Future Plan Qs

I completed a self evaluation form which helps me to see what areas I need to improve about my skills and what I am good at. I learnt that I should identify my strongest skills, something I was also told in my meeting with an art director at London Book Fair, in order to build a strong portfolio of work and understand my own practice better.

The goal that I am aiming for is to be able to create better narrative artwork, something that I could apply in the form of a graphic novel or similar. In order to achieve this, I should set myself a clear goals or perhaps break it into smaller goals such as improving my storytelling and practical skills; but also investigating the industry around graphic novels, online comics and similar media to better understand the process and learn new information that can help my personal journey.

Piano painting

1) Helping to finish painting a piano at Glenfall Primary School (1 Day)

We took the bus to the school and met the Art Director and another volunteer. The piano we were helping to finish had been started by the children who were told to paint themselves doing their everyday activities but in an Ancient Egyptian setting. There were also some ceramic tiles that they had made that needed attaching to it. At the start of the day, the piano only had a few paintings on it but over the course of the day we worked as a team to add to this with more paintings, tiles and decoration.

We spent the day painting extra characters and adding extra coats to the children's paintings using acrylic paints and gold leaf. I brought my own paintbrushes which proved useful. Painting onto an unusual surface was difficult as I was not used to that or the medium we were using. By the end of the day, the piano was covered in designs that were more vibrant and created a better overall effect.

Although I had a good time and worked hard, I felt that I did not gain much from this experience as I did not further any illustrative skills, except perhaps working to a specific style (Ancient Egyptian). I did gain experience of planning a route and method of getting to the school via bus, something which I was anxious about.

Semi Nice

2) Preparing and running a table at Semi Nice Art Fair (1 Day)

Our small group of students made a variety of prints and zines and ran a stall together at a small local art fair. We had applied for a table a few months previous and because there were several students, the event organiser decided to give us a table to represent the University. We received an email with instructions on how to get to the location and a few tips on how to prepare. In preparation, I packaged all my prints with a card backing and cellophane protection and also bought a tablecloth and some display stands. I researched different ways of presenting work on a table by looking at videos and blogs about selling at art fairs, from which I also learned important points that I may have overlooked such as clear pricing, a good float with plenty of change, grouping items in related groups (all zines together or all items with cats together for example). When I arrived (early in order to set up the table in time ), I was shown to our table which was much smaller than I expected, given that three people would be showing work on it.

At the fair my prints did not sell which was disheartening since others' sold very well. I was very disappointed as I had tried very hard to display everything in an appealing way and spent a long time packaging items neatly. It seemed like a waste of time because we stayed there all day, eager to sell to customers but none came. Over the whole day I only sold two items and did not understand why. Looking back on it now, I know that Semi Nice is a very small art fair that is quite hidden from most shoppers meaning we did not get many customers to begin with. Hopefully at True Believers in February, where there are more customers who are expecting to spend more money and more likely to buy comic and zine related items, we will be more successful.

From this experience I learnt how to manage money for a stall, what items to buy to set up a stall and appropriate decorations, accurate pricing. Also what kind of items sell better than others. It was a valuable experience but a little disappointing after what I was expecting. Starting at a small and non-threatening event like this gave me confidence in independently running a table which was invaluable for True Believers, coming later in the year.

Inktober

3) Creating and printing an independent book (~2 Days)

I used my Inktober drawings (spanning the month of October where you challenge yourself to make an ink drawing daily) to create a book as some of my friends and family were interested in purchasing my drawings.

Because I had not planned on making them into a printed piece, all my drawings were different sizes and shapes so I decided on making a square book as I would be able to fit all the pieces in this shape rather than portrait or landscape only. After resizing all my pieces, I compiled them in Photoshop and, with some help, learnt how to use groups to organise them into the correct page order. Learning how to use groups to layout pages and order has been invaluable in laying out spreads for other publications I have made since, although I do need to practice my skills using InDesign which I know is used by companies to plan page layout and printing from my experience working at the Oxford University Press. I printed the books using the MFD Printer in the studio and onto cartridge paper before adding a yellow paper cover.

