VISITING PROFESSIONAL TALK//DR.ME//OUGD602

dr.me
Dr. me came in from Manchester to give a presentation and workshop for the day.  I really liked the studio and the work they produce.  Quite a lot of it incorporated photo montages and collages as part of the design which is something I really like the style of and want to try and include in my own work.

They talked to us about how the company was set up, the kind of work they do and then we were given a collaborative brief to work on.


'DR.ME is a multi-disciplinary art and design studio based in Manchester. Since 2010, the studio founders, 

Ryan Doyle (DR) b. Perth, Scotland, and Mark 'Eddy' Edwards (ME) b. Portsmouth, United Kingdom have collaborated and worked for clients based across Europe and the USA. The studio relishes the challenge of taking a project from the initial concept to eventual successful realisation.

We learn through play.'

This is some of the work that I particularly like from their website:
Using photographs in this way is something I would like to have feature in my work this year, I think visually its the kind of style I aim to produce.

EXTENDED PRACTICE CRIT//FEEDBACK//OUGD602

studio crit & feedback

Today we had a crit where we were split into two groups, one group would give feedback on the other groups work whilst being out of the room.  I found this crit to be helpful in terms of feedback but feel as though I should of been more prepared to get the most out of it.  Most of my design work hadn't been fully displayed in a way that was easy to give feedback and so this obviously contributed to the type of feedback I was getting.

Because of this I found it hard to word some direct questions, these were the two I came up with in regards to brief_01 contemporary culture and brief_08 spectrum.

what other printing techniques could be used for the spectrum brief?

• really strong visuals here
• opportunity to produce something beautiful with a definite wow factor 

the contemporary culture brief relies heavily on photography as its main visual, do you think the collection of zines would work better with type to give it context or as photo zines?

• a combination of the two would be useful and also make the zine stronger x2
• start looking at visuals and experiment with type and image

flag collaborative brief:

• collage is looking good
• good to work collaboratively as work produced is different from normal
• get finished soon - good to have one brief done and out of the way

general feedback:

• good organised plan
• cant see much visuals - quite hard to crit concepts! although briefs sound interesting!
• your plan looks organised, perhaps more research needs to be done
• museum of childhood - there needs to be more visible research to be able to crit the brief - maybe mock ups of way finding/primary research
• good primary research emailing people for contemporary culture, would be nice to see some research on zines.
• exhibition of a life looks really interesting, more secondary examples?
• good to see development of flag
• marbling looks like something that would be fun and would be a good process to experiment with unpredictability of outcomes
• digital collage could be another technique to use

my thoughts:

I was really happy with the feedback seen as though I felt quite underprepared for this crit, it was encouraging to know people understood and found the briefs interesting even though I had not presented them the best I could.  For me this brief has been really helpful in allowing me to see the pace I should be working at and how to better my time management.  At the moment I feel quite behind as no brief is actually fully completed and so everything feels over whelming.  I am using reading week to really focus on one or two of the briefs instead of trying to do more than three at the same time, I find this slows down the pace of each brief.  When one brief is complete it will feel a lot more encouraging and because I have started several briefs I feel everything isn't as organised as it should be.

I will now write a new plan that will start from tomorrow and take me through to the end of reading week, this should hopefully allow me to get back on track and cross off some of my list.

COP3//FIRST TUTORIAL//OUGD602

first cop tutorial
I had my first tutorial today with Phil which basically helped me to get a better understanding of the structure of the essay and organising the project in a more successful and effective manner.  As it was the first tutorial we went over the basics of how to start organising the essay and looking at possible directions for research.

I feel I now need to properly organise everything I've done so far and write everything up in a structured way, this week I will aim to start piecing together some paragraphs whilst undertaking more research.


notes from the tutorial - structuring

• 4-6 chapters 
• abstract 

summary of what the argument is, main points I'm covering, stating what you're going to tell

• contents
• introduction

introducing question - brief outline of what you're doing.  Who, what, why? Tell the reader what you're going to do - lay out all information

• main body of discussion

different number of chapters - discuss research - case studies - analysis and evaluation of discussion - own opinion - don't put anything that you cant prove

• conclusions and findings

research 
state clearly - answer the main question - rationale - definite conclusion
further suggestions for research, if another person was to build on your research what further questions would arise 

• bibliography

references, source materials


tutorial record

PLANNING//RESEARCH WEEKEND//OUGD602

research weekend_London.

