Presentation Before the Faculty

Last Wednesday, I had to present my project to the entire art faculty. To put it simply: it was nerve-wracking. I spent two weeks freaking out about it, putting my slideshow together weeks in advance and working frantically on my project to get it to a point where I would show them all. I stressed myself out tremendously, and could barely eat any food. Everyone before me struggled under the scrutinizing gaze of our professors, feebly attempting to answer their challenging questions. I could only imagine what sort of traumatic event the presentation would be, and my mind was not helping the butterflies in my stomach.

In the end, I rushed up to do my presentation, and it went well. Yes, the professors were hard with their questions, but I also got some very good ideas out of the experience. One that I'm definitely hoping to do is put a QR code in each of the pieces which then leads to a website about the writer. I also want to see about putting the words of the writers into the piece instead of simply the words I found on the receipts. This is be a challenge, however, because I don't know if I can get the writing onto the receipt paper, which is what I would like. Also, in the display, I would have information for those without smartphones so they can learn a bit about the writer's lives. I would write it in a modern sense, and then allow the viewers to reveal who I'm  talking about by flipping a flap or something. This would help to show how the writers still fit into society today.

I didn't feel very relieved after finishing my project, partially because I then had to run to my Geology lab. When I returned to Hermann Fine Arts Building for my Solid Design class, I was a little early and decided to wait in the gallery, looking at the art hanging on the walls. While I was there, two of the professors came up to me and kindly told me they liked my project and were excited to see the final result. Finally, I felt relieved! Simply by hearing that my idea wasn't a total waste helped to ease my mind and reminded me why I did art, which I had started to question throughout the semester. Hopefully, I will keep working towards a better project, without too much hiccups.