Blog 3 – Project Outcomes and Personal Development
My project within the Better Lives unit was Mask Making and Politics. Our project outcome was to create a mask as a form of protest or political activism. Creating something of importance was a vital aspect of the design principle.
I decided to make a mask to protest animal hunting, campaigning for animal rights. The first step was to investigate the history of masks. Masks are known for being used in protest, as well as within performance. In Greek theatre, masks communicated character. Another interesting idea about masks is that they are used heavily within the horror film genre. Whilst researching, I discovered similar animal rights campaigns and came across the Lush ‘Votes for Animals’ campaign. It was important to research similar projects, in order to determine how aspects of my masks will differ. Initially, I wanted my mask to be created as a realistic rabbit, however after researching I decided that a more simplistic mask would be more impactful within the process. As well as this, a simple design would be easy to replicate. When researching other political masks, many of them followed the similarities of being uncomplicated in their design.
My skills in mask making developed throughout the project, using clay and tools to shape my design. I was unable to complete my mask, however I conceptualised the final project outcome. The project was shaped around exploring the Better Lives theme of Social Responsibility. Not only this, but the theme Sustainability was also worked within my use of materials, as I decided to create a mask out of reusable materials. Exploring manufacture processes was essential, and my initial design was going to be created using paper. I thought it would be interesting to play with the size of my mask, creating a distorted oversized effect. Due to its lightweight material, this could easily be achieved, and would stand out in a crowd.
Overall, I am pleased with the project outcome. In the future, I would love to complete the final product. At first, I was concerned about the outcome of my mask, however once I began using the clay it became an enjoyable process. In terms of my personal development, my knowledge of masks throughout history has developed, as well as their importance within society. An important aspect of this Better Lives project was to continue to develop and reflect on work, and this brief was the perfect opportunity to do so.