Exhibition Poster // Three produced Concepts

After the session, I took some time to sit down and play around with a few different concepts for names for the Exhibition, I was trying to link various elements that both fit within design, exhibitions, location or duration

Below are some examples of the Concepts I produced, which I would choose a final 3 from to develop visual concepts to go with them.

• Colour De Sac
• Framed Territory
• Comfy Design
• Shape Your Community
• Disposable Design
• Disposable Environment
• Stroke the Emptiness
• Conveyor Corner
• 132480 Minutes of Frame
• Flash Design
• Communal Grid
• Discussion Point

I then chose the three which I felt had the possibilities of the strongest visual concept Or in one of the cases I just like the comedic value of the concept and think it would work well as a theme for the exhibition.


Concept 1 - 'The Colour De Sac'

Chosen as the location of the Exhibition is kind of like a street of some sort, and linking a design element to the concept with the 'Colour' - The visual aspect obviously would incorporate mostly colour, but I was also considering mixing both photography and colour with one of my production concepts using a self shot photograph of the Exhibition environment printed digitally and then taken to screen print elements of colour over the photograph.

 Concept 2 - 'Shape Your Community'

This concept relates to the idea that the people entering the exhibition will be the ones 'shaping' their graphic community in college. as well as the obvious relation to shape in design.

Again my initial ideas of this concept again would incorporate both photographic and digitally rendered visuals.
Photography again of the exhibition environment, with shapes cut away from the photograph leaving areas of blank stock or block colour

Concept 3 - '132480 Minutes Of Frame'

This was more of a fun concept that I would like to develop further but at this point I am not sure what reaction I will receive at the crit tomorrow.
The concept itself is based around the phrase '15 Minutes of Fame' however in this Exhibition it will be a duration of 2 months that work will be framed for. Therefore '132480 Minutes of Frame'

There are 132480 minutes in an average 2 monthly period - one 30 day money and one 31 day month

Exhibition promotion poster Brief and initial concept workshop

At this point in the module we have been given a quick one week brief to be completed for a final crit next Wednesday.

The aim of the brief is to create a concept and a promotional A2 poster which would promote a student orientated Exhibition which would take place in the corridor outside the Graphic Design Studios. 

The exhibition will start with next years first and second years, so the idea of the poster is to help next years first and second years understand what the exhibition is and where it will take place as well as the time period it will last for.

In this initial workshop we have been given a series of words which link to what the Exhibition is, who it is for, when it takes place, where it will take place.

The words we got given as a starting point were;

• Exhibition
• Bi-Monthly
• Space
• Graphic Design
• Change / Rotation

We were then split into small 6 person groups and asked to think of related words and themes for each given word.


Below are the list of words our group produced.

- Exhibition

Exposure / Showcase / Display / Presentation / View / Communication / Expression /  Demonstration / Framing / Hanging / Appearance / Impression / Flaunt

- Bi Monthly

Time / Calender / Diary / Planning / Duo / Twins / Two / Scale / Circular / Change / Distance / Transition / Progression / Develop / Repeat 

- Space 

Area / Empty / Squidgey / Comfy / Cosey / Communal / Friendly / Social / Conversation / food / Territory / Break / Environment / Windows / Light / Seating / Water Fountain / Lounging / Chill Out

- Graphic Design

Colour / Shape / Designers / Students / Creative / Illustration / Type / Grid / Community / Visual / Aesthetics / Digitalizing / Hand Craft / Render / Image / Process / Program / Discussion / Stock / Print

- Change / Rotation 

Moving / Alteration / Modify / Develop / Switch / Choosing / Shift / Variety / Circulate / Adapt / Accommodate / Spin / Evolve / Replace / Transform / Refresh / Re-cycle / New / Disposable / Excite  

From this list of words we were then asked to go away and come up with three Unique concepts for both the name and concept of the Exhibition as well as 3 visual ideas that will link with the three different concepts.

