I've been reflecting on the workshops and the key things I noticed.  One is that the specific exercises worked best for those young people who really needed it, by this I mean the ones who had already been thinking about the issues concerned due to reasons specific to them.  For example when we discussed our names and what they meant to us, and how they represented us ones of the most vocal members of the group had had occasion to discuss changing her name for legal reasons. 

Thought of the day

The shifts in adolescence are so significant, we need to ensure we support our young people, those who are not academic may not receive the support they need in the current school system, workshops that develop their existing skills and interests can help create confident and positive young people.  It can help young people develop a range of skills to ensure they can make the right decisions in a different period of their lives, assess risk and build healthy relationships. 

DRAFT Synopsis Submission

How can teenagers be encouraged to develop their personal identities through creative critical reflection?

My aim was to develop creative, positive and enjoyable workshops where young people can discuss society, culture, values, dreams and aspirations, engaging with their personal identities and role within their communities in a constructive way. 

The physical, psychological and social changes experienced by adolescents lead psychologists to regard adolescence as a critical period for self and identity development (Erikson, 1968; Marcia, 1987).  The Identi-tee workshops are designed to encourage young people to reflect on their sense of self and community, enabling them to become confident individuals and become responsible citizens who make a positive contribution to society. 

Although there has been some recent interest in the development of social identity (e.g., Bennett & Sani, 2004), most research has been conducted with children, and researchers have assumed adolescents to be equivalent to adults (Ruble et al., 2004; Sani & Bennett, 2004). 

Personal wellbeing is a non-statutory part of the National Curriculum for 11-16 years olds, including elements such as personal identity, healthy lifestyles, relationships and diversity: key to helping young people develop their identities, feel confident, embrace change, recognize and manage risk, take responsibility for themselves and contribute in a positive nature to their communities. 

Dewey (1933) talked about the value of critical reflection in education: it ‘gives attention to one’s experiences and behaviours, and meanings are interpreted from them to inform future decision-making… reflective action is an extremely useful tool for addressing social and emotional issues, especially those relating to race and culture’. 

Identi-tee explores how creative critical reflection can be used in contemporary society to help teenagers build an awareness of self and identity in relation to both their culture and their community, in turn it looks at ways for teenagers and their communities to work collectively to produce work that reflects their experiences and the places they live. 

During the workshops, young people collaborate to discuss themselves, their relationship, their society and their environment, and how all these components affect sense of self.  The key themes of personal wellbeing are developed and explored through creativity and reflection:

CREATIVITY Producing artefacts, experimenting with ideas, materials, tools and techniques, taking risks and learning from mistakes.

REFLECTION Exploring the visual, tactile and other sensory qualities of their own and others’ work, identifying how values and meanings are conveyed, developing views and expressing reasoned judgment, analysing and reflecting on their work and the work of others.

(The results of the above interactions have been noted in my blog and can be seen in my exhibition).

I hope that these workshops could lead to developments in the field of personal identity in adolescences, its importance, and change it from a non-statutory component of the national curriculum, leading to widespread use of the workshops in schools and youth groups.

Identi-tee is on going, there are further workshops in 2012, using drama, singing and dance to aid critical reflection, as well as workshops on other key topics, such as relationships or diversity. 

During my research I have become extremely passionate about helping young people who have suffered homelessness.  Homelessness poses a real risk to identity, the social stigma and negative status associated with being homeless combined with 'hearthlessness', leads to a lack of attachment to and identification with temporary accommodation.  Emotional attachment to, and identification with, places is key to psychological health. Feelings of isolation, rejection and alienation is extremely common with homeless people, these in turn can lead to psychological problems in relation to identity.  Another key issue is having somewhere 'safe' for emotions and thoughts, without this 'psychological space' a person can become emotionally withdrawn and lock emotions away.  I feel there is room to investigate this using a variety of exercises developed from my findings to date. 

My exhibition has been inspired by the Fluxus movement.   Maciunas defined Fluxus products as ‘work that would occur as a result of performance activities, or as elements of participation environments.’ This resonates with what I am trying to represent; I have filled drawers with objects that represent the different workshop exercises involved in Identi-tee, reminiscent of the Fluxkits in which Maciunas collected performance-related cards, games, and ideas.

October 2011

Time is really running out, there are literally only 5 weeks left till the exhibition!

Firstly exhibition planning, luckily everyone seems to have suddenly woken up to what is involved and has got engaged.  This has made a dramatic difference, immediately we have got more sponsors, actually money as well as goods.  The layout is seriously underway, the branding and graphics are in place, and shortly I will be able to start the PR campaign.  The website is getting there slowly, it's such hard work with so many opinions to consider.  The viral is ready though, and the facebook volunteers are doing a great job. 

