On Welcome to the Revolution

This year was filled with the most distractions and setbacks, but I feel that I had the most growth as a designer. In deciding the concept of my collection, I started with a very broad topic and narrowed in on a more specific idea. I like the perspective on Black American protest that I took, specifically focusing on the idea of guiding light as navigation for slave escape, which I had not thought of before as a form of protest. I took the original concept and developed it further in order to get imagery which is more symbolic than literal. In the end, I have a collection of designs which I think are diverse and interesting. 

This project also felt very personal as it is about something that was happening in real time and so close to me. I was mapping this idea out not long after the murder of Amaud Arbery in my state, the murder of George Floyd, and the looting and rioting that ensued. Then in the middle of this time, fuel was added to the fire literally and figuratively when Rashard Brooks was shot by police in my city. All these events had once again pushed my community into action, just as it does each time these tragic events happen. Even though I was processing those same emotions, I tried to capture the emotions that were running through my family and friends, and the community on social media. In these times, there is always a mix of emotions ranging from the sorrow and pain of what happened once again, the anxiety and frustration of not seeing change, and the joy and pride of unity and resillience. I wanted to show all these emotions visually in my designs through the colors, sharp and soft lines, shapes, and textures. I think I conveyed this quite well.  

For the what if element of my development, I chose the themes from Lovecraft Country, which is a dark horror fantasy novel. I chose it because it is a very different style from what I’ve done before. I wanted to do something outside my comfort zone and see what I could create. I think I handled it in an interesting way without making it too literal or gimmicky. I incorporated it in a way that my personal style still shows strongly in my designs, and the subject isn’t necessarily obvious. Some of my designs conveyed this idea more than others. When looking at the design called Beauty Forever Tainted, I was worried that the design might come across as cute instead of dark but adding the celosia flowers gave it a little more of the essence of what I was going for.  I think with more time, I would like to expand on this idea, perhaps using other novels that I’ve read.  

There were many challenges this year, with me being home and on a different time zone, in the middle of a pandemic, during a modern-day revolution, and in perhaps the craziest year my country has seen in my lifetime. These were major distractions for me, however I believe I did well to stay focused and diligent towards completing this collection. On the next time, I hope to expand on the concepts I mapped out, and focus on another aspect of it. I would also like to choose a subject that I could do much more physical research, exploring, and experimenting for, without the limits of Covid-19. I also hope to further develop the theme of dark horror fantasy literature in my next collection, as I think with more time, I can create more interesting designs.