Note to Self, 01/13/17
“I see myself as a designer who still has a lot of growing to do. I love designing, but still have to determine where I wanted to take my talents to. I am interested in psychedelic art but with a modern twist. I like abstraction, but with a vibrant color scheme. I want to keep carrying my ideas and create even more original ideas and apply those ideas to whatever it may be that gets me a job. I want portfolio pieces that I can look back on 6 months from now and still be proud of. Being at CSM, I want to find my niche. I want to grow a great amount. I am fearful that when I leave here, I will need more time to reach my goal. I have many new materials and resources that I hope will carry me through to the point at which I feel content. Over the past year I feel as though I have grown a significant amount as a designer. I am hoping that by being here I can grow at a more rapid rate and have a clearer path as to what it is exactly I want to do with design. After being here for a week, I feel as though CSM has already made me feel more confident as not only an artist, but as an overall human being. I am looking forward to how I will turn out at the end of the term. I have a short 3 months to take in as much as I can and produce the best work I’ve ever produced. Hopefully I can stay 100% focused and stick to my goal of becoming a completely elevated artist and designer.”
I wrote this note in the first week of study abroad. Reading this back to myself was kind of funny, just because I can picture where I was mentally when I wrote it, and what kind of graphic designer I thought I was. This program has taught me more than I could have ever learned by just staying at UConn. I had so many opportunities to grow, just as planned. The things that I wanted to accomplish in my letter ended up becoming real life goals that I followed and I think I reached. I learned how to put more thought into what I am designing; give it a purpose rather than just an “aesthetic choice.” I feel much more comfortable and confident when designing. I can look at my work and know that it is good work and it’s something to be proud of. Besides accelerating in design, I feel a lot more confident in myself as an individual. I like doing things on my own more than before, and can enjoy the company of just myself. But I also made friends on this trip that I will have for a long time to come.
Going forward, I will establish a good idea through research and planning, and know how to admit to myself when something isn’t working and needs to be done differently. I will know not to overcomplicate things when they don’t need to be, and that simplicity and basic concepts can actually go a long way. I have had many valuable experiences during my time in London, but the one that really changed the way I design would be my time being a student at CSM. Creating multiple prototypes and being asked complex questions about my design choices was something that I wasn’t used to. These expectations really made me push myself further than I normally would, because I knew more was expected from me.
Even though the work I made at CSM isn’t my favorite work I’ve done, I feel as though it was the bridge in the gap to where I was last fall and where I am now. Being able to experience the creation of complex and well throughout work will allow me now to combine this skill with my personal style and aesthetic choices. From CSM, my favorite project would probably be my Silent Dialogues project, which involved creating a form for other students to fill out. I enjoyed getting feedback from others, and making something that was simply designed. Overall, my favorite projects where most, if not all my UConn final briefs. I feel as though each of these projects were more thought out than previous ones, but also allowed me to incorporate my personal style choices. I am really excited about them, and am looking forward to where else my study abroad experience will bring me.
