EMMJAY

Contrary to my last entry, I guess the "reflection" paper for PD in the arts needn't be about how the course "helped" us. In any case, I'm sharing it with you, mostly to get it off my hard drive.

The common denominator of my life up to present can easily be described as preparation for a flourishing career as a fashion designer. I was born as the daughter of a high-school art teacher, which has given to me a creative environment in which I have been free to experiment and hone my skills for the past seventeen years^*. At a very young age, I took to drawing as my craft of choice and practiced it at any given opportunity, regardless of the setting. My subject of choice just so happened to be people - as I have been endlessly fascinated by how one chooses to express themselves in the most literal way possible; what they wear and how they wear it.

I see myself as an innovator of something new and unseen before. To me, “art” isn’t limited to one medium, one subject or one credo (I say this coming from having an extensive background in both the visual and performing arts) but personally, I establish the worth of any piece of art on the basis of its innovation, gauging of a new genre or movement. From the age of five, you can be trained and spoon-fed musical knowledge to become a “brilliant” pianist. You can be an “artist” who never deviates from realism; painting what they know, what they see in front of themselves every day. But these people’s titles are by no means synonymous with “creator”. Those who infer themselves as artists but do not explore, create or stray beyond the unabstract thought process of comprehension, are no better than money traders or any other faceless, high ranking business executive who works by profit motivation alone, without bettering society. Regurgitation of familiar imagery is a pointless endeavor.

This being said, my critical goal as a fashion designer is to present imagery which the general population is unfamiliar with. Particularly with fashion design, this by no means a simple undertaking. Like any other art form, every trend eventually succumbs to obsolescence and if it’s lucky, it may resurface for a short while. Fashion is a catalyzed model of this certainty; trends are just as contagious as they are implosive. Yet, I see a particular irony with a disturbing tendency of how all new styles are adaptations of former styles- obsolete styles and maybe not so much based on their aesthetics but perhaps on the absence of inspiration among the ruling class of fashion.

Anyone can give mention that the new, the ahead of its time, the outright bizarre will not be accepted with open arms. One of my dissatisfactions with fashion is that too many people, devoid of creativity, enter the field in hopes of making a quick buck or two. The easiest way to accomplish this dismal goal is to ride the wave and produce a line of clothing exactly on par with every other collection at the time. However, a collection of something revolutionary could either be too threatening or the delicacy the people have been starving for all this time. Given the later is foreshadowing of my career, I will in a way have monopolized the market as I would be the only one capable of delivering a product until one of my fellow bourgeoisie beige designers formulated something of standing equivalent value.

At the same time, I feel as though this general unenthusiasm of clothing by the designers has steered fashion away from art. Slowly, fashion diverges from a vehicle of transmitting intellect and instead becomes yet another depository of recognizable, monotonous things-you-wear-because-you’re-expected-to. I say that this is a far cry from real art. Art should challenge and force people to define, if not challenge their ideologies (and if it’s aesthetically pleasing, all the better!). There is nothing groundbreaking about a pencil skirt and the more it is brought back, the chances diminish.

Art in itself is the one thing which is unquantifiable in society. Of course everything is subject to personal bias but it is ultimately the role of art to invoke response based on ones experiences and values. This is the one area which conventional fact holds no value, where there is no right, no wrong. The abandonment of logic, the trial of meaning. Only you and art.

To me, art has rapidly evolved into something very different than what it had initially meant to me. Art has always been about exploring the crevasse which one can not probe and formulate with logic alone. Up until taking Art 20 IB, I had always placed a particular importance on the visual quality of art alone. However as I was running on an artistic “stuck”, I soon found myself relying on a higher level of intellect invested in each piece to find success. In doing this, I found that my work could reach a greater audience by incorporating the introduction of critical questions to my work to gain more than a shallow acknowledgement from the viewer and invoke a real response.

Content aside, my career goals should become more available to me as I’ve been accepted into the Ryerson University school of Fashion. My decision was based just as much on their scholarly reputation as it is my desire to network. Toronto (being Canada’s fashion capital) is oozing with opportunities for prospective fashion designers to enter the field in an environment which is supporting of the industry. From the graduating fashion collection, I would hope for my work to catch the eye of a company where I could put my talent to work in a way which would give me a taste of the structure of a larger design label. This would however, not be a permanent career setting for me as ultimately, my goal is to be an entrepreneur and steer success for my own company. Another factor which will indisputably assist me on this prospect is my desire to pursue a minor in business. With luck, this will guide me in to turning my passion into something profitable.

