To gain insight into the task of creating a personal statement and personal investigation I explored the work of a previous student.

To full understand and ensure I would cover ever aspect of this project I looked at the grading criteria.

This helped me analyse the previous students work and give him a grade which will help me understand how to get into the top grade. To ensure a top grade and achieve all the assessment objectives, ideas need to be developed through sustained and focused investigations which are supported through contextual sources which presents a developed understanding of the project. Appropriate techniques and recourses need to be explored and sustained throughout. Appropriate evidence of recorded ideas need to be included and finally a meaningful response personal to the individual that relies their intentions needs to be made. I also looked at the students work in terms of Concept, Editing, Sequencing, Design, Narrative and Aesthetic. Further criteria to assess the students essay:

• Does the essay address its hypothesis?
• Does it provide new knowledge and understanding?
• Is the essay well structured with a sense of an introduction, paragraphs and a conclusion?
• Use and flow of language, prose, punctuation, spelling.
• Use of specialist vocabulary relating to art and photography.
• Analysis of artist’s oeuvre (body of work) and key work(s).
• Evidence of wider reading with reference to art history/ theory, political discourse and/or socio-economical context.
• Use of direct quotes, summary or commentary from others to make an informed and critical argument.
• Use of referencing system (eg. Harvard) and a bibliography.
• Use of illustrations with captions listing name of artist, title of work and year of production.

Considering all this assessment criteria will help me create a well structured and in depth response.

Following on from this I began a reviewing and reflecting process were I looked at an overview of what I have learned so far (both as Yr 12 and Yr 13 student) and how I intend to develop my Personal Study.

The project that has inspired me the most from the what I have explored so far is my work exploring the theme of identity and place through the medium of photography.

Through this project I explored the notion of telling a story in way in which I explored identity in terms of feeling a loss of identity by feeling like an outcast to society but finding identity by fitting into a sub culture. I approached the project through a combination of conceptual

And portraiture style responses

Through this identity project I explored more modern artists such as J grant Brittan who’s work explores the theme of identity through a romanticist style of photography. And more historic representations of Photography such as Claude Cahun, part of the Dadaist movement of photographers exploring surrealism and identity in an innovative contemporary style. Claude is a highly influential artist for me. Claude was able to massively further my knowledge and understanding of contemporary photography as well as give me a perspective on how to approach themes using my creativity through the medium of photography. I therefore also further developed my photographic skills, specifically skills relating how to create narrative with tableaux imagery and draw emotion from the subject I was shooting which has translated to my current work.

I also experimented with more low light photography which was a challenge for me however I learnt from mistakes and fixed them which advanced me as a photographer.

This previous year 12 project is why I want to focus on developing this idea of identity to construct my personal study and investigation.