The Power of Collaboration and Revision
Olson Module 9 (1) Review
I know that we are ‘supposed’ to have words of encouragement, but I genuinely love this piece of art you have created. I am facing this problem of fear of growth myself and I think you did an incredible job illustrating this experience. The gun symbolizing anxiety is extremely impactful. As you said in the description, you see a gun and you feel unsettled. But to be able to grow or blossom, we almost must take a hold of our own anxiety and face it head on, which you illustrated perfectly. I love the flowers blooming from the head, as they indicate growth and beauty that comes from facing your fears. I don’t think the piece of art really needs any changing, but alas there is always things to improve. To further pursue your idea of anxiety or fear, you could make the background really colorful or make the brown circles feel like thoughts. This could also translate the idea of overthinking and feeling consumed by too much inside or outside noise. Overall amazing job!
Olson Module 5 Review
Wow, I also love this piece. As someone who has had difficulties with friends in the past, I can feel the emotions that went into writing this piece. The most powerful part of this piece is that you didn’t tell the reader how to feel, but rather explained what you were experiencing. This allows the reader to feel what you are feeling, and I could definitely feel it. The details are really great too. I love how you mentioned just seeing her car made you reflect on the experiences you had made. This sets up the reader with a little foreground to what your relationship was like before the fall out and they have a better understanding of why something as simple as seeing her car could trigger emotions from you. I also love how you ended it with the phrase “I’m sorry”. It leaves the reader wanting more but completes the story you started. If I had any recommendations, it would be to continue explaining your emotions more in depth. For example, in the line about the Honda civic you could explain how you were feeling as you thought of those memories. When you saw the Honda civic, did the once happy memory feel heavy? Did you try not to think about those memories, but you couldn’t help it? I think just taking it a little deeper into your reactions would be a great addition to this piece.
Module 4 Review
Okay, I love this piece as well! First, I loved how you used the analogy of a broken record. I can completely relate and understand the experience of perpetual thought patterns that never go away based on that analogy alone. I also love that you explained the before, after, and during this momentous event that happened during your life. By explaining growing up feeling alone and like an outsider, the reader understands why you held on to those friends as long as you did and continuously thought of them. I love the line “anytime I thought about taking a stand my mind raced back to the cold metal bars on the playground. I shrank lower, and lower. This again indicates the fear of being alone that you developed from your childhood that kept you stagnant. This is a piece that I think many people could use as encouragement, as the ending starts with a new story and new people. What you once thought was the end, was just the beginning, and I think that is beautiful. My only suggestion is to possibly leave out the ending paragraph. You did such an amazing job explaining the process of learning through experience that the reader forms this idea without you saying it. By ending with a new beginning and new friends, the reader realizes that your prior experiences allowed you to learn and grow and that allowed you to find the people that you did. Overall, amazing job!
My favorite piece of art out of three, is probably the painting from module 9.
Reflection Questions:
- At first, I was really nervous to show people my work, but I ended up loving the experience. I loved getting the chance to read other students' artwork and really dissecting what made it so great. I also loved thinking about how I could improve already great pieces of work because it challenged me to think differently.
- Yes. I think all the feedback was awesome to work with because it gave me a chance to see my work from someone else's perspective. What translated well, what maybe missed the mark a bit. Sometimes when you know what you are talking about, you miss some details or you don’t explain things perfectly, so outside perspectives are always valuable.
