Better Lives- Blogpost 4 Peer Review
I loved reading Antonia-Florina Rosu creative practice reflection about her Illustration course in the Better Lives unit. She is an aspiring fashion journalist student and tried something out of her comfort zone on the Illustration course. I was greatly impressed by her enthusiasm, honesty and transparency. I enjoyed the way she described her experience so personally and how she took risks.
I’m a styling student and I’m part of the creative field, illustration is one of my hobbies and I use it often in my projects. I was curious to see what a person with no drawing skills could learn about this practice. Styling gives creative freedom and a sense of control over your own vision and I think that most creative process gives that same type of feeling. Because of her field (journalism), she is working on digital platform most of the time. Creating with materials and being in touch with different techniques was a new way to work for her. Drawing techniques, textures, collages offered her a three-dimensional outlook on fashion. Her perspective on it was refreshing to hear and reminded me of why I love drawing fashion.
She mentioned the freedom of creating, and the enjoyment that in drawing theres no wrong answer. Your creativity has no limits and you can always find an inspiring way to look at fashion (playing with materials and different subjects and trying to portray a vision or a point of view). I can tell by her experience that she gained respect for the craft and that she took a risk by doing something out of her comfort zone.
The session that stood out to her the most is the collage session they had where they had to bring their own magazines. She transformed the female form by playing with various body types from models pictures in the magazines. She gained confidence from this session.
Her honesty about her views on social responsibility, sustainability and diversity made me relate to her because I too, find it hard to believe that your own voice can make the difference. But she motivated me as she grew out of her cynic views on the matter and opened her mind to the case. She confessed that she had a ‘toxic mindset’ before the unit and was skeptical about being a part of the Better Lives lectures. But as she went on to discover the lectures, she understood the power of her own voice to help raise awareness to diversity, sustainability and social responsibility. Being an ally is a powerful act and help to build a better future.
The evolution of her approach to the unit and to the Illustration course was enlightening and hopeful. It is inspiring to feel optimism and see a person opening her mind to new views and learning from her past. I respect her evolution and I’m glad to see a transparent point of view on the better lives course.
Reference:Rosu, A-F. (2020) ‘Creative Practice Reflection #2’. Assignment for Better Lives, Undergraduate, UAL.