Formable Traces: Final Piece

 To finalise my piece I put together my images on Photoshop, I used a black canvas andjust slightly adjusted teh curves to ensure the image had a little pop. 

I played with this final pice on the Deep Dream AI generator and I asked for this in the style of Nan Goldin.  The generator created this from my images...

Reflection

I enjoyed taking these images, I think last term I worked with the doll and continuing this through these images was interesting as a continuation of the experiences of woman.  I like the black and white and the message.  I would obviously reshoot these to maybe improve them if I was to use this again for anything however for this short exercise I actaully as very pleased with the result.  I have also been experimenting with the AI images and I enjoyed very much the image the AI generated from my final images here - an interesting result - a couple in a caravan resulted from the domestically abused doll!  I I do enjoy the strangeness of the creation!

I evolved the image further and this is what was created...

My disembodied dolls become whole..

Creative Media Production: Photography Flash Task

 To begin the two-week photography project we looked at camera settings and functions and completed a 'flash task' in session to practice using the camera before going out on Friday to create Urban Landscape images.  

In this session, we looked at other artists who had used the idea of Traces of themselves or others in images, with the idea that e we would do this to create a piece showing photographic trace in the world or of someone else.  Ana Mendieta's work is a good example of this and I will be exploring her work through research in my next post.

Ana Mendieta, Imágen de Yágul, 1973/2018. Color photograph. © The Estate of Ana Mendieta Collection, LLC. Courtesy Galerie Lelong & Co.

After considering the work of Annika Von Hauswolff, I based my image ideas for this short class task on this, I liked the idea of the balloons and used this to experiment with.

Annika Elisabeth von Hausswolff, Attempting to Deal with Time and Space, 1997/2001

I used the Canon 700D for these images and initially set the camera to ISO 400, F4, 1/200.  I also shot these, for the most part in black and white.  Below are my contact sheets, I ended up with around 139 images.

Following on from last term the doll images here actually turned out to be most successful, so after experiments with my body parts, I tried the doll as I was working alone this worked well and I had an idea of how I would put these together.  Below are some of the images: 

ISO 400, F5, 1/20, -1 exposure compensation, FL 20mm

I quite liked this image with my big balloon-obscured face and the boots in the background, this fitted the brief and it did show me without showing me...

The following images were ISO 400, F5.6 exposure time ranging from 1/10 to around 1/30 and exposure compensation ranging from -0.3 to -1 

The doll in these images looks as if she is being abused in some way, certainly used incorrectly, positioned awkwardly, and exposed to the world.

I like this with shoe just falling off the foot, the slight blur with the movement 

The legs and skirt here work well and the hand, all with no face showing, objectifying the doll and making her more vulnerable in the images

I think this is my favourite image with the hand as it does leave the viewer guessing as to what is happening here, where is the hand reaching to or is she falling...

I will put these together for a final piece and see if I can create the story through these 'trace' images

Sequential Images: Class Task

 In class today we created sequential images, as a practice task to use camera software on of phones and digital editing software.  For my images here I just used images I had taken in another class but this was just an example to show how to create contacts and final images. 

On the sequential images we looked at Eadweard Muybridge to begin our studies, his original sequential images were a revolution in Photography.  The idea for the images did originate from a bet: 'In 1872, the former governor of California Leland Stanford, a race-horse owner, hired Eadweard Muybridge to undertake some photographic studies. Stanford had reputedly taken a bet on whether all four of a racehorse's hooves are off the ground simultaneously. On 15 June 1878, Muybridge set up a line of cameras with tripwires, each of which would trigger a picture for a split second as the horse ran past. The results, as shown in this plate, settled the debate' (Powell, 2013)

Animal Locomotion (Plate 626)'. Sequence with jockey on horseback by Eadweard Muybridge (1830 - 1904), English-born American photographer and inventor

On some mobile phones you may need to convert images from HEIC to jpg so I used a converter online so that I could have jpeg images for my blog and for Photoshop and Pixlr

These are my contact sheets from my shoot, I used Photoshop to create my contact sheet.  I opened Photoshop and clicked on File in the top menu, I then clicked on 'Automate' and then 'Contact Sheet'.  A dialog box opened and I clicked on 'Choose' and selected my file of sequential images from my photo shoot, Photoshop then automated the process of creating the contacts once completed I saved the contact sheets by clicking on 'File' Save As' and then saved these on my computer desktop as a png file so that I could add these to my blog

This is my final sequential piece as a group. I took these images using a Canon DSLR camera 700D

The settings of my camera were as follows:

My final images are here, these images were called Doll's Demise as I was playing with the idea that the doll was somehow in peril and this is what I have put together here as a sequence just as an example.

