Reflection on mock interviews/Unit 5-Building an art & design portfolio

This week, we did mock interviews. I made it more fun by purposefully dressing up in a pinstripe
shirt and pinstripe waistcoat! I had a very "corp-goth" look. One of my friends said I looked like
an evil lawyer or someone evil who works in the city! We had to reflect on our interviews.

How did you feel completing the mock interviews?

I felt slightly nervous as I didn't want to make a mistake. I felt very confident about my portfolio
and I felt I had prepared myself very well.

What were your strengths?

My strengths were eye contact. I don't find it difficult to look people in the eye when talking to
them. I sat up straight and showed I was interested. I knew how to explain my work.

What were your weaknesses?

Next time, I might consider asking a couple of questions at the end of the interview.

How could you improve on your interview techniques?

I could perhaps elaborate more on answers to questions.

Evaluation of my Unit 5 art and design portfolio

In your opinion what has this unit involved?

This unit involved building an art and design portfolio on a blog. It also involved making a CV,
learning about the importance of a portfolio, finding out about courses and jobs for me and how
to present yourself at an interview.

Explain what you have covered within this unit?

We have covered responses to videos, the purpose of a portfolio, questions answered on Jane's
graphic design portfolio, research on HE courses and jobs within the art and design industry,
making a blog, mock interview, looking at good and bad interviews, examples of good and
bad CV's and making a CV.

What particular areas of this unit have helped in preparation for preparing your portfolio?

Answering interview questions on paper made me think about my interests and goals for the future.
Watching videos of good and bad interviews showed me how to present at an interview.

How has your understanding of preparing a portfolio developed during this unit?

my understanding has developed alot. I now understand that a portfolio must show all of my best
work and show that I understand the names of each unit, how to write a CV and conduct myself
at an interview.

How did you feel before the unit about producing a portfolio and how do you feel now?

Before starting the unit, I felt that learning about how to produce a portfolio would be really
good for me to help me go up in the world. Now that I have finished the unit, I feel very happy
that I have made a portfolio and improved my CV.






    

My drawings for fashion course

I attended an interview for a Level 3 BTEC diploma in fashion for next year. The fashion teacher
said it looked very promising for me, but she wanted me to do some observational drawings
(pictured below) as she wanted to see my drawing skills. When I showed them to her, she was so impressed that she accepted me on the course!

I looked at my own pair of shoes to draw this.

This is a dress that I have and it took me at least an hour to draw it as it has alot of detail.

Third project-Unit 2 (2D visual communication) and Unit 3 (3D visual communication)

 For the third project on this art course, two units were combined into one project. We had to
make ceramics in the form of totem poles, using moulds which we made from toys.

                             I chose a toy gun and motorbike, to the disaproval of teachers!

                               We had to do some observational drawings of a selection of toys.
                               So, I drew a toy plane, car and bag using cross-hatching
                               techniques on the page to the left and I used charcoal for the
                               drawing on the right.

                                     These pages from my sketchbook show my sample on
                                              the left page and my final piece on right.
                                         
                                        
                                        

Second project-Unit 18 Working with site-specific briefs

    For our second project, we had to design and make a sculpture. The sculptures were mounted on

to triangular frames which were made out of twigs, as opposed to mounting the sculpture on a plinth.

Below, is a picture of my finished piece in my sketchbook. There were three frames on each side of 

the triangle. I designed a skull and placed it in the middle frame of the triangle. I made cut-outs

of flames with cardboard which I placed in the lower frame. I placed a circle of skulls in the top frame.

Pictured below, are the drawings of my initial design idea.

Pictured below are my drawings of some of my other design ideas. 

First project-Unit 16 Working with Accessory Briefs

    The first project we did on the art and design course was textiles. We had to design and make a
paper accessory and choose a celebrity that we could make it for. I made lace-up arm cuffs and my
chosen celebrity was Doro Pesch, a heavy metal singer. I chose her because not only am I a fan of
her music, I also like her style of clothing. Below is a picture of the arm cuffs that I designed and
made.

Below is a picture of my maquette, which is a sample piece to experiment with before you make
your final piece.

Pictured below are some samples that I had made for the project.

All of these samples were made with different types of paper. I used card, coloured paper and tissue
paper.

The good and bad points of an interview

Today in class, we learned about how to present ourselves at an interview.

When you walk into the interview room, you should wait to be seated. Once you are sat
down, it is important to sit up straight. Do not slouch as this looks, to the interviewer, like you
are not really interested. Crossing arms and legs looks defensive.
 
The way you look is very important. If you look well-groomed, clean and smart, you have
more of a chance of success with the interviewer.
 
It is a good idea to switch your phone off before entering the interview room, as if the
phone rings during the interview, it would cause a disruption. If you leave it on and it rings,
don't answer it, but switch it off.

It is important to have the right attitude. An interviewer will not like someone who is
over-confident and has nothing to show for themselves. Being well-manered with a smile on
your face will do the trick. When the interviewer asks you questions, try to explain your                    answers and elaborate.
 
If the interviewer shakes your hand, do not decline as this will be seen as impolite. Make
sure your handshake is quite firm to give the message "i mean business".
 
Do not ask about the salary, as the interviewer will think you're only after the money!
 
Don't look eager to leave.