Home Stretch: Part 2.

Once again feeling incredibly overwhelmed.
Here is the proposed final layout for the half-Chinese images, "Where are your parents from?". I didn't intentionally place myself in the middle but I didn't want to be first or too close to my sister, it looks a bit strange because I'm wearing one of the brightest colours, but I think as I'm the main starting point, it's a fine to say it's the layout in my Project Report, even if it isn't necessarily going to be the final, final exhibition layout. In any case, other people aren't necessarily going to know that it's me straight away anyway.

© Ruth Johnston 2010.

I had to use one of the classrooms so forgive the fact that the lighting in these is a bit weird - I'm sure that by the time 'exhibition time' rolls around they'll be put in a clean, crisp spot.
Here is the text I have written to go at the beginning of the series:

This is not a study, it is an exploration to discover if there are others like me, and if there are others who feel the way I do. It’s strange to formally acknowledge my position as a British half-Chinese person. I am happy to be half-Chinese and have something different about me, but I also remember being very unhappy about it too. When I say that my mother is Chinese, which is all people really want to know, I am usually then asked whether I can speak it, when I say, “No, but i can understand quite a lot”, I am met with a disappointed “oh”, as though I’m the only person in the world who never learnt Chinese.



I have been picked on, and even singled out by people in the street because of the way I look. I’m proud of who I am, although I tend to resent the repetitive reaction to wanting to know ‘what I am’, some people are just curious. I am half-Chinese, I am British and I’m embracing exoticism.

Overall, I'm pretty much happy to say that I'm finished, and I feel like it's my best University project so far. At least at this stage in the game it had better be. I have been told to expect between a high 2:2 and low 2:1 for my dissertation, which I'm really not happy about, so I really want to do well with this project.
What annoyed me about my tutorial this morning was the fact that my tutor asked me about my practical project and how it was going and when I said it was nearly finished and how I wanted it done by the time I went home for Christmas, she then gave me more to look into and more to do. Eeep, I think I might take a chance and leave it out, she mentioned 'Identity', which does have a loose link to this, I suppose, but I think I've covered it in my interviews and research about mixed race people. I do still worry about whether I should do it but I'm really not sure that I have the time. Ahhh. I'd better slog my guts out until Friday, really.