Dear Students,
It has been a long semester, full of disruption and unpredictability. I am proud that you have risen up to the challenge of this class despite those setbacks. Here are some takeaways:
Show up, do the work. It is important to always keep moving, to struggle not against the class, the requirements, or the situation, but to struggle against inaction.
Keep sketching! Just escaping into a personal world you create with your hands and mind can provide you much needed comfort and relief. Sketch it out quickly. Make a note of what you are thinking on paper. You can do it at home or on your commute.
You know enough and are skilled enough to make the world whatever you want it to be. Even doing something simple like doodling can help you start to see new possibilities. Be curious and truly experience the world around you, remember it through sketching. Analyze it through the tools of diagramming, categorizing, and representing the world you think you see. Your sketches can change how others see the world, and can be useful for improving a situation because it provides a shared visual reference or “common ground.” Sketches can help explain a problem and identify a better way to do things, or point the way to innovation.
Visual communication is a powerful tool to self-expression. Practice expressing yourself, and get comfortable presenting your work. Be proud that a sketch is uniquely yours, and that your style keeps evolving. You learn from doing, every action helps build a skill. Consistent, small bits of action over time is the key to mastery. Many works made over a long time makes a career.
Connect and collaborate. Most importantly, get your work out there, in public. It is a way to help others, by helping them see what you are talking or thinking about. Do not worry so much about judgement, worry about connecting with people who will support your work and become your collaborative community. Being able to share your work means you are open to trusting others with your work, your views, your values. It feels good to know that you can be yourself and be accepted. You’ll get more confidence when you realize that there are many who are inspired by your work. Feel free to connect with me on email or LinkedIn.
PS. It is not too late to add to the hawktower. Happy Summer and Graduation! Congratulations on a semester well done!
PPS. Check it out– “near final” grades have been posted in PostEms!
