ThE ReFLeCTiVE NaTuRE oF CoNScIOuSnEsS

Perhaps due to being a fifty-seven year old student undertaking a degree in fine-art, making a blog seemed quite an alien idea to me. I have a smart phone, several email addresses and go on Facebook; this I felt, was enough of an immersion into the world of online technology. The course, though, required this and I found myself reluctantly drawn into what I considered was a much younger person’s, world.

I had little choice and so I dived in. Initially, I found the ‘a-n blogsite’ quite difficult to get my head around; it didn’t seem to have an easy drag and drop option for photos and I found myself also opening up a new blog, rather than a blog post, which I then couldn’t seem to delete. I also found the steps to get pictures onto the blog ‘clunky’, with the need to initially set up a gallery of pictures / photos to choose from, rather than a straightforward transfer from my own picture gallery on my computer via a simple ‘copy and paste’ process.

With time though, I have managed to get around the site and have found the blog process rewarding. I have found that it helps to see my ideas ‘out there’ and away from myself, so that I can then look at them more objectively; the blog process really appears to help with this. Due to my self-doubt that I am in fact an artist, the blog also creates a platform where I can see my own ideas amongst others and the result is that I tend to have more faith in myself. My blog is psychological and physical evidence that I am one amongst many aspiring art-beings and that I am in the company of like-minded souls, on an equal basis.

The blog has also aided me in reflecting on my own creative process. Scrolling through the blog gives me a reminder of the journey and a kind of ‘bird’s eye view’, with an enhanced and sharpened focus. Although I obviously like to have a sketchbook, it gets a bit tatty and it is a very personal document and evidences all of my messy handwriting, smudges and spilled materials (and tea). The blog looks good, crisp and clear and obviously has the massive advantage of being a document that is ‘out there’ for others to see.

In conclusion, I have become a reluctant convert to the art-blogging process. The ‘a-n blogsite’ is actually straight-forward to use with practise and I would suggest students ‘play’ with the site early-on into their course, so that by the time any possible assessments of their blog entries start to happen, that they already feel comfortable and relaxed with the process. I put off the task of blogging and then had to deal with the desire to bang my head onto my laptop when I couldn’t understand how to use the site! With reflection, I should have got on with it, but at fifty-seven I have many ingrained habits that are difficult to overcome……procrastination being one of them!