All sections paraphrased for brevity
Overall comments
You’ve absolutely thrown yourself into Context and Narrative, making work that is striking, engaging and thought-provoking. This assignment ends everything on a really good note, even though it would have benefited from further time and consideration. But to attempt something audacious and complex is testament to what you are bringing to everything.
I feel these comment sum up the work brilliantly. I set myself a challenge of making it to the November assessment prior to the lockdown restrictions and in doing so didn’t allow for the impact on my output. This meant that whilst I had considered the project for a several weeks, the actually final planning and execution where to a tight deadline, something which I feel has resulted in images that don’t fit my initial visualisation. I do however feel that it has been an excellent learning endeavour, both in developing a consistent theme to the unit as a whole but also in highlighting areas of development to focus on and plan for in the future.
Feedback on Assignment
- The ideas here are great as is the willingness to so much into the you are making.
- The labour and ideas stand out more than the final work. Rather than a definitive expression it feels more like your initial experiments. The images are good in their own right, but they don’t have as much impact as the work perhaps demands. The experience gained will mean that any future ‘interventions’ will be that bit more attuned to the -vital- smaller details
- Calm the post processing down, your treatment in post has been a bit heavy-handed and rather takes away from the impact of what is actually going on in the images.
- What it lacks in finesse and impact it makes up in chutzpah, ambition, audacity and vitality. It’s not as accomplished as other work but that’s not always important. Ending the unit with work that shows fearlessness stands as an important piece for your development and that you are moving in the right direction.
I agree on all the critical points of this assignment. I will be updating the final images to reflect the points on the post processing as I do feel that I was trying to make up for the lack of finesse and impact with an overbearing B&W conversion. On our video call my tutor suggested that sometimes it is better to accept the output for what it is rather than trying to ‘fix’ any perceived issues in post. We discussed how this concept could be reproduced in various locales with differing results both in the images but also in the public reaction and how that could be enhanced and supported by the use of like minded participants to help curate a better final outcome. I feel my anxiety around producing the piece caused a focus more on just getting it out there and done and distracted from constructing a scene which would allow for the desired visual refinement. Going forward I feel that now I have completed the act once I will have the experience to not fear the process and allow myself more time to effectively plan the production, especially in regards to scouting areas and equipment setups.
Research
Your engagement with academics ideas is improving and you are being much more obviously lead by intellectual curiosity.
I feel that the shift in focus from photographic research to more socially concious reading has definitely help me further my thinking on how to approach and assignment. Whilst for this assignment I had definite influences in execution and approach, the foundation was based in the reading suggested by my tutor. I look forward to continuing this approach to studying as I find the process enlightening, informative and inspirational. I do however believe that I still need to step up my researching ability and commitment, especially in areas which will expand me ideas and also the final execution to support the final outcome.
Suggested Reading/viewing
- Artists who make books, Andrew Roth, Philip Aarons and Claire Lehmann
- Believing is seeing: observations on the mysteries of photography, Errol Morris
Reflection
Overall I have felt that my tutor has always provided useful and supportive feedback. With this assignment I think this comes through in my attempt to further my conceptualisation of themes and desire to have a more proactive integration with an audience and participants as part of that theme. My tutors points on the final output of the images are honest and echo my own evaluation but it is reassuring the see that whilst they aren’t to the standard I envisioned, the overall progress of my academic and conceptual abilities is recognised as improving. Going forward I plan to allow myself more time in planning the execution and reviewing the output to maximise the potential of the concept. I also plan to increase my contextual studies as recommended to ensure I continue to work on ideas of value. I look forward to moving onto the next unit and taking what I have learned and hopefully more successfully utilising my visual skills to further improve my overall work.
Context & Narrative 