Monday 31 March 2014

IMPROVING FINISHING TOUCHES//PHOTOGRAPHING WORK//OUGD602

photographing work:
Photographing my work is something I've always wanted to improve, however due to poor time management in first and second year it always seemed to be left until the last minute and therefore the result of the photographs were not up to standard or looked rushed.  I've learnt through third year that the quality of the final photographs of your work can make all the difference to the overall presentation of the work and the better the photographs the more professional the designs look.  I feel this is also vital for staring an online presence and a digital portfolio.

Throughout the first two years my photography has improved but I felt during the middle of second year it reached a certain standard and stayed that way throughout.  The problem with the display of the work was not so much the composition or the layout but the lighting and the surfaces/backgrounds.

second year, examples of work photographed:
I remember taking these photographs for OUGD505 an hour or two before the hand in, which obviously shows from the quality of the final images.  This particular image is not sharp enough and the choice of background actually washes out the menu design due to similar stock.  This work would of benefited from being photographed on a darker background allowing a contrast, and benefiting the overall quality of the final designs.
second year COP publication:  This was my COP practical outcome in second year, which at the time I didn't mind the final outcome, however the photography makes it look almost like a test print.  Again, like in the previous image from OUGD505 the background isn't right for the type of stock the book was printed on and should of been photographed on a grey background.  I also think the final images for this design were taken on an iPhone camera which isn't ideal or acceptable for photographing final designs at the end of second year on.
second year COP publication: Areas of this image aren't even in focus which makes it look rushed and generally a poor quality image.  The printed publication actually turned out better than the photographs portray but the images of the final prints are just as important as the final design.
third year work photographed // improving
These are two shots from two different projects from third year that I have photographed using proper equipment which you can see has benefited the overall quality of the final images.  I am quite happy with the way they have turned out and obviously professional photography equipment such as lighting and cameras contributes massively to how the photographs turn out.  The grey background also allows the colours on the designs to stand out and have a vibrance about them that became washed out when photographed against a cream background.

SELF EVALUATION//EASTER BREAK//OUGD602

self evaluation // Easter break
I have recently evaluated on my progress so far and made a plan that I need to stick to over Easter in order to get a certain amount of briefs done in time.  At the moment I have fully completed seven and am underway with another four, during this period I need to complete five resulting in twelve briefs being done by the time I get back, this leaves three briefs to do over four weeks when the last term starts.

things still left to to do during easter:

  • competition brief
  • museum of childhood brief
  • unsung heroes and heroines brief
  • personal manifesto brief
  • the drinks club branding brief 
after easter:
  • contemporary culture brief
  • film poster brief
  • exhibition of paris brief

other:
  • self branding 
  • ditto brief
  • cop publication

  • studio visits 
  • regular ppp blogposts
I feel worried about the amount there is to do with such a small time scale but I feel fairly confident in what I need to achieve by when and the kind of direction each brief is going in.  Some of them may need to be cut down in order to complete them all in time but the idea/concept behind each brief should still be the same even if the deliverables have to be cut down slightly.

evaluation:
I feel the second part of this year has been a lot more successful for me than the first part.  I felt quite lost with COP and this was disheartening and not especially motivating me.  I feel now that thats out of the way I can focus on what kind of direction I want to take my practice in.  Since the second part of third year I've felt a certain style develop within my work and an idea of how I want my portfolio to look and what I want it to say about me as an individual and as a designer.  With this in mind, I now have to try and stop wasting time at the beginning stages of a brief and putting too much of an emphasis on the developmental stages of the process, and focus more on the finished product.  I hope to of completed/finished off some of the briefs I am already currently working on by the end of the week, these are quite tight deadlines but need to be done in order to complete all the requirements in the time left.

