Today we had a presentation on the different pathways for gcd in the first half and during the second half we were given some time to set up our work for presentation. After that, we were allowed to look around at other people's work and leave feedback on one of them. 

This is the feedback that I received for my work. 

If there's one thing that I could change from my final presentation. it would be that I wouldn't put the "look under the chair" sign. Because as my tutor Ignacia said, I should trust my work and trust the audience. 

I was a little sick today although I did manage to make the animation video for tomorrow's presentation and crit.

There are a few changes in the video which I would have liked- like the background of the video to be white instead of black- although I wasn't being able to do that. 

Today we were asked to put up our manifestos on the wall and talk a little about other people's manifestos and their design. Then we were asked to develop ideas for our final piece. We had to keep the manifesto in mind while thinking of ideas and we could develop the little projects we did yesterday. I had a few ideas which I discussed with the tutor but after a while, I felt that the decided idea wasn't good enough? I felt that it didn't really make sense and that I could do better. I came up with another idea which I liked better although my tutor thought that the previous idea was much more doable in the given time but I wasn't satisfied with it so I went with my intuition (as stated in the manifesto) and decided to do the new idea for my final presentation. 

We started a project called white spaces today. We were blindfolded and made put into random groups where we discussed what "White Spaces" meant and how it's used, etc without knowing the people we were talking to which in my opinion was really interesting. Although, as we proceeded with the project I found it to be a little vague and didn't know what the project was asking for. I was confused but I tried to go with it as the class proceeded. 

Today we had our presentation and crit. After seeing other people's work, I felt we could have done a better job with the editing of the video. Although, people did appreciate our project. They liked the format of the game as it was almost like a "reality show" or a youtube game show and looked fun. They appreciated how we made a deep topic more humorous and the fact that we kept trying to get people to participate and when we couldn't, we were prepared with an alternate method- survey sheets to get genuine answers so we could stage the game with actors pretending to be those people.  

Through the game, we tried to show that in every game it was usually a male who won the game, who was the "winner" only because of the privileges they had.

I feel this was a successful project as Meg and I were successfully able to work together as a team. I feel our interpretation of the quote was unique. If we had more time to develop this game, I feel we would have come up with more questions and maybe make a bigger board to allow more people to join. I would like the game to look more professional so that even local people on the road would be willing to join the game. 

Today we went to CSM at Kings Cross and invited people to play the game there. We also offered them free sweets for participating in the game. We were able to convince a few people to play the game which was fun.

We then came back and edited the footage for tomorrow's Presentation and Crit.

I also spent some time working on a few pages in my sketchbook.

Today we had a tutorial with our tutor, Tim, and we proposed our idea to him. He liked the idea of us doing the actual survey and then sort of staging it for recording purposes but he also encouraged us to actually go out and invite people to play the game. Overall he seemed to be very happy with our idea and appreciated the way we dealt with the given quote. 

We spent a few hours on building the "board" of our game and other accessories of the game. We then went to Trafalgar Square to ask people to join in but most of them didn't agree to do so. So, we just asked them to answer the questions for us which is also a part of our research and can be used to stage the game if no one agrees to play our game tomorrow either. 

Today was the first day of a one-week project called "interact". We were first asked to discuss with other people on our tables the research we had done over the weekend. After that, we were put in pairs and each pair was given a quote. My partner is Meghna and we were given the following quote- "The span of a man's outspread arms is equal to his height". We were asked to analyse this quote and see what were the different meanings that could emerge. We discussed how "outspread arms" could mean opportunities and ambitions but at the same time "equal to his height" sort of suggests restrictions. So, for our interaction we decided to come up with a life-size board game which would also serve as a survey so that more people could join in at one go and have a good experience while helping us to conduct our survey. 

Today I collected a few photographs to work on my sketchbook. They were images of how we interact with Graphic Communication Design on a daily basis. 

Today I went to the library at London College of Communication to read the books mentioned on the brief for next week's project called "interact". I'm really excited for next week and looking forward to it.  

Today was my progress tutorial with Karen. She gave me some valuable feedback on my workflow page and my work. She asked me to analyse my reflections a bit more and express my opinions and thoughts in more depth and also differentiate the text in my research like the ones taken from outside from the ones that are my personal thoughts. 

