3 star. no 4 star. NO THREE STAR.

We had our final formal presentation last Thursday, it went pretty well but the tutors asked me to make some changes to the bedrooms in the way that they felt that there was perhaps too much space for the star rating that i had been given and that it seemed the hotel was more to a 4 star standard.

They wanted me to try and reduce the size of the bathroom by removing the bath and installing a shower, basically changing the bathroom into a shower room. Whilst i can understand this notion because it means over all there will be more rooms in the hotel to occupy. The only problem is i have to try and consider how the recessed sofa space would work, because i don't want to lose it from the room. and also i would have to remove the dressing table next to the bed. I'm tempted to stand my ground but...i will give it a go for drew/visit Scotland's sake.

Get [OUT]

My job hunt on Wednesday turned into something quite successful, I gave out 6 cvs in the end and ended up having an interview today at an Ice cream cafe called 3 steps 2 heaven. It was really informal but i think i basically have the job. Saying this i also gave my Cv into a Cafe that Heather works at and i think i might have a job there also. So now i have to decide which place i would like to work and to be honest its leaning allot more towards working with Heather.

The lady above was drawn in offshore just before heather got a call from her friend Matthew inviting her to an exhibition opening called sh[OUT] at the GOMA. The show was based around themes of Lesbian, Gay, Bi and transgender life and consisted of some paintings, photography and two pieces of sculpture (maybe 3 if you include the awesome bling frame someone had made). I have to admit that i am always sceptical of 'gay events' because of the sort of stereotypes they tend to conjure up, or indeed the content is never up to scratch.

In all i thought the exhibition was good but im not sure if the pieces worked together very well, there was one painting in particular of a transvestite undressing that really captured my imagination. There was one part of the entire exhibition that made me feel uncomfortable and that was its contradiction to its aims;

'The exhibition will both celebrate and raise awareness of LGBT people, their rights and history.'

I couldn't help but think that the way the opening event was kept very hush hush and how it was only through friends that i had heard about the opening completely contradicted the statement. Infact i was told by people in the exhibition that the only piece of press that stood out for them was an article in the Evening times about exposing children to the art works especially Mapplethorpe's which sparked controversy. Why was publicising the event left on the wayside?

Mezzanine

Today is the day of the exhibition i have submitted some work towards. For me this will be the first time i have ever created a piece for specifically for an exhibition outside of the work i have been doing for my course. To be honest i wish that i had a little longer to get the piece ready for the show but i didn't have enough time! damn damn damn!

Pictures of the exhibition will follow.

At the moment my favourite thing to draw is peoples shoulders and backs...i love the shapes that their clothes make and looking at how they hold themselves, although i do realise that it could be considered to be pervy.

Sketch frenzy

I like the way the scanner has processed this drawing, looks like the lamppost is switched on. Yesterday evening me and Sam sat and 'made art' (as zephyr put it) furiously and obsessively we were in the sketchbook/painting zone its so good to not have a sketchbook to do for a project and, instead, to have one for fun and to prove to myself that i can be creative for the sake of being creative.

Tommorow i get my grade back for first year design...im not really sure how they will be grading it. Maybe just Pass/fail or i guess it could be like the H&C grades but im sure that i have at least passed this year that is certain. It would be nice to get say a B but to be honest i think i would be happy with anything considering how i felt the first two terms of this year have gone especially because i wasn't happy with alot of the work that i produced.

I just found out about a trip that the GSA emailed me explaining some of the details. Basically its a three week trip to china to learn mandarin which is exactly what i had been looking for...i hope i can get this because its all paid for and the only other way i would be able to travel would be to get an overdraft and get into some risky debt which im not too comfortable about.

Busy days

The meeting with Rosemary Lucas was really interesting. Me the director of marketing, Hannah and Rosemary sat down in the tutors area of the refectory to have coffee and talk for around 40 minutes or so. To begin with the director asked a ton of questions about what the Art school was like when she studied here and what she was going to do on her visit to the UK, where she was staying and other things like that.

building and the building didn't even Its so strange to think that when she was studying here the whole way that they taught the course and even the buildings that they were in were different, for one the Bourdon building and the Foulis weren't even there as they were built after her graduation. Understandably she wanted to know a little about me and why i decided to come to art school, how im supporting myself and how im spending the money that she kindly donated. I answered the questions as thoroughly as i could but that didn't really leave much time for me to ask her questions about her business and moving abroad, i had so many questions. After the coffee i thought we were going to meet up with Drew (the head of interior design) and have some more time to ask and answer questions but for some reason i was omitted from the group, maybe Drew wanted to meet her without the distraction of a first year?