Design Practice 2 // Viking Beard Ale Logo Development

I needed to clean up the logo a little to give it a more professional finish which would better represent the product, at this stage the logo was a little too angular for my liking, the pattern looked a little flat and 2D, so by using the shape builder tool again i curved the corners which created a better hair like representation, it also fitted better with the round element of the helmet.

The logo still was missing a finishing element to its shape, the sudden stop at the bottom of the 'A' didn't suit the beard representation so I thought some hair quality at the bottom of the beard would help solidify the visual message. I also added the crossbar of the A as it now both looks like another plat in the patter and makes the shape stand out as a letter

At this stage i am really happy with the logo think I need to go and get some feedback on the logo at this stage to see if people agree that it is a clear message or perhaps point out some elements to change.

Design Practice 2 // Initial logo development

As shown through my Concept I am aiming to brand Viking Beard Ale around a more modern take on traditional Viking Hand Carvings and art work they used to decorate their buildings, boats and armor.

As the logo will be the main visual identity of the beer I wanted it to incorporate both a link to the brand name, the product and it's unique qualities as well as clear visual representations of Vikings so it can be easily recognised and associated with the correct subject.

When originally writing the brief to this module I intentionally named the product Viking Beard Ale as I wanted to create my own viking pattern that would act as a Vikings beard and this would form the main identity of the brand.

I initially started out by sketching some  different platted patterns as this seems to be what most Viking design was revolved around, extremely intricate binding and weaving carvings, they are really difficult to work out so My version in some what simplified and modified, to keep detail to a minimum so there would be no problems when scaling the logo to fit different sized products.

As you can see through doing this pattern I discovered that accidentally I had created a pattern which not only followed Viking carvings and platted hair but it also creates the Letters V,B and A which with a little tidying up could create a perfect logo

I seperated the Pattern into individual vector shapes to allow the weave to seem as if it were going over and under as a plat does. I used a consistent grid throught designing so it scaled evenly.
 

To help the lettering in the logo stand out more and become instantly obvious I used the shape builder tool to fill in the stem of the upper case B to help create some more obvious shapes.

For the sake of keeping it simple I have created a small vector illustration of a vikings helmet and face, I know when I was doing the research stage I found out tht Vikings actually never wore helmets with Horn on and this was a historical myth that now is the number one object that is associated with the vikings. However in the case of this branding task I want the logo to visually communicate that the product is mainly based around Vikings as this is a masculine message that needs to be portraited and I came to the conclusion that the horned helmet would be the most appropriate way of representing this. 

At this stage I am pretty pleased with the progress of the logo and I am quite happy I have been able to link the initials of the name, the link to Vikings and the link to beards all in one simple pattern.

To finish this stage of the development I finally just lengthened both the V and A element of the pattern to help represent the shapes of the letters more clearly.

Design Practice 2 // Viking Beard Ale - Viking Alphabet

From previous crit feedback, I was told that the design I had used in my research book using the Viking Alphabet as a visual tool worked well and I should try to incorporate it into the product design.

I will use the viking alphabet but it will not be the main visual element of the brand, but it will hopefully add a little bit of history as well as interesting unique shapes that are kind of similar to some Swiss design that is fashionable at the minute.

Viking Beard Ale - straight translation from English (not actual Nordic words) 

Responsve // End of Module Evaluation

1. What skills have you developed through this module and how effectively do you think you have applied them?

Well throughout this module there have been several different types of design I have had to use, as many of the briefs I under took were quite different to each other, the larger briefs especially forced me to develop and use areas of design I was not familiar or comfortable with.


Bacardi


In the Bacardi Brief, I felt I developed my final product and presentation skills, as it forced me to create a product using materials and methods I had not used before and this has really helped my confidence when it comes to the actual products I can physically create instead of just proposing all of my concepts. I made use of the 3D wood workshop that the college has and used the technicians to help me decide the best way to go about producing the product, this in some way helped my collaboration skills as I had to work closely with the technician to ensure he understood what I wanted as well as what would be required from the final piece so he could make it with both aesthetics and stability in mind. 