 Today was the last day of Fashion and Textiles. We started the day with a drawing exercise. A few models and stylists were picked at a time and after they were dressed with the different options provided to us, we were asked to draw them using different techniques like blind drawing, continuous line drawing and even drawing while reacting to beats of the music playing. We were also encouraged to use different types of mediums. In the second half of the day, we were divided into groups of 6 and were asked to interpret this week. We contributed a sheet of paper each and joined them together after which we drew on each others' papers. We did fashion illustrations, collage, etc. It was a fun exercise and I was really happy with the final outcome as well. 

Today we explored the possibilities with textiles. We were asked to take 5 items that related to us and then we grouped up with 3 other people. We discussed the significance of each item and then we were asked to connect the materials together in some way. We wrapped some yarn around the foot of a table and hung them from the yarn. After we did that we were asked to draw them out, again using different mediums and techniques- like we did yesterday. We then made a viewfinder and looked for interesting patterns and designs in our drawings. the findings were to be transferred to acetate sheets using markers, coloured acetate, thread, etc to create interesting projections.

Today's activity too was really interesting and had a very unique approach to how textiles can be dealt with and how inspiration can be found anywhere. I also enjoyed working in a group as this way I really got to interact more with my classmates and also get to know their ideas which can influence a person's way of thinking. 

Today was the first day of fashion and Textiles week. We were asked to go around the local area and observe architectural stuff and draw them out using different drawing mediums. I used chalk, colour pencils, pen, watercolour, markers and brush pens. I also used a chocolate box packaging to collage a shape. We were then asked to find interesting shapes from our drawings and make a composition. This activity was timed and we were asked to frequently change mediums. After that, we were asked to join our sketchbooks with 5 other people, sort of like "puzzle pieces" after which we had to draw one shape from our own composition on this new "canvas" that we had created. Each of us now had a unique drawing composition in our sketchbook. From this composition, we again chose three shapes and cut those shapes out from the paper that was provided to us and join these shapes together edge to edge and force them into an enclosed "box". After that, we then cut out these shapes on a large scale to place it on a models body so as to create an interesting silhouette. We were then asked to draw it out using different mediums and techniques like using continuous lines, blind drawing, etc. 

This whole process was interesting and I enjoyed myself as it was very spontaneous and different from what I usually do when it comes to drawing.  

I spent most of my day today working on my sketchbook and researching in the library. I went through books on chairs, jewellery and buildings. 

Today was the final day of 3DDA week and we had architecture. We were asked to make two 3D structures using wooden skewers and then join them together is such a way so that they can stand up on their own. After that, we were asked to join our structure with the structure of another group in such a way that the final piece could stand up on their own. the whole process of this project was fun and I felt that it was a unique way of introducing us to architecture.

The final piece that we came up with, in my opinion, could be developed into a furniture piece- maybe a coffee table or even a funky bookshelf. I also thought that if the size was increased, and the paper was replaced by trampolines, it could be a fun amusement item for different age groups. 

Today we did the product design and ceramics pathway. We were introduced to the disciplines and we were also shown some work of the past students. We were then asked to go around the campus and observe people sitting on chairs and see how the chair was being used in different ways.

Many people had mentioned in class that people tend to hang stuff on their chairs while sitting. Especially women tend to hang their bags on the chairs. Even while wandering around the campus, I saw many people doing that. It made me wonder that it would be so easy for a thief to slyly take the bag and run off without the owner noticing. So I designed a chair that allows the sitter to sort of lock the bag onto the chair. It would be easy to do and no thief would be able to take steal a bag without someone noticing. I feel my idea had a purpose and it can be used in today's time.  

I really enjoyed making the sketch models as it also allowed me to work with different materials and challenge me to use only given materials to demonstrate my idea. I also enjoyed observing people and the way they sit. Although my drawings weren't the best, it really did help me come up with certain ideas and concepts for today's project. 

Today was the first day of 3D design and architecture and we started with Jewellery, Footwear and Fashion Accessories. We were shown a presentation and then introduced to our project. 

We had to come with 10 drawings for each of the words "Surround", Suspend" and "Support". I really enjoyed this exercise but I could only come with 4-5 for each though. Since they were very fast sketches they were able to communicate only the look of the accessory but I had to explain what I was thinking while I designed a particular accessory. 

We were then asked to make prototypes of our chosen design and the materials were provided by the tutors. Although there were restricted materials I didn't really have a problem because I like working with different materials and this was an interesting challenge and my design was very flexible in the sense that a various range of materials could have been used. We had about an hour and a half to finish making the prototype and photographing it which was enough for me. After last day's work I sort of learned from my mistakes and tried to manage my time better and I was successful at it. 

