OUGD602 - Photography Studio Session

Photographing for
Putting Portfolio Together

When contacting studios and designers with the intention of finding an internship, the response I get is to send over some sort of portfolio or PDF that demonstrates my work and where I am at in my progression. This quickly made me realise that I haven't got anything I could send over yet.

When gathering my past projects that I would like employers to see, I realised that last year I was lazy when it came to photographing some of my final resolutions. This led me to set myself the task of booking out a photography studio and retake some final resolution photos that will then make up a portfolio to send to designers.

Katakana

Translation Book

This is one of my most successful projects from level 5. The photos I had of it from last year were inadequate for a portfolio as they looked unprofessional and rushed. This time round I made sure that the white balance was more accurate, I also reprinted the front cover as the original looked old and worn.

Rebrand 

for

Moistifying Garms

OUGD602 - Writing Task

How to
Write About my Work

Quick writing task on how to correctly and concisely describe my own projects for the purpose of portfolios and online presence.

- Pick favourite projects of mine
 > use 'elevator pitch'
- What, How & Why - a sentence answering three things
 > What is the core idea
 > How does it work
 > Why does it work
...

Katakana Editorial

> A publication that simplifies the sub-category, Katakana, of the Japanese language for English speaking people.
> The design & layout is informed by ease of use, allowing readers to digest and understand the content more easily
> The information being easy to understand allows the reader to learn the Katakana language more comfortably

Parkinson's App

> A smartphone application that helps connect the young-onset community of people living with Parkinson's disease
> The easy-to-use app presents users with various activities and events available for the young-onset community as well as acting as a calendar to help with organisation.
> The app reminds young-onset people with the disease that they are not alone and that there are ample opportunities to meet up with others in the same position; tackling depression and loneliness

Outcome

I found this task relatively easy as I have not struggled with this in the passed and is something I consider myself good at. However, it was a good reminder into the method of writing and has confirmed in my head that I am doing it correctly and concisely.

OUGD602 - Design Manchester

Design Manchester at
The Principal

A group of us made the journey to Manchester to attend a design conference as part of Design Manchester. Now in its 5th year, the day long conference featured influential speakers showing an insight into their work ranging from architecture to film and even typography.

The speakers included:
Ellen Van Loon (OMA)
Sean Perkings (North)
Naresh Ramchandani (Pentagram)
Alex McDowell
& Patrick Burgoyne (Creative Review)


**Missing Notes from Talks**

Orgasm Addict Reframed at
The Principal

To make the most of being in Manchester, I decided to leave the talks early and visit various other exhibitions and points of interest. The first of these was a small scale exhibition that invited designers such as Swifty and Craig Oldham to interpret the sleeve for Buzzcock's 1977 single Orgasm Addict: their own 'reframed' version.

Malcom Garrett's original design featured a montage by the artist Linder Sterling, Malcom turned upside down and rendered in single colour to enhance the graphic impact of the sleeve.

Examples of the interpretations are shown below. This brief reminds me of the Secret 7 brief I entered in my first year at university and was one that I was very fond of. I have not yet found a live brief that I want to enter this year yet but seeing these has given me the idea to find one similar. I will look into whether Secret 7 is running this year as it was not live last year.

Re-imagined Works of
Burgess Book Covers

The next exhibition I visited was located at the InternationalAnthony Burgess Foundation. The small room located in the basement was filled with re-imagined works from some of Burgess iconic and less-seen book covers from all around the world. These novels included A Clockwork Orange & Earthly Powers.

This show was of interest to me as currently one of my strong design interests lies within publication design and so I aim to produce at least one editorial this year as part of my extended practice brief. There is a running theme through these exhibitions that include re-interpretation as well as book/sleeve cover design. One thing I enjoyed most about the book covers was the clear cultural diversity between designs. Some covers were interpreted for international intended audiences such as Japanese and European. The design cultures of the audiences are clearly demonstrated through the use of colour and type.

Look-Book Research around
Manchester

After the Burgess exhibition, I then ventured through Manchester towards the centre to check out the shopping. I came across what I would consider as being a very trendy district with barista cafes and skater shops. Whilst looking round the shops, I came across a number of examples of Look-Books. These are becoming more and more popular within the fashion industry and can now be found at a large number of stores. These books are usually found in clothes stores that match the 'trendy' or 'hipster' style and are a means to communicate a message behind clothes and the culture along side them. I documented these books and took photos as they gave me an idea to produce one for my publication design & fashion brief.

Our Legacy 

Lookbook

LookBook found in

Carhartt Store 

OUGD602 - Exhibition - The One Who Looks

The One Who Looks at

Colours May Vary

A collection of Risograph prints produced by a number of designers

Risograph Printing

Risograph is a brand of digital duplicators manufactured by the Riso Kagaku Corporation, that are designed for high-volume photocopying and printing.

