BUMF Issue 07 by BUMF

ISSUE 07 / FRESH

BUMF TEAM EDITORS IN CHIEF Beth Rubery Ezra Evans EDITORS/DESIGNERS Rachel Chorley Hannah Morgan Katie Charleston Olivia Church Daisy Leigh-Phippard

WRITERS

SUBJECT SCOUT Sarah Gomes Munro CHIEF PHOTOGRAPHER Ewa Ferdynus PUBLICITY Hannah Sherwen GALLERY STAFF Kate Wolstenholme

Editors’ Letter

elcome to the first issue of BUMF of this academic year. Whether you are brand new to AUB or returning to the creative salt mines we hope to stumble across you and your artistic practice this year, maybe showing you off on our website, in our next publication or in the BUMF gallery. This year we hope to infiltrate more courses with our submission pestering. We want to know what goes down in the workshops of Interior Architecture; see the (most likely) caffeine fuelled exertions of Animation; and get to know more about the future designers in Fashion. We also want to meet the rest of you, but we are seriously curious about what goes on down in Interior Architecture, we never hear from them! Throughout this issue there is a recurring theme of ‘FRESH’ness. FRESHers, FRESH talent, FRESH ideas: all things to sink your teeth into at the beginning of a new year. Whether you read this issue cover to cover or just flip through looking at the pretty artwork (hey, we’ve all done it), we hope to provide you with sufficient inspirations in the midst of inner resolution making. No, you’re probably not going to consistently work this term rather than leaving it all until the last few weeks before deadline day. And no, you probably won’t miraculously develop incredible budgetting skills to avoid the inevitable dinners consisting of rice and cheese. But hopefully you will create a few cool things this year- and give us a shout when you do!

Dont be a stranger, Hannah and Rachel

W H A T ’ S I N T H E FRESH ISSUE THEN? PAG E 6 - F RE SHE RS P R E S S UR E S Ka tie C har l eston recou n ts h e r ex p e r ie n ce of freshers’ and expl o r e s th e joy o f a n a lt er nati ve experi ence

C H AR L I E P RYO R - PAGE 7 ‘A Wo r ld In P ixe ls ’ - illu s t ra t i o ns fo r a t ra ve l c o m p a ny PAG E 8 - COMF ORT FIL MS F O R N E W P L AC E S Daisy Lei gh-Phi ppard wr ite s o n f ilms to h elp adapt and soothe th e s o u l P L ANT I NG - PAGE 1 0 AU B S U ’s G r e e n O f f i c e r, Em m a , g i ve s he r a d v ice o n s u r ro und i ng yo ur s e l f w i t h g o o d g r e e n vi b e s PAG E 12 - F RE SH T HO UG HT S : T HE BL A N K PAG E , S YLV IA AND ORIGINAL IDE A S An expl orati on, from Oliv ia C h u r c h , in to for m ul ati ng new ways o f th in k in g a n d co p in g w it h creati ve bl oc k SO P H I E L AW R E NC E - PAGE 1 4 ‘Le mo n Ze s t ’ - t he f r ui t y a d ve nt r ue s o f a n a ni m a t e d l e m o n PAG E 15 - AB B IE JAME S ‘IN K’ - a proj ect on Ko r e a n ta tto o in g tra d itio n s R E P R E S E NTAT I V E I NT E GR I T Y -PAGE 1 6 E d ito r, Ra c h e l C ho r l ey, c ha l l e nge s p r i ve l a ge, p owe r a n d a r tis tic in t e g r i t y w he n l o o ki ng a t s o c i a l i s s ue s i n a r t & d e s i g n 4

PAG E 20 - MATTHEW P O N T IN G ‘Brec on Beacons Natio n a l Pa r k , Wa le s ’ - lo n g exp o sure i mages of s o me o f th e p a r k ’s mo s t b e a u tif u l n a tu ral water feature s P H I L L I P S I M O N - PAGE 2 2 ‘C o lla ge A s D ra w i ng ’ - ex p e r i m e nt s w i t h new fo r m s a nd i d e a s o f i m a ge r y PAG E 24 - KE LLY MO RG A N ‘Bird Faci nators’ - ha n d cra f te d a n d b e a u tif u lly m ac abre headpi eces M E GAN PAR K - PAGE 2 6 ‘E x te r io r s a n d Lig h t ’ - a c o nt e m p o ra r y a p p ro a c h to cl a s s i c t he m e s o f l i g ht a nd d a r k PAG E 28 - WORK WIT H BUMF Deta il s of current vac a n cie s we ’r e lo o k in g t o fil l AL I C E J E F F - PAGE 2 9 ‘It’s Te a ’ - b ra n d ing fo r a b e s p o ke t e a c o m p a ny PAG E 31 - WHAT ’S O N Ta ke a l ook at upcomin g e ve n ts th is te r m

FRESHERS PRESSURES When I first came to uni, I tried to get into the whole freshers’ thing. I really did. I signed up to loads of the clubs and societies, but in the end I was just too shy to go to a single one. I went to the freshers’ fair, but I didn’t get two steps into the loud, crowded tent before anxiety got the better of me and I was having a panic attack. Kind of put me off. On top of that, I don’t drink, I’m really not into parties or clubbing, and the hardest drug I’ve done is paracetamol.

