Illustrated Review

The interdisciplinary Art and design 3rd year review was illuminating in several ways, not all of them positive. Firstly, although it is clear that some students have applied themselves to their work with dedication and focus it is apparent that a number of them have taken no real interest in their work and the exhibition process. I would like to base this opinion souly on my experience of the peer review I attended a some weeks ago, in which the majority of the students seemed completely removed and apathetic in regards to their work, but I cannot. Throughout the exhibition this has been evidenced by the general lack of organisation, consideration towards layout and lighting and a sense of competition that is evident when looking at the exhibition as a whole. I feel as though each student has only give thought to how their work is viewed without taking into account the aesthetic of the exhibition it’s self. I understand that the students need to show their work at its best but it is still essential, especially when exhibiting as a group, that the exhibition flows well and harmonises. As it stands I don’t think the 3^rd years have achieved this, each work jostles for your attention and tries to out shine the others instead of complementing and enhancing them as would have been ideal. I fear the result of this is that none of the works are displayed to their full potential. I appreciate that with the limited space of our studio that perfect results would be hard to achieve and I empathise with the limitation the students faced but I believe more attention could have been paid to the lighting of the show rather than just to the individual artworks.  This could have easily been achieved by simply blocking out the ceiling windows but due to lack of organisation and forethought was not done.

Marianne’s work, particularly, did not appear to be given the consideration it needed to truly be stand out. I feel I cannot blame Marianne herself for this as I know how much effort she put into designing the layout of her work, all the different options she considered and how far it has progressed from the beginning.  As you can see above the lighting completely removes from the work making it feel amateurish and slapdash.  Nevertheless I am of the opinion that Marianne has produced an intricate and high quality piece of work. Her dedication to detail and perfection are obvious; the layout is engaging and appealingly interactive, the materials and processes she has used are appropriate to the sentiment behind her work and the concept, though subtle, is made obvious at first glance, it is quite clearly ‘home’.  This level of skill and understanding is something I would like to be present in my own work.

I chose Marianne’s work initially because her passion for her subject matter was evident as soon as spoke about it. However, the main reason I chose to review Marianne was how much I felt her work related to me personally. The idea of home and family spoke to me on a personal level while the challenge of creating an impression of a place that you no longer occupy related to some of my ideas about by own work.  Also, her use of physical objects is something that appeals to me as I feel I am never satisfied unless I have produced something tangible.

I like to think I have learnt a great deal from the 3^rd year’s exhibition. The successes and failings of the works on display has encouraged me to be more deceive and pro-active in my own work. it has also taught me organisation and time management skills are key to achieving a confident and productive working environment.