STUDY TASK 4 - Where am I now?

10 things that I have learned about myself as an individual and as learner:

1. I still find it difficult to stick to a pre-conceived timetable. I find making timetables in advance frustrating and hard to do/follow. This is how I have always been - back in secondary school and sixth form I never made revision timetables. I work when I work and try me best to finish on time.
2. My commitment to my studies is much greater than last year. I didn't take foundation year seriously because I got bored of doing graphic design. One semester into a BA Illustration course, I can safely say I have made the right choice in my chosen course. I am committed to learning something as long as I am interested in it.
3. This year I have found it much easier to work in a studio environment as opposed to working at home. I tend to keep a messy desk which makes it hard to work. I should tidy my desk more.
4. I get really into video games when I should be doing work. I brought a games console back to Leeds with me after Christmas and while I do not regret doing so to keep me entertained in my room, it has become a large time consumer.
5. I like to think I'm fairly responsible with my money - I don't think I have many problems with budgeting like a lot students seem to. I have worked out the maximum amount of money I can spend per week with my student loan, but don't always meet it anyway.
6. I still should try/need to get a job/be more pro-active about finding one.
7. I need to try and find more time to read. I had lots of time to read last year on the way to and from college but haven't had that luxury this year. I have read the first 20 or so pages of "Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep" several times now because I keep losing track.
8. For some reason my sleep pattern has become worse this year with me going to bed much later than usual, making it harder for me to wake up earlier. I should probably fix this at some point.
9. So far I have been giving myself quite a lot of time before my deadlines to get work done. I have yet to do any last minute pieces of work, which is something I hope I can keep up. I have also yet to do any all-nighters in order to get work done. My time management must be fairly good.
10. 
    

10 things that I have learned about myself as an illustrator:

1. My drawing has not improved as much as I hoped it would have since last year. This is probably just because I don't do enough personal drawing in my own time.
2. I need to find a better balance of doing drawing for university and drawing for myself. I began to study my fundamentals a lot last year but have since fallen out of touch. I really enjoyed doing figure studies and etc. in my own time so it''s something I should do not just to get better at drawing but also to enjoy myself.
   
3. I rely too much on pen and watercolour. I got into watercolour a lot last year because it was quick and easy to whip up some nice looking drawings when I wasn't too bothered about my work or what I was doing. I need to shake off this habit and be as adventurous as I was in sixth form - using paint and whatever else I can get my hands on.
4. I'm a very technical drawer and try to be really methodical about the way I do things. I think I should be more open to loosening up and "going with the flow" more often. This will help me create more varied and interesting work.
5. I need to be more pro-active in making use of all the facilities I have access to at uni. Things like screen printing, which I'm really interested in, are all at my disposal so there's no reason not to use them.
6. I think that in terms of a career in illustration, the areas that interest me the most are editorial/cover art and concept art, probably inspired by two of my favourite illustrators, Tomer Hanuka and Yoji Shinkawa, who work in these fields 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
7. I need to begin to generate more imagery that is more "illustrative", in terms of giving it a composition and frame/purpose, rather than just creating floating images with no context. 
8. I am extremely picky about what sort of sketchbook I use - I realised in sixth form that I dislike spiral bound books and prefer perfect bound sketchbooks, and of all perfect bound sketchbooks I prefer Daler Rowney Ebony Sketchbooks. I'd rather not work in any other kind of sketchbook if it can be helped.
   
9. Having looked at the way some other people in the class work, I feel like I need to use more mixed media techniques to more easily achieve certain visual effects in my illustrations and make them more interesting. This will also help me build confidence in using various materials.
10. I am only just starting to gain an understanding of the world of illustration and the industry around it, as when I applied to the course I didn't really have an idea of what the industry or scene was like. It wasn't until I knew for sure I would be studying illustration I actually went out and tried to learn about the scene, and it wasn't until I got here that I began to grasp a better understanding of it.