God, why didn’t I go to Toast that one night in freshers? Personally, I’m not convinced that the best way to make friends is in a place where the music is too loud to have a conversation, and the people are too drunk to remember you the next day. Particularly if it’s not something you typically enjoy; you’re probably not going to find likeminded people in a club if that’s not your scene. I mean sure, if you like drinking and partying then maybe your soul mate is right there waiting for you in Cameo. But if you like reading, maybe you’ll make a friend at the library. Love a good quiz night? Where better than Conto

Longue on a Saturday evening to meet people with unparalleled trivia knowledge? Love music? Head to the Bic or even The Old Firestation and chat with someone who knows all the words to your favourite song. Do you bring a sketchpad everywhere you go? Maybe go to one of AUB’s life drawing classes, and talk with someone about their favourite medium. Allow yourself to be who you are, be who you want to be. People will like you. You really don’t have to pretend to be someone you’re not, or do things you don’t really want to do. Freshers’ will come and go, so just enjoy yourself; enjoy yourself in your own way, even if that’s not in the way everyone’s telling you to. It’s okay to feel nervous. It’s okay to feel homesick. Whether they admit it or not, the first time a person is on their own, they’re bound to feel that way. People will be telling you this is the best time of your life, but putting pressure on yourself to have fun is a surefire way to ensure the opposite. It’s true that “you’re all in the same boat” (as I’m sure you’ll be told at least a dozen times), but when you’re shy, introverted, or you’re the 1 in 4 of us that will suffer with mental health problems each year, it may feel like you’re the only one struggling while everyone else is having the

time of their lives. Allow yourself to feel however you feel. It’s okay. Some people thrive on the nightlife, but if it’s not for you, just do your own thing. It’s really not a big deal. Chances are you’re not going to be lying awake at night in 50 years time thinking ‘God, why didn’t I go to Toast that one night in freshers?’. If it all feels a bit much, come for a chat with student services. Chat to course mates. Draw, make, write. Not all students come just for the parties. Some actually want to study. Unbelievable, I know. Also, just because freshers’ inevitably finishes, it doesn’t mean that you’ve missed your chance. There will be likeminded people, but you don’t have to meet them in the first two weeks. You’ll make friends, there’s no rush. Give yourself a break. It’ll be okay.

Words - Katie Charleston

T H E WORLD IN PIXELS CHARLIE P R Y O R BA Illustration Level 6 (words & illustrations)

This is some work I’ve been doing over the summer for a new company called ‘Your Mate’s Place’ who find cheap travel deals for people looking to travel the world. They find the right times, for the right place, to make the experience as good as possible. So here are a few of the destinations that the package includes, and they will be adding more packages soon.

COMFORT FILMS F O R N E W P L AC E S

The prospect of being in a new place and living independently is terrifying to some and madly exciting for other, whether we’re done it before or not. Stepping out and deciding which direction we’re going to go in is a daunting thing. But any narrative structure will tell you that the ‘call to adventure,’ often indicated by leaving for a new place, kicks off all the best stories. Think of Harry leaving for Hogwarts in Harry Potter (Columbus, 2001), Ofelia arriving at the manor in Pan’s Labyrinth (del Toro, 2006), and Charlotte lost and small in the sprawling madness of Lost in Translation’s Tokyo (Coppola, 2003). All of which are wonderful films that I think make the transition of change a little smoother.

changes in a person’s life, and teach us about how to deal with them ourselves. Boyhood (Linklater, 2014) is a great one if you want a creative take on the traditional coming-of-age story; Moonrise Kingdom (Anderson, 2012) will show you two kids finding their own freedom on a tiny island while on the run from parents and the authorities; and How I Live Now (Macdonald, 2013) will give you a more dramatic look at adapting to new places than you’ll be having (unless Trump starts World War Three that is). But instead, I’m going to go back a couple of decades and across a few seas to Japan, and recommend Kiki’s Delivery Service, the 1989 animation by Studio Ghibli founder Hayao Miyazaki.

it to, whatever we try it just isn’t right. It’s even scarier if you’re spending a lot of money to study said passion, but it’s something that happens to all of us sometimes. If (when) it happens, try looking at Kiki. While films can help us adapt to new places, they also let us explore them without moving at all. You can reach Hogwarts or eighteenth century France without moving an inch as long as you have the right thing in front of you. We can learn about different cultures and people (real or not) as well as visiting familiar places. Strange as it sounds, sometimes going to an imaginary new place can help adjust to a literal new place and aid growth there.