Honestly, other than taking a few more pictures of my piece, I wouldn't do anything differently because I was happy with my outcome and I was happy that I was able to meet the deadline. 

Today was the last day of graphic communication design. We did a one-day project on typography. We were asked to walk around the building and look at areas which interested us and sketch them out. I chose the racks that we had used to dry our screen prints on. I decided to use the word "Lift". Although I wasn't able to finish it in time. I took a few extra minutes to finish assembling my alphabets and photograph it. 

I do feel that I was able to communicate my idea through my work although I wish I had used different colours for each alphabet to make the word much more clearer. 

Today I visited the Wellcome collection museum where there was an exhibition called "Can Graphic Design Save Your Life". This exhibition highlights the subliminal nature of graphic design in shaping our environment, our health and our sense of self. I really enjoyed looking at the evolution of tobacco packaging and the infographic books on the human body to make study easier for children. 

Today we did screen printing in class and honestly, as tedious and time-consuming as it was, I truly enjoyed myself. We were all given random alphabets/numbers and were asked to make use of the shape of the alphabet to come up with designs for this project. I was given the letter 'O'. I made a couple of designs in our sketchbooks and chose to do the owl because I felt it worked best because I could add just the right amount of detail, considering the time we had to do our project, and I also thought about how the word 'Owl' begins with 'O'. 

Other than this we were also asked to make the same using red, black and white paper and use those paper bits to make a stop motion which in opinion was very exciting as I had always wanted to make a stop motion video but never got around doing it. This project really gave me the opportunity to explore this discipline and I feel one day projects are the best because you really get the feel and essence of the discipline in that one week allotted to us. I also feel that many times people tend to think that graphic design is very easy but it's not because it does include very tight time schedules and the work can get very tedious and include exploration of different materials. 

Today was the first day of Graphic Design Communication, probably one of the pathways I've been really excited for. Although, yesterday I was a little puzzled after I read the project brief for today but once I saw the presentation I felt a bit more confident. My tutor was really friendly and helpful too. This project was exciting because we got randomly paired with our partners.  I was given the noun "Environment" and then I was randomly partnered with Febe who had the adjective "Social". So essentially, Social Environment was our word which in my opinion was pretty easy to tackle. After a series of individual exercises, Febe and I started brainstorming on the various ideas we could photograph or make videos of.  We finally settled on the theme of women empowerment, especially in Asian countries and sort of tried to communicate how women should be given the opportunity to be independent and not just be bound by stereotypical thinking. We got a few different photographs but then finally presented this one 

 

If I could do things differently it would probably be making a life-size arrow for real out of cardboard and asking the models to hold it up rather than making the arrow separately out of paper and photoshopping it on the image. 

Although, I still feel that our final outcome was a good piece of work and succeeds in conveying the message we wanted it to convey. 

I spent most of my day today at the Wellcome collection. I really enjoyed looking at the "Medicine Man" exhibition. Especially the collection of glassware that really intrigued me. I also saw the "A museum of modern nature" exhibition. There, the museum invited the local people to give their personal items that somehow relate to nature. My favourite exhibits were the Shell collection by Wendy and the cat made of cat hair by Merle. The shell collection consisted of jewellery made from shells that Wendy had collected with her mother and grandmother and what was really interesting that all the shells look almost identical.

I think it was a good experience as I had a nice day out and looking at these exhibits really helped me with my research.

Today was the last day Fine Arts week and also the day of our Collections' presentation. The first half of the day was a little hectic as it took me a while to get my photographs up on the wall ready to be presented. Although I wasn't very happy with the final outcome as it looked a bit wanky and I had a few more ideas which I could have executed had I had more time. During the latter half of the day, we were asked to look at the collections of other people in our group and give them feedback. This was a good exercise as I really got some good feedback, critical comments and new ways of how I could have made my presentation different with the given amount of time. All my group members and my tutor, Emme, agreed that my idea was really interesting and unique but the presentation could have been different which would have really changed the impact my collection would have on the audience. 

Some of the comments that I really found interesting were when Tara and Lizzy said how I could maybe use photoshop to add more character to then faces like adding speech bubbles or false hair and things like that. I feel that too would make my project stand out and a bit humorous too. 

I was also very intrigued by how Bella said that the photos had sort of a narcissistic approach because of how we see ourselves (humans) in every other thing that we look at. 

