My main hope for this year studying illustration is to do well, I’ve never got good grades/marks throughout my education (apart from GCSE’s, so I’m hoping to do well and get some good marks, I know I’m not top of the class or anything but I want to at least pass the course (which I’m pretty confident I will do). I want to become and be known as a good illustrator, towards the beginning of the course, I felt that I wasn’t a good illustrator; I couldn’t get my head round ideas, concepts and Photoshop /illustrator! But over the years I’ve developed. At first I did not had a consistent style, everything I did looked completely different and I could not find anything I felt really comfortable with, until the 2nd half at 2nd year, where I started to work with texture and shape, and since then I have felt very comfortable with this style and I have been developing it for almost a year now. I feel that my illustrations are getting stronger and I am very pleased with some of them.
I also hope to build my confidence up, I haven’t much confidence, I get nervous and shy talking to people I’ve never met, so hopefully some portfolio visits will help with this, I have one on the 21st of November, I’m very nervous but hopefully I will overcome this and be confident when it comes to talking about my work, as this may be something I have to do every now and then so I better get used to it!
I believe I can be a hard worker, but sometimes I can get easily distracted, and I’m trying my best not to be distracted and to put my work first. (I even take my work to my boyfriend’s house at weekends to do some work!).
My main fear is definitely leaving education! I’ve been in education for a long time; I went straight from school to A-level, to a foundation to a degree. Throughout this time I’ve had one job, which did not last long at all. I’ve always want to just concentrate on my work than have a job on the side taking up my time. So I’m worried about leaving and having to possibly get a job, if its park time or full time depending how well things go. If I’m good enough I may hopefully do something brilliant with illustration, if its getting commissioned, working for a children’s book company (which I would love!) etc, this is another fear, not being good enough, not being able to get myself out there. Fear of no one wanting to publish/commission my work, no ones interested, no one likes my work! But with a lot of hard work a help from my fellow illustrators and tutors I should be alright!
I have some opportunities to show my work to some design agencies and illustrators. I have made an appointment with Craig Oldham from design by music, and hopefully I’ll be able to get in touch with some other agencies. I have also sent some work off to illustrators and they have given me some helpful feedback and been so very friendly! I have also had to chance to be apart of Salford Zine Library, where I did a self publication based on The Day of the Dead, Dia de los Muertos, so hopefully the public have had a chance to see some of my work.
My aims for the rest of this year, to do well in every project, make sure they are finished by the main deadline. To have a strong portfolio, with at least 12 pages, hopefully more! I may also re-visit some pieces from last year, definitely going to neaten up the Killer Fashion piece and the junctures pieces I have done, as I really like them and think they are strong, I would also love to re-do the James and the Giant Peach book cover, I loved doing that project but I wasn’t completely happy with my illustration for it as I only just felt comfortable with a new style. I will hopefully get a chance to do this over Xmas break, or over Easter, when I’m not going crazy from lots of other things to do!
I would also by the end of the year love to have a good website built, which we get the opportunity to do from January I think, I would like to have a fun website, nothing boring because then no one would want to look at it.
Another aim as I’ve mentioned before is to have build up my confidence.
For my personal project I illustrated a children’s book which I has also written myself as well, I really enjoyed doing this and was thinking that I would maybe do something similar for my Major Project, I’m not brilliant at writing but it is about the illustration after all, I could possibly contact some writers and ask to illustrate there stories, but I need to think more about what I would like to do for my FMP.
Also to help build my portfolio I may set some editorials for myself to illustrate, if I find some articles to illustrate. I enjoyed doing the editorial last year and have only had the chance to do one so I would like to play with the idea of editorials some more.
The ideal dream would be to have my own studio! And possibly have some of my own books published, either ones I have written and illustrated, or even just illustrated!
So to hopefully get to this point, I have to keep working hard, re-visit some other projects and work out what I want to do for my FMP, build on some other projects at home, without tutors initiating them. Build my portfolio, make it strong and nice to look at, look at other illustrator’s portfolios for inspiration, and try to have variety pieces of work in my portfolio, not just from one or two projects and get in contact with more agencies and book publishers!
Keep working hard!
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