When thinking of the things I could recommend to people for ‘comfort films,’ I realised that really it depends on whoever you are and what you love. My instinct is to list all the films I could think of, but the next person along might think of twenty paintings or a hundred songs. Whatever it is for you, never underestimate the power of a good list: find a way to keep together all the things that make it a little bit easier to get on with change. I’ve recently discovered what’s known as a ‘Morgue File’: the idea is that every time you find something that inspires you or piques your interest you take a picture or write it down and keep it so that you can come back to it later (read Austin Kleon’s Steal Like an Artist for more). A similar idea is to do the same with all the things that make you feel a little bit better, so they’re there when you need them. But remember that creating can be just as good as consuming. Sitting down to watch, read, listen or look at something that comforts you at the end of a long day is great, but you’re at AUB for a reason. Don’t forget how much you can get out of making your own comfort art.

Storytelling – at the heart of all art forms – is the driving force of escapism. Watching other people’s stories is cathartic; they tell us how to adapt to new things by seeing how others succeed or fail at them. Specifically, I think, in films. You might prefer sitting in the comfort of your bed with pizza or a mug of tea - while I’ll always go for the experience of sitting in a darkened room with a bunch of strangers which we call cinema - but either way the moving image is the closest thing we have to going through character’s experiences without actually going through them in the literal sense.

I’m a film student, and as such I could talk about movies until after I graduate. One of the things I love about them is the fact that in a few hours, they can tell the story of massive transitions and

Anyone that knows me knows that I have the greatest admiration for this director, but even if you aren’t familiar with his work, Kiki has a hopefulness about it that is timeless. It’s the story of a young witch, who at 13 leaves home to spend a year learning her trade in some faraway town. Kiki, finding herself in a big city very different from her home, ends up cobbling together the only skills she has to make a delivery service – a flying one. Without spoiling the film for you, it deals with how to adapt to a strange new place (often through blunt optimism and determination) as well as the experience of losing the skill for something you’re passionate about. What I think scares a lot of us – creative types in particular – is the idea that one day we’ll wake up and not be able to do the thing we love anymore. For some inexplicable reason, we can’t get the pen to work the way we want

Words - Daisy Leigh-Phippard Illustrations - Natalia Podpora

Hatcher Beatrix Illustrations Whether you are fulfilling your last year here at AUB or your first, we are very happy to have you here. We know youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve done a lot to get here and worked very hard to be a part of AUB. Moving and settling in can be stressful and chaotic, socialising can be terrifying and attending full time education all together can be one hell of a demand. However this wonderful time for discovery is also a time to trial and test ways of coping that accommodate your mental and physical needs to be happy.

all look the same but intact no two plants are the same, even if they are from the same family. Learning their latin names are actually quite useful because nicknames vary from culture to culture. By identifying a plant by its Latin family you can understand the plants natural habitat because house plants come from varied parts of the world - some with very extreme and varying climates. This will aid you in being able to provide your plant will all it needs. For example most desert cacti despise being overwatered, it suffocates their roots and leads to rotting. This is because they grow naturally in places such as the desert where sand is plenty and water is infrequent. However jungle cacti vary in terms of care as they grow on the trunk of trees and rocks in the jungles of the world. (Well drained soil is essential for any type of cactus or succulent)

Plants are often a way to decorate boring student accommodation and bring life to a room but they also have a positive mental and physical effect on you. Based on several studies it has been found that having even potted plants in your vicinity significantly reduces stress, blood pressure, increases concentration and cognitive skills and has even been found to promote healing due to its therapeutic effect on the body and the mind. So its only fair to say, we owe plants one. A big one indeed, one that should be returned. This can be returned by caring for your green friends as much as possible and that in turn requires Naming plants and talking to them may seem odd to some peoknowledge and adequate tools and materials. ple but its one of the best things you can do to help it survive. Caring for something that isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t human requires a certain amount Whats a new home without a few green mates to hang out with? of humanity and that can be done in any way that suits you and your plant individually. Find time to mindfully connect with This is my guide to caring for and loving your new and old plants. your green friend, this can be done through touching (be gentle) , talking ( got anything on your mind?), seeing and though the medium of art! You may be surprised by how inspired and even calm you may become from these acts of mindfulness. Identify what type of plant your friend is e.g succulent, cacti, foliage, tropical ect. This will help you to identify what group of plants your friend may come from, the plant kingdom is a very I in fact cannot tell you how to look after your plants, you have large place. You will learn interesting and weird facts on your all the answers to questions you may hold about your quiet green research travels that will help you care for your plants in a much friends. Most care can simply be done by observation and tunmore individual way. ing into the plants subtle ways of telling you how it feels ,which Each plant is unique and individual just like us humans. They may it will do almost entirely externally! The rest can be figured out

