Artisan Challenge Update (Midway)

Artisan Challenge 2016

It is time to do the midway update on the “Artisan Challenge“.

YES. I know “technically” the midway update was due on the 1st July, which is midway through the year. But I was running a bit late, and since this is my blog I can claim one and a half months as “a bit” 🙂

And you’re not the boss of me Internet!

A Reminder.

The Challenge for 2016 we are calling “Artisan 2016”

Artisan
noun: artisan; plural noun: artisans
    a worker in a skilled trade, especially one that involves making things by hand.

The reason for this name? Well because all the challenges (and there are three parts) are artistic or creative in nature.

1/4 DONE

Quarterly Non LOLS Papers

Once again “You’re not the boss of me!” I know the generally accepted definition of Quarterly is every quarter, but I have decided to count it as four over the year. Now before you get all shouty in the original description of this part of the challenge I did state “I am aiming for four papers over the year, and since I will probably do the Quarterly LOLS papers again this year, the new challenge is for none LOLS papers of topics I pick myself.” So four papers over the whole year.

  • Paper 1: Kuji-In – An Introduction to the Nine Hand Seals. COMPLETED
  • Paper 2: Unnamed – Research complete and its currently being written up
  • Paper 3: Unnamed – Researching
  • Paper 4: NO IDEA YET

 

WORKING ON

Art Project

I did do a post a short while back updating how the Art project was going. (By Short while back I mean at the 1/4 mark) Since then the project has continued along, with doodles and plans, and small bits being worked on.

Below are a few snippets of bits of the doodles/notes in no particular order/sense.

COMPLETED

100 Days

This started on April 1st and ran for oddly 100 days until it finished.

It can be viewed over at my 100Days Blog.

Art Project Pt1

When picking the challenges for 2016, @MaguirePete mentioned that when he was in sixth form he always liked the long art projects, where as you passed the Art block you would see the work slowly take form over time. And so we decided to be artistic in 2016 and do some form or Art project that would slowly take the year to do. This seems like a good idea, so I will be working on a piece of art over the year and posting updates as it goes along.

How hard can it be?

Since the idea of this Project it to slowly work on it over the whole year, and it is supposed to be a challenge, I wanted something that would be complicated, that could be done in small bits then placed together into one final finished item.

I have always liked the old alchemical images you see in old books, and thought what a great idea that would be for a year long art project idea.

Examples

I also thought this would mean I could post update pictures of the work in progress, but no one would know what the overall image would be until I had finished and merged all the bits.

So Surprise Art!

I must admit, I did toy with the idea of not telling myself what the finished image would look like, and to just work individually on small bits, then see what I got at the end when I put them all together. Realistically that could lead to a right mess, So instead I worked out a rough sketch idea of what I hoped to come up with.

Because I really liked the idea of not knowing what I was doing until the end, and since I am the type of person who does jigsaws without looking at the picture I came up with a compromise with myself.

I have a rough sketch of what I want to create. I have taken that sketch and folded it up and sealed it inside an envelope. Which I will not open until the project is over.

It should be interesting to see how well I remember my original design, and whether or not my finished piece even resembles my goal.

This should be Interesting!

2016 Challenge

Artisan Challenge 2016

Artisan2016The last time I actually made some New Years Resolutions was way back in 2006, which in January when tradition says I should pick some  resolutions for 2016, it will have been a decade since my last ones.

 

“forgive me father, it has been ten years since my last resolution”

The reason I stopped making the traditional New Years Resolutions was a simple one, basically I am really crap at sticking to them. It seems pointless making a bunch of resolutions you know you will never stick too. And when I tried picking one’s like :-

  • I will drink beer
  • I will play lots of Video Games

I got told that they were not acceptable choices. Gorram Resolution Nazis. So instead I have spent the last decade setting myself challenges every year, Originally alone, and the last few years along with MaguirePete. The Challenge for 2016 we are calling “Artisan 2016”

Artisan
noun: artisan; plural noun: artisans
    a worker in a skilled trade, especially one that involves making things by hand.

