At
the start of this module I came up with 5 targets that I would have lilked to
have complete or at least started by the end of this module. A reminder of
those are below.
·
Research-
investigate possible job opportunities and what graduating with a BA in
illustration can lead to. Research internships via the Future Plan internship
scheme.
·
Contact-
Start collecting a list of potential clients and companies I may want to work
work for. Contact them via email, sending off samples of your work. Contact
potential work placements, and arrange work placements.
·
Illustration
Practice- increase my professional skills by attending classes, workshops, and
watching tutorial gaining a further understanding of how to make your work as
professional as possible. Increase my digital skills- how to set up a template
for work, and how to interpret a briefs guideline.
·
Competition
and Commissions- I will enter lots of competition to gain further experience of
working for a client and to a brief. I will open myself up from commissions,
whether paid or not to gain experience working and communicating with a client,
and to experience someone potentially buying my work, and how I go about
sending them it, and what fee I induce.
·
Learn-
learn more about a gain a better understanding of the free lance
illustrator role, what a day is like for a professional freelance illustrator.
Research how much illustrators can get paid, their professionalism, how
they manage time, materials cost, licensing, fees, contacts, are they
represented by an agent and how they started building their contacts list.
I have improved a lot throughout this year, both in my
illustrative practice, and my professional practice, but if I’m being honest there
was a lot more I could have possible done to enhance this experiences, a many
things that I am yet to experience, and need to research. I have evaluated my
work experience using the targets I set myself.
Research
I have conducted variety of research over the course of this
module. I have attended lectures about what it is like to be an illustrator and
what possibilities are out there for illustrators. I then researched further
into sectors which I thought I would like to get involved with and could possibly
be areas I would like to work in. I made a list of all of the possible jobs
which I have open to me with an illustration degree. From conducting this I have
gained a little more confidence that I will, despite peoples doubts about my careers
choices and ambitions that it is possible to get involved and be successful in
this field. My work experience at the school also opened my eyes to teaching or
some kind of event management, I really enjoyed collaborating with a group of
people on a larger project from start to finish, and seeing the project take
shape. I surprisingly enjoyed working with children helping them with their
work, there was something satisfying and enriching about it. So although I had
ruled out this option at the start of the module I have reopened it because of
this experience and would love to complete more of it to see what other options
there are. So I do think that I have achieved this target, but of course lots
more research which is continuous is needed.
Contact
From conducting my own research and attending the London Book Fair I have
now started to build up a contact list and a list of potential clients or
companies I would like to work for, however, there is still much to do and
learn. Having attended the Book Fair, I learnt just how large and competitive
the book industry is, it was a little overwhelming but an eye opening, learning
that I needed o begin contacting people and getting my work out there, which I am
not good at, but have started. Before of this experience I have produced business
and postcards which I carry around with with ready to hand out to anyway interested
in my work which I speak to which actually became useful a few times. However, I
am not very active on social media which as I have learnt from other illustrators
an art director is a huge part of connecting with people and networking. In my defense
I have set up a professional Facebook page and Instagram account, but I don’t update
it all that often, I seem to upload things in large chucks which its very
effective, so I think I need to create some kind of schedule for uploading work
a couple of times of week, as I produce a lot but don’t like about sharing it.
I also didn’t really contact that many companies if I’m honest, I did
send out letters asking for work placements, but I didn’t get any responses,
but I also didn’t follow it up, meaning that a lot of work is needed to improve
my communication skills That said I have communicated to clients and as a team for
my work on the school mural and the numerous competition I entered. So I suppose
there had been progress made but just not enough to say that I have achieved
this target.
Commission and
competitions
By entering competitions,
I have hugely improved my illustrative practice. I have learnt how to interpret
a brief and set up a template using their guidelines and have produced work to
a high professional standard. Because I was shortlisted for the ‘First Story’ book
cover competition I was able to get feedback for both of my covers, which has
taught me how to take criticism and how to handle it, and then adapt my work to
the changes they suggested, which I completed successful as one of my covers
was selected as the winner. These are skills that still need developing but
this experience has been Insightful and a huge confidence boost, and I can now
say and put onto my CV that I have has my work published. I therefore think I have
achieved this target, and because of this I am excited to enter more
competition especially international ones.
Illustration Practice
My practice has improved
an enormous amount of the current year, and I think this was down to producing a
lot of work to strict deadline. By submitting work to a couple of in house
publications I have had to work to certain guidelines is certain techniques set
out by the brief, this has forced me to explore new options and has revealed
new things about my practice. I also think that by attending lectures from
guest lectures has inspired me and my practice. Artists have provided information
about their experience and tips about their professional practice and
illustration work, which I will use as reference points for my own work. In
addition,I have researched artists on social media platforms, and by doing so
have gained new tips and advice about illustrative work, and have studied the
processes which these illustrators go through when producing work.
Learn
From conducting a fair amount of independent research I have
gained greater understanding of what its like to be an illustrator. I found the
most valuable sources came from the videos I watch on YouTube, made by illustrators
who shared their tips and how they became an illustrator, showing the struggled
they faced. This was a very honest resource rather than reading an article
which had been edited and usually only show that positive side of illustration,
these vlogging illustrators were honest and actually showed you what their life
was like, not trying to disguise the reality. I have learnt about the editorial
industry how you can be both employed by a company or publishing house or be self-employed
as an illustrator. I now have a clear understanding of what editorial illustration
is and what kind of work in entails, and from this research I have concluded that
it could be a possible industry I would like to join. I work best when I am
working to a brief, it is fast passed, fashionable and the work you produce
will hopefully be publishes in magazine and newspapers which the public will
see. I have learnt that is I want to become self-employed I need to make a bank
of contacts, which could take a few years, so I need to be prepared to have
another job to support myself. I have also learnt, from watching YouTube
videos, I will probably need at least 3 forms of income in order to support myself,
as not all of these will be active at the same time, something I hadn’t
considered before. So overall, I think I have achieved this target.
Action plan
Below are just a few
bullet points of the things that I want to improve on and experience in the
near future and the things I plan to do now and are continuing to do.
- · Entering lots of competitions – Penguin Book Cover, Cheltenham illustration awards- as research into lots more- international competition
- · Attend other university degree shows= inspiration for my own degree show
- · Editorial sector- Send work to newspapers and magazines to try and get my work published and to see whether my work fits into the editorial industry- to see whether it’s a career option I want to consider
- · To sign up to MySkills an online company to offer tutoring and workshops to help you develop skills- such as creative writing which will be hugely valuable for when I begin to write my children book for my third year module- final major project
- · Open myself up for commission again- start to earn from my work
- · Self-publishing- start an Etsy account over the summer see if people like my work, adjusting the site as begin to understand what sells and what doesn’t
- · Complete or at least organize more work in the teaching sector- helping out with project, youth work etc, to see whether this is something I would want to pursue.
- · Continue to watch YouTube tutorial and day in the life videos, for honest experience of on what it’s like to be an illustrator
- · Contact more companies especially design ones and ask if there any internships or work placements they could offer me.
- · I will be working on a collaboration with a creative writing student on a children’s book over the summer, we aim to complete it and send it off to be printed- another way to get my work out there, and practice before I produce my own children’s book for my final major project.
No comments:
Post a Comment