P L A N T I N G

AUBSU’s GREEN OFFICER, EMMA WHIDDINGTON GIVES HER ADVICE ON NURTURING PLANTS IN YOUR ACCOMODATION

through trusty books and researching the internet. It is not wholly recommended to keep plants in your room or anywhere you sleep due to the fact most plants release carbon dioxide (respiration) at night. There are some that do perform a different type of photosynthesis that allows the plant to release oxygen at night rather than carbon dioxide. These plants and families can also be used to cleanse the air (especially good if you live in mouldy accommodation) ; Orchid (Orchidaceae) , Aloe Vera (Asphodelaceae), Christmas Cactus (Schlumbergeras), Snake Plant (Sansevieria trifasciata), Peace Lily (Spathiphyllum) , Dracaena (Asparagaceae), Rubber Tree (Ficus elastica), Ficus tree (Ficus benjamina) Spider Plant (Chlorophytum comosum) ECT.

old vegetable trays being one of the most invaluable - great for sewing seeds! Good luck with your journey this year and onwards, I hope you gain beautiful plants in process.

Really passionate about mother nature and all creations? Here at AUBSU we have a Green Team that helps to put those passions into play. You can join a Team of awesome and creative folk from all different types of creative pathways who really have a big soft spot for helping nature out. As the elected Green Officer for this year I will be on hand to help you out with this process. Check us out on Facebook @aubsugreenteam

With this in mind if you have a window in your room, remember to open the curtains daily to allow yourself and plants to feed on that glorious sun! Glass magnifies the sun rays so placing some types of plants directly by the window is damaging for them. This especially applies to foliage, tropical plants and even succulents. Use your observational skills and determine where the plant is happiest according to what you know it needs. Lastly, make sure to kit yourself out a bit. This can be done through recycling objects for planting or just buying brand new materials. Charity shops are one of the best ways to find inexpensive pots and water trays (tea cup trays, old plates ect). If possible ensure your pots have a drainage hole to give your plant better chances of survival, don’t forget to protect your surfaces with whatever you can commandeer from excess water run off. Waste plastic is a surprisingly useful tool for planting,

FRESH THOUGHTS: THE BLANK PAGE, S Y LV I A A N D ORIGINAL IDEAS

When the party atmosphere begins to die down a little and you know all the best hotspots in the nearby town, this is the point where every fresher remembers that they are actually at a university. And with that realisation, work mode will soon be on the agenda again and a yawn-inducing list of lecture times will undoubtedly follow. There are lots of exciting opportunities for AUB first-years but apart from having to sort out your new life in Bournemouth, some of you may be suffering with a case of creative jitters, especially when you don’t know what you are doing half the time. Not always knowing, however, is part of the turbulent ride of university. Once you become swept up in it’s current, this doesn’t mean you should run from it and head for dry land. Allow me throw you a line and tell you about some things that you might come across. Things that may have otherwise gone unnoticed, or perhaps realised sooner for many of us. Facing uncertainty in any area of your life here without always fully knowing the consequences can produce more adventurous and fulfilling results.

For all artists, regardless of talent and experience, the blank page is both a curse and an opportunity. It can be the chance to finally give life to your ideas but it can also stop your idea-generation and enthusiasm in their

tracks. Your focus, instead, should not be on the restrictions that those four corners present but they should propel you to realise the importance of content - what you put on the page, and leave out. Your blank page, while not recommended as a final submission piece, is one of the most basic and vital resources you can have as a creative individual, and should be taken advantage of as often as possible in the pursuit of an idea that might just be a bit better than the last. No computer or mood board alone can harness the essence of your ideas quite like the good old fashion pencil and paper. At this university, the stress of doing art ‘the right way’ and ‘the wrong way’ is an aspect that you will find becomes less important - when you discover that everyone has something to offer, and everything becomes more and more relative. Despite the initial hesitation, put at least something visual (not worded) down on paper as this will also build upon your ability to be comfortable with new paths that your project can take, even if it doesn’t go in the way you would like. This is scary but makes it a whole lot more interesting for you. Churchill once said that ‘Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts’. Attitudes like this will also help to prevent ideas from escalating into a rapid-fire ping-pong match in your brain, and it will also help you make the most of your ideas whilst they are still (queue pun) fresh.