- Released in Japan in 1986

- When printing or copying many duplicates of the same content, it is typically far less expensive per page than a conventional photocopier, laser printer or inkjet printer.

 The examples of prints shown here demonstrate the uniqueness of the aesthetic that is achieved when using a risograph printer.

When looked at closely, you can see the colours layered on top of one another where the colours are just out of line. Although not on purpose, this defect is not all bad and actually adds something to the work in my opinion.

There is a 'small ecologically minded printers' based in Leeds who came to talk to us last year. These guys offer risoprinting and print everything from booklets, zines, newsletters and even stickers.

If I wanted to experiment with this print technique,

Fashion Publication Research

Whilst at Colours May Vary, I took the opportunity to explore the varied selection of publications they have on display. They have an amazing collection of editorials that cover a whole range of subjects. Most, if not all, of them having a strong consideration for the design, layout and production of the publication itself.

I will be revisiting this store when I get round to designing my own publication as it is a great source of inspiration.

Alzheimer's Australia

'Turning the unspoken, into the unforgettable'

To help increase awareness and the level of funding afforded to Alzheimer’s Disease and other forms of dementia, Mike Rigby and his team had to create a brand that could cut through the clutter of the charity landscape. 

"A brand with a fighting spirit at its heart. A brand designed to create a grass roots movement and galvanize an entire nation."

The campaign is intentionally minimal and simple with the use of only two colours and often only four word phrases.

The identity is:
- Bold
- Simple
- Clear
- Deliberately easy to manage

Created at Interbrand Australia. Strategy, design and motion by Chris Maclean, Dean Christie, Chris Doyle, Chris Lamont, Joao Peres, Jefton Sungkar and Mike Tossetto.

Social Media Presence 
Instagram

As part of the campaign and to spread the awareness, they have an Instagram and Facebook account that is regularly updates.

For my own project, I will be focusing on aiming my campaign at a younger target audience and one way I have thought of to achieve this is to use social media as it is a useful means of communication that is suitable for my target audience.

Below is a series of illustrations that were posted daily for a week for Brain Awareness Week. These fun an colourful illustrations are a prime example of the imagery I aim to use in my own campaign. The tone of voice is playful and positive despite the the cause they are addressing.

Similarly, with their Facebook page they have used a positive tone of voice and kept a consistent identity using the same two colours.

If I were to compare the effectiveness of both social media platforms, I would say that the Instagram account is a lot better suited due to the format and the fact that it is predominantly imagery which the campaign uses a lot.

This has informed my idea to utilise Instagram with my own campaign.

End of Module Evaluation

Evaluating PPP 2

Last year, the PPP module for me was all about seeing and trying as much as I could no matter what it was. This was due to the fact that I was completely new to the discipline and so I wanted to explore all corners of it to find what I am interested in. However, this year I aimed to hone in my engagement with this module and start to specify the areas I wanted to explore. I have made sure that, throughout my second year on this course, wherever I went, I would do something to benefit my practice in some way. For example, I have been lucky enough to visit a number of places around the world in the past 9 months and with every destination I visited, I made sure to visit something Graphic Design related; whether this be a print workshop in Belgium or a book shop in Berlin. This has meant I have successfully immersed myself within the discipline, something I struggled with last year and needed to improve on in order for my practice to develop. Something that the tutors have put emphasis on this year is to consistently evaluate not only my engagement with graphic design but also how my experiences benefit my own practice and so with every brief, exhibition, visiting professional etc., my aim has been to outline the effects they have had on my progress on the course and who I want to be as a designer. 

Through all of this critical analysis, I can safely say that I am a lot closer to finding a direction I want to take my practice and eventually my career. I have made a concerted effort to find and explore possible career paths. Starting with the first brief of this year, type in context, I have discovered that publication and editorial design is something that I am very interested in and am suited to. Receiving my highest ever mark in that module only confirmed this more and eventually led to a search for work experience in the Summer in editorial design. After attending my first ever official interview, I managed to confirm a substantial amount of work experience at a high profile magazine publisher studio in London. I am extremely excited for the experience and I am hoping that it is only going to make me more sure that I have made the right decision and taken the correct career path for my interests and skills.

Another aspect of this module that I really tried to make the most of was producing a creative report. As I had an understanding of where I may want to take my practice, I made sure to contact a professional that has had experience in editorial design. Interviewing said professional was extremely beneficial to my practice, more so than I had first anticipated. She told me all about her practice and experiences in the industry and it really inspired me to be as successful as she is. I then explained where I am at with my skills and development and she assured me that I am headed in the right direction and that I sounded as though I was passionate and driven which are two things I have improved on this year and will be ever developing through my time on this course.

In summary, my experiences on this module this year have been so much more beneficial to my practice than last year as I have made an effort to engage and explore as much as I can throughout the year, throwing myself into the deep end by taking on client briefs and applying for work experience with no help from others around me. My progress has been self lead all the way through the year and it is a very rewarding feeling that my efforts have amounted to a strong interest and possible career path.

