Portfolio

From Concept to Finished

“How do queer people first come across the language needed to describe their experiences? What sort of process must be gone through to gain self-understanding? […] I wanted to know how media played a role in how people view and understand themselves. I know that, for myself, it was helpful to see characters like me on the screen or in books; it helped me to better understand my experiences and know that I wasn’t alone in my feelings and struggles. In what ways was this process the same, or different, for other people?”

After publishing an anonymous survey asking these questions, I used the responses I received to create interactive 3D shops where some of the most impactful media for people could be found. I’d never created miniatures before, so this process was a completely new experience for me, one I went into blind—choosing not to even watch any tutorials (why did I do this? Absolutely no clue).

This project started off as the extremely messy sketches seen here. Once I got thumbnails I was satisfied with, I got a little more precise, cleaning up details and deciding on measurements. With that settled, I made a paper model to ensure all the sizing would actually work in a 3D space. After that, the models themselves needed to be made.

Nearly everything here was made from scratch—from the hand-cut and painted floors made of popsicle sticks and vinyl, to the handmade tables and shelves, to the digitally created and hand-folded vinyl and DVD cases. It was a fun and exciting but very LONG process. (One which I did not take enough process pictures during.)

Below is the finished product. (more here idk. something about problem solving? quick learning? idk)

The full list of the media in these shops can be found here:

(It is important to note that not all of these are necessarily good representation! Many of these are where people first saw queer characters in media, and that is often through stereotypes and tragedy; viewer discretion is advised.)