There will be scenarios where you have been working tirelessly, you’ve been up to date with your research for weeks, you know what you want to create, and you’ve made the most of the pastry section at Lidl. All of a sudden, a tutor will look at you and your work and say: ‘So where is this going?’ Classic. Tutors will do this on occasion (I can tell you’re thrilled) but as much as they are willing to work with you and make comments, be true to yourself and make work that ultimately fulfils you and not for the sake of an examiner. For the first two years of at uni, a tutor name Lisa Richardson would often tell us that making art to making the grade frequently ends in boring practice. After a time, you will discover how to negotiate your ideas with tutors. Another thing you may want to consider is asking for guidance even when you are sure of what it is if you want to do. If tutors aren’t available, course mates and housemates whose opinions you trust will be your go-to people. Someone may suggest something and lead your project to a better outcome.

Sometimes, on the other hand, there are days where everyone from a first year to a professional will say to themselves that their work isn’t good enough. I’ve said it – not that it’s even good, let alone enough to get a place at a top arts university! Especially amongst us young, we are very quick to compare our-

selves with one another. Even poet and novelist Sylvia Plath has recognised this and said: ‘The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt’. The firm grip of social media doesn’t help either. With so much creative input out there, we look to others to gain approval and validation so we can feel that we are doing just fine or even better than others. We acquire a sense of self by external influences, otherwise we would probably all be walking round with bright yellow hair, fashioning clothes out of bin bags and wearing cereal boxes for shoes. You can wish all you want that you will become just as good as the person sitting next to you but I’m here to say that you can have bigger aspirations than that. Sylvia is right when it comes to doubt, and it’s all the more reason to persist with your practice and take chances. Someone who you think is making ‘good’ work may perceive their work as the worst work they’ve made so far. In my first year of Illustration, I participated in a drawing workshop and we were asked to put work that we didn’t like in to a pile on the floor. You would have been amazed at how negatively people viewed their work and how many discussions arose asking ‘how could they throw that onto the pile?’. I’m not going to give you some smart comment here or an Oprah-style remark, but all you need to do is simply look out for yourself and your progress and don’t let anyone jeopardise that.

The thought of making your work that little bit different from everyone else will be the key to ultimate success. Spectacular mistake. The big news I’m on about is that there is no such thing as an original idea. To come up with something so unique and completely outof-this-world would be quite a feat for any fresher. What can be interesting is how you interpret an idea that already exists. To push the limitations of an idea and change people’s perception of its purpose shows initiative and that you are refusing to see anything as is. And as boring as this may seem, a bit of lateral thinking never hurt anyone. This is where your creative selves tackle an issue in a way that is not immediately apparent or direct. Use this to your advantage. If you initially have no other ideas and this sends you into a little panic, this is actually your brain’s way of telling you to stop panicking, do something about it and welcome that uncertainty.

It appears that when we are in danger or unsure of our surroundings, our survival instincts automatically teach us to remove ourselves from a situation and abandon the task completely. At this university, this will be the start of a slow re-wiring of your brain, where everything you were taught in previous years will be smashed to pieces, only for you to build a stronger perspective of what you want out of your university experience. So, when the wine runs out and you’re still left with that blank page, know that you AUB freshers have very little to fear. Never will uncertainty feel this great. Words - Olivia Church Illustrations - Sophie Lawrence

The AUB library is now a place that you will want to go to. It has a vast range of resources and is one of the best places on campus to get inspired. If you are a fine artist, of course you can go to the textiles section just as much as an architecture student can go to the modelmaking bookshelves! Don’t run around in circles when you could be running straight to the library.

And if you haven’t heard already, for many courses, the marks that you gain in your first year do not contribute towards your final degree mark. That doesn’t mean you don’t have to work hard and you may yearn for the darkness and flashing lights of Cameo, but you are instead glued to your computer and sipping wine out of tea mug. But it’s only when you look back on your first year that you realise just how free you are to take the steps to find your feet in a new place, and have fun whilst doing it. This is also a great time for you guys to try your hand at collaboration – whether it’s working with the person you’ve only just got round to speaking to, or even those from the other side of campus. It’s important to settle yourself first you begin to include yourself in group work. Participate if you see the work going somewhere and is beneficial to you and of genuine interest. And finally, some good news. As the freshest of fresh talent at AUB, you’ll be looking to make your work stand out and hopefully strive to submit your amazing work to BUMF!

