Spring Travel Course Creative Narrative

My name is Amanda, and I am an undergraduate student of architecture at the University of Michigan. :)

 

While I may an architecture student, I am"”first and foremost"”an artist. My background in art and design equips me with a unique lens through which to view things, and I have thoroughly enjoyed applying these alternative skills to my work in the architecture studio here at UofM.

 

I find myself here after having stumbled upon a fantastic opportunity to apply these skills yet again to architectural discourse. That opportunity is a spring 2013 travel course called Behind the Brand"”which seeks to expose the dirty laundry of branding and fabrication and challenge the notions there-of.

 

The agenda of the studio is to visit a multitude of factory and production environments in both Europe (United Kingdom, Netherlands, Ireland, and Italy) and the United States. Not only will this be a wonderful chance to experience life outside of the country (which I have never left before), but also a great way to compare the production methods overseas with the ones in my own backyard.

 

Because we will be visiting the very private world of the factory"”photography within the walls of these places is strictly prohibited. This will force me to creatively document and articulate what I discover on this journey... in a way that utilizes my alternative skillset at the same time.

 

My personal challenge"”is to combine the presented objective of this travel studio with a separate agenda fueled by my passion for the arts. I intend to use what I learn on this trip to engage with the culture of fabrication and produce a series of artworks depicting its relationship to popular culture and branding.

 

As a photographer, painter, printmaker, and bookbinder"”I will be using a mixed-media approach to documenting my experience through hands-on making and production.

 

I hope to take beautiful photographs and sketches along my journey"”and use these as inspiration to create a one-of-a-kind series of relief prints, which I hope to share with sponsors! :) These prints will act in sequence to tell the story of what I learn, and lead into an edition of hand-bound collections to display the entirety of this trip in one cohesive and entertaining package!

 

This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to engage with this aspect of society and architecture in this particular context"”and yet I find myself with the possibility of having to pass it up because of a very unfortunate lack of funding.

 

If you would like to be a sponsor and give a gift of any amount, I would be SO THANKFUL and excited to share my experience with you!

 

Every bit helps and is greatly appreciated as it will go directly to funding the costs associated with this studio. Here is a link to the studio proposal, as well as an itemized budget to illustrate the costs and where the funds will be dispersed.

 

Thank you for your time and consideration!