PPP END OF YEAR PRESENTATION//OUGD602

end of year presentation:


presentation notes:

EXHIBITION//DIALOGUE EVENT//OUGD602

exhibition - dialogue
Today I went to the opening of the exhibition Dialogue organised and curated by Eve and Nathan.  I also submitted a design for the event so I was excited to see how the blind collaboration turned out.  When I got there I was really impressed with how the exhibition had turned out, from the display to all the designs that contributed.  It was easy to see from attending how much work had gone into the brief and how successful the event had turned out.  What Eve and Nathan have achieved is really impressive and it was exciting to be involved in the project.
original submission meeting brief requirements:
blind collaboration:

Sunday 30 March 2014

RALPH STEADMAN SKYPE TALK//OUGD602

ralph steadman talk.
Today in the lecture theatre we had a talk with illustrator Ralph Steadman.  I wasn't familiar with a lot of his work previous to this but after attending the skype lecture I am now a converted fan.  I found the lecture to be really engaging and interesting and also inspiring in terms of my own practice as this reminded me of a more hands on approach that I use to focus on when in foundation.  During this skype lecture we were shown Ralph's studio and various drawings throughout his career which he explained the meaning behind or his approach to etc.  

repeated throughout the lecture: 'a mistake is an opportunity to do something else'

emphasising importance of hand drawn - not digital approach to working - 'not to become too mechanised - computer doesn't give the same textured stroke, computer can be used afterwards.

'drawing isn't a job - its a cause.
dedicate your life to making mistakes that matter - hope for a better world.
be objective, be kind to other people

polaroids - paranoids
polaroid book paranoid - series of polaroid images of famous people such as John Lennon, Bob Dylan, Marilyn Monroe etc.    'Ralph discovered the malleability of the polaroid before it set and thereby began distorting and remolding the faces of the rich and famous. It was a new form of caricature and one that forced an instant reaction from the artist with little time consider the final image before it irrevocably set under its plastic barrier. '
You can see that this style of work is reflected in his own practice - similar style to drawings etc.
when holding a brush 'pretend you're conducting the Philharmonic orchestra'
'for no good reason'

I think speaking to Ralph has really inspired and motivated me to get back into my practice as I felt a little lost after the COP hand in, not only has it motivated me in general but I feel inspired to try a few more 'hands on' techniques as this is something I liked doing before starting the course and have lost sight of some of the old techniques I use to enjoy due to working on the mac constantly.  Now is the perfect time to be producing the work I really want to in order to allow my portfolio to speak volumes about me not only as a designer but as an individual.
This print based, hands on approach will be something Emily and I will try to stick to when designing the second part of our spectrum brief.  Wr are also collaborating on a secret 7 sleeve where this kind of approach could be a possibility when designing. 
Not only has the talk left me feeling inspired but I can also take on Ralph's advice and hopefully use this to get the best out of my practice, he repeated several times in his talk that 'there is no such thing as a mistake' which is something I should apply more when designing hand rendered pieces.  Mistakes can turn into a different outcome and be used in other ways to develop work.  Another valuable lesson I have learnt whilst sitting through the lecture would be the developmental process and how important that can be to the final outcome, just being able to look around Ralph's studio and see the work and the journey of how he came to each bit shows the progression of the art and supports the idea of 'no such thing as a mistake.'

WORKING ON MANIFESTO POINTS//BRIEF 07//OUGD602

manifesto points:
As one of my briefs I wanted to design a personal manifesto that reflects me as an individual and as a designer.  I want the design to reflect the kind of design I do and the type of designer I want others to see me as.  After having done the PPP manifesto presentations I have been thinking more about the type of points I want to communicate in my manifesto.  I have complied a list of things I want to include so far:

01_keep inspired
Staying inspired means staying motivated, being motivated produces interesting work.

02_travel
I feel this is something that can really inspire new projects and ideas.  I feel its important in terms of experiencing new cultures, collecting new material, documenting findings, being exposed to new languages etc.  This is something I've always enjoyed and since interRailing around Europe I have used various bits of photography in design work.  This also ties into wanting to move to a different city and work there for a year, ideally Paris would be somewhere I would consider looking into in the near future.

03_document
I think as a graphic designer and someone who is meant to communicate, documenting is important as a source of inspiration.  I was first introduced to the documenting technique of mapping whilst doing my foundation, which I found to be a really interesting way of working that got some interesting results.  I think its important to document (photograph, map, take notes etc.) for professional reasons to help develop your practice but also for personal reasons.

04_collaborate
This is something I first experienced in second year whilst doing a D&AD brief. I found collaboration to be really useful in terms of developing ideas and progressing.  I think this opens new ideas and allows you to create things that you might not of done if working on it individually.  Its a good learning curve in terms of having to meet deadlines for other people, being reliable and learning to compromise and work as a team.

