Talking Pattern – Nandika Kanoria
REFLECTION
Exploring London while responding creatively has been a deeply sensory journey that reshaped how I perceive and record the world around me. Walking through Shoreditch, Spitalfields, and other corners of the city, I was drawn to its textures, brick walls layered with graffiti and its contrasting atmospheres. I have used mixed media approach to capture the diverse experiences that I encountered. Observing the city’s interplay of structure and spontaneity allowed me to see beauty in the small moments and made me feel like I was exploring myself. Working outdoors made my process more instinctive.
One of the main challenges I faced was learning to let go of control and work intuitively. At first, I found it difficult to capture the fast pace and unpredictability of London without overthinking composition or detail. However, embracing spontaneity without worrying much about the outcome through live sketching practice and mark-making became one of my key successes as it allowed me to create more expressive and dynamic outcomes.
Moving forward, I would like to explore and experiment further with scale and layering perhaps translating larger sections of my drawings into fabric samples or digital prints. I also plan to explore colour relationships more intentionally to strengthen the connection between my sketchbook exploration and future textile design practice. I aim to refine this dialogue between observation and interpretation by transforming my drawings into textile designs and print. If I were to do it again, I would focus on adding more layers into my work to explore how different materials interact. This could enable me to achieve a more dynamic and visually engaging outcome that would be helpful for my textile design development as well.