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.

I have completed my installation, took a while to get th stictching right and the angle to ensure it would display well.  But finished and cant wait to hang it and see it with the rest of the boards at our exhibition next week. 

Interview - What identity means to me

The following are notes written from an interview with a friend about who they are and what identity means to them.  Through these brainstorms and interviews, I have found that most people feel slightly lost, but they could actually unite in the way that they feel, as the same issues are arising with everyone I have spoken to:

Natalie, London

Identity to me is made up of a few things formed from the 'nature vs. nurture' theory. I think it's quite complex a bit like trying to define what your soul is. But I believe the essence of my identity has always been with me (inside me) from when I was born and as I live and grow up and experience things the potential for my identity to be cultivated and matured is realised. I, therefore, think it is a mixture of nature AND nurture and a mixture of who I am from birth, which was out of my control (what sex I am, who my parents are, what my name is, where I was born, brought up etc) to who I am now through my choices (what I ware, what I eat, do, study, who I'm friends with etc). 

I think from a very young age you take and form your identity undoubtedly from your parents in what they believe and say to and about you. I certainly believe my identity is rooted originally in what my parent's believed and said about and to me and this shaped initially to some degree in how I behaved and thought but not necessarily completely as I also have a strong faith in God and for me reading the Bible and discovering what God thinks and says about me also shapes my identity. As I grow older I test my parent's beliefs and words as well as the worlds (friends, colleagues, bosses, teachers etc) and decide what I want to accept and what I need to reject. I think the words people speak over/about you are key in developing who you are and have such a strong affect, whether we know it or not, but only if you let them.

I have personally had a real struggle with my identity in terms of 'not being good enough' stemming from a few words my mother flippantly said to me as a child, not meaning to harm me, but they took root and I allowed them to fester and have lived my life trying to work hard, impress, do my best, make people like me, be a good daughter, in order to be 'good enough'. It is only now in this stage of my life that I am realising that this has held, and is holding, me back and I am trying to change my identity inside to knowing I am a confident, capable, creative woman who is more than good enough to do whatever I want to do. The people who know me know that I often change my appearance, hair style and colour frequently and I wonder if this is partly due to my creative expression but also partly to do with trying to fit in and make people like me. I was bullied a bit as a child and always clung to wanting a best friend to tie my identity to but I slowly learnt that you have to have your own identity (even if you don't know what it is yet)), be your own person, true to yourself in what you like, don't like, think, believe, want in life - an individual. You can then gather and make friends with people who share and oppose your views and complement each other, without feeling rejected or alone because you are who you are and you like it!

So many people seem to cling to the negative things said to them as a child and let it affect the rest of their lives, and are deeply wounded by people's words no matter if those people are stupid idiots who have no relation to them or not. But they are often not aware that this is having such a strong effect on them. I am only just learning now and trying to do something about it. I have created an 'I am tree' in my room by buying some blossom branches and then writing positive words on colourful paper tags and hanging them on the tree, repeating them out loud to myself as I write them and hang them up. Another thing my friend has suggested (she studies child psycho-therapy using the arts) is to look at myself in the mirror (in the eye) and say all the things I like about myself. You won't believe how hard I find this to do - I was surprised!

I now want to make it my mission to encourage people by speaking only positive words over them and cutting off negative thought patterns as soon as they start to appear in myself (harder than you think). I also want to do this through creativity (design, art, photography, poetry, crafts) as I feel there is a level of silent communication that is profound and can sink into people’s hearts and souls deeper letting people decide what they want it to mean and say to them.

Graffi-tee - My identity, planning

First draft of Diary of a Somebody installation

My Kite

Who could have thought printing booklet style, A5 onto A4 could be so hard!!  Couple of different combinations, and eventually I am there.  Tomorrow night i will prepare a sketch draft of the project installation to check it works and how it will look.  Photos to follow shortly...

I have written up the quotes I would like for my project now, just need to print and start on the pages that need to be deconstructed and start sewing the key words to them...

Hopes, dreams and aspirations...

Had another thought about a workshop in which the young people create kite's to represent their hopes, dreams and aspirations in life...inspiration came from the kite appeal...

Exhibition starts to take shape...

Graffi-tee - My identity, who am I?

Making kites for quake relief

The kites for the earth quake relief effort are going well, a number of people are getting involved across the world. 

Been thinking a lot about my project progress on holiday, slightly worried about it all, really need to find some teenagers to get involved and the studio I was hoping could help me is not quite up and running yet. Have thought about approaching the seondary school opposite my house, they specialise in sciences, so if I can come up with an idea that incorporates, technology, crafts and young people, they might let me come in and get the kids involved. 

Kumi Yamashita - Shadow Art

Amazing idea, so simple, so effective, very beautiful. 

 He uses shadows rather than light to produce wonderful installations. 

Identity brainstorm

Today I asked some people to come together to brainstorm on what identity means to them, who they are, how is that made up, and here are some of ideas that they came up with....

Respondent 1

IDENTITY =

Place of birth

Ancestors place of birth

Family/Family values

My Values/beliefs/ideals

Friends/those in the circle of trust!

Respondent 2

1) Human
2) (Western) European
3) Generation Y
3) Socialist
4) English speaker
6) Male

Respondent 3

I think it's a combination of things - ethnicity, culture, nationality, interests, etc etc

But clearly other people don't always perceive this complexity - they may only see one aspect, e.g. that I have a funny name for example.

For this reason I increasingly think of myself as having multiple identities and that I can, and must, control how I portray myself to others. Eg how I portray myself in a work context is different to how I
portray myself to my friends (and there are probably also differences between the friends from home I've known for a long time and people I have become friendly with more recently); I will also show different sides of myself to my family when I visit them in the Middle East and even my parents.  