Success will be evident to me as a designer when I have reached my artistic goal of reinventing the fashion industry and introducing to it a new leg to stand on, without which would falter. This is to say that I want to change the way that the jaded perceive fashion and to make it something exciting and new instead of reintroducing the same styles which have had the glamour beaten out of them time after time. Although beneficial to perpetuate a business and a luxurious lifestyle, I see capital as an extraneous matter to my impending legacy. Long after net worth, inspiration will not be forgotten. Success to me as an artist is when my ideas become a valid and respectable statement wherein fashion itself can not be forgotten without mention of my name.

^* - No, not really.

So I got my acceptance latter to Ryerson yesterday. Sure I'm excited but I'm not surprised. Then again I wouldn't be surprised if I didn't get in either though based on some dumb technicality- Seldom am I ever rejected when I try my best; I usually just miss part of the big picture is all.

No more Calgary. No more yuppies. No more mom. No more stupid "Western Pride". No more lame Calgary raves. No more kids who I've grown to hate over the past six years... It would seem that I've grown exponentially and everyone else is still a selfish little seventh grader looking for their next keg.

Ever still, I have a bunch of homework to get done with. I'm still not done what was due for Spring Break given I did my application portfolio and then had my Japanese exchange students. Yet I'm still applying more effort into finishing my dress for OtaFest. This acceptance couldn't have come at a worse time- I'm not really motivated to work but at the same time, I've been riuding a creative null for a couple months.

Living in the moment produces goals, ironically enough:
- Finish homework
- Apply for more scholarships
- Loose ten more pounds for OtaFest
- Start selling jib to have money to pay for $600 hair extensions next week...
- Meet up with friends and teach them our choreography for OtaFest
- GTFO LiveJournal

I finished everything up on Thursday morning and I mailed my portfolio out later that day to be couriered by Friday afternoon. There. Now I'll shut up about it and if I don't get in, I'll seriously puke. Now I'm cleaning up my house for my Japanese homestay girls that are coming this Friday. I'm fricken' PUMPED.

Kay, here is my portfolio and then you NEVER HAVE TO LOOK AT IT EVER AGAIN.



Eternal Sailor Moon Cosplay


Pants


Princess Sailor Moon Cosplay (Also Grad dress)


Ladie's Evening Wear (Pencil Crayon)


Swimwear (Watercolor)


Men's Casual Wear (Photoshop)


Children's Wear (Pencil Crayon)

So whatdaya think?

Well, I've accomplished something (but even so, I'm not finished and feel although I've accomplished butt-fuck nothing) These are part of the drawing portion of my portfolio submission. It's supposedly "women's evening wear". I have to draw the back view in but I left my Research Work Book at school so this is as far as I'll get right now.


This is the rough coup, just to give you an idea of the colors. Not quite fixed on the blending on the bottom of the outer dress layer... If you can't tell, its supposedly a mushroom cloud... She has chemical equation things all over the top too!


This is my good copy that I'm handing in. I have yet to add colors so this is all you get for now.

Edit:
I finished the back version too:

"Dear MJ,

As an applicant to the Bachelor of Design - Fashion Design program, the Admissions Committe and the Faculty are pleased to invite you to send a portfolio. Your portfolio submission must be received by the School of Fashion by the following deadline date: April 4, 2008."

"Dear Ryerson Admissions Committee and Faculty,

lol gtfo"

To all of you who are visiting my page from Newgrounds:

It's not letting me log in. I really would like to update TheMJ Dress up of Madness II but because I can't log in and frankly don't have the time, that will just have to wait.

To all of you who have noticed I haven't updated my page in a significantly long time:

Hey guys. I do school work ALL the time. I did all my post break homework last week but it turns out none of it was really due till next week. My director called me and said he wanted me to audition a part for Grease this summer but I can't because a)I'll be in Japan for most of the run of the show and b) I do too much homework to do anything like, oh I don't know, think of myself. Anyway, this being said, I'm working on art portfolio stuff now.