I will be going to London for the weekend to collect some research for my COP project and for brief 04.  I will be attending a talk on monday the fourth at the TFL headquarters by Oliver Green.  I think this talk addresses really important areas of research for my possible question and so hopefully it will be really helpful in pushing my project forward.

talk: frank pick's london

Date: Monday 4 November 2013
Time: 18.30-20.00

Frank Pick changed the face of London in the twentieth century through innovative design.. Described by architectural historian Nikolaus Pevsner as ‘the greatest patron of the arts whom this century has produced in England’, he was managing director of the Underground in the 1920s and the first chief executive of London Transport from 1933-40. Pick’s passion was for good applied design in everything from posters and graphics to station architecture, from bus engineering to tube trains, giving London the best public transport system in the world.

Oliver Green is London Transport Museum’s former Head Curator and now its Research Fellow. In this talk he will be introducing his new book Frank Pick’s London: art, design and the modern city, published by the Victoria & Albert Museum in association with London Transport Museum. The book will be available at the event for purchase and signing.

museum research

I thought it would be good to get some visual research from the Childhood Museum and some ideas for rebranding by looking at existing branding and exhibition posters.  This will hopefully direct my design ideas further.

INDIVIDUAL BRIEF DEADLINES//EXTENDED PRACTICE//OUGD602

deadlines_before christmas.

-brief 05: unsung heroes_12/11/2013

-brief 08: spectrum//collaborative_20/11/2013

-brief 06: london stories_28/11/2013

deadlines_after christmas.

COP deadline_17/01/2014

-brief 04: museum of childhood_05/02/2014

-brief 03: la langue française_15/02/2014

-brief 02: zanzibar spice tour_01/03/2014

-brief 07: pen pals_25/03/2014

-brief 01: contemporary culture_1/05/2014

PLANNING UNTIL CHRISTMAS//STRUCTURING EXTENDED PRACTICE MODULE//OUGD602

briefs_plan up until christmas.

I decided to create a blogpost with a detailed to do list of what I need to do for each brief before christmas, this will be the best way for me to display it to see exactly what I need to do:

brief 01_contemporary culture

• contact list for photographers
• outline email and send out
• research (culture)
• visuals
• format research (zines)
• boards
• buy and send out disposables 
• vaguely plan content

brief 04_museum of childhood

• email museum
• email contacts
• boards
• start collecting drawings
• research museum
• visit museum (visual research/photographs)
• museum branding research
• start branding/drawings

brief 08_spectrum (collaboration)

• split brief with Emily
• collect visual research
• visual boards
• research into designival 
• research experimental printing techniques (library)
• experiment/create samples for development 

//

• development 
• design
• evaluate 

brief 05_unsung heroes

• concept/idea development (planning)
• research
• boards/idea development 
• collect photographs

//

• development
• design
• evaluate

brief 06_london stories

• concept/idea development (planning)
• research
• boards/idea development
• collect visuals/survey?

//

• development 
• design
• evaluate

brief 07_pen pals

• concept/idea generation
• research
• idea development 

after christmas:

start & finish 

brief 02_zanzibar spice tour

brief 03_la langue française 

complete

brief 07_pen pals

brief 01_contemporary culture

brief 04_museum of childhood

+

3 short briefs (live, competition)

PROGRESS CRIT FEEDBACK//EXTENDED PRACTICE//OUGD602

progress crit feedback/extended practice:
Today we had to present our progress so far in terms of extended practice to a small group and a tutor to receive some feedback and to see the different stages everyones working at.  This being the first crit of the year, I was concerned about the lack of visual and practical work I would be able to show, however, the crit proved to be very helpful and encouraging at this stage.

I spoke about the three briefs that I had begun to plan and work on.

brief 01: contemporary culture, this is my main focused brief and have made a plan for the things that need to be completed in order to get everything completed.  The actual designing of this brief will not start until after christmas but the planning and organising must start now in order to have the bulk of images and research ready in time.

