Summative Evaluation

I feel as though it took me a lot longer than it should have to engage with this module. I'm disappointed that I did the bulk of my contacting as late as Easter, but at the same time I feel that perhaps it was unavoidable: A huge concern of mine last year was my lack of a developing tone of voice - all my work was scattered and it was hard to make sense of it. It has only been in the last couple of months that I feel like my work has started to come together as a cohesive portfolio.
When I e-mailed a couple agencies at the beginning of the year, they said that they look for illustrators who are confident enough in what they do to have a 'style'. Now that I feel a bit more confident about what I do, I think I'm in more of a position to send out portfolios to art directors, agencies and other prospective clients.

In terms of my self-branding, I think this is something that has come out strong. I'm pleased with my visual identity - the idea was to make something a bit odd that people would remember. I think I have done just that, particularly by spilling my portrait onto variously coloured business cards which I think people will hold onto. I feel as though the brand identity is sleek and consistent through defined use of colours and type. As well as the printed material, this look is also translated onto my online presence sites: www.emanuelsillustration.com and emanuelsg.tumblr.com use the same colours and feature the same self-portrait.
Since getting my website, my use of Tumblr has radically changed - while I would only post portfolio-style work once a week, now I am posting multiple times a week with odd little things I do. This makes it much more exciting to view and makes me feel better about how much work I've been producing lately. My use of Behance definitely needs developing though, as a lot of people use it so post their conceptual development and process while I just tend to post finished artwork with a short description.

I feel as though without an Instagram, I am definitely missing out on a lot of potential attention and exposure that could come my way, but not having a smartphone at the moment makes this an impossibility. Instagram may be what pushes me to get one though - a lot of people I've spoken to speak very highly of it, and have even been told by practitioners that it's a huge help.

In regards to progression, I have researched into how I can maintain a screen printing practice. East London Printmakers is what I currently have my eye one as it is very affordable. I should have looked into getting an internship sooner than I did, but the thought that they might exist in these studios hadn't even crossed my mind. I have sent e-mails out to two studios asking if they do summer internships, but haven't heard back. I will chase them up a little later down the line, or think about visiting them in person over summer.

I think the most important thing to take from the module is that it never really ends - I am going to work very hard to continue doing what this module has taught me to do well beyond I leave this course. Luckily, my mailing strategy has me with a plan for at least 6 months.