Pvadasz ouil502 evaluation

End of Module Student Evaluation BA (Hons) Illustration Module Code: OUIL502 PPP Name: Polly Vadasz Student ID: 259578 Please identify where the evidence for each of the learning outcomes is within your submission and how well you feel you have met the learning outcomes. Please also grade yourself in relation to the learning outcomes using terms: poor, satisfactory, good, very good, excellent (Note - This is so that the team have an understanding of how well you feel you have done. It is not an indication of the actual grade you may receive.)

Learning Outcome

Evidenced where?

Blog, Visual Journal, Roughs, Final Illustrations, Storyboards, Development Sheets etc. (No more than 75 words)

Your grade Using words: > poor, satisfactory, good, very good, excellent

5A3: Demonstrate an informed understanding of professional context of their practice within the creative industries and cultural environment. (Knowledge & Understanding - Research and Critical Awareness)

[Blog – Studio Brief 1 & 3] Reflecting on professional opportunities & design work for my shop, as well as goals for my practice and whether I met them.

[Presentation & Evaluation] Explaining where I sit within the industry as a commercial designer.

Very good

5B2: Identify and analyse the challenges and opportunities offered by future developments within individually appropriate areas of creative practice.

(Cognitive Skills - Problem Analysis, Problem Solving)

[Blog – Studio Brief 1] Reflecting on opportunities within the industry (freelance work, etc) and whether they would be suitable.

[Presentation] Technique development, project choices

Very good

5C2: Develop a body of work in response to a defined brief that effectively demonstrates professional working practices in research, planning and communications. (Practical Skills - Visual Quality and Conceptual Development)

[Blog - Studio Brief 3] Evidence of planning a feasible collective.

Very good

5D2:Employ a range of appropriate professional communication methods to record and present their own creative practice, concerns and ambitions. (Key Transferable Skills, Organisation,

[Blog – Studio brief 1, 2 & 3 & Evaluation] Continued reflection on the blog of events attended, client discussions, freelance projects and how my practice has developed over the year. Blog post outlining my plans for the summer & why.

[Blog – Studio Brief 2] Creative report, illustrating an email invitation and creating a visual report.

Very good

Communication and Evaluation)

Summative Evaluation (See Evaluation Guidance on next page for more information) You are required to write a 750 word Summative Evaluation of this module.

Please type up your Summative Evaluation in the box below. Make a PDF of the document and post the PDF as your final post on your OUIL503 blog. Also, please cut and paste the text from this box into the final page(s) of your OUIL502 Project Report.

Throughout this year I have seen vast improvements to my confidence and mindset. There have been three main factors contributing to this progression: developing my technique and visual style, understanding and accepting my place within the industry, and increasing my awareness of the business aspects of the industry.

These have improved my confidence, grounded me and allowed me to develop new goals after changing courses.

I began this year very nervously, worried that I would be at a disadvantage. I hadn’t been able to truly experiment to the degree that students who had taken a foundation course and 1st year Illustration had, and didn’t feel comfortable identifying as an illustrator. In comparison to those around me, I hardly drew at all, using simple illustrations as more of a tool within projects than a focus. These worries did have grounds, as at the beginning of 504 I was very lost, not understanding how to approach the conceptual editorial brief as I enjoyed more literal work. In addition, I didn’t even know where to start when it came to technique. I had always worked with vectors, but desperately wanted to change that, so quite randomly chose papercutting, a technique I hadn’t tried before. To some extent I appreciated learning a new skill, however overall I was unhappy with the result as I didn’t feel connected to it at all.

After expressing some uncertainty to my tutors, I was advised to research new illustrators, to build up a mood board of work I connected with. This helped tremendously, and really grounded me onto the course. I was able to see illustrators who worked the way I envisioned for myself, and that enabled me to set my own goals and list relevant techniques to experiment with, such a digital brush work and analog texture, rather than stabbing in the dark.

As the year progressed, I hit further milestones, increasing my confidence and understanding of where I want to be. During 503 I was able to choose projects that interested me, for the first time. How these projects developed showed me where my interests lie, specifically commercial, applied illustration. [The UK greetings brief and Blogtacular, in particular, where I illustrated for products!] The Penguin Award was pivotal as I approached the book cover from an Illustration perspective rather than Graphic Design, although I think it was a poor compromise as I was still finding my feet, and the final resolution could have been more illustrative than lettering and some vignettes.

After becoming more comfortable with how I fit into the industry as an illustrator, 505 culminated a lot of what I had learned this year. During the creative report interview, Steph Baxter emphasised the importance of curating a portfolio that featured work you want to be paid to do. So, as someone who has always wanted to create illustrated cookbooks, I took the brief further than applying my 6 illustrations to an existing cook book, writing and laying out the 24 page zine myself. I’m now primarily looking at university projects as portfolio pieces, adapting them to suit my personal practice. In addition, to prepare job security after graduation, I’m also thinking about how I can commercialise each project to produce sellable products. 505 produced material for a whole new product line in my shop; The 6 repeat patterns made during 505 will feature on tea towels, where I have ordered samples to exhibit in the Love Triangle exhibition, and I’m hoping to extend the recipe zine to 10 recipes, and then continue it as a series of different food types if the soup edition is popular.

Through keeping up with the PPP blog since September, I have documented my continuing progression as a professional illustrator. After the AOI talk earlier this year, I was able to approach freelance prospects with a new mindset and methodic approach, drawing up a contract for a merchandise commission, and outlining the beginnings of a licensing project for a ballet school book. During our interview, Steph shed light on the intricacies of licensing from her relatable perspective, which has further helped my confidence in approaching future work.

Overall, I’m very happy to have changed courses this year as it has made me a more well-rounded designer.

This course has pushed me to improve my illustration style in previously unconsidered ways, such as understanding scale in communication and experimenting with animation, while allowing me to branch into the aspects of graphic design (applied illustration!) that I still love. I am excited to approach third year with the goal of solidifying who I am as a designer, and involving myself in commercial projects.