05_stay positive
Its important to maintain an optimistic attitude, not only relating to work but in general.  In terms of work, worrying and allowing yourself to get unnecessary stressed doesn't help progress and can result in not being able to move forward.

visuals so far for french fold manifesto:

TRIP TO PARIS//RESEARCH BRIEF//OUGD602

Paris trip:
Recently I went to Paris for a couple of days which I found to be a really useful trip in terms of progressing with a brief and inspiring me further.  Paris is somewhere I would love to live and work for a year within the next five years, I have started looking into some studios based there, however this is something I would like to look into properly after uni is finished.

Whilst on my visit it was refreshing to be doing some photography and documenting things that I found interesting and that could help to further my practice and progress with ideas.  As Lisa and I were visiting Paris at similar times we thought it would be appropriate to write a brief on it, this would allow us to get some great primary research, focus on photography (which is something we both wanted to concentrate on this brief) and tie our interests into one collaborative brief that would hopefully reflect our aesthetic interests.  We wrote the brief with the idea of it being a heavily researched based brief, mostly focusing on the documentation of Paris as a city.  Before I went we spoke about possible categories that we could split our research/photography into and came up with a few headers that we thought would visually work or that we were personally interested in:

  • Parisian architecture
  • Balconies and windows
  • Signage 
  • Fashion
The brief is intended to display in an aesthetically interesting way parts of Paris (avoiding all typical tourist approaches) photography is the main focus and so the idea is that the bulk of the brief is done whilst on the trip.  Then Lisa and I will come together with a bank of images and choose how best to display these.  We also wanted to look at displaying it in a digital format (web element) and thought a blog would be appropriate to record our findings.  Additionally we would like to create a publication that ties all the findings together in one place.

photography

MUSEE D'ORSAY//VAN GOGH EXHIBITION//OUGD602

exhibition trip:
musée d'Orsay,  Van Gogh / Artaud. the man suicided by society

I recently visited the Musee D'orsay in Paris for the Van Gogh exhibition that looked closely at Artaud's (French poet, playwright and theatre director) analysis of Gogh's work.
A few days before the opening of a van Gogh exhibition in Paris in 1947, gallery owner Pierre Loeb suggested that Antonin Artaud (1896-1948) write about the painter. Challenging the thesis of alienation, Artaud was determined to show how van Gogh’s exceptional lucidity made lesser minds uncomfortable. 
Wishing to prevent him from uttering certain "intolerable truths", those who were disturbed by his painting drove him to suicide. 

Based on the categories and the unusual designations put forward by Artaud in Van Gogh, the Man Suicided by Society, , the exhibition will comprise some forty paintings, a selection of van Gogh's drawings and letters, together with graphic works by the poet-illustrator.


thoughts:
This was a really interesting exhibition for me as I was a fan of Van Gogh when I was younger, but in recent years my practice has been a lot more graphic design orientated rather than in the fine art direction.  It was inspiring for me to see some of the works that I looked at previous to starting a graphic design degree.  Not only was the exhibition inspiring and interesting, looking at past works and learning more about Gogh as an artist but to also get a deeper understanding of him as an individual and his personal letters between him and associates.

The exhibition was also interesting from a graphic design point of view as the exhibition used interesting photography, old transcripts and original drawings that all showed the development of Gogh's practice and his experiences throughout the years as an artist.

PPP//WORK EXPERIENCE FORM//OUGD602


Friday 21 March 2014

TIME MANAGEMENT//2 MONTH PLAN//OUGD602

monthly plan.
For a few reasons the last week/10 days have not been as productive as they should of been.  This has left me in quite a stressful situation especially over Easter.  However it is not solely down to the last two weeks, my time management is something I've struggled with throughout the course, just in terms of what briefs need to be prioritised and how long I spend on certain areas of briefs.  I need to find a better balance and start focusing a bit more on the final design as opposed to all the research and development.

