Takeaways from X Yr Studio:
– References for criticality, vocational, employment within higher education: H Carasso, R Dearing, J Brown.
– Codification of employability into higher education
– S. Collini: ‘career relevance became a baseline requirement’
– Acknowledging that there is a tension between criticality and the commercial
– Away from ‘atomized individuals to collective practice and solidarity’
Tutorial 1 notes
Some example sketches below….
Tutorial notes 250925
– Position prior to tutorial: ‘My passport embodies colonial Legacy that I oppose. In the current climate of immigration debate in the UK, how can I use graphic communication design to enable the same realisation in others?’
– Key moment in dialogue 2 mentioned, where I realized that mirroring the practice(s) of designers in the British Library Exhibition, and my key references Jana Traboulsi, I found MY position for the first time in relation to the work. I saw that the studio practice and subversion of my document, directly changed my position(s) DUE to the practice itself. Indeed, Graphic Design as research, which in turn changed me.
– Barriers and theme of permissions discussed, paper granting permutations to do things. Interesting quote from Keshavarz reference:
‘Power is not necessarily expressed in the form of mastery or domination but is played out in the field of interactions . . . the task may reside in identifying those moments and localities in order to rearticulate them’ (Keshavarz, p. 69)
– Intention is not to make the results of this practice adversarial, rather connect using co-design, against immigration debate in the UK at the moment
– Visa system discussed, money, time, competition, jobs, geography
– ‘Love interacting’, tutor approved of interactive element
– Reference supplied: Santiago Sierra, Venice Biennale 2003, where an artist only permitted one nationality, showing passports, to the show:
– Invisibility within the passport discussed, is there a way of continuing the subversion of the passport (re immigration) in a really authentic way, research the METHODS of real passport making?
– Subtly discussed, the absence of something like the George Cross on a flag, neutering the image.
– Too obvious makes the message less impactful
– Authenticity discussed, passports looking fake
– Authentic subterfuge hard to achieve in this timeframe, but subtlety isn’t.
– Can I take a set of images and the text and just neuter them, removing an element, the sting of it. Ref protestor image from London recent immigration march, covered in far right iconography but eating at a frying food stall.
– Cold War Steve mentioned – satirical collage artist
– Is there a way of taking imagery across the press an swapping it over, or adding something that is unexpected
– Format discussed, to I stay in passports using the guilloché illustrations above, or do I break it out into different medium?
– Different ways to go – really understanding official passport making methods, what are the tools? Perforation discussed. Very obvious that it’s fake. It’s not as clean! If you don’t get to that level of detail. It could look like parody.
– There is a seriousness to it? People need to trust the document, may not believe it.
– This is a serious project, needs authenticity, but that it very hard to achieve in the time that I have
– Either I show that attempt now, or start with one method and explore?
– Stamping mentioned, real ones used but still obvious.
– What if I forget about this shape? 36pp passport, what of oui put them together in an A2 page. How would it look it all of the design is in one place. Maybe that’s where you integrate the elements. Explode it out into ONE PIECE. It could be a narrative or one image. An exhibition piece. Once it’s all big, it becomes something else, not an imitation. I becomes an AMPLIFICATION. Not imitating. It’s something to try!
– Coco Fusco reference supplied: Turista Fronterizo, immigration online boardgame…
– Interested in games? It takes away from the seriousness. This could easily become parody. What if that is intentional?
– Avoid funny or sensational tone of voice
– Is there a way of supersizing this, to lay bare the truth of this?
– Can I gut last term’s piece, and then put it together? Can I overprint?
– Sam – by folding it and all as a big poster will have an interesting effect
– What will happen with the opening up of the passport? What message will that have? Trust the making here, pull it apart again and put it back together!
– Reference supplied: Nolan
THOUGHTS ON NEXT STEPS POST TUTORIAL:
– Could this fold out into a new piece?
– Could that represent the evolution of my positions?
– Could its act as a flag of sorts? This book collaged thing?
– Make the document interactive?
– Amplify the message, what s the intention now?
WHAT IS THE LATEST POSITION OR INTENTION? HOW HAS IT CHANGED?
– How can I amplify the personal discovery of colonial legacy from the subversion of my passport, in order to share that realization with others?