Reflection

I had a limited time to create these images, however, I was pleased with the images I took and I enjoyed shooting these in black and white.  I think the sequence for these images could have been more seamless and the flow could have been better so that the viewer has a clearer narrative.  I do have more images so perhaps I could have curated these better to make this work.  

References

Powell, J. (2013) Galloping horse by Eadweard Muybridge, The Guardian. Guardian News and Media. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/picture/2013/jun/15/horse-eadweard-muybridge (Accessed: January 19, 2023). 

Promoting Myself to Employers: Target Market Senior Digital Positions

As research for this small project I have looked at my target market, these are employers who are looking for Heads of Digital Design as this is what I advertised myself as in my promotional video. 

The first job I looked at it for a make-up and skincare company Charlotte Tilbury, London.  In real life, it would be highly unlikely I would choose to work for a make-up and skincare company however I chose this as the Head of Digital Design job description did match some of the skills and experience I have. When looking for jobs or looking for jobs that you aspire to it is important to really research your industry and find out what employers are looking for. 

This job description begins with 'This role will see you working on a variety of creative projects across the business. With leadership experience, you will have a demonstrated passion for navigating a team of talented individuals in improving digital marketing creative, and have a keen eye for detail in all things digital marketing.'  On my video, I stated that I had leadership skills, creativity, and innovative digital solution in marketing, so good start in the expected skills.  I then looked at 'Key Selection Criteria' this is most important to discern whether I actually have all the skills needed for the job so let's look at these and whether my skills are up to scratch!

Key Selection Criteria:

• Proven experience in team management and leadership of an army of creatives 

At present, I lead and manage a team of very creative art, design and media tutors so I am hoping that this would be provable experience that I have clearly stated on my CV

• Experience working on digital + ecomm design, ideally agency experience

Here I clearly work in Digital and I understand e-commerce and digital design through building websites and through working online, however, I have never worked at a design agency therefore in my cover letter I need to ensure I highlight the key skills I have in this area.

• Experience in, and enthusiasm for, developing creative ideas for digital platforms, as well as 360 campaigns, from brief to delivery

Clearly I have experience and enthusiasm for developing creative ideas on digital platforms and I have work online to show this skill.  I have not worked on a 360 campaign but understnd the process from brief to delivery through academic teaching and working online

• Ability to marry art (creative) and science (data); analytically looking at data, reporting and applying it to future projects and creative

In my job now I can give very good examples of working both creatively with and art and design but also in management we use data and statistics throughout the year which we create reports for quality assurance and board meetings.  This again would be outlined in my Cv and could be discussed at interview 

• Understanding of online accessibility, UX / UI

As you are aware from last term I discussed with you the importance of UI/UX design and this is something I have an in-depth knowledge of through working in digital design 

• A strong track record in project planning, including accurate estimation of costs and timings

In academic work planning is everything to ensure that everything is delivered in a timely manner so this again is a provable element of experience.  However, I do not work with budgets or costings and this area would be a weakness.

• Expert knowledge of user interface, application, mobile and responsive design, using the latest prototyping and design tools

I am very up to date on current design tools and strive to keep ahead in this area of digital design as it is part of my job

• Great sense of design and composition with a strong eye for layout and appreciation of brand guidelines across all devices and channels

I do have a strong eye for good design and I have worked to brand guidelines at DMU and for other companies online so I understand and can execute this very well

• Ability to work at pace, with a confidently calm demeanour

I do work at pace, not sure I am always calm but for the most part I would say as I am confident in my work and therefore I do carry out tasks with ease

• Exceptional information presentation (visual and written) experience

I think writing the programme for IYZ Art & Design and IYZ Media and preparing and making the majority of the presentation resources I am confident that I have in-depth experience of this.

• Infectiously positive and passionate energy

I am passionate and positive about my work and working is art, design and media and I think this comes through when discussing this aspect of my work.