Monday 10 March 2014

PLANNING//EVALUATION AND WEEKLY PLAN//OUGD602

weekly plan - 10/03/2014
 & evaluation of last week 

3/03/2014 - 09/03/2014 (list not just for this week)
  • blog secret 7' mistakes
  • blog zine primary research
  • weekly plan - evaluation (ppp)
  • look up studios to visit
  • photograph secret 7'
  • photograph meantime (sleeves and tee shirts)
  • boards (secret 7')
  • boards (meantime)
  • development of Rosy Lee (blog)
  • Rosy Lee book
  • tea in hyde park publication
  • dialogue (development, starting point)
  • dialogue final design (deadline, this friday)
  • develop drinks club logo
  • collect unsung heroes primary research
  • map conversations 
evaluation:
Although not a lot of things were crossed off the list I felt i started the week quite well and got a few things crossed off, also as the week went on the list altered slightly and I started working on a new brief.  I do need to start being a lot more productive during the week, I feel this week was quite frustrating in terms of being able to cross things off the list.  I attempted the Rosy Lee book and to develop the drinks club logo, however, I struggled with both of them and after a lot of time waster resulted in not much progress from when I first started.  I need to rethink what I'm going to do about these problems and then move on quickly as I'm stuck on a few things and it makes the days seem like a waste.

edited list
weekly plan - 10/03/2014
  • photograph hyde park for tea project on film camera
  • 5 collages for manifesto brief
  • start collecting conversations for ditto brief
  •  contact designers from brief one
  • continue with Rosy Lee book
  • solve 'drinks club' problem
  • collect unsung heroes research
designs currently being worked on:
brief 05: unsung heroes and heroines
brief 13: the collected writings of Rosy Lee
brief 07: personal manifesto
brief 11: the drinks club
ditto research brief

WEEKLY PLAN//SELF EVALUATION//OUGD602


evaluating last week:  I feel really disappointed with the amount I got done last week, last week felt like a bit of a set back in terms of trying to stay on track with everything.  I felt quite distracted and a bit all over the place with what I was doing, I feel as though I have a lot of things I need to do for certain briefs that make them fully completed, and so without doing them (things such as printing, boards, photographs etc.) I am unable to cross lingering tasks off.  Now this week needs to be even more productive, certain things are being transferred to each weekly list which needs to stop.  Emily and I have booked a photography studio to photograph our secret 7' designs, which will be reprinted at our print slot on wednesday.  
last week
24/02/2014 - 02/02/2014
Its quite important that I get the things done on the list this week as it just adds to the next list and I feel all these things finally need to be out of the way for me to be able to progress with another brief.
  • print secret 7" sleeves
  • photograph 7" sleeves
  • clean screen (unsung heroes and heroines)
  • correct Meantime print format
  • print Meantime sleeves
  • photograph Meantime sleeves
  • window teabag display (rosy lee)
  • design rosy lee book
  • blog development for rosy lee
-
  • secret 7" boards
  • Meantime boards
-
  • screen print unsung
  • start dialogue brief
this week // 3/03/2014 - 09/03/2014
This is quite an extensive list and I don't expect everything to be completed for it by the end of the week, however to have a lot of it done would make things easier.  I have written down everything that needs to be completed in the near future just so I have an idea roughly of everything that needs to be done in the next two weeks.
  • blog secret 7' mistakes
  • blog zine primary research
  • weekly plan - evaluation (ppp)
  • look up studios to visit
  • photograph secret 7'
  • photograph meantime (sleeves and tee shirts)
  • boards (secret 7')
  • boards (meantime)
  • development of Rosy Lee (blog)
  • Rosy Lee book
  • tea in hyde park publication
  • dialogue (development, starting point)
  • dialogue final design (deadline, this friday)
  • develop drinks club logo
  • collect unsung heroes primary research
  • map conversations 

Saturday 8 March 2014

BRIEF 12: SECRET 7//PRINTING PROBLEMS//OUGD603

secret 7" printing problems
Printing proved to be harder than Emily and I first anticipated.  We went to Leeds uni as they have a slightly wider range of stocks to choose from, we chose a thick matt stock as we thought this would be best for a record sleeve out of the available options.  However when printing them downstairs it was very disappointing as the vibrant colours and texture on the two sleeves didn't show up as well as on screen at all.  We considered more of a gloss finish as we felt this would allow the colours to show more, however, James said that would't work as the sleeves needed to be folded.

