I would say that this past week was one with a more experimental approach. Students were told to bring the objects that they had found during the semester to studio to put them up together in a way that could narrate their story lines in an abstract way. It was a challenge for them to come up with an iteration since a lot of the objects were randomly chosen and had nothing to do with their concepts. But, they did not quit and started to alter the objects in a way that somehow depicted a close relation with their intended approach. A few students started with the macro (the container) to later get into the micro (the assemblage). These students found unique ways to alter their containers, either by detaching parts of it or creating a texture on them. In fact, I encouraged one of the students to break apart his container that looked like a jewelry box. I asked him to reassemble it in a way that would make his concept stronger and so he did.
Design is all about taking risks and creating new things. It is not about following a trend. Successful artists will be those who think outside the box and come up with something fascinating and unique at times. Maybe it will be something motivational, inspirational, emotional, rebellious, or even something controversial. Whatever it is, it will call the attention of society in a way or another.
In the case of the students, every single one of them is competing against each other. They are competing for something that at the end, they might or they might not accomplish. With this project, they are getting so involved and are giving so much time to it. They are expressing their inner artist in their own particular way. They are incorporating techniques and are using materials that they have never worked with. This is called taking risks and those who take risks and stand back again when they fall are the ones who will, at the end, accomplish their future goals.