• Proficiency in Sketch, Adobe Creative Suite, Google Suite (email, docs, drive, slides)

I am clearly proficient in Adobe Suite and Google as these are digital tools I use every day.  I had not used Sketch before but as I was doing this I checked it out however I think that it works more for Apple Mac users 

• Experience using Dropbox, and project management tools such as Trello

Have experience of using dropbox and I am aware of management tools programmes and how they work but have not used Trello before. 

From looking at this and considering my skills I might be tempted to apply for this as I do think that I have the digital design and management skills required.  I think doing this and considering carefully each requirement is key to success when applying for jobs.  Essentially you should apply for jobs that you want and that you are genuinely interested in but also that you have the right requirements for, as you can see above I did not have every single requirement but I would consider I had enough to apply and send my CV.  if the company think that I am suitable they will invite me for an interview but if not nothing has been lost by sending my CV and giving this a go.

While I was doing this I found several jobs as Head of Digital Design, as I stated at the beginning I perhaps would not want to work for a make-up and skincare company as this is not an area of interest, particularly for me but I would enjoy the design and marketing elements of this job.  On further research, I looked at several jobs of this kind and discovers that the key criteria and skills needed were very similar.  Therefore if I was looking to move into this sector I think I would work on familiarizing myself with more digital business and management tools and looking at budgets and as these are my weakest areas here.

Overall this was a interesting exercise and it did make me consider my skills, knowledge and employability and what transferable skills I have from the education sector. 

 

Biteable Video Process

 In the first session of the term, we were creating a Biteable video with the aim of promoting ourselves online to potential employers/clients.  

In my video, I wanted to go for the role of Head of Digital Design. I began by opening Bietable.com and then going to 'Templates and choosing a CV/resume template.

After choosing the template I started by editing the text by clicking on the text and changing the wording in this slide below I changed the wording to '20 years experience in Digital Design'  and tried to briefly outline my experience.

I also, replaced the colour background and the graphics and text colors by clicking on 'Edit' and then going into the left-hand style menu to change the colour combinations, I changed it to this purple hue however I think I will change this again as I am not sure I particularly like this shade. 

I added a video on each slide by clicking into the advanced editor and 'Replace Background' so I could search for a suitable stock video, I chose videos as I think this moves the narrative forward and add more life to the presentation. 

In the editor, you can see the overall presentation and in the advanced editor, I can individually change the slides.  I then also changed the music by just clicking under the timeline on the musical note and choosing suitable music.  My final actions were just lengthening some of the scenes, I did this by just dragging the scene on the timeline to add extra seconds.  I deleted any slides I did not want by clicking on the scene in the timeline and then the blue arrow at the top to delete the scene.  I did some final quality checks of spelling, and timing, adjusted the sizes of text and video in places, and then I clicked on 'start free trial' to publish.  Please follow the link below to view the video.

Zoe Van-de-Velde: Promotional Video

Overall I think it could be a great personal marketing tool in addition to a formal Cv and would work well on a website to promote my skills. 

Welcome to Spring Term 2023!

 Welcome to the new term!  Another Spring Term and I am hoping that it will be exciting both academically, and practically, and that we will get the beginning of some lovely warm weather.

Gérard de Nerval

I would like to kick off this term with the poetry of Gérard de Nerval (1808–1855)  De Nerval was a French experimental poet who liked to take his lobster for a walk!  Whether this is true or not is highly debatable however De Nerval was quite eccentric and he stated; 

'[De Nerval] had a pet lobster named Thibault that he took on walks in the Palais Royal gardens of Paris, using a blue silk ribbon as a leash. When asked why he did this, he replied. Why should a lobster be any more ridiculous than a dog? Or a cat, or a gazelle, or a lion, or any other animal that one chooses to take for a walk? I have a liking for lobsters. They are peaceful, serious creatures. They know the secrets of the sea, they don't bark, and they don't gobble up your monadic privacy like dogs do. And Goethe had an aversion to dogs, and he wasn't mad!' (Museum of Hoaxes: 2013)

De Nerval wrote both books and poetry which 'explored the uncertain borderlines between dream and reality, irony and madness, autobiography and fiction with his groundbreaking writings.' (Waterstones n.d)

De Nerval influenced many other writers and poets including T.S. Eliot who uses a quote from De Nerval at the end of his epic poem The Wasteland.  His travelogue Voyage en Orient was widely acclaimed.  De Nerval's later work mixing poetry, prose, and journalism influenced Marcel Proust and Aurélia influenced Andre Breton and the Surrealist's work.  

