A Letter To Future Self
The semester of Fall 2020 started with a lot of excitement but with a little bit of disappointment. I was excited to be finally starting my master’s but at the same time, was bummed to start it online due to the pandemic. There was a lot of uncertainty, but I had no choice other than just to start with it.
At the start of my studio class I was all excited to jump into the assignments and thrilled to know so many people from around the world. This was the first time I was interacting so closely with people from other countries. I even invited some of my cohort to join me on a one-on-one call on Skype just to break the ice.
The studio class started on a high note. I still remember all of us working on the Group Agreement, trying to comfort each other in this new realm of online learning, which none of us had experienced before.
Being paired with someone from a different country and culture for Action 1 was a wonderful experience. For the first time I had the opportunity to talk about my culture with someone from a totally different culture. I was delighted to find out how both our cultures had so many similarities.
Both the actions 1 and 2 were an opportunity to know people closely from different cultures. Through action 2, I had the opportunity to offer a dish from my culture while at the same time experience one from theirs. It is no surprise, that even now when kheer is made at home, I cannot help but think of Marcia, with whom I was paired for Action 2.
The turning point for me on this course was at Action 3. This was the first time I realized that I was not comfortable working with ambiguity. Trying to come up with an action and seeing things from a new perspective, I had to again get in touch with some of my cohort to share my ideas and get a feedback on them. Moving through actions 4,5,6 and 7 I had reached a place where I felt lost and demotivated to continue with my actions. Missing out on real time interactions and not being able to step out of my house due to the lockdown, really started to get on my nerves. Working continuously on my laptop was also becoming monotonous for me.
To overcome this, I decided again to reach out to my cohort and instructors. This helped me in getting out of the same routine and motivated me to try something new, without thinking much about the result. Doing this led me to my Action 8. For this action I just played around with a bunch of stationaries I could find in my room. Completing this action, I was able to break the monotony of all my previous actions and to try something new. This was a major turning point in my practice and a big ‘AHA!’ moment for me as now I was motivated again to try and work with different materials.
As a result, I was able to work comfortably with different materials for Actions 9 and 10 (Cotton & Cardboard). Not just working, but at the same time I was able to look at things with a difference lens now.
Looking back at all my actions so far, there are somethings that I have learnt about myself. First, that its okay to work on/with something without knowing/worrying about the result and second is to open with my peers and share my experiences (good/bad) and vulnerabilities with them to keep myself motivated. Moving forward to the next semester, I would like to carry on with this newfound practice of material exploration and try to incorporate a wide variety of them in my design practice. I hope that I can continue the rest of my masters from Vancouver and get the opportunity to interact with my instructors and peers in person. I feel that getting to do this would be a big boost to my design practice.
Although I am writing this letter as part of my assignment, but I realize that it is a good way to reflect on what I have learnt so far and how has it affected me. Moving forward I would like to continue with this practice more often maybe even after I finish my college. Looking forward to an exciting next semester.