Now for my project, I am finding it really hard to write down everything I have found out from testing my artefacts, the workshops, with a variety of audiences, from different backgrounds and with different age groups.  I think this is partly due to the emotional attachment I have to my project and the emotional reactions I have had to the young people I have met and their stories.  Although I really feel that what I am doing is helping the young people involved, I also feel slightly uncomfortable sharing their stories for my Masters.  I'm not sure I prepared myself for the realities of working with young people from backgrounds so different to my own.  The reason this project is so important to me is because of my personal identity journey.  Growing up in a totally white middle class area, going to a very conservative private school and my parents almost denying their background to ensure that as a family we fitted in.  I do not and never have felt English, but I can not say I am Iranian, as I know almost nothing about that culture.  I grew up feeling confused and lacking confidence in my own abilities, and only through a period of critical reflection have I grown into a more confident adult.  This period of reflection included using sketching to express myself.  A lot of my sketches relate to appearance, I think this is because as a fair skinned Iranian, my identity was even more blurred.  I start my workshops with the image of myself looking in the mirror and a featureless face staring back at me; I use this to help explain to the young people that I really didn't know who I was and explain how we will begin the process of finding out what's really important to them and how they can build on this.

There is so much more I need to do with these workshops and with the young people in my area.  Firstly the fact that the size of the groups really nearly needs to be reduced, to ensure that I can fully engage and support with each individual, and also to slightly change the group dynamics in some groups that do not particularly lend to honest and frank discussions.  I want to really build long term relationships where I can help mentor and develop these teenagers, and slowly incorporate other creative members of the community to help them with their journeys.  I really underestimated how long I would need with the groups, not just in one session, but how many repeated sessions would be  needed.  This makes me more convinced than ever that the best time to work through these issues would be at school during weekly sessions, in a period normally set aside for General Studies or Personal and Social Education. 

On a more positive note I am extremely pleased with the workshops that I have done and the creative critical reflection of the teenagers involved.  It has been difficult to record everything as a number of the young people involved can not be photographed or identified due to their complex family histories.  But I hope that I have managed to capture the most important moments and reflective periods by working with tools such as post it notes and worksheets.

I feel very proud of myself for stepping out of my comfort zone to work with young people without training and in an area where I knew that a larger percentage of the teenagers would have had difficult situations at home.  I did not have previous experience in running workshops or working with young people, yet I feel I have managed to successfully engage with a number of young people and have helped them produce T-shirts that represent a variety of important elements, such as:
Personal Identities
Relationships
Diversity
Values
Aspirations
This is done through the use of critical reflection, and a variety skills and processes.  Some of these skills are practical, such as sewing, others are more theoretical, processes that open natural doors, different in each individual, allowing them to develop more complex ideas.  Some young people do not take this step, but they all learn new practical skills, which I hope in time will benefit them.  I have been surprised by the number of teenagers that did not know how to sew, something I learned at an extremely young age, how to thread a needle and tie a knot in the thread was totally new to a lot of them.

I think my project still has a long way to go, the workshops will constantly evolve, and often evolve during the workshop itself depending on the young people involved.  I also hope in the new year to develop the music and drama based workshops. 

Submission - Last term!

Your research question:

How can young people be encouraged to develop their personal identities through creative critical reflection?

A progress summary (650 maximum):

Firstly I am very pleased with the momentum I have kept over the summer.  As I didn’t break for 2 weeks until the end of September, I have been able to power through my work during August and the start of September.

August saw a further 2 or 3 iterations of my workshop with feedback from young people, youth group leaders and teachers.  The process is a very fluid one, and in fact each workshop differs greatly because of the young people involved.  Sometimes I find an activity isn't really working and so I just move onto to the next, each group has an extremely different dynamic.

A very big event over the summer was the London Riots.  This has really helped bring attention to what my project is about, engaging with young people to help them understand the decisions they can make in their own lives, what they really want, and how they can achieve it.  There has been some interesting research over the month on why this happened, who was involved, and how they feel.  I have been observing everything unfold and taking from the events what learnings I can.  I think this has helped me secure 3 further workshops with the Girl Guides.It's strange but I really feel that this period of unrest has helped open doors, gatekeepers now seem more intereested in what I am trying to do.  I am not sure why, whether it's because they have complete a certain quota of activities with young people to show that they are engaging with the community, I don't know...

I now have a bank of information collated during the workshops, this details what young people want for themselves, what they love, how they feel about their communities and societies and how the process of creative reflection has really helped them develop their personal identities, with a very visual finally, the Identi-tee.

I have started to prepare my final synopsis, it's a working document, I was initially very worried about how I could write up so much of my hard work in so few words, but you can see a summary of what I have so far, below, also not sure how much it needs to explain what I did and why, or my findings?  I have printed my blog book from last year, and so will be well prepared when I need to print this years record as my reflective journal. I can bring this to the next tutorial, I understand there are concerns about printed reflective journals, so would love your feedback on this when you see what I have from the first year of the course.

WHAT

By developing creative, positive and enjoyable workshops, young people can discuss society, culture, values, hopes, dreams and aspirations and engage with their personal identities and communities in a constructive way.

WHY

The physical, psychological and social changes experienced by adolescents are such that psychologists generally regard adolescence as a critical period for self and identity development (Erikson, 1968; Marcia, 1987). These workshops could encourage young people to be confident individuals, enjoy learning, progress, achieve, and become responsible citizens who make a positive contribution to society. They could also be used to help reduce the youth gang culture mentality that can evolve from family breakdown (which leads to crisis in cultural and personal identity). The looting in the UK in the summer of 2011 was a very real and graphic demonstration of the number of young people who are currently in crisis within our communities.