Since today was a self-study day, I spent some of my time researching the various artists whose collections we had seen on Monday's lecture. Along with that I also researched the work of Mathew Day Jackson. My tutor, Adrian, had mentioned his work while helping me yesterday and it was interesting as his collections were very similar to mine. I also resized all my images on photoshop so that they're ready to be printed for tomorrow's exhibition. Other than that I also attended a Study session on research which was very helpful as I think it will change the way I write my research. I also spent some time working on my sketchbook and sticking the pictures of the three different ideas that I had in mind ion the first day of this project. 

Today's assignment was very interesting. We tried to find out ways how we could present our collections in unique and different ways. We had to come up with a few ideas in an hour and get feedback from our peers on which one they think was unique. My first idea was to colour coordinate the photographs. The second one was to hang the pictures in such a way so that when seen from a particular angle, it looks like a smile or a face. My peers liked the latter better. I got some thread and tried to carry out this process of hanging the pictures to form a smile. Honestly, it was difficult because the pictures kept moving and it didn't look how I imagined it to be so I decided to ask my tutor, Adrian, for his input and how I could maybe make this work. He asked me not to do it as hanging would be very difficult and rather I should stick to just placing the pictures in the form of a smile or a face instead. I also took a few more pictures to add to my collection and found a few artists who work with "faces". 

This week is Fine Arts week and our project is called "Collections". We started off the day with a lecture and a series of small collection exercises within the classroom. We were then asked to go out and walk around the area and collect items to form a collection of our own. When I started off I had a few ideas in my mind- the first idea was to collect 'circular' or round objects. This idea was inspired by my friend Lizzy who did a similar thing in one of the exercises we had done earlier this morning. The second idea was to collect photographs of objects that look like faces. And my final idea was to photograph all the different surfaces I walk on in the next 24 hours. After coming back I shared my ideas with all the people in my group and asked for feedback and which one they liked the best. I finally decided on doing the faces one because that's what the most of them thought was most interesting. 

Today we exchanged the various ideas we had developed in our heads from the research we had done over the past few days. We were asked to draw five of them writhing five minutes which was a little challenging but I was able to do it. We then were asked to develop one of our ideas within one hour. I chose to develop a corset with bat wings which allows a person to fly. One of the obstacles I faced was the possibility of the idea to be developed as the required technology is yet to be invented. My peers also helped me with this idea as they gave me inputs on how my idea could be developed like if the wings could be glow in the dark or if it could have a provision to carry babies. If I had more time I would probably research a bit more on the materials and technology which is similar to my idea and how it can be modified to make my 'impossible' idea possible. I hope to develop this idea a bit more tomorrow.

Today I researched on animals like sloths, koalas and bats along with carnivorous plants as they have hair like structures called "trichome" to help the prey stick to the plants. Also researched on what a bat's wing looks like and made a wing using paper and sticks as well to understand its functioning better. I also met with my group members so that we could discuss how each of us interpreted the words separately, two at a time and then all three together to try and find links and ideas for our project. This was very interesting because both of them came up with very interesting interpretations. I feel to link all three we could make a head gear and mask, similar to the one animists used for rituals which could be inspired by bats and carnivorous plants. I'm looking forward to tomorrow's class as we will discuss our ideas and visualise what our final piece would look like.

After today's library's session I feel that I'm in a way better position. We tried to interpret the three words- animism, hang and hair- in different ways. We found out that Shamanism is essentially "applied animism" and that there are rituals animists perform that involve head gears and masks so as to look similar to animals. When we looked up books on hair, we didn't find many interesting things but when connecting it to things like animal fur or trichome (hair like structures on plants) or even Rapunzel, many links were found. Even the word hang had so many interpretations like animals who hang from trees (bats, koalas and sloths) and capital punishment. 

New day and a new beginning. Today was the first day of class. We were introduced to our first project. Honestly, I didn't even know what animism meant until I looked it up. Although the project seems a little obscure to me at the moment I feel with tomorrow's research I'll be able to be at a much better position. Today we also got a fast exercise where within 15 minutes we had to sketch out 5 building ideas (however crazy it may be) which were inspired by the words we were allotted. First reaction- "wait what?"

But then as I got around thinking I feel I was able to come up with at least three. It was really intimidating as first but now that I think about it thats how its supposed to be. If I could rewind in time and do the task again, I probable wouldn't think as much and just let the ideas flow onto paper, however crazy it may be because thats what the point of the exercise is. To think out of the box and be crazy.

It is a little difficult but I'm looking forward to finding out more.