This is my process of creating a character that I could then translate into animations, I wanted to create a friendly character that people could watch with ease like a lovable cartoon character, nothing serious and with no hidden meaning or subtext, A simple set up for something that could later be a show or whatever. Just an ordinary Lemon doing normal human tasks, like getting into bed, having a bath and just having fun. The character formed from a joke about how bitter I was and that it was actually a little personification? Of myself, but the character turned out to happy and lovable to make it do boring menial tasks.

SOPHIE LAWRENCE 14

BA ILLUSTRATION - LEVEL 6 (words & illustrations)

A B B I E

J A M E S BA ILLUSTRATION - LEVEL 6 (words & illustrations)

â&#x20AC;&#x153;INK.â&#x20AC;? is a project that I completed while away on exchange in South Korea. It is a zine project based off of the tattoo culture that I completely fell in love with while I was away, but I think that it really applies to tattoo cultures everywhere. I created both a Pink version and a white version of the zine, and hand bound the pages. My aim was to create interest; when you flick through the pages there are artworks on overlapping layers using tracing paper, as well as pages paper cutout windows. My aim with this zine was to communicate the stories and reasons behind people getting tattoos. I wanted to explore the difference between art on a canvas, and art on the skin, and the identity that people gain through participating in this culture. I interviewed friends about their tattoos, and contacted artists on Instagram who I admired to ask their permission to use their work as references. I think that in the coming years the Korean tattoo style is going to absolutely blow up internationally and I personally cannot wait.

R E P R E S E N TAT I V E I N T E G R I T Y

It really is odd how quiet we seem to be when it comes to social issues at AUB considering the amount of creatives who attend and how mixed up the world is. As artists I would say that we have the privilege of being able to toe the line between the fiery riots of the G20 Hamburg Summit and unimaginative clickbait crap that is churned out by Buzzfeed, The Tab or 9GAG. We don’t need to burn cars to make our point and we certainly don’t need our choice of meal deal to tell us who to vote for in an election. Instead we have the opportunity to make waves by supporting issues- like equal representation or shining a light on the abuse committed through horse racing- through the art we produce. This could mean as an illustrator considering the characters that you are creating for a story: are they all white, heteronormative and able bodied? Of course this could be where your mind will immediately start when drawing and designing characters because these attributes are a norm among the media, but what are you gonna do about it? This could be the same as a photography or fashion student: are you trying to create a style or look that follows suit with conventional fashion? To take the latter as an example: what are you saying by conforming to archetypal beauty standards within, for instance, a fashion photography project? By this I don’t mean to keep second guessing yourself to try and force your projects to conform with ‘political correctness’- a very cynical reaction to a question intended to ask for empathy. I am rather suggesting considering your anti-audience: the people whom your creation leaves out by it not being directed towards them. As a student in an arts university you are in a very open-minded safe space where it is expected of you to have your own out-

what are you saying by conforming to archetypal beauty standards within, for instance, a fashion photography project?

look on things, not to mention the power that artists have by being expected to be provocative and existential. Yet it is odd to see the lack of rallies or posters around uni, the point-making art. Part of studying and committing yourself to art means being able to do things in a different way, as a creative. Putting your CV in several fortune cookies or getting rid of certain letters in signs like the NHS did to create awareness of the lack of blood donations for their #MissingType campaign. Instead we seem to accept that we must only stick stuff up in designated notice board areas, seldom creating sellable art as we try to find ways to be productive members of society and part time artists.

the influence that say the BBC has through hiring their first female Doctor Who which caused controversy after its announcement in July. But the decisions made by huge corporations such as the BBC also offer areas for criticism, space for the art student to see where the gaps lacking in ‘improvement’ still lie. For example, although I am completely in favour of a female taking the part conventionally given to a white hetero male, what does this say about race? Or sexuality for that matter. It says to me that in the BBC’s social hierarchy the list goes white male -> white female -> everyone else. I could of course, as everyone else did at the time of the announcement, take to social media in arms exercising my slacktivism questioning the BBC’s priorities of whiteness. But really social media just creates a facade of having a louder voice than we do I know as mere mortal students we only and this will probably accomplish nothing have small areas of influence. Nothing like but a couple of retweets. As artist Jordan

Nickel, aka POSE, tells Delayed Gratification “(social media) creates a deafening impotence when it comes to tangible results. If the intent of communication was to draw your bow, shoot the arrow and hit a bullseye, at times social media removes the target without the shooter knowing. It feels great to fire off thousands of arrows, but it’s important to focus on the target before releasing them”. My voice as an artist can be so much louder if I decide to pursue that type of artistic critical commentary or commit my work to certain moral standards in even the subtlest of ways (such as choosing to consider representation in everything I make).