Personal wellbeing is currently a non-statutory part of the National Curriculum for 11-16 years olds, it includes elements such as personal identities, healthy lifestyles, relationships and diversity. These are key to helping young people develop their personal identities, to feel confident, embrace change, recognize and manage risk, take responsibility for themselves and contribute in a positive nature to their communities. We need to ensure that all young people in our society get the help and guidance they need to develop their personal wellbeing.

We must also consider that many students’ cultural, ethnic, linguistic, racial and social class backgrounds differ from their homogeneous teaching population (mostly white, female, and middle class), young people need to be provided with relevant social and cultural realities (Howard, 2003) to give them the tools to deal with the physical, psychological and social changes they are experiencing.

Dewey (1933) talked about the value of reflection in education: critical reflection ‘gives attention to one’s experiences and behaviours, and meanings are interpreted from them to inform future decision-making. Once cognitive processing is complete, reflective action is an extremely useful tool for addressing social and emotional issues, especially those relating to race and culture.

HOW

During the workshops, young people collaborate to discuss themselves, their relationship, their society and their environment, and how all these components affect sense of self. The key themes of personal wellbeing are developed and explored through creativity and reflection:

CREATIVITY Producing artefacts, experimenting with ideas, materials,

tools and techniques, taking risks and learning from mistakes.

REFLECTION Exploring the visual, tactile and other sensory qualities of

their own and others’ work, identifying how values and meanings are

conveyed, developing views and expressing reasoned judgment, analyzing

and reflecting on their work and the work of others.

IF

These workshops could lead to developments in the field of personal identity in adolescences, its importance, and change it from a non-statutory component of the national curriculum, which could lead to widespread use of the workshops in schools and youth groups.

Next Steps

I still have 3 more sessions booked in to carry out workshops with the Girl Guides in October, so there may be further iterations of the workshops during this time and obviously there will be further findings.

I have also been thinking about ways to dimensionalise the workshop for the purposes of the final exhibition, and will need to formalise these further, but I hope to demonstrate a variety of exercises carried out and the responses from the young people to these.

I will need to print my blog book for this year (2011 January to date).

I will keep trying get sponsorship (have had some very positive chats with an advertising agency about getting some booze for the private view) for the exhibition and continue with daily twitter and facebook updates, as well as develop relationships with appropriate PR contacts.

Your bibliography and resource list.: 

 http://madsjourney.blogspot.com/search/label/References

Your role in the Degree Show project and your input to date (40 words max):

-       Co-lead role in the marketing team, preparing the marketing/PR plan with Bushra, viral idea, organising meetings and distributing tasks

-       weekly news coverage report

-       website framework

-       set up the twitter and facebook accounts, (there is now a team of helpers updating these with me)

-       built a database of PR contacts for the 6 week PR campaign prior to the exhibition, and have already discussed our exhibition with the Guardian’s Alex Needham

-       secured over £3000 worth of advertising with Creative Review (with the help of the Central Illustration Agency), which will run for 6 weeks before the exhibition and will be designed by the graphic designers Staziker Jones.

-       actively taken part in all group meetings

-       continuing to seek further exhibition sponsors

Musical Theatre Workshops - stop or keep trying

I am at the point now where I really need to decide about whether I should continue trying to get my musical theatre workshops underway or concentrate on my Identi-tee craft based workshops, I have had a lot of feedback on these from young people and those working with young people.  I have come up with numerous new exercises to help the young people really think about who they are and what that means.  I think I have to realise that this project is going to go past the end of my Masters course.  I think in the new year I could start working with a friend who is an actress who has expressed an interest in my project, and build those workshops up more slowly. 

August 2011

Firstly I am very pleased with the momentum I have kept over the summer.  As I am not breaking for 2 weeks until the end of September, I have been able to power through my work during August.

I have started to prepare my final synopsis, it's a working document, that has started life in a what, why, how, if template, and I have been tinkering and adding to it throughout the month, adding in interesting quotes and relevant citations. I was initially very worried about how I could write up so much of my hard work in so few words, but it's worked out a lot easier than I has initially thought.

This month has seen a further 2 or 3 iterations of my craft-based workshop with feedback from young people, youth group leaders and teachers.  The process is a very fluid one, and in fact each workshop differs great because of the young people involved.  Sometimes I find an activity isn't really working and so I just move onto to the next, each group has an extremely different dynamic. 

A very big event during this month has been the London Riots.  This has really helped bring attention to what my project is about, engaging with young people to help them understand the decision they can make in their own lives, what they really want, and how they can achieve it.  There has been some interesting research over the month on why this happened, who was involved, and how they feel.  I have been observing everything unfold and taking from the events what learnings I can. The main difference this event has caused for my project has been that doors have been opening over the summer, that had previously been quite difficult to get past.  I really feel this is to do with the increased awareness across the country of young people, their needs and how they feel about their communities. 

