OUAN404 - Evaluation

The visual language module has been a very heavy but rewarding module. The briefs being set over a long period of time is something I liked as it gave me a chance to put a considerable amount of thought and effort into the work, especially since I enjoyed the tasks that were set. My favourite briefs from the module in particular were ones that gave me the opportunity to go out and draw, so the Set, Series, Sequence brief and the Environmental Storytelling briefs specifically. The open aspect to these tasks also allowed for more self direction and personal input on deciding which locations to draw for example, I feel like this meant we had more control over our work and the kind of things we felt we needed to work on. I personally tried to venture out of my comfort zone in this respect in order to learn as much as I could. In terms of time management I often found myself behind when it came close to the deadlines for the briefs and consequently had to concentrate a lot of work into a small amount of time rather than spreading it over the allocated time that was given for the brief to be complete. Something I have to work on in this respect is balancing modules that run parallel so that I can be as efficient as possible with the given work load. At some points during the module I did find myself falling behind because I hadn't maintained a steady workflow and instead worked on the module in bursts, producing high amounts of work in a small amount of time and detracting from the progression of other briefs. In my opinion, I engaged well with the module as it was probably my favourite module that we have done to date. The briefs are interesting and aren't confined to a classroom. Furthermore, it allows us to produce images of our surroundings with a purpose in a variety of media, which has opened me up to the possibilities of working in different ways to produce visuals with varied qualities. There is a few things I need to improve, like I previously mentioned my organisation and I think perhaps I need to be more imaginative or out going when it comes to approaching briefs such as the Environmental Storytelling brief, I could have chosen more interesting places to draw from, but I learnt a lot from them nonetheless. Finally, this module has taught me a huge amount about how to produce illustrations quickly in a range of media and not to dwell on mistakes and to try and continue to move forward with my development within a sketchbook. It has also taught me to be more experimental and out going with work I produce, the importance of sketchbooks and how to use them effectively to produce ideas, record information and observe my surroundings.