When I was younger, I remember considering what colour to make a person that I had drawn. Growing up in a multicultural area I was not a stranger to different rac-

es, in fact a lot of my childhood friends have been people of colour. Yet, as a white person, I worried that by trying to make my character black or brown I would end up offending someone by using the wrong colour or getting the features wrong. It is ridiculous and sounds like such a cop-out excuse. I think that this is something that is still stuck in the back of my mind today, but by avoiding approaching representation I end up whitewashing whatever I am creating. I conform to a norm of whiteness, possibly offending or alienating a lot of people from my work because it is less relatable- as well as avoiding to enter into a messy but necessary discussion about race. Sophia Coppola has also fallen into this trap in the production of her most recent film ‘The Beguiled’. A story of empowerment for a group of white women in the south of the US during the Civil War who decide not to let a man manipulate them. Sounds good so far, but what she has been

criticised for is the omission of the character of Mattie (or Hallie in the 1971 film) who is a black enslaved housemaid. Coppola claims to have not wanted to “brush over” an important topic without doing it justice; however, getting rid of the character completely ignores the context of the film and the massive race and class struggles that were happening at the time. In my opinion, this is not ok and the film is mostly catered for white female empowerment.

An example of a positive media that considers (almost) everyone (in terms of aspects of identity) that comes to mind is the tv show Naked Attraction that has just aired its second season. Normally in mainstream media we only see the semi-naked airbrushed bodies of slender models,although some clothing companies are trying to change this- which is another conversation

about commercialized representation for another time. But in this show we see the stark naked bodies of real people, and the diversity is the most interesting factor. Naked Attraction normalises unconventional gender and sexual identities, hosting people identifying as transexual who are undergoing gender reassignment. Also, in one episode I watched, there was a participant who exemplified this show’s lack of barriers: the contestant has a disability meaning he requires the use of a wheelchair. This made me realise how desexualised we can perceive people with disabilities- of course they deserve to be on that show like anyone else, and yet their attendance is striking. Further, how hypersexualised people who want to claim the sexual identity that they feel is right for them are. It is as though the former’s disability inhibits the thought of sex and the latter’s most prominent personality feature

is their need for sex from a certain category of people. To be honest, when you start to consider it all it certainly can be like opening a big old can of worms. But a necessary can of worms… societal-healing worms (who make pizza in their free time, how nice). The world is changing, and it’s time for us to realise that as artists what we create can be hugely influential through its visuality. So, as an artist (and also a shout out to those young people who will probably get eyes rolled in their direction for being a revolutionary youth), question what you take inspiration from with social context in mind. It is not a case of tripping over yourself to be politically correct. Through questioning it in a socially critical way you may even find new ways to develop your creative style. Words - Rachel Chorley Illustrations - Sveinn Kristjánsson

M AT T H E W P O N T I N G BA GRAPHIC DESIGN (LEVEL 5) (words & photographs)

Time-exposure photography involves using a long-duration shutter speed to sharply capture the still elements of an image while consistently blurring or obscuring the moving features. The Brecon Beacons are a mountain range in South Wales and are part of the Brecon Beacons National Park. This landscape features multiple lakes, reservoirs and freshwater wetlands. The most picturesque scenery is secluded in the glacial valleys of the mountains, where fresh water fills the cavities left by receding glaciers from the last Ice Age. Sgwd yr Eira, Sgwd Isaf Clun Gwyn and Sgwd y Pannwr are the titles of the more well-known waterfalls in the park.

study the exquisite beauty of these natural features. I spent a gloomy, rainy day trekking through this incredible historic settlement taking photos. I was determined to capture every perspective possible even if that meant trying to mount a tripod in the middle of a river. The strong currents of the water made it increasingly difficult to keep the camera still as this was necessary to gain the strongest image. To add to the effort of capturing the best stills it had also started raining. It was at this point that I required a bin liner and an umbrella to keep the lens clear of any rain drops. The high volume of rainfall that day made for more expressive photographs as the water levels were higher than average. This exAfter conducting research on the park cessive rainwater also caused flooding in and the traditional subjects used for long the freshwater wetlands. Facing the roar of exposure photography, I had decided to these falls was an incredible experience,

the water was full of energy and impact. Throughout the shoot I had my camera on a manual setting with the shutter speed set to â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;bulbâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; as this allowed me to control how long it took to take the photo. I had the aperture set to 22.0 and the ISO at 100. After walking approximately 9 miles in total I had visited 4 of the largest waterfalls in the park. Water is a fresh, living and moving part of the Brecon Beacons landscape. It was incredible to immerse myself in this natural world and to have the opportunity to capture its aesthetic qualities.