Exhibition planning is going well, the marketing viral is well underway now, as is the website, facebook group and twitter account.  It has been hard work, pulling everyone together, but I think we have come up with some great ideas, just need to get some sponsors now!  I managed to secure us over £3000 worth of advertising in Creative Review, by contacting a number of people.  Eventually Ben at the Central Illustration Agency agreed to give us 6 weeks of their advertising space, and to lend up their graphic designers Staziker Jones also, which is so amazingly generous.  I have continued to mine all my contacts to see if I can get any other funding or perhaps some refreshments for the private view.

Overall I feel things are going extremely well in my project and that things will get there with the exhibition, it's just a shame it's the same people doing all the leg work.

My music theatre workshops, have not progressed as I had hoped, this has been a combination of my personal lack of experience and contacts in this field,  as well as hard to approach gatekeeper, but probably mostly the amount of time I have been spending on the exhibition and my craft-based workshops. 

July 2011

July has been a busy month, one where my responsibilities on the marketing team for the exhibition have solidified. I have been contacting as many people and groups as I could to find a way of getting my workshops well and truly underway in a more structured group environment.  I have also been thinking about how I will communicate clearly and effectively what I have done, why and what new knowledge I have found out in the field in which I have been working in.

I have started liaising with the guides to carry out my workshops with them.  I have also carried out workshops with some young people in Dubai, and therefore have another few iterations of the workshop exercises, and even the title has changed to Identi-tee.  I was also asked to present my ideas to a homeless charity as they are looking for creative ways to help young people engage with their health. 

I do feel this is a really key time for my project and momentum is gathering, for the exhibition and my workshops, as well as all the information I am gathering from the workshops, which at the moment I am logging here, and the feedback means changes need to be made before the next workshops.

I have also been working hard on ideas for a viral for the exhibition and we now have a great plan pulled together.  Obviously the amount of work needed to pull off a great exhibition is dawning on the group slowly.  But hopefully it will dawn quick enough, there is a lot to do, and the problems with the sponsorship team no longer wanting to actually look after sponsorship is extremely worrying.  Although each person has been allocated a contact/company to contact regarding sponsorship or support, this isn't moving very quickly.  I have suggested a number of fundraising ideas to the group, which were not taken up, there was a bit of confusion as to the differences between fundraising and sponsorship, and it was a discussion I did not have the energy to get involve in.  There are definitely some real issues that arise from differences in culture and language barriers.

I hope by the end of August to have completed 2 more workshops and iterated the workshop plans even further.  As well as having completed a lot of the academic reading I am working through, which I hope will help me present my findings in context. 

June 2011 - Last tutorial of the Summer Term

We've just had our last tutorial!  I felt like I was in a good place, as I presented my workshop ideas, updating the group on my interactions with different groups in my area, and went through my time plan for the summer break.

I discussed my worry that I hadn't yet actually carried out any workshops, and how daunting the whole experience was, although I do feel a lot better prepared since my workshop with Simon Mole.  But teenagers are scary, they are bigger than me for starters, they are loud, and hard to pin down!  The advice was basically to get on with it, which I will as I want to start back next term in the best position I can be in. 

We discussed my artefacts, and whether they were the processes I have gone through to get to this point, the workshop exercises themselves, or the t-shirts made by the respondents.  Obviously they are not the t-shirts, as I can't be judged on something other's have created.  Next I wondered about how best then I could dimensionalize the workshops for the purposes of the exhibition... luckily I have a few ideas brewing...

I was also concerned about presenting the diary, there have been numerous comments over the last few months about the preference to a hand written journal over a blog printed out.  Which I feel is a real shame, I see my blog as a very real and accurate log of my entire journey through MADS, and yes I do have a sketch book full of ideas, but it is also full of flyers I found interesting and articles I have read, which are not really needed in full. I really hope that as I have put actual written notes from my sketchbook into my blog this will be considered as a good way of combining the two. Richard said that I really must ensure that the relationship between the information gathering and reflective passages does not become disjointed. 

I have decided to use this entry as a monthly reflection also, as I seem to be flowing quite well here.  This month has yet again pushed me out of my comfort zone, meeting a lot of new people, young and old, and really having to sell myself and my workshop idea.  I have also had to take on a lot of responsibilities as part of the marketing team for the exhibition.  I have helped write a plan on how to promote the exhibition, prepared a huge PR contacts list, and really feel I am contributing to the team. 

I really hope over the summer period that my project moves into its final phase and that the workshops, and the exercises within then develop through the iterations from the young people, to create something that really helps them understand themselves better and have some positive experiences.

Then I can come back in the new term and start planning a way of dimensionalising the whole process for the final exhibition, and I have to keep remembering it's all about communication... I need to think about it being a sensory experience, and not rely on a high level of interaction or technology.  Clarity is the key, less can be more, it's all about a narrative!

I would like to work on the 650 synopsis too over the break as I can imagine it will be a process that is quite fiddly and time-consuming.  It must show and explain the genuine new knowledge that I have created in the subject area as well as for my own personal development.  The HOW will be very important, and the WHAT and WHY are kind of looking from the opposite direction now, with my conclusion hopefully fulfilling my IF.

