London

Yesterday was spent in conversation with Elizabeth Sivell, a highly regarded advertising professional. The original contact came through the women in advertsing group SheSays UK. She was very generous in spending time looking through examples of work which showed a broad base of skills, from tactile to CG.

I was given excellent and practical advice in regards to the commercial portfolio. Advice which ranged from, What advertising agencies look for in employing a creative, How to approach an agency as a freelance designer/animator, and advice on agents. She offered to honestly crit the commercial portfolio and suggested maybe an internship or working for an employment agency as this may help in discovering a job which fits.

She said that it may be possible to gain exposure in a particular style if the right agent was on the case. This was interesting as two agents have recently shown interest in the work. Liz advised the kind of percentage that these agents ask for and the pitfalls of having an agent.

The Tate Britain, and Tate Modern were visited on the way home. It may be that the connection between the commercial work and the arts practice is one of finding a contextual space for conceptual ideas. In the commercial work there is a strong instinct towards a zietgeist, whereas the arts practice seeks out where changes in society have influenced the visual arts, in regards to fine art practice and animation. The practice compulsively seeks out changes in theory and thought as they surface within the fields of arts and science/technology. Once located, this instinct can them be directed outwards or inwards...in an oscillating loop.

It is hoped that the the commercial work and the experimental practice combine to form a feedback loop, which when functioning well, develops a unique voice, that may echo the context of the time and place in which it is created.