PHILLIP SIMON BA I L L U S T R AT I O N ( L E V E L 5 ) (words & images)

A visual exploration of the notion of using collage as a form of drawing. Due to drawing being such an all encompassing form of visual creation, this allows for playful exploration of colours and shapes of sections of photographs and paper. The selection of areas of a face and how they are re-arranged and assembled together out of the endless possibilities and isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t burdened with the notion of preconceived ideas.

K E L LY M O RG A N BA COSTUME & PERFORMANCE DESIGN (GRAD) (words & images)

Functioning Bird Fascinator in Framed Hair Boise State University Fine Art 2011

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The final project of my 2nd year (Convergence, Divergence) had a broad brief; the illustration students were given free range on what subject matter they could base their projects on. This was new territory to me – I was slightly baffled and terrified at so much freedom. The easy aspect of this was to essentially focus on what interested me; in this instance, I chose the visual effect of light and movement within urban environments. The difficult aspect was that this was an animation project.

paintings of interiors as well as the art direction from Doug Hardwick in 1996 version of Romeo and Juliet. The development of my work began from initially drawing light within interiors i.e drawings of the way light hit surfaces and colour. I was influenced by a fantastic 80’s photography book on Japanese interior design. The light and careful composition of elements that give a space atmosphere were intriguing.

I experimented in producing these atmospheric spaces by traditional frame by I have always appreciated the execution frame animation – I now have the utmost of light, from Carravaggio’s invention of respect for animator’s patience and skill. chiaroscuro, to Paul Caulfield’s technical I also tried to produce frame by frame

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animations using photoshop but I finally settled on drawing the line work by hand and colouring it using photoshop and then finally animating it using the visual effects Adobe program After Effects. This digital journey was fraught with frustration and literal tears at times but I learned many valuable skills as a contemporary illustrator.

Another hurdle of my project was the broad theme: it was too vague. I had only thought of spaces but not of what kind of spaces. After some informative guidance from my lecturers/friends I honed my project into a series of short animated gifs of gritty urban scenes devoid of any

PA R K

people. I had an interest in creating neon and other artificial light sources within my work to give it a somewhat seedy edge at times. The final gifs depict off licences at street corners, broken phone boxes, windy alleys and closed betting shops. Overall, it was an enlightening yet challenging project. I have realised the importance of developing an idea yet simultaneously focusing on a core element.

WE’RE RECRUITING We’re on the lookout for some fresh new faces to join our fantastic team. If you’re looking for a way to broaden your horizons and add something great to your CV, get in touch! We need: chief writer opinionated? passionate about current events? love writing? then this is for you. we need someone who can meet deadlines and write eloquently photographers [2] we need able photographers to shoot events and students’ work for publication. videographer editorial and event videos will be produced during the year, and we need creative individuals to make this work. content manager we’re looking for someone to organise and respond to submissions, schedule web posts and work with our subject scout to find fresh content for BUMF events coordinator someone to help organise BUMF events such as launch parties, working closely with the BUMF gallery team and the editors gallery curator [2] organise gallery shows, work with students and alumni to select and hang work, as well as producing advertising for shows gallery staff [3] we need people present during exhibitions in the BUMF gallery to ensure the work is kept safe and to help exhibitors set up gallery photographer someone to shoot work in the gallery, shoot for features about what’s on in the gallery and shoot launches

more information about the roles and how to apply can be found on our website - bumf.media 28

I have always loved tea since I was young, and believe there is always time for it. So my project was fulled by my passion for a good cup of tea.

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BA COMMERCIAL PHOTOGRAPHY (LEVEL 6) (words & images)

I found a local shop and approached them with an idea that i wanted to produce. I chose the tea from there vast selection, and they were based on the property that each holds. Bancha Arigato – Weight loss Rooibos Mango Orange – Rooibos is naturally caffeine free coupled with many healthy vitamins and minerals Feel Harmony – balance of vitamins and minerals Good Night – a relaxing tea to help you sleep Wellness Tea – a perfect mix of vitamins and antioxidants. Mate Lime – This herbal infusion is nature’s natural energy drink. I then sourced the ingredients and came up with symbols to represent each of the properties: . Tape measure – for weight loss . Vitamins – the minerals and vitamins . Yin yang – harmony . ‘Z Z Z’ – a good nights sleep . Body – the overall wellness and balance . Sun – energy and revitalisation