My idea for this brief is to send out disposable cameras to people I know dotted around different cities and give them a time period in which they must capture there idea of contemporary culture.  This way I will be building up a collection of images that should best meet the brief but also allows for the research process to be more interesting.  This way I will be looking at other peoples idea of modern culture and getting, hopefully, interesting and exciting results.

brief 04: museum of childhood.  This weekend I am going to TFL headquarters in London for a talk held by Oliver Green for my dissertation.  Whilst Im there I will visit the museum of Childhood for some primary research, to take photographs and notes.  My idea for collecting research for this would be to collect a number of quick (two minute) A5 sketches of peoples favourite childhood toys, they wouldn't have to be drawn well at all, this is just part of idea development and collecting visuals.  I was hoping to get a variety of ages to take part as this broadens the results and also shows a small history of childhood through the years.  I thought these visuals would be good to use for design style of the project, either manipulating and working with the images I collect or using them as a starting point for inspiration and ideas.

brief 08: spectrum (collaboration)
Briefly touched on the developing stages of this so far.  Looking at experimental print, pattern, colour and technique to create promotional posters for a design festival in Liverpool.  Early stages of ideas.

feedback.
I received good feedback which really helped as at the moment I feel like everything is either in my head or on paper and the thought of having to balance various briefs with COP and trying to timetable yourself and get started is quite daunting so this has been encouraging.

• good methods of primary research
• in relation to brief 01: good idea as you're getting other peoples perspectives
• interesting way of getting research, try and fit this in with a few more briefs?
• look at 90s toy ads
• survey of peoples favourite childhood toys

PLANNING AND ORGANISING//TIMETABLE//OUGD602

timetable.

I have written up a timetable and tried to fill out as much as I could in terms of what I think is realistic when taking into account timetabled sessions at college and balancing various briefs at the same time.  I have made a monthly one and a day by day one which should help to meet my daily targets.

This is the monthly timetable, I have filled in the studio timetabled sessions and areas that I feel I can plan ahead, although I will print a copy out in order to write down new dates and deadlines.

PLANNING AND ORGANISING BRIEFS//EXTENDED PRACTICE//OUGD602

PLANNING AND ORGANISING THE YEAR
As this year is going to be a lot more independent in terms of the briefs I am doing and the deadlines I will need to meet, it is vital that I plan and organise my time wisely.  Time management will be key to this years success as I will have ongoing projects throughout the year that will need to be constantly worked on along side quick briefs that will need to be completed within a week or two.  

Now that I have finalised my eight briefs I need to give rough time scales and allocations to each brief, taking into account length of practical outcomes, collaborations, research, planning and time management.

EIGHT BRIEFS:
01. Contemporary Culture
02. Zanzibar Spice Tour Rebrand
03. La Langue Française
04. Museum of Childhood
05. Unsung Heroes and Heroines (past ISTD)
06. London Stories (SECRO ILLUSTRATION PRIZE)
07. Pen Pals (ROSE STUDENT AWARDS)
08. Spectrum (Collaboration with Emily Ball)

In terms of time scale I have separated them into two categories, whether they will be long briefs or shorter briefs.  As it stands my Contemporary Culture brief will be my longest brief, spanning from now until towards the end of next year.

Three more briefs that will span over a longer time period include:
-Pen Pals
-Museum Of Childhood 
-Spectrum (collaboration)

My four shorter briefs include:
-Zanzibar Spice Tour Rebrand
-La Langue Française
-London Stories
-Unsung Heroes and Heroines 

Im estimating between 1-3 weeks each for the shorter briefs and looking at one-two months for The Museum of Childhood and Pen Pals.  The last two briefs, Contemporary Culture will run until next year, with Spectrum hopefully having the outcomes complete by January.

COP3 PROGRESS PRESENTATION//REFLECTING & PLANNING//OUGD602

COP3 PROGRESS REFLECTION
This is the presentation for COP3 I presented, it touches on the research undertaken so far and the practical side of it.  I feel at this point I need to start focusing on the practical side, researching, planning and looking at exactly how the practical side will develop.  Along with this I need to maintain a focused level of research daily in order for the body of research to be varied and thorough.  

