Overall
On a more general outlook i have had to keep realistic with what i have wanted to create. Many times i have found myself thinking over ambitiously for the time period so it is really important that you remain innovative whilst still keep realistic within the time period you have for a particular brief. Another problem was researching. When researching i have to make sure i use reliable sources and try to maximise my time by finding the necessary research and getting rid on the unnecessary.
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- In the rain brief i had a few problems that i had to overcome. I wanted to keep in simple and keep an overall editorial feel to the poster without adding too much illustration. I was heavily influenced by Kessels but i didn't want to keep it too much like his work. I wanted to add my own style too. In the end i was happy with the final result but thin if i had more time i could have had a much better outcome. I wasted time experimenting though design sheets a little bit.
- For 'JuicePurse', the group brief, we wanted to keep it fresh and innovative so we steered away from just graphic design. We encountered numerous problems when putting our products together and Me and Sam Hoh went through a lot of trial and error before we was happy with our final designs. In this brief, we also used various methods. The Laster Cutter, Embossing Press and also experimented with film/video. As a lot of this was new to us, we also came across a lot of hurdles before we got to our finished piece. For example, the pressing technique we used was a little bit makeshift because of the 2 week deadline of the brief, but we managed to get some nice results just through experimentation.
- For the stamp brief, this was the first time i had created design in such a small format so i found it difficult to design this way. My illustrations, i enjoyed doing and thought worked really successfully at large scale (in the poster for example) but i think a mixture of the detail in them and the quality of the printing onto the vinyl stickers made them not work as well as i thought they should. To improve this, in the crit i got told to print onto different stock to avoid this happening, and sacrifice the stickers element, so this is something i will have to re-visit before hand in.
Evaluate the key considerations that you had to take into account when investigating briefs this year
- Throughout the year, i have made some vital considerations in briefs that have helped me push my work to its fullest.
-I think that the main action that has had the most influence on my work is concept. I have been training myself and now find myself naturally thinking through the brief that i get and brainstorming all the possible routes i could take. I now create many more design sheets than i used to, and do constant experimentation instead of trying to design straight onto a screen. Thinking and working in a way like this makes it much easier when it comes to designing and also lets me experiment loads of ideas without wasting time designing.
- I also think much more about audience. I generally consider my target audience in depth now which i used to overlook before. I feel that this makes the design i create more relevant and can alter massive parts of my design. The tone, mood, colour scheme and style of design are all relevant to the target audience and this again makes designing easier when you know who you are designing for.
-Experimentation and Execution. I find it really important to experiment different possibilities and approaches but equally as important is the execution of my final piece. At the end of the day, the final product is what is seen by people, not all the background work, so you have to make sure it looks good, the message is clear and that it serves the purpose.
Evaluate the research activities that you had to undertake in order to resolve the briefs this year
- Throughout my time here already, i have learned how important good research is to any project i am working on. I have also learnt more about different types of research and how important it is to use the correct methods of research to get the information you need. I have learnt how to effectively gain Qualative, Quantative, Primary and Secondary research.
SurveyMonkey is something i have used quite a lot this year. This is an online survey creator which you can send around the internet to get results. This has been good for me as i can use it within social and professional networking websites online in order for me to get a large amount and broader range of answers.
When it comes to secondary research, i find that using trustworthy sources is always key to get the correct information. For example, when working with a particular subject such as recycling. I tend to use websites that are known to be trusted, such as the BBC or websites that are government. You can tell this by the '.gov.uk' in the address. The worst thing to do is use an unreliable source in your work which is sending out the incorrect information.
Evaluate the examples of secondary research that informed your design decisions
When it comes to secondary research, i find that using trustworthy sources is always key to get the correct information. For example, when working with a particular subject such as recycling. I tend to use websites that are known to be trusted, such as the BBC or websites that are government. You can tell this by the '.gov.uk' in the address. The worst thing to do is use an unreliable source in your work which is sending out the incorrect information.
Evaluate the examples of practical research that informed your resolution.
Putting surveys out there on the internet and around the college to get first hand research.
Taking source images myself rather than using images from the internet is better practise and also a lot of the time works out better because you can get exactly what you want.
I also constantly collect source material from the environment around me that constantly subliminally influences my practice. I keep posters, flyers and pretty much anything else i like the look of.
Evaluate the breadth of initial ideas that you generated in response to the brief.
This is something that i have been doing more and more of for each brief. It has always been a natural process i do at the begin of every brief. I usually have some initial ideas that i sketch down in my book as the brief is being delivered to us. I then go away, create design sheets always. I often create a mind map of ideas then highlight the best ones that i feel have potential to be pushed further. Once i have a few solid ideas, i try to come up with imagery for the best ideas and see what is working best. I generally always resolve my idea through design sheets before experimenting digitally. I work and re-work ideas, then when i'm happy with something on paper, i re-create this digitally then experiment further if necessary. Sometimes my initial ideas are the ones i always go back to, but most of the time, further research and development is needed in my case to get the best out of what i'm doing.
Evaluate the breadth of visual investigation that you explored before deciding on your design direction.
I generally jot my ideas down visually. Design sheets are essential to the initial visual investigation of my work and where most of my ideas come from. I try to bring in information and visual research into my ideas then tie everything together with my own ideas when creating imagery. I try to use different techniques throughout the briefs this year without sticking to one particular style. For some work such as the alphabet soup and the stamp brief, i have took a very illustrative route but then for other work, i have kept things type driven or used and editorial or swiss influenced style. I like to keep things contemporary and bring in influence i have from a whole array of different styles of design as well as the world around me.
I have also worked both consciously and subconsciously searching for inspiration throughout the year in general as well as for the 'STAMP IT' brief. A lot of my inspiration does come from internet sources. In my spare time i follow numerous blogs which has become somewhat of an addiction. Websites such as Designspiration, FFFFound and Behance Network. I try to take out books from the library that are relevant to my work at the time. just recently i was heavily inspired by work i found in a 'Layout' book when i was working on the Who are you? double page spread.
Last Two Weeks
I started the 'Stamp It' brief with a stimulated approach. I brought in inspiration from other places. I used one of my favourite illustrators, Michael Craig- Martin for inspiration and tried something different than what i would do normally. I feel i was inspired by what was happening around me at that time too, and always feel that this is the case with whatever brief i am doing.
I also used a stimulated approach to gain the knowledge of the 'Walk To Work Week' campaign. I researched this in depth online and decided to link my project up to this.
I used Intuitive approached when it came down to creating design sheets. I blasted some ideas i had in my head down onto paper and that is where the initial idea for 'Walk To Work' came from. I continued this approach to an extent through design sheets and then when i did some experimentation visually.
Once i was clear on the style, idea and content i was including, i used a systematic approach to my work to keep it all consistent and to create all of my illustrations in the style that i wanted from the first one i made. When it come down to working to the format of the stamps and cover this come in useful to get it down.
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