The reason for this name? Well because all the challenges (and there are three parts) are artistic or creative in nature.

 

Quarterly Non LOLS Papers

Last year one of the challenges was to write an Academic Paper, This simple sounding challenge soon mutated into joining in with the Quarterly LOLS paper, where we received a topic and had to write a paper on it which would then get peer reviewed. So instead of the one paper I ended up writing four. This year’s challenge again has “Write a Paper” as one of the tasks. But from the start I am aiming for four papers over the year, and since I will probably do the Quarterly LOLS papers again this year, the new challenge is for none LOLS papers of topics I pick myself.

 

Art Project

When picking the challenges for 2016 MaguirePete mentioned that when he was in sixth form he always liked the long art projects, where as you passed the Art block you would see the work slowly take form over time. And so we decided to be artistic in 2016 and do some form or Art project that would slowly take the year to do. This seems like a good idea, so I will be working on a piece of art over the year and posting updates as it goes along. How hard can it be?

 

100 Days

And once again I will be taking part in the 100 Days creative Challenge. This will be starting April 1st and can be viewed over at my 100Days Blog.

Challenge – A Paper

One part of my 2015 New Years Resolutions/Challenges was to write a Paper. The actual overall theme of this years challenges is “Creativity” and one of the sections was to write a none-fiction, sensible paper.

That was the basic original idea, but in the manner of “no plan survives contact with the enemy“, this basic idea soon changed. There were two of us planning on writing Papers, but as we could not think of a genre or topic, Pete (The other one) decided to ask Twitter, and someone in particular. Now that person suggested that since he was writing a paper/essay for a newsletter, we could all write one on the same subject, and then compare papers and discuss. Which was a great idea.

The only downside was this suggestion came from a Person who writes several papers a year, gives lectures all the time, and even publishes academic books. So this kind of put the pressure on a bit, and as the only one who had never written a paper since I was Electrical/Electronic Engineering in Uni and we never did papers, I really felt the pressure.

The completion deadline was the beginning of March, and as that date got closer the worry increased, “Would it make sense“, “Would it be any good“, “Would it just be gibberish“, “Had I just written ‘I am a Fish’ 100 times“?

Well, The deadline came, My Paper was emailed out, and no one laughed, no one pointed out any mistakes, no one suggested psychiatric help. And I am happy with the way it turned out. I would like to add a bit more to it, since there was some areas I forgot to cover that I wanted to. But for my first ever attempt I am happy with it.

And better still, One part of the 2015 challenges is now complete!

Challenge Pursuits – 2014 – Review

Well the year that was 2014 is now officially over, so I guess it is time to review my years challenge. You may recall from HERE that at the start of the year we decided on :-

“This year we are doing “Challenge Purists” Which is loosely based off the Trivial Pursuits Game. We have appointed different categories to the Tradition colours, and just like in the game you have to complete some goal in that category to win the piece of pie.”

ChallengePursuits-2014CategoryCard

Review Time!

(more…)

Challenge Pursuits – 2014

So we have started a new year (OK, technically we started the New Year 28 days ago, but who is counting?) Now a New year traditionally means “New Years Resolutions” But since I am crap at sticking to them I try and do something different instead, some thing I am more likely to stick too.

This year are much discussion with PlanetPete, and even more working out and finalising of details. You could say 28 days worth of finalising which means I am not late posting this at all, but was FINALISING!!!!

Where was i? Oh yes thats right. This year we are doing “Challenge Purists” Which is loosely based off the Trivial Pursuits Game. We have appointed different categories to the Tradition colours, and just like in the game you have to complete some goal in that category to win the piece of pie.

Yes People, its combining New Years Resolutions with challenges & competitiveness & Gaming. How can it not work??

The 2014 Categories are :-

ChallengePursuits-2014CategoryCard