The artefacts must be a means to an end, not the end itself, the vehicle for the research I guess.  The only problem I may have is how I actually display the evolution of my workshops in response to feedback.

I do not see the bibliography being an issue as I have been updating this regularly, although I haven't for the last few weeks, but will next week when I have some time, need to add in a few exhibitions I have been to lately, as well as the great articles I have read on teenagers and their sense of self, which have all shown that the psychology models used for them are just those of adults, there is a lot of research and numerous theories for children, but adolescents seem to have been ignored strangely enough. Surely, that teenage years are the most complex as far as personal identity is concerned!

I am still trying to get the music and theatre workshops underway too, I have been contacting a number of people, as well as existing groups, to see if I can observe the work they currently do, to see if I can work with some existing programs.  The reason I would like to also get these underway and test them with the young people in my local area is that I feel young people should have access to activities that excite them, and through this we can really work on the key themes of identity and commmunity.  They are difficult topics, and through something young people are passionate about, I feel we can really investigate them. 

May 2011

During this month I have carried a lot of Desk research on Identity, culture, communities, sense of self.  I have worked on idea and question for workshops to develop these ideas with young people.  


I have progressed with my artefacts using the Graffi-tee project.  Which I have now carried out myself and with 2 young people.  


I am currently looking at re-wording my research question to:


How can teenagers be encouraged to build their awareness of and develop their own identities and their cultural identities through the use of crafting?


I sort ethical advise from a psychologist at this point as I was worried about asking young people, some of which will not have a support unit, to delve into such painful issues, I got some advice about perhaps developing a more positive slant to my questions and exercises, this is when I started concentrating more on the hopes, dreams and aspirations side of things.  To find a place to meet young people I have contacted a number of support groups, schools and youth clubs in my area.  


I have also thought about a number of ways to display my work visually at the final exhibition.  I also read some interesting articles about ways to make the most of your exhibition and some of the pitfalls that students experience.  I also went to a number of interesting exhibitions to get inspiration.  I have also started collecting a list of companies that sponsor the kind of small exhibition I go to, to use for the exhibition team, when we meet.  


Something I was extremely excited about this month is the relationship between identity and homelessness, this is something I really want to develop over the summer break, but without contacts in this area, I do not feel I can solely concentrate on homeless young people, and therefore at the moment will continue to look at young people as a whole.  

April 2011

This month had its ups and downs, I am extremely proud of my progress and my Diary of a Somebody piece and my role in the exhibition planning.  However there was some quite negative but extremely unhelpful, undirected feedback on our year from the external examiners, which was obviously extremely disappointing.  I really found that writing a synopsis of my progress and what my diary represents to me has really helped me develop and streamline my question and research.

My project has developed further along the lines of Identity, which is something I have always been interested in.  I am now looking more at how crafting can help people build and understand their identity further.  I have also been thinking about helping young people develop their hopes, dreams and aspirations.

I have held a number of brainstorms with friends, family and colleagues, to understand further how they see themselves and what identity means to them, what they feel about their communities and the cultures they associate with.  It was interesting to see that everyone feels different yet the reasons they feel different are so similar.

This month I developed my identity mind maps, and started on the Graffi-tee project.  I haven't yet changed my question, but I can see now that I want to work with young people and work on crafting projects to help them understand themselves better and the communities they live in.

March 2011

This month I have had the pleasure of meeting a number of amazing creatives, that have helped me with my project, there have been some great local projects to get involved in, as well as the planning of the diary of a somebody project, I have also received some helpful feedback from my peers.  


Currently my research question stands at:


How can traditional practices and culture be maintained with the use crafting with contemporary society?


There were a couple of moments where communication between myself and the tutors was perhaps not at 
its best, however I hope these have now been ironed out.  


I have really enjoyed my work on the Diary of a Somebody project and the exhibition and am looking 
forward to seeing the finished article.   It has made me really realise how difficult the planning of the main 
exhibition will be.  This is only a very small group of people to organise compared to the real thing 
and Rachel and I are already struggling to get people to each volunteer for a very small role!


I was lucky enough to attend a very inspiring Storytelling demonstration at the British Museum, which 
has given me further ideas about creativity, communication and performance.  


The greatest piece of advice this month was definitely to use feedback from users to get gatekeepers 
onside, which i will try to remember!

February 2011

This month started with peer feedback from my tutorial group.  My question at th beginning of the month was:

How can traditional practices and culture be maintained with the use of crafting in contemporary society?

My journey of learning and understanding different crafting skills from designer makers and enthusiasts hasdeveloped into filming designer/makers and enthusiasts.  As well as people who are just getting involved with crafts for the first time.  

I have continued to research into new materials or materials that can be used in unusual innovative ways to help crafting be seen in a different light. I have found some wonderful materials, but as yet I haven't thought of how these can be sued in my kits. 