Before leaving she gave me her business card and asked me to keep in touch through e-mails so that she could know how i was doing and what the course was like etc. I will most probably direct her too this Blog because its a great way too see my progression and thought paths.

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Over the past two days i have been walking around Central Glasgow taking photographs of "the interface between two distinct conditions" the best places i have found so far would probably be the building sites. If only i could get access to a site properly instead of just poking my lens through a gap in the fence and taking a photograph from a distance...maybe if i ask politely? I wonder if i can arrange a visit to a building site.

Ill be focusing on the west end and north side for the rest of the week, then i send off my films to be developed and have to wait approximately 5-6 days to get them back....5 films will be developed so that's around 132 photographs heading my way! I can't wait its going to be so good. After taking my pictures for the day i retired to Maeves house to have a quick tea then we decided to go to a twilight life drawing session. I hadn't drawn from a life model in a such a long time i was very worried about what quality of work i would end up producing but it went quite well, and i think if i continue to go i can improve my skills further but i can see i have alot to learn.

Terry and Heatherington the vegetable saplings

I forgot how much i love to plant things, its really satisfying to put something dormant into the ground and watch it spring into life. The two plants above are an onion and a carrot that had already started to sprout in the kitchen of DG (The flat where my friends live) so we decided that it would be a nice thing to do to plant them and some other seeds and start a little garden. We have some more plans to start a herb garden in the new flat, maybe even a small veggie patch (space permitting)...thinking about it just makes me even more excited!

Tomorrow i start back at university; im really excited but at the same time extremely nervous because i will be specialising in Interior Design. The thing is i haven't really got to know the people on my course that well im sure i will grow to know them and get on with them im just not sure what i will say to them, and the new tutor, without making myself out to be the 'class clown'. Im very excited about having a new brief to work too. Just before the term finished someone told me a rumour about the project that we would be doing.

Its supposed to be a renovation project where we have to re-design the interior space of a mobile home for a couple. The only other thing i know about this is that the career of the couple will come into play when we have to decide on what to do with the design and there are a few set rules about the space that we are required to make. I guess i will find out tomorrow!

In other news, i love drawing childishly

Drawing pains

After trying to track down a camera to make my video post for a few hours it turns out that i have a webcam but no software, so the post is delayed until i can get the drivers for the webcam and then upload time too! I wonder how long a video takes to upload?

been As you may of already noticed, my drawing skills have been on my mind alot recently...I have alwaysdissatisfied by my level of sketching and feel really disheartened when i get an idea but can't get it out onto paper as i see it in my head. In my mind i have a crystal clean image of designs but i just can't seem to transfer them into a tangible format, its so frustrating.


The biggest problem that i have is looking at an image made by someone who can draw, my jaw dropping and not being able to perceive ever reaching that standard of work in the next 20 years. I look at the work that i have done before and cringe. I could blame it on the fact that i haven't really had any formal drawing lessons...I've just kind of bumbled along collecting bits and pieces of information and kind of cobbled it together into a really rough understanding of how to draw in perspective etc.

I would have to say my main reason is i have an absolute aversion to practice because of the "Whats the point" kind of mood looking at inspiration pieces makes me feel. Awe turns quickly into jealously and then self loathing.

The picture above was taken from a design firm called Foster + Partners, an amazing firm with a staggering portfolio of Perspectives, Planning and CAD work. I occasionally visit this website when i want too get a glimpse of what standard is expected from me as a designer. Not that it does me any good because i tend to come away from the depths of their gallery folder feeling a little ill and apprehensive about showing my work to anyone!

I have to get over myself and stop being so narcissistic and self obsessed. But i need advice, the tutors say practice, but can i get as good as i want too with just practice?