I am very pleased with my books as they showcase my work well and are visually appealing. However, I realised later that the cover should be made out of a thicker, more protective paper as the yellow paper is very thin and gets bent or torn easily. I will consider this when making books in the future. I then printed a few more copies to sell  but replaced the thin yellow cover with a slightly more substantial marbled newsprint paper (made by myself) which looks much better visually and feels better too. In the future I may also change the paper stock I use or the binding method as trying to staple through the cartridge paper was difficult. This self-initiated project was a good experience with a clear outcome which was very satisfying as it provided an item I could then sell at fairs. 

It is definitely a project I will attempt next year but with some changes; I learned from looking at other artists' Inktobers that if you keep the image to line-art only, it can easily be coloured digitally later and by keeping to a black/white image, editing values will also produce a cleaner, more consistent image throughout. The time management skills I have learnt in keeping myself to a schedule will also be useful in managing myself in future projects.

The Unseen

4) Making a submission and helping to compile the Unseen anthology  (~1/2 day)

I entered a cover design and it was chosen for the anthology. The theme this year is 'Submerged' so I made my design of a small paper boat on a sea because soon it too will be submerged. It works well as a kind of introduction to the contents for which most of the entries are completely underwater. The original designs I made in pencil and in two layers that work together. As this is a risograph publication, I had to make my image in two separations, blue and yellow, where they overlap creates a green. The particular colours chosen were difficult to combine into a strong green and so I had difficulty in creating the original image I had planned (a diver underwater) as I wanted semi-realistic colours but I could not make it work. Instead, I made a collage in black and white of fish in a river, however, it was far out of my usual style which is disappointing for me. Fortunately there are many opportunities to be involved in publishing projects within the University.

I volunteered to help compile the pages after printing (pictured) and fold the covers for them. This process took about an hour because there were two of us working quickly. Together we folded 100 copies ready for stapling and then selling.

Looking back at my cover design, I think I should have left the waves blue to give a strong contrast between the sea and the boat, creating a more stronger composition. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this project and the chance to collaborate with other artists on a book was exciting. Again, creating a physical item at the end of the process was also satisfying so I think this could be the kind of area I would like to go into, creating and publishing books, which overlaps well with the idea of selling at conventions. 

True Believers

5) Running a stall at True Believers Comic Festival (1 day)

I ran a table with a friend at this medium sized local festival, selling prints, books, bags and badges we had handmade as part of our course and as extra. Following the disappointment of our previous attempt, we were not expecting much better but we actually did far better, covering table costs and even making a profit. 

We applied for a table after attending last year's festival which we enjoyed very much. The table cost was £40 for two people but split evenly it was not expensive. From preparing for Semi Nice, I had a good idea of what items I needed, how to display my stock and to arrive early to give plenty of time to set up. We needed to get the bus to the event location which was easy because there was a cheap direct route, however, my friend overslept and missed it, meaning I had to get there and start setting up by myself which I was anxious about. There were some other vendors on the same bus with suitcases of stock, which was reassuring, and we all managed to arrive in plenty of time. On our table we were given some information about the event, our lanyards and a thank you letter which was all very welcoming.

It was a great experience, meeting and talking to festival goers who were all having a good time there, and talking to the other table runners was helpful in learning some tricks about set up and other festivals they were going to attend. We were told about a website that lists the calendar of comic-con events in the UK for the whole year, which will be helpful in the future but is a little unrealistic at the moment, given our available time, energy and funds.

It is definitely something I would do again next year, hopefully with some better selling products after looking at what others were selling or offering. Also I might invest in some mesh screens which could be used to add height to display more items on, making the table a little less cluttered. Many art sellers had these which gives an element of professionalism to their table. From our good experience at this event, we are considering expanding to include Bristol Comic and Zine Fair next year.

Pitt Rivers

6) Contacting the Pitt Rivers Museum about selling my book (1 day)

I took a trip into Oxford to show the museum the book I made as part of another module, 'The Bottle Witch' which is inspired by an artefact in the museum. I went with the intention of offering them it as a possible item in their shop since I have had interest in the book with a few sales already.

The appropriate person to talk to was unavailable on the day so I left the book example with a note and contact details in an envelope for them and a few days later I received an email saying that they liked the book and that I would have to wait to hear back from them.

From this I have learnt the value of self-initiated work, getting out and being proactive about promoting your own work. At the moment I am still waiting on a reply but I will email her asking for an update. I have also learnt that you have to do a lot of your own pushing which I find difficult as I do not want to come across as rude.