Over the period of the last year I have been working on a couple of key projects that I intend to take further over the course of the next year. One of these projects, Simply Written, is focused on producing digital books. In the spirit of this I have opted to submit the vast majority of my Body of Work in the formats that Simply Written will support.
A lot of the work I have been involved in has blurred the lines between both the Development and Creative Industries modules this semester. As a result of this there may be some documents that cover similar material. I have done my best to ensure that each document tries to focus as much on the individual modules as possible.
Tutorial forms from both modules can be viewed here.
Over the course of the last semester I have been able to further develop the work I started last semester, and begin testing Get Invited, the main project that I have been developing during my first year on the Masters. I have also been able to further develop Simply Written, which is having a soft-beta launch phase starting today, in order to gather feedback on it.
As a designer & developer focused entirely upon digital content creation, particularly with Simply Written, I have opted to submit my work as an almost entirely digital body of work. This relates to the content that I wish to create with Simply Written. Whilst the system I have been developing isn't capable of the work I produce today it is the end result I intend to achieve.
In addition to these digital documents I have also been expanding my practice in other areas, both teaching at the University of Ulster and speaking. I spoke publicly for the first time at Creative Camp (slides available here) on the topic of Simplicity, one of the principles that relate to the work that I undertake.
Another area in which I have recently started involving myself in is writing. Last semester I wrote on the topic of making people happier, and I've started to take my first steps into talking about this more publicly on my journal. I have also spoken about more technical aspects of undertaking work. The specific articles that relate to these areas are:
Each of these articles speaks on an important aspect of the work I do, or the principles that form the foundation for the work I do. They don't cover every aspect of my practive, and I intend to continue to build upon this in the future, with additional articles on my journal.
As a compliment to my Development work I have also improved my understanding of, and involvement in, the Creative Industry both locally to Northern Ireland and further afield. It's important that I don't limit myself when I'm competing in a global industry and this semester is the first time I've really looked into things on a larger scale.
The best example of this is from the end of January, where I was able to assist Simon Collison in collecting tweets relating to a conference he had organised. Being able to collect and provide this information has resulted in my likely attendance at the next New Adventures Conference next January, as a result of Simon's appreciation of my work.
I have been taking steps to participate in events. I make a point of trying to attend as many of these events as possible but I have decided that I want to be more active in my contributions. I took my first step in this regard with my talk at Creative Camp (slides available here) on the topic of Simplicity, based on my own experiences with applying this principle to my work. You can read my reflections on the experience on my journal.
Presentation skills are one of the areas I have really pushed in order to develop. Having the ability to present a strong, considered, talk is an important skill to have. Being able to form thought into words and relay that thought to an audience is a powerful things. Doing it well will help to increase not just my reputation but the reputation of the projects that I am involved in. With my desire to focus my entire practice on such projects this is an important area of focus for me.
Talking has also reignited another interest of mine, writing. A presentation gives a brief glimpse into the thoughts of a person. The slides last, but the content presented is unique to that one talk. Recently, as a part of my Masters Studies, I gave a talk on Collaboration (slides available here) and, based on the experience and feedback I was able to expand on the topic on my own journal, writing on the topic of collaboration.
In addition to both my talking and writing I have had the chance this semester to really look at myself and what motivates me in the work that I do, building upon previous talks about my principles and how they make people happier. This semester I have deepened my understanding of these aspects of my practice, along with others. I have also gained a much better understanding of how these areas of my practice fit together. This process is largely demonstrated by my Living Landscape work that can be viewed in the studio.