Where Could My creative Learning Experience Take Me In The Future? A Brief Summery.

Editorial design: Bethany Hutchison with contents by Clare Perrin

Image Credit (Center Image): Bethany Hutchison (2022)

Thumbnail Design: Bethany Hutchison

Where could my creative learning experience take me in the future? That’s a question which many individuals who choose to go to university are asked. Whether this question be posed by parents, teachers or friends. After all it is important that we as individuals choose a university and a course which is right for us. One of the reasons why I chose the BA Fashion Communication and Promotion course was due to the large range of specialisms taught in conjunction with the BA Fashion Marketing and Business students in year one. By being taught a large scope of specialisms and skills I felt comfortable starting a university course which did not limit my creative endeavours but instead expanded them. Already, since being at the university, I have learnt new things during my creative learning experience such as how to write a trend report and how to write a marketing report (which may be skills I decide to utilise in the future).

When I first began to consider in my childhood the cliché of ‘what I want to be when I grow up’. I simply decided that I wanted to be a vet. I loved and cared for animals however I did not truly understand the sheer amount of academic prestige it would take to obtain the role. Once moving onto secondary school, I soon realised that I’m not a conventionally academic person. Instead I realised that I enjoyed creative subjects (alongside English literature) and that I have no true passion for maths or science. This essentially forced my childhood dreams to a grinding halt.

Reflecting upon my past self I think I believed that the only way to become successful was if I adopted an academic career. This led me onto my next dream; to be a journalist. A very vague statement as I had not yet decided upon what kind of journalism I’d want to do (photographic or written etc) or which sector I’d like to specialise in.

This changed during the beginning of my secondary school education when I was diagnosed with scoliosis which, simply put, is a curvature of the spine. In an attempt to straighten my spine and prevent my condition from worsening I was given a rigid plastic back brace which I had to wear for eighteen hours a day. Wearing this brace prevented me from wearing the clothes that I wanted to. Resulting in me spending two years of my life circling through the same selection of leggings and jumpers. Before this point I had not truly understood the impact that fashion can have on someone’s confidence and self-expression. In a sense wearing the brace was a blessing in disguise. It taught me the value of dressing and how fashion can be a powerful tool- not only providing confidence but also enabling me to express my personality.

During these years of my secondary school education I was out in the garden with my father when he came towards me and asked me to bring his DSLR camera outside. After bringing it outside my father

quite simply told me to use it. To walk around and to capture the flowers within my garden. This ignited my love for photography, a passion which has remained a constant throughout the years.

Image Credit: Bethany Hutchison (2018, 2019)

After discovering photography and the importance of fashion I then decided that I wanted to be a fashion photographer quickly followed by wanting to be a fashion journalist. This was further fortified as during my time studying GCSE photography I also became enthralled by graphic and editorial design. By this point I had just started college and it was therefore imperative that I started to apply to universities. Initially, I was looking to just study fashion journalism until my head of year advised that I instead studied fashion communication. This is a suggestion that I will forever be grateful that she voiced as since joining Norwich University of The Arts (NUA) my desire to be a fashion journalist has almost entirely ebbed away. Instead, I am now almost definite that I want to work in the creative side of the publication industry either working as a fashion photographer or editorial designer. This desire has been further fortified after I became an editorial member of NUA’s publication society Storehouse. Working within Storehouse has provided me with insight into the editorial design sphere and although I’ve only been a part of the society for a short period of time I feel as if I’ve already learnt many interesting things such as typography, design principles and layout principles.

Image credit: Bethany Hutchison (2022)

Editorial Design: Bethany Hutchison

The aim of the BA1b blog posts is to reflect upon the questions so often asked by those closest to me ‘where could [your] creative learning experience take [you] in the future?’ and to do a deep dive into my chosen specialisms. Throughout these blog posts I will research and interview influential individuals within my chosen specialisms alongside researching agencies and job/ internship positions currently on offer allowing me to completely understand the breadth and depth of my chosen industry. In conjunction to these blog posts I also aim to reflect upon the teaching which is being provided to me and how this may shape my chosen career path in the future. I look forward to writing these blog posts and understanding just how invaluable my creative learning experience will be for my future self.