I really enjoyed this module. It was the first module in which I really felt like I was producing work which I could show people and be proud of. This is why it really hurt when at 10 minutes before the deadline, InDesign crashed, corrupting my entire file. I managed to put together design boards (about half as many and of a lower quality) which made me feel slightly better, but it was still devastating after all my hard work. During the hand-in, Danny helped me a huge amount for which I am very thankful. I submitted most of my digital files on a usb stick and also my sketchbook. I'm very pleased I had a sketchbook for this rather than loose papers like usual as it made the hand in much easier and presented much nicer. I put a lot of effort into this module, much more than I have in any other and I believe that my final products show this. It has been the first module where I have been proud of work I have created, and have been happy showing friends. I think my work has evolved a huge amount. Having motivational friends and tutors has made my work come along leaps and bounds, and has for the first time in a long time made me confident and happy to call myself a designer. From now on I'm going to be entering many more competition briefs in the hope of getting my work into the public eye and also to try network with as many other designers and companies as possible. The prizes are also rather motivational too.
Secret 7 Evaluation
The first brief I chose to tackle was Secret 7. I enjoyed taking part in the brief last year so I knew I wanted to do it again. After listening to all of the songs and analysing the lyrics and music videos, I felt that the St.Vincent song had the most possibilities. I found it easier designing for a song I disliked than a song I liked for some reason, possibly because I wasn’t distracted by the music and could focus more on the message. As always with briefs like this I sketched out ideas whilst listening to the song and watching the video, trying to immerse myself in the world St.Vincent was trying to create. I wanted to take an element from the video which wasn’t particularly important and showcasing it as an Easter egg of sorts. I liked my concept of real world vs digital world, even though I did worry that it wasn’t obvious enough. After consideration I realised that the work was interesting enough that it was ok, and anyone that watched the video would understand.
I liked the work that I created. I felt that it nicely encapsulated the song and aesthetically linked to the video. I think that my work has a good chance of being chosen; as my first piece of design work which I was properly content with I am going to be looking back at my design process for this module when tackling other briefs in the hope that I create more work I’m proud of.
If I were to do this brief again, I would just give myself more time to go more in depth in each area. Spend slightly more time researching existing album covers, produce more sketches and longer on illustrator perfecting the design.
Feathr Evaluation
Feathr was the next brief I tackled. I gave myself a very
small amount of time to tackle this brief as I knew that I wanted to do the
penguin books brief, which I knew would take a lot of work and time. I quickly
ran through a few ideas on what I could produce and what my target audience
could be and came up with a strong concept with targeted children, attempting
to introduce them to healthy eating. As I do with all of my briefs, I began by
researching what already existed. This let me understand how colour, shapes and
repetition were being used and how successful it was. I then sketched out a
handful of ideas, which was when I came up with the fruits concept. I'd have
liked to have spent more time generating ideas, or possibly just expanding on
my chosen idea more as I felt that my final product could have been more
successful if I had allocated more time into experimenting and research. I also
should have produced more types of fruit, which then could have been mix’n’matched
to produce more customized wallpapers (even though the feathr
competition/format wouldn’t allow for it, I liked the concept). The simplicity
of the icons means that a brand could be established, creating furnishings like
bed linen and stationary very easily which I like. If I were to redo this brief
I’d certainly do more research and spend more time developing the designs, as I
felt like the concept was really strong.
Coco Chanel Evaluation
This brief was a relatively small one, which I did mainly to
see what I was capable of illustration wise. I realized very quickly that I
wasn't a talented illustrator, so would have to rely on my design knowledge to
create something simple but effective.
After researching Chanel, she certainly had an interesting
life, with many controversial points. This however I felt was a distraction. I
wanted my design to be all encompassing, not just looking at a single part of
her rich life. I wanted to use my watercolours for this, as I felt that a
vector illustration just wouldn’t suit the book. The book is about the woman
not her company etc, so I wanted there to be a sense of human creation and
involvement. Whilst looking at her pictures I found a particularly high
contrast image of her, and could immediately recognise the most prominent
features; her eyes/eyebrows, nostrils and lips. There was also a cigarette;
however I removed that element as I felt that it may cause friction with a
certain audience. Experimenting with
different ideas, and drawing from my research from the Feathr brief where I
experimented with different illustration techniques, I produced a handful of
different illustrations each with a different twist. The one I liked the most
was the simplest one. Irritatingly the drawing was very small so I had to scan
the file at a huge dpi which made the file huge which caused some problems,
which certainly contributed to the huge file loss I had at the end of the
module. This being said I was happy with what I produced but should have spent
more time perfecting the illustration. I feel like the lines could have been
smoother, the angles sharper and the lips could have been perfected.
