16th - 19th/01/2017

 Last week unfortunately I was unable to apply myself towards my project as much as I would have liked to due to interviews, however, I have had the chance to research artists such as Carlo Carra, Neville Brody and the Dada movement, which enabled me to come up with several ideas for my book. I experimented with Brody's concept of  emphasizing the text through movement and direction, and Carra's use of lines and geometric shapes. I have also decided to create a background through collage, which is influenced by the Dada movement in order to replicate a sense of chaos that we feel when we have lost someone very precious to us. I like the layout of the background, however, I don't think it follows Brody's work and I think there is too many colours to look at; it doesn't feel balanced in colour and all the colours seem to disagree with each other. I have photocopied this collage, which replaced the colours with orange and beige just before leaving collage last Friday. I prefer the combination of colours because it isn't staining to the eye and it goes well with the front cover, which is brown. I haven't yet explored the different compositions for the layout because I have only just researched more ideas for what else could be applied to my book. As I was experimenting with Brody's work, I felt like I was going off track and making it too personal for something that is going to be read by the public, so after more research, I have decided to create a bereavement book in the form of my dad's cremation box; a book is there to present imagery and data and it doesn't specify that a book is supposed to be for public use. The purpose of my book is to help myself and my family cope with grief, which goes over treasured memories and thoughts.

Life Drawing was a bit difficult this week because it involved drawing without looking at the paper. I found this very frustrating, however, it did make me realise how much of a difference it makes to pay attention to both the paper and the model at the same time. This practical was also supposed to be motivation for the illustration students in order to gain ideas for new characters, however, it could also be interpreted for Graphic purposes; the abstract forms can be altered into backgrounds and prints.

Next, I am going to explore different compositions for my book, create a dummy book and then start making my final piece. I will also do some more research because I saw a couple of interesting posts on Pinterest, which focuses on sculptural ways to present a book.