This final major project has been a real eye opener, it has provided me with a taster of how my third year at university will be and wether I am capable of taking it on or not. One element of this project that I found very difficult was the freedom I had to work with, during the beginning of the project I assumed that having more freedom to create my own brief would make my working process more simplified as I would be focusing on a subject of my choice and interest.

I came to realise that having more freedom to expand my ideas with was brilliant in the initial stages of my brief but having to refine the ideas I had, initially proved more difficult than expected. Having to tighten my approach and thoughts and apply them to a collection of data e.g. the newspaper articles I obtained, I found that I initially struggled to do so. I would have liked to look into the creative writing aspect more so and research further into the narrative structures that I had previously touched upon.

One aspect I did find difficult was merging the traditional plots, narratives and story lines of the fairytales I had researched with the current news articles I had collected. The juxtaposition of the two written themes need to intertwine and work in unison with one another which was difficult to achieve but after doing so I was left with the task of illustrating these two very different styles of writing. I wanted the illustration and imagery to be contemporary but keep the traditional themes from which they originated. 

I began to question my own skill base in response to the illustration task, drawing/painting illustrations to coincide with the narrative plots I had written. None of the illustrations I completed I felt were good or strong enough which again made me question what I would particularly like to specialise in personally. Instead of continuing along the path of drawn illustrations I decided to revert back to what I know best which is paper craft. In a few of my previous projects I have progressed with stencil illustrations and cutout images, a process I feel that I am comfortable with and work well in. 

After creating a collection of cutout images I was able to experiment with the material I had produced, using my cutouts in 3 separate photography shoots. Working with lighting and shadow to produce a more tactile approach with the imagery, I feel that this experimentation process allowed me to work through trial and error to produce a series of stencil cuts that I am happy with. I would like to say a massive thank you to David Wrenne my tutor, for pushing me toward a more tactile route, he reassured me to experiment when in doubt and I have been successful in doing so.

Overall I happy with my final outcomes, this project has been tough but rewarding. I feel that I have learnt a great deal about what my third year will entail and am excited to accept the challenge. I hope to push myself even further next year and reach higher goals from doing so, I have also learned that the tutors who run my course do more for myself and fellow students than I first anticipated and I would like to say thank you to all of them for the time and dedication they put in. 

I received my final prints today from Paul at DPI, many thanks to the guys they did a wonderful job within a short deadline at a great price! Will definitely be back for more print work soon! 

artdiscover:

Liz Clements, London

Her work focuses primarily on illustrations of tattooed women using soft crayons in pastel tones. She has a particular style of drawing, mixing a classic and vintage style, good drawing skills and strokes.

Liz Clements is a freelance illustrator based in London. 

flourescentbrown:

nice little trick from the london graphic store. 

clamping down some business cards and spraying the edges with paint to give them a nice burst of colour.

JAWS

SNOW WHITE

RAPUNZEL

MAD HATTER

ROAR

DE FISHES

BIRD IS THE WORD

ROUND TWO

I am pleased with the studio photos for display but they are failing to express my tactile approach to design and thus a brain wave cometh! On a fine summers day I took my stencils to the outside world and photographed them on various textured surfaces these include, wood, brick, plastic, paper and so on. Oh yes, VERY ARTY but so far I am happy with the outcomes which are to follow, particularly how the sun has made the coloured paper glow a little. Thank you sunshine!

TARGET PRACTICE 

PUT EM UP