I would still like to encourage groups of friends, families and communities to get more involved in activities together, to encourage storytelling and the diffusion of knowledge and skills across generations. My thoughts did develop a little with regard to using craft as a way of empowering communities to become more engaged in decisions about their local environment.  I was amde aware from one of my films, that new mums would really relish a scheme that allowed them to learn new creative skills, rather than only coming together to concentrate on baby-related issues.  There are a number of artists that already specialise in participatory arts installations in communities that I could contact.  However I feel there are already a lot of schemes that do this, and so I do not feel this would be original enough for a Masters project. 

 

Thinking about my artefact, I am still concentrating on a type of kit and instructions that combine:

Fun,Games, Crafting, New skill, Re-using, Communication, Working together, New materials, Recycling

I have always been interested in identity, the mental barriers we put in place of our own development
and creativity, and the way we amplify negativity in comparison to positive feedback and encouragement.  So I have been considering how these kits could help people further understand themselves and encourage creativity and develop their imagination.  

I have also been totally inspired by the 2 exhibitions I went to at the Design Museum, for different reasons and in different ways.  The Threads of Feeling exhibition at the Foundling Museum was great in that it helped me think further about the idea that these kits could help people with identity and creative development. There were projects that explored the relationship between crafting, the charity and vulnerable young people. I would love for my artefacts to be used to help vulnerable people, to get them to explore who they are and where they fit. This led me to think about Graffi-tee, a project where the kit contained things to help individuals create a T-Shirt that represented who they really were.  

I feel very positive about my progress this month, and I hope to develop on my ideas through March. 

January 2011

New Year, final year of my Masters.  Really need to ensure I  keep up all the momentum from the last few months, as this will only get hard.  I need to create time and space for my project.  It must now become its own lifesource.  

This month I have enjoyed completing my Life Beyond a Box project, however was slightly disappointed in the first tutorial when others had not done the project, perhaps would have been better in this instance to mix up the groups a bit, so we could discuss everyone's.  

My project has progressed in another direction slightly now in that I have also been thinking about games that groups could create from things they find around the hosue that allow them to interact together, the games would obviously teach different crafting skills in the initial creation stages and then just be great fun to play.  

My session with the ladies at the Craft Council Research Centre have been very productive and I would like to go there as many times as is possible, its a great resource.  

I completed another version of my pro forma as did the others in my group and we have given feedback to each other on these.  I feel mine is pretty detailed and robust now. My question currently is:

How can traditional practices and culture be maintained with the use of crafting in contemporary society?

Feedback from the tutorial was very useful although I do feel I was being led to create more of an experience in the community, in parks etc, whereas I feel the kits I want to create will have a similar but smaller effect.  But the feedback did lead me to think about a new possible use for my kit.  I was thinking when studios have their open days/evenings, there are always a lot of children around with not much to do.  It would be great if they (and their parents) could bring in old items to reuse and recycle and the designer makers in the studios give them ideas of what is possible and teach them some basic crafting skills, so that families can participate together to create something new.  I am sure the designer makers also have some waste materials the families could utilise.  

As a group we have started to discuss the exhibition quite a lot on our facebook group, although we feel rather naughty, as it has been reiterated a number of times that starting the process too early is not recommended as once we are joined with the full timers everything can change!  I think we all have very high standards and some great ideas about what we would like to achieve and so it is of course worrying to think a lot of this will be in someone else's hands.  I personally have never had an exhibition before and I really want this to be amazing as it will probably be the only time in my life I am involved in something like this.  

Whilst thinking about the exhibition I have also come a number of exciting ways of displaying my research process and artefact iteration.  Firstly, video, I would like to use video ethnography in my research and have a film up in my exhibition.  I would also like to use photography and personal items from those that have been involved in my project to make a giant charm bracelet or patchwork quilt.  

I really hope the ethnography will give me key insights which I can then use to evolve my artefacts.  

I feel I have been very productive preparing for the ethnographic interviews, understanding existing strategies for crafting in this country and community efforts that are already taking place.   I hope to get more involved in some of the existing Craft Council schemes and see what I can learn from these.

Christmas Reflection

A very productive month with over 2 weeks off work!  This has allowed me to work and develop my ideas for the Life Beyond a Box project, complete all my analysis on my 250 questionnaire repsonses, build my relationship with the girls at Craft Central and prepare my questions for the team at the Craft Council Research Centre.  I have also continued to chase other contacts who I would like to meet/interview. 

I feel my ideas are definitely coming together, I feel very positive about the progress I am making, and am looking forward to the new year.  

The girls at Craft Central have been so helpful and positive and I really hope that relationship continues in the New Year as I will need their help to get access to the designer makers and interns.  Each week I have been setting myself a number of tasks to complete and have really tried to stick to this.  I feel that the pace of my project has gone up a notch, but really needs to go up again, I know that the research phase needs to end now.  The artefact testing must take more of my time now, I need to be less cautious about the whole process.  

I know have a great bank of contacts for the artefact testing, people I  hope that will really give me great feedback to stretch me. 