We then reprinted using the matt stock from the print room which improved the printing quality massively.  James said this was because the matt in the print room has certain chemicals that allow for the colour of the ink to show more vibrantly.  So for future reference, anything with eye catching colours should be printed on this stock.
We then faced other problems with the way we wanted to print the text.  Originally our idea was to use the vinyl cutter to create some stickers for the text to go on.  There were two sleeve designs, one with white text placed on the front of the sleeve, as part of the same print, and one with a sticker and the text on.  Surprisingly the coloured pattern didn't wash out the white text on the first design, however, we wanted to use the vinyl Emily had got from Sydney Beaumont.  This was another problem as we were told that no ink could be printed on to the vinyl as the inks used in the print room were water-based.  We then tried printing off plain circular stickers to work as the actual record sticker but the vinyl cutter wouldn't cut through the vinyl - apparently picking vinyl for certain vinyl cutters can depend on brand, finish and type and so not all will work with certain cutters.
The last option that could be tested whilst in the print slot was to print the text onto clear vinyl and then stick over the vinyl from Sydney Beaumont.  We faced more problems as the vinyl cutter wouldn't cut through.  We now need to cut the circles out by hand which proved quite difficult as you don't really get that professional finish.  Emily and I now need to discuss what the next option should be and how to resolve this problem.  Even though the brief is yet to be complete because of it I feel I've learnt quite a lot in the print room today, costly mistakes that wont be made again.

Friday 7 March 2014

VISITING PROFESSIONAL//DITTO PRESS TALK//OUGD602

ditto press
Today Ben from Ditto Press came in to talk to us about his work and studio, which I found to be really interesting and engaging, especially because the work shown is exactly the kind of work I would like to be involved with post uni.  Ben spoke about a lot of interesting projects he's done and how he started out and got involved with graphic design.  I think for one of the publications I'm making this year it would be really beneficial to use ditto's printing facilities, I want to look into what could be the best options for either my contemporary culture zines to be printed there or my personal manifesto.

about ditto press:
Ditto Press is an independent publishing house and printing company based in London, specialising in the arts and creative print.
PUBLISHING
Our publishing schedule covers artists books and literary work. 
PRINTING
The UK's first and largest Risograph printers, stencil printing remains our specialism and we have a great reputation for precision and attention to detail. Additionally we offer a large range of creative print and print-design services. 
Ditto is owned and staffed by designers and artists, so we're no strangers to odd requests. We do our best to help out whatever your intentions, so feel free to give us a call or send us an email.

brief
Ben also set a research based brief:
Think of a way to collect/archive/ display your research.  There is no point in research if it doesn't lead to a useful outcome.  Everybody works in a different way, we want you to find a methodology that works for you.  For example: a hard drive full of weird photos off the internet is an asset, not an incidental factor.  Find a way to celebrate it, present it and make it work for you.
books from ditto

Something that I feel I've not explored as much as I should of whilst being on the course is printing and finishing techniques.  This is something I'm actually quite interested in as I really like print and feel exploring these areas further could be really beneficial to my practice.  Whilst doing some research and actually feeling the variations of stock and finishes available its inspired me to try and do some of these things for some of my final outcomes.  Things such as laser cutting certain areas of a front cover or embossing and binding techniques are all worth exploring for briefs such as 'the collected writings of Rosy Lee,' contemporary culture and the personal manifesto.

Hard back binding could be a nice finish for the collected writings of Rosy Lee.
Really like this printing, the colour and visual texture, this is the kind of printing I would quite like to try for the collaging on my personal manifesto.
I like the layout of this and I think I could use this to inspire my direction in the Unsung heroes/heroines brief.  Since third year I've been quite keen to try using handwriting scanned in as part of a design, I think this hand rendered approach contrasting with set digital typefaces looks really nice together.  I also think a hand written design would work as its more evocative of emotion and is far more personal which, I feel, is quite an important aspect of the brief.

Whilst becoming increasingly interested in zines this year I have also noticed that a lot of hand rendered type is included in certain styles of zines which I think makes more of an impact.  Im eager to try hand rendered type laid over some photography for my personal manifesto brief as I feel this would communicate me personally and as a designer.
This could be a potential way of displaying some of my research for the brief that has just been set.  My basic idea at the moment, based purely on initial thoughts, is to research conversation/language/words etc.  This could be an interesting way of documenting, recording time and place of conversation and displayed exactly how the words were spoken.  Photographs of places where the conversations took place could be interesting as different areas would result in different dialect being spoken and different topics being addressed.