MA & More

Alongside taking in all these new MA things, I still want to feel like I am becoming a professional practitioner, and get involved with things 'in the real world'...I have a studio space at Market Place Studios in Stockport, and am in the process of moving in. I feel that as a jeweller, who tends to concentrate on my individual work, being a part of many different communities is great. Learning through participation and interaction, meeting new people and sharing opinions, experiences and knowledge is the best way to enrich my practice. At the studios, there will be exhibiting, selling, teaching and networking opportunities that will aid my future career as a jeweller and maker. 

Market Place Studios, Stockport

I was lucky enough to be asked to show my work alongside the Makers Dozen at The Great Northern Contemporary Craft Fair. This year the show was held in The Old Granada Studios and what a great experience it was...I showed a extended version of the Hooks of Life, a collection I created for my degree. 

Showing with the Makers Dozen was a really good opportunity in itself, having advice from talented and successful designers, makers and artists was invaluable. For me, the publics reaction to my work is so important, and in a lot of cases triggers ideas for further collections. I address everyday topics that relate to everyday women, so I love to see people getting involved in conversation about their own thoughts and opinions on traditional  female roles. 

Other exhibitors were really supportive. I am an emerging maker and I know that the skills I have acquired over the last few years at Uni are in many ways self taught, and may perhaps not be the most efficient!...so any technical tips are warmly welcomed. It was wonderful to see how willing makers are to give guidance and encouragement.

MA-ness

Like starting anything new, there has been a lot to take in over the last few weeks. A whirlwind of information, timetables, reading lists and paper...meeting new students and tutors, all the while adjusting to a new way of thinking and working. 

This week has been labelled research week, and I am starting it by reading back through all my notes so far. Sifting through the rambling remarks on MA-ness and finding the bits that may lead to some potential project starting points, or areas that need may require deeper research.

We have been talked to about 'MA-ness' quite a bit over the last few weeks, and I have been having a little think about what it means to me; as someone who has come straight from a BA, I feel I have different motivations and aspirations than some of the other students who may have come back to education after working for however many years. I don't want to have a complete 'career change', I don't want to leave behind all the research and body of ideas that I have spent the last 3 years building on my BA. I feel like I have a fairly clear idea of the direction that I want my practice to go in. I know that I want to make contemporary jewellery that is a vehicle for social commentary, I know that I want to address feminine issues, I also know that I want to take inspiration from domestic, utilitarian objects to visually influence my designs and connect with my narrative. 

So for me, 'MA-ness' is going to be thinking much more deeply about the specifics in these areas, and find a more theoretical grounding to my themes. During my BA, I found myself really enjoying the research side of my practice. Not only into my narrative of feminism and traditional and modern female roles, but into jewellery and contemporary craft in general. I am very interested to see where the handmade fits into this ever growing digital world. I also would like to question whether jewellers can address topics with gravitas within their work and still create appealing and wearable pieces. I am going to research these areas with my new, MA eyes! Alongside this, I also want to bring a 'realness' to my collections, and undertake some primary research involving real women and their stories.

Embracing a New Way of Working

Having memories of BA fresh in my mind (fresh as in, I graduated 3 months ago!) I am enjoying be able to create a system of documenting my research and practice that is relevant and productive for me.

I am certainly much more of a notebook and paper kind of person, the physical act of putting pen to paper helps me to acknowledge and appreciate what I write. Despite this, I do find that personal thoughts are more easily read and understood by others in a much more ordered, considered and organised way...so I am going to document my progress using a combination of both physical notes on paper and a online journal.

Rather than have this blog as a daily point of referral, like some people may find helpful, I am going to use it to collate the chaos that some may call my notebook...every few weeks, or perhaps when I feel I have made some kind of significant move in my project, I will pick out the most important and relevant research and present it here. 

I may also use my blog as a means of a way to store links to useful websites or any other digital information that I may have discovered and found helpful.