Design Museum - CoP research

Imagine Moscow

For the CoP module submission, we were asked to produce a presentation outlining our research aims for our CoP3 work for third year. We had to come up with a topic based on one of a few options listed in the brief. As my essay this year looked at design around the world, I thought that I would carry this topic on as it is something I am interested in and would be able to engage with during research.

I chose the option to answer...

Question 6: To what extent has Graphic Design constructed our understanding or view of historical events and perceptions of truth?

After choosing a topic and the question above, I wanted to conduct some primary research relating to the topic. I searched around for relevant exhibitions and found one at the London Design Museum called 'Imagine Moscow'. The exhibition turned out to be one of the best ones I have been to in recent years and was very relevant to the area of research I want to explore over the summer period in preparation for third year. The exhibition looked at the architectural propaganda of the Russian Revolution. Although the exhibition was not solely graphic design, it included a whole range of examples that will be suitable for my project.

Russian's October Revolution in 1917 was a turning point not only for the political history of the 20th century, but also in the evolution of design. The ideas unleashed by that period of social and cultural turmoil are still reflected in the work of contemporary architects and designers. This exhibition explored one aspect of that legacy; the impact on the idea of the city and the way that it was presented to the soviet public through propaganda.

El Lissitzky's speculative plan for rebuilding Moscow was based on a new building type, the so-called 'Cloud Iron', a horizontal skyscraper. He envisaged a network of these structures around Moscow's Boulevard Ring. The eight buildings were to be placed at major intersections, directly connecting offices and living space on the upper floors to the new tram and metro stations at street level. 

For me, work like this is extremely inspiring as it is so ambitious and innovative and those are two aspects of design that I want to improve on in my own practice; not to just produce 'good design' but to be innovative with my ideas and concepts and to take things that one step further. 

Overall the visit to this exhibition was extremely beneficial and gave me a whole range of ideas and topic areas for my CoP3 project. I have bought a book that further explains the work on show as well as some more history ad politics surrounding the events. This will be extremely useful when I start my research. 

The show has also inspired the thought to visit Moscow itself over Summer as this would benefit my work hugely going into third year and is a measure I am willing to take and want to in order for my own practice to progress and reach the level I am aiming for.

Life's A Pitch

Proposal...

Rationale

To host a small scale art and design exhibition along side live music & DJs held inside a student house, creating a relaxed and intimate environment. The aim is to take away some aspects of exhibitions that may put students off  attending them such as distance away from home and/or cost.

Appropriate audience and market

The target market is all students, not just creatives. This is due to the fact that the venue will be right in the heart of Hyde Park which is home to thousands of students from a number of different universities.

The combination of work, music and drinks will attract all students who are looking to have a relaxed drink, listen to music or to check out our work. 

Suitable Delivery system / platform / location / outlet

The exhibition will be held in the house of one of the members of our team, which ever is more suited to hosting a small show.

It being in a house will reduce cost and time for other students to access the show by being close by.

It will also reduce the cost for us as a collective as the venue wouldn’t cost anything, allowing spending else where

Potential Partners

One team member is good friends with the people who run Nord. We will use them as a partner to attract an audience as they already have a large following within the target audience.

We also know a number of other DJs who could perform at the exhibition

We will make use of the digital and traditional print facilities here at the College for things like promotional material like fliers and stickers as well as banners and signage for the house.

Team Structure

Barney - I will be in charge of managing the joint funds. I will also take responsibility for providing the food and drinks and decide how these two things will be available to attendees.

Theo - Theo will be in charge of promoting. Making students aware of the show including the online advertising as well as in person.

Alec - He will be in charge of contacting Nord to partner up with them. This will then inform our promotional stuff and music equipment. And in charge of the venue

Legal & Financial Obligations

As it will be held inside a student house, we will have to be wary of noise. However, the show will be put on in the afternoon/ late evening and we will make sure it will come to an end before people nearby are disturbed by noise or crowds.

People on the door accepting entry fees would be students themselves, further adding to the relaxed environment.

Financing

In terms of printing and producing work for the show, we will each be responsible for funding our own work. However, for other costs such as drinks/ food etc we will all contribute a sum.

Pay on entry - £2

Food & Drinks free

Presentation

This year, we have had several opportunities to work in groups including this one. This was my first experience of putting together an exhibition and is something I will definitely aim to do more of over summer and in third year.

I enjoyed the process of this task thoroughly as I have come to realise that one aspect of the industry I really enjiy and excel at is both coming up with ideas as well as leading a team. I took it upon myself to lead the team with this task in terms of delegating jobs, tasks and deciding which ideas we would take forward. This year has been a massive learning curve for me and this being one of the things I have learnt about myself the most and something I hope I can improve on greatly so that I can lead a team of professionals one day.