WHICH IS ANOTHER THING:
Ryerson posted their entrance requirements for their FD program. All the requirements are the same for this year as they were last year: 4 designs (one mens casual, one women's evening wear, one swimsuit, one children's) and 3 photographs of homemade garments (Front and back shot of each including fabric samples and one photo of a garment inside out) One change: garments can't be made out of black or white material.

Oh. Oh I see how it is.

So by about, hurm, APRIL, I have to have constructed three, professional caliber garments to submit to one of the top elite schools of fashion on the CONTINENT in two and a half months and as if that weren't bad enough, my cosplay is white (as is my grad dress which is supposed to be Princess Usagi's dress) and I'm not allowed to sew for ANYBODY ELSE even though they commission me and pay for the materials. So now I'm supposed to make three things I probably won't even wear (in fear of ruining them) and waste money on material (not black or white though- more ammunition as to why I wouldn't wear them because thats just good design) that I could have used towards the trip to Japan I'm going on (Not even $2000 for the trip there and back. Hurm, that other $1000 I'm paying presumably isn't going towards going to one or two of the tourist traps we're going to, I'm sure)

Ung, this is retarded. Yeah, you heard that. I said retarded and I sure as hell hope I've offended all your little cousins, friends, coworkers and the such who legitimately are.

Oh, but I am doing good in school. Especially English. Cooter is a funny word to write everywhere on everything in my LA class In a half dazed sleep in the middle of the night a while back, I was trying to determine the wavelength of the chai tea latte sitting on my night stand beside me because it smelled like vomit. Now thats what I call scholarly dedication.

TheMJ Dress Up of Madness II : PLAY IT NOW Vote 5 as well!

Well, this latest game in combination with Summerstock have basically kept me away from LiveJournal for most of the summer. School starts tomorrow. I don't necessarily think that LiveJournal is a bad habit to keep up (au contraire, it's a fantastic tool to keep my use of the English language in shape) but it still won't be updated as frequently as you or I would like it to be. I need 80%+ in five academic 30 level subjects in order to even be considered for Ryerson's Fashion Design faculty and an outstanding portfolio to boot. So heres to me throwing away my talent for frivolous knowledge. Cheers!

I do apologize for not posting as much as I had promised [myself] to. In the fashion of Emmjay-ism, I hereby drop an excuse which is that I'm endlessly busy with Summerstock and when I'm not doing that, I'm watching Sailor Moon S. So this about that and that about all of this: Come see the show! Come scoop up the sweet, sweet guacamole of our labors and caress my ego with it, please and thank you!

And on the subject of Sailor Moon, cosplays for OtaFest '08 have been decided:
Emmjay - Eternal Sailor Moon
Sid (Ex Pudding) - Princess Kakyu
Bree (Ex Dance slave) - Black Lady
Benson - Prince Endymion

But of course, the higher power which inevitably dictates the course of my future (or rather enforces the most ridiculous rules in order to revoke me there of) has decided that no, there will not be any sewing for anybody next year so that I can get good grades so I can not pass on the desired post-secondary institution of my choice because of my cadaver of a portfolio which need be infused with the life which can only be derived from cosplay; what was once my one opportunity to create and WRYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY. And it's not like this year in fashions where I was taken in as a special projects student who finished four out of a maximum five credits (one of which was half way finished and I still managed an 89% for) in half the amount of time as all the other Fashions 20 students and still managed to get a 97% for the whole course which if I am not mistaken is the highest mark achieved by anybody in the program next year. Next year I have a whole semester AND a spare and we all know where I will be spending that. That and Art I.B. 31 is all self directed studies and my field of study just so happens to be the culture of Japanese Fashion. But still, the woman who unfortunately breathes the same air as me insists that this is not what I want to do and that JUST LIKE HER (God knows I'm the SPINNING IMAGE of her) I'll change my mind (Because like her, I'm obviously going to university on Mommy and Daddy's budget taking a course just for the hell of it so that I can join a sorority- YIPPIE!)

But on the bright side, the portfolio requirements are quite stupid.

I think I may need a new LiveJournal layout. This one is depressing. Wave bye bye!