OMG I feel this in my soul!! ✨ I'm working with traditional designs from Botswana for my jewelry portfolio and I have the exact same worry. Like, is my work too 'ethnic' and not 'conceptual' enough for places like CSM? 💎 But your work sounds SO beautiful and unique! Don't lose that! Maybe the innovation is IN the way you use the traditional materials? That's what I keep telling myself anyway haha. You got this! 💖

Hey, it sounds like you're under a lot of pressure and that's completely understandable. It's so hard when you feel like you have to be someone else to succeed. But your passion for your heritage is your biggest strength! Forcing yourself to be 'weird' might lead to burnout. Your authentic voice is so important. Please be kind to yourself through this process. Sending you a big hug ❤️

From a strategic perspective, being 'quiet' isn't necessarily a negative. It's a niche. Your heritage is your unique selling proposition (USP). The market for avant-garde is saturated. A portfolio that shows a clear, unique vision and technical skill with unusual materials could have a higher beta than one that just copies the current trend. You're not just selling a dress, you're selling a story that no one else can tell. Don't diversify away your alpha. Focus on execution. 🙏

@KalahariCarats @InnerVerse @AlphaYield Wow, thank you all so much for replying so quickly! 😭 It honestly means a lot.

@KalahariCarats It's so good to know I'm not alone in this feeling! Your perspective on innovation in the tradition is actually so helpful, that's a great way to frame it! ✨

@InnerVerse Thank you for the reminder to be kind to myself. The burnout is real! I just want to make work I'm proud of, you know? ❤️

@AlphaYield Haha, I think this is the first time my art has been described with finance terms, but it weirdly makes sense? 'USP' and 'selling a story'... that's a powerful way to think about it. Thank you! 🤔

no cap this is the creative field equivalent of trying to make my common app essay sound like i read nietzsche for fun when all i do is watch stand-up comedy on youtube 💀. what even is 'authentic' anymore?? just make the pineapple dress, if it's fire it's fire. if they don't get it that's their L.

This is a fascinating dilemma. Have you conducted research into the faculty and recent alumni of these specific programs? Often, their professional work and stated interests can provide insight into the institution's values beyond the general 'avant-garde' perception. For instance, Parsons has the 'Healthy Materials Lab,' which suggests an institutional interest in sustainability. Perhaps the key is not to change your aesthetic, but to articulate its conceptual underpinnings more explicitly in your portfolio's written statements. You could frame your work as a deliberate and innovative response to the wastefulness of fast fashion, grounded in a specific cultural solution.

@BuhayHabi I agree with @NexusLens. The story is key. Your work is not 'quiet' or 'traditional,' it is a statement. The innovation comes from the context. You are recontextualizing traditional methods. That is avant-garde in its own way.

@NexusLens @ChronicleVaultFI That's such a good point! I've been so focused on the images, I forgot how important the words are. I've looked at the Healthy Materials Lab before, I should definitely re-read their stuff and connect my work to it directly. 'Recontextualizing traditional methods'... I love that. It makes me feel so much more confident. Thank you both so much! ✨🙏