The last week of class was filled with excitement. You could tell that at least half of the students were relieved to be finished strong with their projects and were ready for the holiday break. The other half were content to have made it to class with something to show and a couple were happy to not show up to class until quite late—some students just continue to surprise with there lack of interest and drive.
For the most part the students delivered acceptable work. You’ll see in the final photos that craft continues to be a point of contention for most students. Either a lack of drive or a failed prioritization of time appears to be the culprit that students point to when making excuses for poor craft. While they will most likely make it through the class, the work will need to be reworked and reprinted to be successful in a portfolio. Each student may have a good reason for why their project didn’t turn out the way they had anticipated, however making excuses is not acceptable nor is it professional. In instances such as this, where the project has multiple deadlines with plenty of opportunities for review, discussion and improvement there is no room for excuses.
In the past, I’ve come across situations where I felt my project was ready for review. However, it isn’t until I’m sitting down with someone else that, all of a sudden, I notice details that I’ve overlooked, or worse, plan on fixing–but haven’t. It’s a horrible feeling to fumble through excuses in attempt to explain to the critiquer my intentions for the piece. After suffering through this experience too many times I’ve realized how important it is to remove any room I may have to make excuses about my work. Excuses and explanations are different. Explanations are, “I chose this because…” or, “The reason for this is… .” Where as excuses are more defensive in nature. They more than likely start out with, “If I had’ve had more…” or “I meant to…” or “I didn’t know… .” An other difference is in the delivery such as when the statement precedes the presentation as to lower the critiquers expectations rather than done as a complement to the presentation and informative as part of the process. My words of wisdom to future students: don’t leave yourself room for excuses and you won’t have to worry about it. If explanations MUST be made, proceed accordingly, but don’t make excuses for your behavior—just explain it.