Part of the MA requires us to provide a second year artist with two tutorials, in order to provide advice and support. it is built as a very short insight to the world of teaching.
My student’s influences were interesting, making me work hard to find relevant information to their topic. I was able to introduce them to new graphic/comic artists as well as some painters and animation based around horror and the macabre. 

One area that I was able to provide the most help was time management and being able to block the day into more manageable chunks, working in time out for the brain to chill, in order to work more efficiently.

It was something that I found very uncomfortable and anxiety levels were high, meaning I forgot what questions I was meant to ask and even though I had prepared for the meetings my head went to mush.
The experience was interesting and the lectures on teaching gave me a different perspective on my own learning, I can safely say that teaching is not for me. Respect to any teachers out there.

As part of my MA, I have had to build a new website. This was a perfect opportunity for change and finding a platform that was easier to use than the one I was currently using. I chose Weebly as the new platform, it has more visual approach, allowing it to be more intuitive and user friendly, while building the site.

I haven't found the task easy and there has been much hair pulling and meltdowns in the process, I seem to be the grim reaper of the digital world.

Hopefully the new website is a better viewing experience and more user friendly to navigate around. 

I have chosen my case study for art history, it is about new media art and technology, how it can be used in making art, and how as an artist within todays world, we have the benefit of modern technologies at our disposal. Within my own art practice, I consistently use photographs, webcams, or Google Earth for referencing and accessing places that I am unable to get to. Artificial intelligence is a fast developing technology that is in every aspect of our daily lives, from algorithms on our news feeds, social media and streaming services such as Netflix, feeding us what AI has learnt about us ensuring we get what it thinks we like. The artist that I have chosen to be my case study is Refik Anadol, and his artwork Artificial Realities (2023).

Refik Anadol has embraced AI and has used it to produce Artificial Realities where his studio collected comprehensive images and data of coral. This artwork highlights the effects of global warming on the delicate ecology of the world’s oceans and coral reefs. 

Some good reads on the topic of new media art are:

Digital Culture, Charlie Gere, ISBN: 9781 86189 3888

Gives a great in-depth history to the developments of digital technologies and its rise around the world. I found this book an interesting read.

A Companion To Contemporary Art Since 1945, Amila Jones,

ISBN: 13 978 1 4051 0794 5

A series of essays written by different authors, regarding visual cultural studies. This book is insightful and if you find one author difficult to read the next author quite often is easier to understand.

Radical Landscapes, Art Identity and Activism, Darren Pih and Laura Bruni, ISBN: 978 1 84976 84976 812 2

Out of all the books that I have read so far, this one I would go and buy for my own personal collection. Has examples and explanations on topics such as Abstraction and Belonging and Stepping into Action: Finding Connection in a World of Loss. At the back of the book there is a glossary of terms, which is useful.

As an islander I have had a lifetime love of the sea, I love watching the storms and the big waves that are produced crashing ashore, there is something very comforting in the sea’s power. After many hours spent watching large wave surfers and waves in person, I began wondering what process produces these spectacular waves. At the same time I was wondering if the sea bed had a part to play in how waves behaved, this led me into the wonderful rabbit hole of the world of ocean topography and the movement of the oceans around the world and land.

As an artist I am considering how can I represent this power and beauty within my art practice. I desire to bring an understanding of the power of the waves and how, as we experience global warming and sea level rises, these waves will surely only get bigger, speeding up coastal erosion, and exacerbating the damage that this does to the habitats of animals and plant life. These issues also impact on humanity, increasing sea levels will see the loss of land leading to displacement of people who will become environmental refugees.

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It has been a very busy seven weeks since returning to the School of Art, Aberystwyth. There has been a new studio space to organise, new routine to get used to and a new website to build.

The change to my normal routine, as well as getting used to being around people again has been difficult and at times overwhelming but, as I get used to the new normal, it is easing.

Walking back up the old stairs was like a wooden hug, and I realised I had missed their familiar feel, smell and creaks. As well as the wooden stairs I have found myself back in the basement and its printing rooms, as I relearn these skills for using in my art practice. 
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