De Nerval achieved much in his short life, and his influence on other writers' and artists' work is impressive.  De Nerval committed suicide on the night of 26 January 1855 by hanging himself from a lantern post.  The artist Gustave Doré depicts this in his work below. De Nerval was indeed insane and spent most of his life in and out of an asylum, his doctor Emile Blanche commented; 'he hung himself because he looked madness in the face' (De Nerval 1996)

La rue de la vieille lanterne: The Suicide of Gérard de Nerval, by Gustave Doré, 1855

De Nerval belonged to a group of eccentrics known as Bousingos (rowdies) who were 'notorious for their orgies, eating ice cream out of skulls, holding literary seminars in the nude [and] for playing loud musical instruments none of them knew how to play' (De Nerval 1996).  In his pocket upon his death were the final pages of Aurelia which some consider to be his greatest work.  It is about his descent into madness, brought on by his unrequited love for an actress. In the book De Nerval talks about his dreams and visions, these are beautifully written, and reading this there is a feeling of being lifted magically, mystically, seeing something beyond the ordinary.  I will leave you with one of these to ponder.

'Stretched out on a camp bed, I thought I saw the sky unveil itself to me as to make me full of remorse for having wished, with all the strength of my spirit, to step down again on the earth I was leaving....Immense circles took shape in infinity, like the orbs formed by water when something falls in and disturbs it. Each region was peoples with radiant faces and took on colour, moved and melted in turn, and a divinity, always the same, tossed away smiling the furtive masks of its various incarnations and at last imperceptibly took refuge in the mystic splendors of the Asiatic skies.' (De Nerval 1996:10)

References

Did Gerard de Nerval walk his pet lobster through Paris? (2013) Museum of Hoaxes. Available at: http://hoaxes.org/weblog/comments/nerval_lobster (Accessed: January 6, 2023).

 Selected writings by Gerard de Nerval, Richard Sieburth | Waterstones (no date) Waterstones. Available at: https://www.waterstones.com/book/selected-writings/gerard-de-nerval/richard-sieburth/9780140446012 (Accessed: January 6, 2023). 

Doré, G. (no date) La Rue de la Vieille Lanterne: The suicide of gérard de nerval, The Art Institute of Chicago. Prints and Drawings. Available at: https://www.artic.edu/artworks/105494/la-rue-de-la-vieille-lanterne-the-suicide-of-gerard-de-nerval (Accessed: January 9, 2023). 

De Nerval G. (1996) Aurelia & Other Writings, Translated by Geoffrey Wagner, Robert Ducan & Marc Lowenthal, Exact Change, Boston 

Reflection

 Over this term, I have created a small book using text and images called 'Woman'.  This book represented the woman through her life and was a feminist view of being a woman in the world. 

Woman by Zoe Van-de-Velde

This project evolved in development at the beginning of the term through the research I carried out, considering how other artists had represented women through stages of their life.  I realised that I wanted to use Barbie in the Photos and purchased a mini studio that I could use for the images to create consistency throughout.  I the images of each stage I reshot several times until I go the look that I wanted.  While I was doing this I was also redesigning my website and writing the text for the book.  I felt that the development of this work went well and it was the right amount of work for a small project, in the time given.  I managed to stick to my own plan and deadlines and so on time and workload I managed this well throughout and by Week Eight my book and website were ready and I had also ordered a hard copy book on Blurb as well which although was only the Trade book (so it was fairly cheap) the quality was very good and I was very pleased with the outcome here. 

Most of the photographs I was very happy with but this was because I did reshoots to ensure I got what I wanted in each image.  If I had more time I would have worked more on rewriting the text as there are some parts that could be smoother and flow better if I had rewritten this. 

Overall I was very happy with the outcomes I achieved but also my time management was very good this term, sticking to my deadlines and even with the reshoots I managed this project well.

The final outcome is both a flipbook on my website and a hard copy book I am happy with both versions and I like the fact that it lives in the real work for sale on Blurb!