.

The making of...

I have had so much fun making this book thus far. Im trying to figure out the most sustainable way to make the book, which isn't the easiest thing, but Ive tried various processes and methods of recycling that have helped.

Clay is really sustainable, comes from the earth, last for 100's of years and is completely natural. So making the models out of clay was a good start.

I made this net from recycled string from parcels that I've been collecting from the start of this project. I have so many random recycled objects in bags all over my room at the moment. 

The Bee has pressed elderflower flowers glued on to it. I used to love pressing leaves and flowers in order to preserve the beauty. So these I've had for a while and thought it best to put them to good use. Also naturally sourced, no man made products here.

Sourcing recycled materials wasn't as hard as I thought, and if you just think a little alternatively to normal there's always a way around something that makes it a little more sustainable, and in the long run, more cost effective. 

Local examples of waste

There were a lot of people at the park the other day, because the sun was out and everyone was celebrating. I went to enjoy some of the sun before heading back to uni. I pass this park everyday on my walk to and from. 

So on my way home later that night, I was shocked and appalled by the view.

Rubbish everywhere. Not only on this field, but on all. We are the reason there are so many problems in our world, we are careless and this needs to change! People need to wake up, and respect our planet.

Aims as an illustrator-

- Make people realise the importance of our planet

- Raise awareness wherever possible

- Take on board a social responsibility

- Use my visual skills to communicate these things to as wide an audience as possible.

In design Concertina

I went to the software workshop the other day because Ive never made a concertina book before and I really wanted to know how. Im not sure I'm going to make a concertina yet, but at least now I have the option. If I have enough time, I would ideally like to make a saddle stitch and a concertina and have the physical option. We shall see...

Testing/Development

I printed out one of the beach scened to see how well it would work. This is just a super rough practice, and I think it could work really well if I spent more time on it, and used a wacom instead of a fine liner, but I think I'm swaying towards my other idea because-

- Using a wacom isn't my best skill, and I don't have enough time to get things wrong

- Making something out of sustainable materials seems more fitting to me

- I love making, far more than I do digital work - play to my strengths.

I made this as a mock up, but ended up taking a long time on it because I enjoyed making it so much, which is another good indicator that this idea is far more suited to me and my practice. 

I realised that it didn't take as long as I had previously thought, which meant I could make enough ready for the book. 

Need to-

- Take into account that its not just a case of making them, but also photographing them, adding elements to each and arranging them into a book.

- Therefore, manage my time wisely.

- Start making the animals immediately, but first do some research into which ones I really want to include.