University Application Portfolio

Divya Kishore | 2022 | Submitted to Goldsmiths, University of London along with other universities

Reflections & Notes

My main focus for this portfolio was showing range in my artistic and academic research abilities. Along with not wanting to produce anything new at that particular moment (burnout from chronic illness is real, do not judge me).

I was a little sceptical about the first essay as I believed (still do) that it wasn’t my strongest piece of work. However, the research leaned more towards what I was inclined towards. It was also the latest piece of writing I had written at that time. With everything that was going on, it was a fairly well written piece.

The second piece of writing was something I had written in my second year (second semester) at NAFA. This piece of writing was a personal pride of mine, the feedback I had received was quite good. Thus I had decided on adding it to the portfolio as well.

Einstein Myth, the work in progress series, was added as even if I hadn’t gotten a high grade from the external assessors for it, I believed in the series quite vehemently. Still do. This series in particular showed range, in terms of artistic research, aesthetic, art skills, a general all roundedness. Probably why I added it even though all the courses I was applying for were Curatorial or art history courses with no fine art component to them.

Even now, after a whole year, this portfolio is perhaps the one thing I wouldn’t have done differently during my application process. Not only because I was incredibly burnt out and did not have the ability to produce anything new. It was because everything in this portfolio was (and continues to be) something I am proud of as an artist, and a deeply passionate curatorial student who is also a budding independent researcher.