Week 3

Instead of waiting for divine intervention and an interesting and witty start to my journal this week I will just begin. Perhaps, by the end of the cog churning, a suitably clever title may emerge at the end, if not then it’s just not meant to be! This week has passed at a considerable speed and rather then leaving me dazed and confused I finally feel more at one with the World Wide Web.

My work is progressing steadily, I’ve done mountains of research and my head is bleeding a little less profusely. So what have I learnt? Well I have started to tackle my limited, in fact non-existent, knowledge of coding language. HTML, XHTML, CSS, CGI, ETC! I produced my first HTML file on note pad and opened it on the Internet browser, this sounds quite impressive until you actually see the page! However, I did manage to then edit the text and change the background of the page to a rather shocking eye-watering yellow, pure genius. So with this small triumph my confidence grew and somehow my mind decided to deactivate its Firewall (sad I.T pun) to all things technical and things started to make sense.

On a more social and non-isolated IT geek level I feel the group is starting to bond and the banter is beginning. I feel particularly comfortable in my seminar group as I hope do the others, despite the lack of humour. I’m finding the seminars useful and it’s good to benefit from the experience and knowledge of others.

So in general all is going swimmingly, the parts of the project I have completed so far need a little fine tuning, but not a great deal. I’m looking forward to tackling the screen designs but I am aware of the importance of completing the project methodically, so I may be able to hold back for a few more days, just. For the rest of this week I need to focus on annotating my sketch book and also finding some truly inspirational design, unfortunately a 'Lucozade' wrapper and a booklet on ‘Love and Sex’ is hardly the stuff of dreams.

Finally inspiration has faltered, sorry, I'm tired!

Week 2

From now on this journal will be used to record my progress, thoughts and feelings as I continue on my journey in the world of interactive media!

As I approached this week I was filled with the same nervous anticipation which I had experienced on the first day. I felt sure I had chosen the correct path by embarking upon the course and returning back to the classroom, but the induction had passed and playtime was over.

After being given the first brief and thoroughly going over it with Steve the apprehension lingered. I understood the requirements of the brief but I felt a little disillusioned as I realised the enormity of the technical input into each project. On reflection this feeling emanated from my naturally creative side trying to dominate, but mainly because of my lack of knowledge in this area. However, I decided that if I was truly creative this quality would not only emanate in my aesthetic output but also in my approach to tasks…who was I trying to kid!

Nevertheless the first task was to select a ‘Great Briton’ from the brief so this allowed me to gently flow into the work and begin researching. My biggest concern at this point was to be disciplined in my time management and not becoming too involved in a simple task. This thought slowly dissolved as the wonders of the internet infiltrated my mind and after a long day of note taking and over thinking time won and it was the end of day one. Thankfully as day two progressed I became more in control of my destiny or at least I was able to manage my time on each task a great deal more effectively!

Personal Statement

Throughout my life I have always had a passion for Design, initially; it took the form of a continual subconscious analysis of the imagery around me. As I gained inspiration and understanding it culminated in the production of my own imagery. I enjoy the challenge that Design presents in being able to communicate a concept entirely through a visual source. I feel it stretches my ability in a variety of areas, particularly my understanding Psychology within the Design process. I have been fortunate to be able to indulge this passion throughout my academic and professional career through the diverse range of techniques and medias I have been exposed to.

My degree at Norwich school of Art and Design allowed me to fully realise the incredible potential and influential presence that Design encompasses in our society. This realisation enabled me to refine my own visual awareness and cultural literacy. I feel this contributed to a new found sensitivity within my work as both a Photographer and a Designer as I graduated the course.

Alongside my new found personal understanding of Design I was also fortunate to develop my commercial experience during the degree. I was selected to undertake a series of ‘live projects’ for outside clients, these include; BBC Radio Norfolk and Pricewaterhouse Coopers . These experiences have allowed me to greatly develop my interpersonal skills and adopt a high level of professionalism in all aspects of my work.

After completing my degree I felt a strong desire to install in others the passion I held for Design. I completed my PGCE at Homerton College Cambridge and have now been a Secondary school teacher of Art and Design for over a year, teaching pupils aged 11-18 years. This experience has been invaluable to me in terms of the huge personal development I have undergone. It has installed in me an ability to communicate effectively on a range of levels, a strict sense of personal discipline in order to respond well to pressure and a renewed drive in all tasks I undertake. However, I strongly feel my own creative development has been neglected and my real potential is not currently being explored through my teaching. I have therefore taken the decision to return to education and expand on my knowledge and skills in a new area of Design.

I feel the Interactive Media course will present me with a fresh and exciting new challenge. I look forward to combining my natural creativity with the technical skills of Interactive Designing. I feel the course will enable me to communicate through Design on a whole new level to what I have previously experienced. I am now focused completely on refining all of my Design skills in this new vocation and excelling in Interactive Media.