So the new, final, terms begins today. This might be a good time to take stock of where I am and consider the pressing next steps to resolve this work. Looking back I can see a sort of shape to the work.
Looking back
Pre-Term
Once I had decided that this MA was for me I began familiarising with its requirements and chief among them was blogging. So with that in mind I began a 365 photo a day project that would require my exercising both my photography skills and learning the basics of blogging.
Term 1
Term 1 was about finding my personal voice again through experiments in: Landscape, Formalist, Surrealist, Intimate landscapes and Forensic approaches to visually speaking.
The winter break was spent looking at representation of women and disability to see how meaning is created.
Term 2
Term 2 was about clarity through redaction, abstraction and symbolism where I experimented with typologies of Urine bags, Blood, Redaction, Bar codes and Symbolism.
The spring break was spent looking at the representation of Black people and disability to see how meaning is created.
Term 3
Term 3 was about mixing things up and saw continued experimentation with signs, and symbols being explored within landscapes but with additional attention paid to developing the research paper and the Interim Exhibition.
The summer break was spent looking at representation of gay people and disability to see how meaning is created
Term 4
Term 4 was one of clarification and saw some experimentation with created artefacts for images while other products turned toward existentialism, dreams, phenomenology and the body and the completed research paper. My ideas were refined and I was clearer on what I wanted to say visually.
The autumn break was dominated by exploration of organisation with projects on words: as images and lots of researching the subject of curation and exhibiting.
Term 5
The last term – Term 5 – has been one focussed largely on curating work and applying production values, with experimentation in and the development of a photobook taking centre stage. However general experimentation continued with projects dealing with: pressure, words, dad and the physical, as did some work on developing websites.
This final break we have just past has seen work on the physical exhibition taking centre stage, with experimentation of ideas in terms of curation and presentation as well as a great deal of time spent on the production of physical works acting as a counter point to the work shown on the website and in the books. Some of this work has been focussed on bring out aspects of items, others have been transformative, (and some have worked well and others not).
Looking ahead
Key Dates
The next few weeks have a number of key fixed dates and mandatory actions needed by me.
- Thursday June 2nd symposium presentation
- This requires the production of a five minute video presenting my work to the world (and receiving feedback from my course colleagues)
- Tuesday 28 June: Start installing the final show/exhibition
- Monday July 04 Final summary and reflection (last official assessed post)
- This requires students to post a short 500 word summary post reflecting on the course and work covered as well as creating a Unit 2 Assessment page and reflecting on that.
- Wednesday 6 July Complete installing the final show
- Thursday 14 July Opening night – private view for final show
- Thursday 21 July Show takedown and results received.
This final term
It seems to me that the only large area missing from the above list of key dates is around marketing and generating interest in the work – ie the book and the exhibition. So that’s the area I will prioritise now.
anomiepete 