Translating Observation | Reflection 10 – Peer Observations | Noah Hodgson

Once again I’ve really enjoyed returning to the work of other people in this studio. Every time I’ve been given this task for reflection I’ve found such a vast array of different approaches to observational writing, and at this late stage of semester the variety seems to have only increased. In particular this time I really enjoyed Mia T’s observation using https://www.window-swap.com/. While it’s not strictly speaking within the confines of the rule set we were initially given for observations (in that its not something directly observable in our own environments), I do think it’s a really great place to take this experiment and it makes for a rather distinctive and engaging read. I had no idea that this website even existed so this observation served as a really great introduction and I’ve since really enjoyed flicking through the different window views that are on it. This observation and most of the others posted after the mid-semester break all seem to showcase just how far everyone has progressed with their writing since the first batch of observations. There definitely is an increased spirit of experimentation in this latest batch and I think it has really served to elevate everyone’s work. Looking back at the very first observations on the google doc, there certainly are some great ones there really early on, but as a broad statement, I’d say that each batch has gotten progressively more interesting and less formulaic for me. In a way I think that the restrictions imposed by the pandemic have been a blessing in disguise where this class is concerned. As everyone (and myself included) has slowly run out of ideas as the semester progressed I think it has forced all of us to be more creative and more experimental in our approach not just to the actual writing but to subject matter too. In a way I feel like it’s a bit of a shame the class is coming to an end so soon as I can only see each person’s writing continuing to improve and diversify even further were we to continue on.