First week reflective summary

I found the initial tasks really interesting as they revolved around the idea of memory which is a topic I have previously explored in my art and is an ongoing interest. I was really pleased with the work I created (the photographs and the illustrative piece) as  I think they captured the style I was trying to achieve and the images seem to have a slightly soft focus to them which can connote a feeling of nostalgia.  I think my collages however could have been improved as I didn't like the colour combinations that came from experimenting with the photocopier. It did however provide useful as I learnt how to use the photocopier which will be useful for further experimentation.  The response to my work was positive and people especially liked the use of plasticine as a font which I found useful as to hear positive response to a new technique. In terms of the illustrative piece, I think the combination of text, image and texture works well as it they each convey a different element or aesthetic choice. I first found it challenging to incorporate one item of mine into my large drawing and that was the commemorative framed piece. However, I then thought of using excerpts of text from within it and weaving it amongst the imagery as it conveyed  a particular moment in time which was the most important time of my life, the year of my birth.  I also found the choosing of objects to bring in quite difficult as I am quite a sentimental person and so slimming down my choice of memorable objects felt like I was rejecting them as not significant enough.  I cannot say I found any task particularly easy as this was the first week of foundation it was all about getting used to a new environment and a new style of working.  To improve my current methods of planning and time management, I need to focus less on planning and actually complete work as I tend to get quite obsessive with lists and end up wasting time. My current planning patterns could be improved by thinking more carefully about how long exactly each task will take rather than guessing and then my planned time overrunning.  By improving my time management skills, I think it will allow me to feel less stressed about my workload and will actually allow me to focus on each task rather than trying to complete them all at once.