COP3 plan for the following week, 2 hours of COP a day:

-enquire about requested book at library - How the tube shaped London

-construct and send an email of questions to Tom Cavanagh (poster guide tour)

-continue with book research 

-watch BBC 2 documentary (design classics - the Underground Map)

-watch online oliver green lecture

slide 1
Address the areas of research that I have been looking into, more in depth - historical context, economical, political value - the main focus being the design of the Underground.  Frank Pick's passion for design and interest in branding the Underground successfully.  Iconic and recognised around the world, paved the way for other Metros in other cities - took massive inspiration from the London Underground, in terms of the system itself but also the design.  Contribution to design history - different aspects of design throughout the Underground - promotional posters, station architecture, the tubes, the roundel, Harry Beck's map etc.

slide 2
Talk about potential question ideas - linked mostly to the impact the Underground has had on London, e.g 'How has the iconic design of the Underground contributed to London as a major world city?' 
'How have Frank Pick's designs influenced the capital?'

Talk about the transition of the tubes position from then to now - Frank Pick would hire graphic designers to create promotional, visually aesthetic, well designed posters to encourage people to take the tube - nowadays promotional posters are not needed with 1229 million passengers a year - it has become an essential part of London and public transport in London.  Talk about the connection TFL have with contemporary artists 'Art on the Underground.'  

Oliver Green - How the tube shaped London
Ken Garland - Mr. Becks Underground Map

slide 3
Talk about research already undertaken - TFL Museum, allowed to get the foundations of basic research about the tube as a system and the design aspect.  Guided poster tour - guide talks about the design and impact of the collection of posters at the time.  Research undertaken at the TFL library. specialised books, extending reading list etc.

slide 4
Research I still need to do - Email poster guide to ask more detailed questions
Watch BBC 2 documentary, Design Classics - Harry Beck's Map

Attend Oliver Green talk about Frank Pick's London:

'Frank Pick changed the face of London in the twentieth century through design management. Famously described by Nikolaus Pevsner as “the greatest patron of the arts whom this century has produced in England”, he was head of the Underground in the 1920s and led London Transport from 1933. 

Pick’s great passion was for good applied design in everything from graphics to station architecture, from bus engineering to Tube trains. He shaped the city more than anyone since Christopher Wren and worked closely with the V&A to create its modern poster collections and bring art, commerce and industry together. Join Oliver Green, Research Fellow at the London Transport Museum and author of Frank Pick’s London, as he discusses the life and work of this great man.'

slide 5

Practical element - explain idea about setting up an exhibition showcasing the design of the London Underground, in celebration of 150 years.  Information way finding, curating, catalogue, website etc.

STATEMENT OF INTENT//EXTENDED PRACTICE//OUGD603

STUDIO TALK//THE BEAUTIFUL MEME//OUGD602

studio talk: the beautiful meme
If you ask us to come up with some designs and advertising for your brand and you don't feel a lurch of nerves when we show you our ideas then really, what's the point?
We do mottos and emblems, super-woo sigils and new realities. We give you personality. We're definitely at our best when your organisation wants to change.  
We're at our worst when you want what you've always done but mildly different.

In 2012 The Drum said we were one of the top emerging UK agencies. This made us feel like a king bee. We also started winning a few awards. Enough to keep us hooked.

http://www.thebeautifulmeme.com

notes:
four years ago wanted to run a design agency 
10 members now
the Drum - 'top 25 emerging agencies'

brands are ideas, ideas need words: why copywriters are important

01. statement: we have something to say
02. you need words to sell stuff
03. copy and design challenge each other
04. people like well written copy
05. words make your brand human

06. hierarchy is everything
07. your job is to challenge every word, be brave. -challenge every word
08. discuss and articulate positioning before anything you do
09. good designers can spell.  Great designers can write
10. be generous - understand the partnership

examples of work:
the beautiful meme rebrands the English National Ballet

START OF THIRD YEAR//RETURNING PRESENTATION//OUGD602

third year

This is the presentation that I put together for the introduction to third year, including a statement about me as a designer, the experiences I had during my work placement, the written briefs that I will look to address this year and potential studios to get in contact with.