852 Fitness
I took on a brief from 99designs.com, a website I had
avoided for a long time to due believing that their process is incredibly
immoral. I decided to tackle a small brief, creating a logo for a fitness
company. They asked for a vintage style logo which was masculine, loud and used
red, grey and white. The logos already submitted were all horrendous, some even
had typos in the logo itself. They seemed to want a relatively clichéd logo,
which I thought was easy, however trying to make a unique logo with clichéd elements
proved to be almost impossible, especially since a gym has such a small amount
of imagery related to it. I sketched a tonne of logos, seeing now I could fit
the numbers together, how I could manipulate the negative space etc to no
avail. I also asked my friends who go to gyms what they’d expect/want to see
from a gyms branding. This was when I reluctantly started looking at vintage
logos that used shapes and grains etc. It was much easier to design using these
elements, which must explain a large part of their current ubiquity. I produced
a logo which I was happy with that worked on different backgrounds and I think
would look suit their gym and apparel. The main thing I learnt from this brief
is that I don’t have to like my final product, the client does. This is
something I will have to remember in the future as it often impacts my decision
making. After this project, I still don’t like 99designs or other websites
which force clients to fight to work. I believe it to be immoral, and more
often than not a waste of time.
WWF
I undertook this project with my good friend Sarah Coletta
who is a student on the Visual Communications course at LCA. She often produces
illustrations of animals and is passionate about conservation, which is the
reason we chose to tackle the WWF brief together. Her illustrations are always
fantastic so I didn’t interfere with any design choices she made, whilst her
knowledge on typography isn’t as strong as mine so I took charge of that aspect
of the designs. We wanted to have a more relaxed tone of voice than most
charities that currently are out there. Many tv and print ads show horrific and
depressing imagery which is just ignored now due to it’s ubiquity. We wished to
show the beauty of nature that we currently have, rather than a dystopia that
we may have without human intervention. Once both had been completed we came
together and tried different layouts and design ideas including the copy
itself. After deliberation, talking with peers and some compromising we
finished our posters and were happy with what we created. We then realised that
since the typography was strong by itself and so were the illustrations, that
we could create a wide range of different products which used our designs to
spread the word and to create revenue for the cause. This included things like
furnishings, phone cases and clothing. I think we did well on this brief;
however I think more research could have been done to try influencing the
aesthetic and typographic layout. I also would’ve felt bad altering Sarah’s
illustrations, but I possibly could have experimented with some editing and
manipulation.
Penguin
I was really passionate about this brief. As a lover of
literature and book cover design I was incredibly excited to tackle this
competition for ‘Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit’. It isn’t a book I myself
would choose to read, but I did read the blurb, a synopsis and some reviews to gauge
the correct target audience and plot points. I began sketching out covers which
I thought would look beautiful and that slightly incorporated the topics in the
book. After spending a lot of time researching covers I liked and sketching, I
realised I was wasting time creating a cover that I would like, rather than a
cover which matched the brief properly. I went back to the drawing board,
creating different designs that I thought would resonate more with the books
target audience. These new sketches were much better received in group
critiques. I used my watercolours to create illustrations in different ways and
using different shading techniques. The simpler versions were much better. I
had to keep in mind that it would be in CMYK and that I can’t use any fancy
printing techniques or inks. After deciding which illustrations to use I put
the book together, drawing inspiration for the typographic layout from both
existing penguin books and other books I’d researched. I also had a consistent
dialogue with 2 friends who I trust with typography which helped evolve my work
into what I believe to be a great piece. The only downside I think though was
the quality of the scan, which even though it was at a high DPI, the paper
which I had done my illustration on was poor which gave the illustration
strange edges and some artefacts. If I did this brief again I would recreate
the illustration larger and on higher quality paper. I would also have liked to
spend more time researching typography to try produce something more
interesting and new.I could have also handled my time better as I was having to rush towards the end, although this led to me realising just how much I can achieve even with a small time frame.
