Conclusive Statement / Critical Evaluation

Having used this final module to help boost me into my career as an illustrator I found it useful to not only study self-promotional strategies, but also create a body of work that reflects this. To mirror this side of the module I have gone about devising a series of handmade correspondence cards and a string of portfolio prints that I hope to continue working with in the near future, as these will make great first steps into gaining professional based work and build up a style that works well for me.

This module has not been a breeze, and presented many challenges. However, I have managed to overcome and successfully juggle multiple projects.

In terms of the greetings card project the results have been good, especially   outcomes and productivity. I am glad to be able to look upon what I have produced and be proud of it. Having worked with a form of greeting card before I definitely think that this was a good path to go down and as a result I feel that I have built upon my previous work helping establish myself as a creator. I have pushed forwards using a new topic and quantity, of which I am pleased with both. However, I am still unaware of my strengths in this field, but like the previous project I feel that I have come away with a deeper set of skill and subject knowledge.

I still very much enjoy producing handmade work and think that this is a niche I am gaining a firmer grip on; the use of the hand stamper and the attention to detail that I can include within my work both excite me.

Throughout this project I have kept a steady eye on the time and have therefore triumphed with my time management! This is encouraging for me and has helped boost productivity on my part. Once more I have also found it helpful to keep track of my research and final outcomes using a blog, as a result complementing my sketchbooks nicely.

However, I would say that my weakness in this project has been, once more, not being able to knuckle down to a specific title for the project for some time, however, this is potentially a positive thing because of the time I have been able to spend easing myself into this.

I am pleased to a point with my final outcomes, I don’t think that they are overly exciting to look at, but I need to remember that I won’t always be producing work for myself, and I suppose that this is good way of looking at it, that sometimes what a client wants is just not fully your cup of tea. But perhaps I need to learn how to inject a little of my personality into the work. These are, after all, minimal hand made note/correspondence cards that get straight to the point, and I think that they do this effectively. Just like the Wish You Were Here cards I think that they stand out and at the same time blend in with the current market; what will set them apart is their theme, which is communicating to an audience a widely unknown ‘card’ topic.

With this work I not only plan on selling the cards at the summer show and in local hand made shops such as No Guts No Glory, I also hope to approach farm shops around the local area of where I am moving too. The nature of farm shops can be very handmade based and as a result my work should fit right in. I plan on keeping the card templates and thinking about new themes relating to where I will be living; rural life, animals, farms, etc.

To develop this project further I would include the title of the over all topic on the rear of the cards instead of the card title, for example, I would place ‘English Idioms’ instead of ‘She’s a Peach’, as this would encompass the card as part of a wider set. I would also think about perhaps stamping the inside with what that particular idiom means, so the description would read in the middle, although this may take away the broadness of the card topic.

When reflecting upon the steam stack portfolio print project  it has definitely been a positive one. I am very pleased with the outcomes and think that they will suit my portfolio greatly. Having not done anything specific for my portfolio for a while it has been nice to focus on something that I would like to produce because of the fact I think it will work well in context.
I feel that having produced these pieces of work that they have helped me reach a new level in my practice and a fresh way of building upon my direction of image making.

Because this project has included new ways of image making for me it has sparked enthusiasm and excitement and as a result helped produce productivity, especially once knowing how my images would turn out; I think that overlaying the watered ink was completely the best thing I could have done!

However, I think that I could definitely build upon what I have here, and if there were more time I would have pursued a Steam Liner image to complement the Paddle Steamer. I may well have also thought about applying these pieces to event posters as I think that they would be perfect for an indie music event, just like Methane Studios pioneer. I would have also thought about sending them off to Old Glory steam and vintage preservation magazine with the possibility of some artistry work from new clients as an outcome.

With this work and style I now have a grip of, I can think about producing work in this fashion for the local area of where I will be living to sell in farm shops. It would be great to see a series of vintage tractors, or farm animals done in this style, exciting prospects indeed.

For the future my plans are to work on a farm and get myself outside every day and gain a strong and steady income to support myself. I will of course illustrate part time while I’m in my infant professional stage. The idea is that I refresh myself from the same processes that I have been practicing for the past 3-4 years with the hope that this will re-ignite my first passion for the subject.