Midpoint

As I collected information and tried to mold it into a cohesive project, I found myself excited and at the same time hopeful that I could pull something off that would express the ideas that were floating around in my head. As I researched the topic, I found very little direct information. There were plenty of historic examples of the knot, but very little in terms of addressing the symbolism of the knot. This increased the challenge, but also increased my excitement to develop these ideas according to my own creativity.

The preparation of my midpoint proposal allowed me to explore different aspects of the knot and the potential symbolisms which might arise from it. The proposal provided a basis and a theory, proving that there was sufficient information and historical precedent to make it an interesting topic. This preparation, however, did very little to define the creative route and final incarnation that my project would take to successfully communicate my ideas. At the midpoint review, Mark Badger, a member of the review, board made a comment which drastically changed my thinking about the project and where I needed to go with it.

He told me (not in these exact words) that he felt that I was reserving something, that I had presented the basis of an interesting work, but that I had left the soul out of it. This was not the result I had hoped for, I wanted to express something personal, fascinating, and mysterious. I realized that I had mainly presented a plan to build an expanded encyclopedia entry with interesting facts and tidbits about knots. The midpoint review and the feedback that I received inspired me to dig a little deeper into the concept of knots, searching for an artistic presentation that would harmonize with the project.