notes
slide one: following on from second year, reflecting on what I thought were my most successful outcomes and what I enjoyed the most.  What direction I plan to take this year, heavy focus on editorial and publishing as this is something I have been interested in since the start of the course and has developed since.  Also focusing on branding and identity as this is something I had tried in second year and quite liked.  Also my main focus would be print based outcomes rather than web.

slide two: talk about my experience during my two week work placement, working in a professional and creative environment.  Talking to designers - encouraging to hear what designers did after graduating etc.  Different areas within the company broadened my career options.

slide three: work placement experience - good to engage with designers in a professional way.  Talk about the briefs that were being worked on at the time, pitches I attended etc.

slide four: introduction to dissertation research, what my topic is.  London Underground design, talk about initial research and how I feel it can be developed further, mention Oliver Green - how his books have been helpful as he specialises in the subject.

slide five: potential questions, based mostly on the design of London Underground, either:
'How has the iconic design of the Underground contributed to London'd success as a major world city? OR 'How have Frank Picks designs inflected London.'

slide six: progressing research, talk about visiting the London Transport Library - this was really helpful as it had an extensive collection of books dedicated to my subject, it helped expand my reading list.

slide seven: TFL museum research, mention areas of research that could be used as references in my dissertation.  Poster exhibition celebrating 150 years of the Underground.

slide eight: Frank Pick talk, mention how this will be valuable to my research as it is addressing areas that I want to cover.  

Frank Pick changed the face of London in the twentieth century through innovative design.. Described by architectural historian Nikolaus Pevsner as ‘the greatest patron of the arts whom this century has produced in England’, he was managing director of the Underground in the 1920s and the first chief executive of London Transport from 1933-40. Pick’s passion was for good applied design in everything from posters and graphics to station architecture, from bus engineering to tube trains, giving London the best public transport system in the world.

Oliver Green is London Transport Museum’s former Head Curator and now its Research Fellow. In this talk he will be introducing his new book Frank Pick’s London: art, design and the modern city, published by the Victoria & Albert Museum in association with London Transport Museum. The book will be available at the event for purchase and signing.

slide nine: Talk about being in contact with my favourite freelance designer, Caroline Aufort.  Talk about the Ofr. bookshop in Paris, the zines and publications etc.  Which will lead onto me outlining one of my briefs for the year, to create a yearly calendar for the bookshop considering the style and image of the bookshop, these will include all the dates of the events taking place weekly/monthly as the bookshop is also a gallery.

slide ten: list of written briefs, I have tried to write them all in to the areas of graphic design I enjoy the most, print, editorial, layout and branding.

slide eleven: talk about three briefs in specific, 1. contemporary culture zine collection, 2. Zanzibar spic tour package and rebrand, 3. Museum of childhood redesigned guide and floor plan.  Talk about them in detail and about the specific outcomes.

slide twelve: examples of studios I want to contact, potential ideas for a placement.  How visits to these studios would benefit my practice.

presentation

END OF MODULE EVALUATION//OUGD502

END OF MODULE EVALUATION:

What skills have you developed through this module and how effectively do you think you have applied them? 
This module has taught me a lot about the industry, through study tasks and various lectures I have learnt about areas such as networking, sectors within the industry, costing and a better understanding of both PEST and SWOT analysis.  It has also given me a clearer direction of what type of designer I want to be and has allowed me to reflect on my work throughout the year which has lead to a clearer understanding of what career path I would like to go down.  Throughout this module I have discovered new studios and designers that I have become increasingly interested in and used as a source of inspiration, this module has also encouraged me to get in contact with some of these places and start networking.  This was something I had thought about in the past and the prospect of it seemed quite daunting but this module has made the idea of networking and getting in contact with people from the industry seem a lot more approachable and achievable.  The knowledge I have learnt throughout this module, I was then able to apply when we worked as a group for 'Life's a Pitch.'  My understanding of how to set up a business in terms of costing, individual roles and work ethics is a lot clearer.  I feel throughout this module I have also been able to improve on my presentation skills, both with the group presentation and the individual.  The end of year PPP presentation has allowed me to look back at everything I had done from the year and reflect on it in a general overview, presenting it to my peers was something I was nervous about but doing this has made me feel more confident and given me a sense of achievement.

