Final Post! The article is done!

It is hard to believe the semester is over already. Now that my article is published (you can read it here!); I want to reflect on if I accomplished what I wanted to get out of this course. I wanted to do a few different things… First, I wanted to analyze an artist’s and my own authenticity through work. I think I wove those two threads together well in the final piece, connecting Michael’s and David’s practices to my own at MIAD. This piece was way more personal than I initially thought it would be (my triad was originally going to write about Black Cat Alley, until we broke off into writing about our own passions). Second, I wanted to research independent/designer toys and decide if it would be something I would want to do in the future. I am very happy I got such detailed responses from both David and Michael after reaching out to them. Both had very unique products and processes despite their initial similarities. As David pointed out, if you want to do this kind of thing, your product has to be original and not like anything else on the market, what in industrial design we call a “unique value proposition”. I am still not sure if I would want to do this as both Michael and David have to do it on the side. To them it’s a labor of love, pure idealistic passion, but with the duality of still trying to be unique at the same time. Going forward I will keep that in mind when I design my own toys. 

To those that have been following this blog, thanks for sticking with me to the end! Please enjoy the final article on OnMilwaukee.com

Thanks again,
-Jason Ward