12th March

During the trip to London I had difficulty pursuading the other members of my group to remain at the location (to be documented) for very long as it was a challenging place to gain inspiration/creative energy from. I didn't find it easy to think of a creative way to document the place other than with drawing or photographing the surroundings. With a more interesting area I think we would have done much more work. I did however gain, only in the space of two days, a sense of how the coram fields would be used generally from week to week as on both days there was the same large group of adolescents playing football.

I enjoyed visiting the Otl Aitcher exhibition which gave me a good sense of how the Munich Olympics would have been visually. I noticed the methodic use of stick men as supposedly prescribed by Aitcher to other designers and the interesting graph-like form of many of the designs as well as the consistent use of bold colours which were indeed eye-catching and added to the drama of the image used - usually an athlete in motion.

The childhood museum was also extremely interesting and worthwhile. At the very least the building itself was an impressively light, spacious and open space inside. I had offered attention to the Miffy exhibition but was much more impressed by the illustrations near the entrance which were drawn by a 13 year old. I was most interested by the Japanese shadow puppets which were on display as they related to my photographic work in the previous week. I was able to see other forms of puppets and hand held crafts which evoked theatrical meaning and even a hand-made design of a stage with several background facades which actually, when you peer through the middle, make a persuasive illusion of depth for the stage upon which characters were placed.

Attending the We Will Rock You theatre production was also an interesting display of the capabilities of today's stage design and effects which proved to be very impressive. From lighting to set design to illusive effects, today's stage designs are certainly entertaining at least for somebody who does not frequent the theatre such as myself.

During life-drawing I realised my increasing ability to believe what I see with my own two eyes rather than what I assume is in front of me. Trying out different methods of drawing the figure is also becoming rewarding as it is making me more confident in tackling the prospect of trying to capture a figure no matter what pose it is in or perspective I have of it. I am also in the middle of putting my life-drawing to more use in my own time by working on it digitally, thus continuing my self-taught experience with drawing on computers.