Respondent 4

It's an issue I've thought a lot about over the last couple of years...

Identity as a "British Asian" - very conflicted. Values come from being Indian and a sense of community and ethnicity, sense of morality/ justice come from exposure to politics and way of living in a "western" country whereby issues such as gender have very different baselines. In terms of one's identity and how you resolve conflicts in being a woman with a British Indian head can be very complicated. It's hard to figure out what your identity really is and where you really belong.

Also, people tend to identify themselves with a country/ homeland. I was born here but wouldn't say that I'm English in an overly patriotic way. The place where my dad comes from used to be in India and is now in Pakistan post partition and therefore they're effectively a stateless community. I don't identify India as home and have no connection other than cultural which is a huge part of my identity.  

Respondent 5

Identity to me is something inside you already from birth (I image it as a little seed) that has all the essence, nutrients and potential energy to grow as you grow (I like to imaging it as a big tree with many flowering branches). But it is shaped from the words of what and who is around you and as you get older you need to discern what is part of your identity and what isn't (like pruning the dead or diseased bits off the tree).  

 

Received the following email...

Great idea, very inspirational, and hope to get some kids involved and make one of our own.  

We are now collecting ‘KOINOBORI’ with your words

You may have heard that over 150,000 people live in shelters after the catastrophic earthquake and tsunami on 11 March 2011. Many children have lost their parents and their smiles. There still are frequent aftershocks.

The University of Fukushima and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Fukushima City have started collecting your ‘KOINOBORIs’ which contain your wishes. KOINOBORI is a traditional carp-shaped wind sock to celebrate the national Children’s Day wishing the carp will be a dragon someday - meaning that the children will grow up healthy and strong. The entire city will be decorated with KOINOBORIs on this year’s Children’s Day on May 5^th. The collection will also be shown in the ‘Fukushima Modern Art Biennale 2012’.

We believe that this project helps to encourage traumatized children in distress and pain. Please create your own KOINOBORIs with your warmhearted words and make a difference in overcoming this disastrous situation.

 

Conditions

1.    Material should be weatherproof (e.g. cloth, nonwoven fabric, acrylic fabric, etc.)

2.    Size – W 35cm, L 75cm (including 10cm tail)

3.    We appreciate any designs. You are free to write your wishes on it.

4.    Please be aware that we cannot send back your KOINOBORI. Also, we cannot reimburse postage.

5.    Please send to:

Fukushima University

Department of Arts, painting

1 Kanayagawa

Fukushima-shi

960-1296 Fukushima

Japan

 

Please help children victims with your KOINOBORIs!

Diary of a Somebody

Having been brought up in an environment in which crafting skills were passed down through generations, I am passionate about arts, crafts and the important role they can play in society. My project looks at ways for friends, families and communities to work collectively to produce work that reflects their experiences, places they live, and helps develop a real sense of identity, in turn exploring  how crafting can be used in contemporary society to maintain traditional practices and values.

My aim is to encourage encounters between makers, local people, and different generations. These encounters can lead to extremely rich experiences and help people develop expertise, understanding, communication skills, confidence and awareness to create stronger families and communities.

Throughout the research phase of this project my ideas have continuously evolved and I have been inspired by the people I have met, places I have been and the exhibitions I have visited. I have developed relationships with members of staff at Craft Central and the Craft Council Research Centre, and designer makers from studios and incubators across the South East. Their feedback has led to the evolution of my question and iterations of my artefacts, these artefacts have then been tested in non-craft environments to help develop my theories further.

Amongst other things, I have investigated ideas relating to online crafting networks, arts-based community engagement programmes, craft kits, combinations of modern materials and traditional techniques, and craft and the slow movement. I have also filmed ethnographic studies with people working in these fields to understand why they do what they do.

Since the beginning of the course I have been maintaining a blog to record my 'MADS Journey'. The entries vary from research findings and observations, project work and feedback, to the people, places and moments that have inspired me.

This exhibition looks to illustrate those key moments of inspiration, the times where I felt like the words were jumping off the page.

Cardboard roll has been ordered and delvered, 75m is sruprisingly light and not as big as I expected!  Fingers crossed my calculations were correct. 

We had a good turn out tonight for our meeting on the Diary of a Somebody.  We re=checked measurements for the room, to cover everything in card.  We changed the ideas around the titling of the exhibition, and will use a stencil affect directly onto the cardboard.  We tried out numerous devices to stick the card to the wall and then the boards to the card.  Also did a general tidy up of the room.  The area will be prepred next Tuesday my half the cohort.  Everyone was reminded again the need to send everything to Rachel in time for the weekend. 

The identity project...

Still choosing actually what text to use in my exhibition, but have decided on a theme, inspirational words jumping off the page.  I will hand write a journal which I attach to my A2 board, and then I will cut out the words on some of the pages and sew them together, so that they hang off the board, like a waterfall of words.

Who am I? cont...

Wikipedia:

A psychological identity relates to self-image (a person's mental model of him or herself), self-esteem, and individuality. An important part of identity in psychology is gender identity, as this dictates to a significant degree how an individual views him or herself both as a person and in relation to other people, ideas and nature. In cognitive psychology, the term "identity" refers to the capacity for self-reflection and the awareness of self (Leary & Tangney 2003, p. 3).

Sociology places some explanatory weight on the concept of role-behavior. The notion of identity negotiation may arise from the learning of social roles through personal experience. Identity negotiation is a process in which a person negotiates with society at large regarding the meaning of his or her identity.

Psychologists most commonly use the term "identity" to describe personal identity, or the idiosyncratic things that make a person unique. Meanwhile, sociologists often use the term to describe social identity, or the collection of group memberships that define the individual. However, these uses are not proprietary, and each discipline may use either concept and each discipline may combine both concepts when considering a person's identity.

Identity Mind Map