What approaches to/methods of design production have you developed and how have they informed your design development process? 
This module has allowed me work on my own personal self branding.  This was something I hadn't given too much thought before this brief but has definitely given me a starting point which I now can progress from.  It has also given me new experiences when working in a team, putting ideas together and generating concepts in order to come up with a successful proposal for a business plan.

What strengths can you identify in your work and how have/will you capitalise on these? 

I think the main strength I can identify within this module is the ability to reflect on myself and my own work.  I think this is a vital skill that has definitely benefited my practice as I am able to recognise my mistakes and weaknesses and improve on them for next time.  It has allowed me to get a better understanding of what sort of design I am interested in and therefore what type of studios would be appropriate for me to work in.  I feel this module was the reason I got a work placement over summer, it was constantly encouraged to start networking and emailing studios which I did, this resulted in me getting a work placement in one week at Feref, a branding studio in London.  I feel through the study tasks I now have a much better understanding of the industry, the various sectors and how to apply SWOT and PEST analysis to my writing.  I have also improved on my analysis of designers and design studios works.  Another strength I can identify is team work through 'Life's a Pitch' this was a project that was structured in a way that allowed me to grasp a better understanding of what trying to set up your own business would be like.  I felt like our group worked together to create a realistic and successfully thought out concept and proposal.

What weaknesses can you identify in your work and how will you address these in the future?

Even though I wasn't disappointed with my self branding I do feel like I need to build a stronger concept and make it reflect me more as a person and as a designer.  I think it was a good starting point that I can now build on.  The main weakness I can identify within this module that has been a running theme all year is time management.  I think this module highlights this weakness more than any other as it was an ongoing module throughout the year and was quite easy to postpone with the pressure of other modules right until the end.  It was quite frustrating with the design presence brief as I feel this is something that I would of enjoyed spending a bit more time on and would of liked to explore more possibilities to create something I was fully satisfied with.  If I would of organised my time more effectively I would of liked to of pushed the boundaries with that brief further and improved upon the products designed, the range created and the methods of distribution it could of taken.  Something that I have always lacked confidence in is the ability to present my work, even though the end of year presentation has allowed me to gain more confidence for next time I feel I definitely need to improve on my presentation skills.  I underestimated the time it would take to prepare a presentation that is basically an overview of what I have done in a year.  I also feel for next time I should try and make the visual content of the presentation more engaging for the audience as I was quite unsure what to put on some of the slides.

Identify five things that you will do differently next time and what do you expect to gain from doing these? 

• Time management - I feel this has been the biggest weakness all year along with organisation skills.  Next year with the PPP module I will treat it as an on going blog that I update weekly.  I will also keep up to date with study tasks and tasks set within the module so to not feel the pressure of trying to get them all done towards the end.
• Networking - I feel I should of got in contact with more studios and made more of an effort with networking.  This is something I will definitely be concentrating on more next year.

• Online presence - This felt like something I didn't work hard enough on throughout this module and will make a conscious effort over summer to set up a behance and a Linkedin.
• Studio visits  - Even though I have arranged a studio visit and a work placement over summer I wish I would of organised a few more visits throughout the year to get a varied experience of a range of different studios.
• Self branding - I would of liked to of focused more on my self branding, this is something I found enjoyable but the design could of been improved massively in terms of concept and what it says about me.

Attendance = 4
Punctuality = 4
Motivation = 4
Commitment = 3
Quantity of work produced = 3
Quality of work produced = 3
Contribution to the group = 4

DESIGN PRESENCE//FINAL PRINTED PROMO PACK//OUGD502

FINAL PRINTED MOCK UPS OF BUSINESS CARD, LETTERHEAD AND CREATIVE CV

BUSINESS CARDS

LETTERHEAD AND CV

CREATIVE CV

 CREATIVE CV//SAMPLES OF WORK

PROMOTIONAL PACK

STUDY TASK TEN//PRESENTATION//OUGD502

PPP PRESENTATION SLIDES
These are the slides for my end of year PPP presentation.

