Designer, illustrator, art director, set designer, researcher.
My starting point was to illustrate the graphics and exterior signage of Chinese takeaways in England, I found an interest in these aesthetics, how they form and where they originate or take influence from. I was initially frustrated because I felt that reproducing the composition of a takeaway exterior in an illustrative form was meaningless without establishing why I felt drawn to the imagery in the first place. My expectations were that I wouldn't settle for the first idea, and I wouldn't look for the perfect answers to my initial questions, or expect a neat and tidy design. I was interested in researching, the connection between East and West cultures. This initial research spun off in all sorts of different directions, and ultimately gave the project the meaning and drive I was looking for.
My exhibited work was successful in the sense that it demonstrated my train of thought throughout the project. The physical work was born out of experimentation with materials I already had rather than purchasing new for-purpose materials that perfectly fit what I had in mind. This created a good amount of restrictions with what the final outcome could be and this way of working produced a more interesting result because I couldn't walk my usual and comfortable path of material processes that i've developed over the past few years. I was forced into a situation with limited options that I hadn't considered, new processes were born that have ultimately given to rise to more interesting ways of working. I am looking to develop the themes of the work further but need to establish what my aims are and what it is I hope to achieve. The techniques i've learnt, and the experimentation of working within the boundaries of In One Room has provided a wealth of aesthetic work that will feed into the next stage of research.