I have felt lately that there has been a lot of form filling and project work during a period where we need to be pressing ahead with our personal projects.  Over the last year I have really enjoyed the briefs that have been set, especially the ones that allowed us to work as a group.  I wish there had been more, but I dont think this was the time. I feel that valuable time over the Christmas period was spent on something that did help me progress, but as my momentum was already pretty good I think I was already drawing the same conclusions.  

This month I have been asking myself some of the following:

What can be learned from historical craft ideologies and philosophies?
Why is there a lack of understanding regarding the principles of craft?
What is the value of craft to the development of culture?

My area of research has not changed, it obviously develops and evolves the more I find out, as certain questions are clarified.

I have been lucky enough to talk to some really helpful people, especially at Craft Central.   They have agreed to let me observe more workshops and meet their interns.

I am also booked in to visit the Craft Council to use their research centre in the first 2 weeks in January.

The survey was sent out and I am getting some great replies, a lot more than expected and I fear I may have to wait until the Christmas break to work through them.  This month I feel there has been a real step up in the pace of my project, things are falling into place very nicely.

I have spent more time with designer makers, they have all been extremely positive about my project.  I feel this is definitely the right project for me and the my question iteration is jumping around a lot less.  At the moment my question is:


How can traditional practices and values be maintained by combining crafting with contemporary culture?

This month we have also had a project, 'Life in a box' which is extremely interesting, it has definitely helped most of the group collect their thoughts and ideas together.

The first month back at university is now over, we have had a tutorial, in which I was told to define the different components of my question, which at the moment stands at:

How can traditional crafting skills survive in the digital age?

Through the tutorial, the peer-to-peer feedback and my research I have looked at the possibility of changing my question to:

How can an appreciation of craft skills become the new social network?

I feel the importance of community, interaction, learning and gaining confidence has meant my question has evolved again.  I want my kits to encourage this kind of interaction between families and friends.  I want to take advantage of the current climate, the trend towards being thrifty, creative, need for personal face-to--face interaction.  I have also been thinking about recycling and re-using, and how this element can be incorporated into my project.  

I will need to research consumer needs and wants to really produce a kit that resonates with people.  

During our Wednesday evenings we have also explored 'Brand Me vs. the Reflective Practitioner'.  My thoughts are that life is about changes, you have to change, get feedback and evolve to survive.  I feel it is very important to be authentic and understand what your core values are.  This MADS journey is re-confirming these beliefs.  

My core values have led me to push my question towards bringing families and friends together in a creative way, in a hope that they utilise the age-old practice of storytelling.  Through the workshops I have attended and the designers I have met researching for my MADS question I have experienced first-hand wonderful stories about how and why people have got involved in different pursuits and what they have learnt. 

We have been asked to consider where this mastery will position us at the conclusion of the course.  This needs to be totally aligned and in sync with our core values to ensure our project take us where we want to be.  Below is a graphical representation of my 'IF'.

My research this month has looked into the words that people associate with crafts and I hope that my project will create like, exclusive, valuable, desirable.  From a craft council research paper I noted some key motivations of buying craft:

"Beautiful objects appeal to me"

"Craft makes a unique gift"

"I admire the human skill involved"

"I want to keep craft alive"

"I like to have beautiful objects in my home"

"It means I own something nobody else has"

I would like people to feel that they too can create items that they feel this way about.  The same report also discussed the increasing priorities for consumers.  Firstly reducing wasteful consumption, this is something I am also very passionate about, and through this month I have been thinking more about how I can incorporate it into my project.  Therefore I hope that I can use the re-use and recycle element in my project by including getting people to use things around the house they no longer need.  I was thinking the 'kits' I design could include a list of things to scavenger, instructions and then a few elements, probably the newer materials, and that the combination of these can lead groups to communicate and create together. 

The second priority for consumers is that they are looking for more personal, unique and ethical routes for consuming objects.  This obviously aligns with my make-it-yourself and customise it ideas.  

Practical skills give consumers a sense of control, achievement and resourcefulness, and this will encourage a trend for participating in craft.  There has been an increase in the popularity of craft activities at festivals, workshops and make-your-kits developed by designer makers.  This ties in with my project in that my first idea, the LED light was designed to be used at festivals and parties, allowing people to make with friends, encourage people to come together, and customise.  

So at the end of this month I see my project being about a variety of crafting skills, survival (passing down information, relationships and communication), and the environment (reuse, recycle).  

Make, Mend, Be Thrifty

I have had a wonderful month this month for inspiration.  I have gone to some amazing exhibitions and have seen and spoken to a huge variety of real crafts people.  I have also been involved in workshops, observed and spoken with a number of people who enjoy being involved in designing and making their own clothes, jewellery and general arts. 

My ideas on my project have jumped about a bit, I know that my main area of research is still craft and its affect on society.  I have been concentrating on combining the old and the new to create products that allow consumers to interact together in a way reminiscent of times gone by.  

 There's currently a real movement to reuse, recycle, make, mend and be thrifty.  From my online research using google insights and trends, there have been increased searches for how to sew, knit and make.  

People are also looking for classes to learn these traditional skills.  