DESIGN PRESENCE//RANGE OF BRANDING//OUGD502

RANGE OF SELF BRANDING:

DESIGN PRESENCE//FINAL MOCK UPS ON LAPTOP//OUGD502

DESIGN PRESENCE//FINAL MOCKED UP WEBSITE//OUGD502

PAGES FOR FINAL MOCKED UP WEBSITE

HOMEPAGE:

 HOMEPAGE SHOWING ROLLOVER IMAGE:

INDIVIDUAL PROJECTS PAGE

SINGLE IMAGE PAGE: 

ABOUT PAGE:

CONTACT PAGE: 

CONTACTING STUDIOS//RECEIVING REPLIES//OUGD502

REPLIES
After emailing the studios my first reply was from Hato Press which I'm pleased about because this was one of my favourite studios in terms of what the studio environment looked like and what work they produced:

CONTACTING STUDIOS//OUGD502

CONTACTING STUDIOS
As I will be back in London for most of the summer I decided to contact some design studios I like to try and arrange some visits, this is the email I put together:

EMAIL TO STUDIOS:
Hello, my name is Kathryn Brooks, I am from London and am currently a second year BA Hons Graphic Design student studying at Leeds College of Art.

I have been looking on your website and really like the work being produced.  I wondered if it would be possible to visit your studio over the summer and have a better look at the way your company works and how the designs are created. 

Thanks very much and I look forward to hearing from you.

Best wishes
Kate


The five design studios I chose to contact were:

• Hato Press
• Praline
• OWT creative
• Inventory studio
• View creative 

STUDY TASK EIGHT//PART TWO//CREATIVE CV//OUGD502

This is my final CV concertina fold:

DESIGN PRESENCE//WEBSITE DEVELOPMENT//OUGD502

WEBSITE DEVELOPMENT:

I wanted to keep my website simple and realistic in terms of what I could potentially code.  I started by applying my logo to where it could potentially be displayed on the site.  I firstly chose to have my navigation top and centrally aligned.   I chose the typeface Gotham as I thought it was bold and simple and worked well with the rest of my branding.  When on the selected page the button will be underlined: 

Standard website layout, with logo:

For the homepage I wanted a selection of photographs from my work that you could click on and it would take you to an individual page where their would be an overview of the project and more images of the work.  For the homepage I tried making the photos black and white so the style of the website would be consistent and all the same colours.  When hovering over a specific project the image would either go back to its original colour or have a faded opacity of the green colour I used throughout my branding.

However, after looking at the images collectively I decided my work didn't benefit from being in black and white and felt that the images looked more appealing and worked better when they were its original colour.

For my homepage I wanted the images to make up one big image without all the samples of work being the same size, these are the images of work for my homepage.  i have also placed my logo on the page for consistent branding:

Individual page of website:

When clicking on an image of the work from the front page you will be taken to a separate page that talks about the project in more detail.  A passage about the brief and the concept behind the design and the choice for the design direction.

This is the final layout for my individual pages on certain projects.  The text chosen is the same throughout my range of branding to keep it consistent.  

I do feel with that final mock up that it looks a bit like a jewellers website, this is down to the choice of type on the navigation bar I think.  Either of these fonts would work much better as a design website.  I think I will go with the top choice, letterhead std as this is in keeping with the rest of my branding.

Final page for individual project page:

I decided on a slightly off grey colour for the background instead of a white, I think the images of my work look better against a subtle colour.

This is a mock up of the page when clicking on a single image:

My contact page and about page are basic designs, including information about where to get in contact and a short passage about me, where I have studied and what particular parts of graphic design I am interested in.

For the homepage I wanted to show the image as it would appear before clicking on it to be redirected to the individual page.  When hovering over it the image opacity will be lowered and a title of the breif will appear as shown below:

I decided to go with the typeface below as it is clearer and more legible for the viewer.