Last week I finally got to celebrate, one of my greatest achievements, finishing university with a First in BA Illustration during a global pandemic.
Despite it understandably not quite being the same celebrating this a year after finishing, I’m still so grateful that I got to attend a postponed graduation ceremony alongside my amazing illustration course from Arts University Bournemouth.
The whole experience made me feel rather reflective. The last year has been really tough, for everyone. As if your first year out of university was challenging enough, myself and the other graduates of 2020 endured the this period of time which such a different experience, a crashing economy and a year of lockdown and resultantly cancelled opportunities. Despite all of this, I came out the other side still with an impressive chunk of experience to show for myself, despite moments with serious lack of inspiration.
As part of our final unit at university, we were encouraged to write a plan for our next steps out of education, to direct our illustration career. I quite often look over this last year with disappointment, I felt like I missed out on so much, experienced serious lows in my mental health and questioned my ability not only as an illustrator but even sometimes simply as a functioning human being. However when I look back at my written plan I did a year prior, I achieved every single thing on my list. I secured multiple freelance commissions in a variety of commercial contexts, honourable mention in some amazing competitions and art shows, and a years experience as an in-house illustrator. So recently, I’ve been a little easier on myself, taken time off and enjoyed the sunshine that has blessed us in the last few weeks, particularly on our trip to Bournemouth for our graduation!
To top it all off, as someone with a poor relationship with both parents, I got to experience a much greater love from my invited guests, my best friend Elsie and my partner Angus who made the day so special 🤍