Popular programs on television like the BBC's Mastercrafts and Channel 4's Kirsty's Homemade Home have returned for further series's after viewers started a variety of campaigns on social networking sites.  

My internet research led me to briefing consider my question to be more connected to the internet than I now feel it needs be.  

My research has show a real trend to spend time with friends and family, save money, customise, be creative, all things that are expected during periods of financial strife.  

I then broke my question down in the following way, to really think further about the key components:

The creative engineering lecture I went to also really helped me think about the obvious in a more coherent way.  All this led to a great thought suddenly in the middle of the night, which was basically a way of knitting or weaving using LED tape, making a fun, innovative, portable lighting kit for camping, garden parties, picnics or festivals.  

LED tape is virtually maintenance free, high energy efficiency, longer lifespan, waterproof, can be cut, eco-friendly, intensely bright, portable, can be joined.  

The kit would be for families and friends to make together as a fun, creative, unique and eco-friendly experience. 

We have been asked to complete a return from summer checklist and I there here is a best place as any to go through this.  

In no more than one sentence for each, outline three key achievements that have emerged as a result of your project research and testing over the past three months. 

I have learnt new skills

I have found a way to combine the new and the old

Created my first artefacts

How many times have you tested your artefact?

I have tested my artefact a few times now, with people in the crafting industry and also a lecturer of product design as well as a lecturer in the narrative environments.  

In no more than two sentences for each, describe any significant problems that you have encountered and explain ho you overcame them.  

I have struggled to come up with an idea, it is just a case of finding out about new materials and knowing a lost skill that could be used to create a new product.  

In one sentence define the most important thing that you have learnt so far.  

You can't force creativity

List your priorities for the next month

Second iteration of artefact

Thorough testing

How do these priorities inform your need to prepare for the Interim Artefact Exhibition to be held on 20 Ocotber?

I would like to have something substantial to show at the exhibition to make the most of all the possible feedback I can get from fellow students and course tutors.  I have a lot going on in the my head at the moment and although a lot of it is here in my blog I feel more needs to be recorded and I need to summarise and display everything at my exhibition to ensure the whole story so far is understood. 

Summer study period reflection entry

We have already had 2 months off for the summer, and this is one of the hardest times in the course apparently.  I can see the maintaining momentum could be an issue.  I started the summer with only a vague idea of what I wanted to do for my project.  I kept coming up with different areas of research and numerous questions.  I have therefore spent most of the summer just reading about each of the different topics, just to learn enough to know what I actually want to do.  

I started the summer looking at ways of combining new materials, technologies and processes with the older methods and skills.  

In July I went to some really great, free workshops at the Camden Arts Centre.  The workshops were made up of people who had given their time freely to discuss their past times and pass on their skills.  It was wonderful to be surrounded by passionate creative people, the atmosphere was wonderful and this really helped me decide that my research theme was most definitely going to be craft and the community. 

In August I was back to bouncing between the idea of producing something with smart materials that used old crafting skills.  But slowly my ideas came together and I began to realise that I could do this and include a community element as well.  

I am now at the point where I am considering creating a product that helps communities, families, groups of friends interact together, learn new skills and learn more about smart materials.  I think the perfect example of this is what Elena Corchero is doing with lost values.  Elena 'inspires a future where design is environmental and emotional yet smart and playful'. She has combined smart materials so simply with ethical and locally manufactured items.  Her values are wonderful, and I have been truly inspired by her business and her beautiful products. 

How do you think creativity can make the world a better place?

My idea of a better world would be one where everyone is committed to making tangible local and global changes. There would be a greater collective awareness and synergy in every community. We would all act responsibly and with integrity, especially when tackling the major world issues of climate change and over-population. I believe there are creative solutions to global, social and humanitarian crises, and that creativity is key to positive change on a global scale.

I would define creativity as a mental process, the use of the imagination or original ideas. I think the use of the imagination creates original ideas leading to advances and improvements in a huge variety of sectors, professions and social groups. Using our imagination allows us to be resourceful, and can help us develop our futures and ourselves. Using our imaginations – being creative is like a 6th sense; we can engage with our intuition and subconscious insights to develop new concepts as well as our feelings.

Most people when they initially hear the world creativity associate it with the arts, producing work that is predominantly appreciated for its beauty or an emotional level. The arts are very important in a variety of communities.

Then there is the association with creative, design-based industries; but creativity is the key to innovation, it’s necessary in engineering, sciences, architecture and business. The use of creativity in these areas can lead to an infinite number of scientific advances, and the development of new or modified products, services and systems.

Creativity can lead to the improvement of farming efficiencies in developing countries, designing places for shelter, health and education. In Central Asia there are projects involving solar thermal collectors for water and space heating, made from basic materials such as wood, horsehair, and black paint rather than high quality manufactured collectors.

Creativity helps inspire and motivate, businesses are increasingly valuing creative skills more and more. In this current economic many believe creativity is what will help differentiate organizations and allow them to regain their market share. Small budgets have always inspired innovation and so the current economic situation opens up options for all creative thinkers, businessmen and marketers. Recession can prompt unusual levels of creativity and I would like to be a part of that.