I also used the laser cutter in the Bacardi brief, which was another first for me, it again took help from technicians and peers but it is a new skill I have learned and will confidently be able to use in future progress, I made some mistakes in this brief but I have learned from them and will do better next time.


Churchill


In the Churchill brief I learned and developed several elements of design I was not used to before this module, I learned how to successfully collaborate with another designer throughout an entire brief to use both our individual skills to bring the brief together. I think when me and Josh started our idea of what we would produce and how we would produce it was very different to the outcome we ended up with, however it again forced us out of our comfort zone, but we worked well together and complimented each others skills.


Also in the Churchill brief i had the challenge of designing and presenting the concept of the app which was one of the main elements of our concept, as I had never done this before and had no idea how apps were created or worked, it forced me to learn about it which I am grateful of and will definitely use again in the future.  However I did not have to design the visuals of the App but more explain the navigation and the reason behind the app, so learning about how websites and apps navigation are visualised helped me create the infographics that we used for the presentation boards.


General developments


I think the presentation boards that I am creating are improving, this module has forced me to become a bit better at working out what I need to present as well as how I will present them, I am creating new and different grids for the layout and producing some boards I am really happy with.

2. What approaches to/ methods of design production have developed and how have they informed your design development process?

 

 Designing faster and making more informed and fast design decisions on smaller quicker briefs. for the smaller briefs I undertook, I think the design process I used has developed. I tried to make quicker and more informed design decisions which is an element I usually struggle with.

 

Working collabritavely is a completely new way of approaching a brief, usually in the past in the briefs we have worked as a collaboration, it has usually been the case that we sit down and their is a lot of umming and arring and the design that is developed is usually not to everyone's taste but you go with it because the majority agree it would be a good idea. However just working with one other designer there is more room for nagotiations and it ended up being a really useful way of working as you can bounce ideas off of each other and you get a full and honest response rather than someone agreeing because they don't want to hurt your feelings.

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

As I mentioned earlier, I think the design of my Presentation / concept boards are improving, I am starting to enjoy working out what would be the best most appropriate way to present my ideas / products while also creating some unique and appealing visuals that both attract the client and accurately present my intended concepts. I know I am still not perfect and have more work to do,, but it is becoming more natural now and I feel I understand what people want when they ask for concept boards, rather than just putting a load of images on a page randomly.

The outcomes I have produced in some of these briefs has personally helped my confidence, I think I have created some nice outcomes of products that I could possible put towards a portfolio, at the beginning of the year I was a much less confident with the designs I was producing, but getting a little confidence back is really helping my motivation as well.

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

I still need to organise my time management and organisation especially as we have several modules on all the time, working out the hierachy of importance for breifs is still quite tricky, this is something i write in every module evaluaton we get and it is something i never intentionally aim to fall down on, but I will always be developing this skill and can only try to experiment with ways of organising myself and my time and find the best one for me.

 

Blogging my research, this is the one area that lets me down every module, I always do so much more research than I blog on the context blog, I find a lot of the time the way I research is the cause of this, i tend to research everything i need and say to myself I will come back and blog it later, this seems to never happen as I eitehr lose the location of the research i have found or forget that I researched it. therefore in the next modules and from this point on i aim to blog everything as and when i do it as this is obviously the way that it must be done, but I often get confused with the order I should blog the research i have found because it all seems to be a little random unless a specific research 'story' is followed.

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

- Blog all research on context of practice blog, as and when I do it, this will also be applied to the design process blog, I could also blog work I produce as and when I produce it to avoid me forgetting certain elements and having to blog full briefs at once.

 

- Have the confidence to go and ask technicians to help with the design process so that I can get an expert opinion instead of designing what i think would be the most effective / simplest approach. They have helped me hugely over some of these breifs and I have not been utilising them properly in the past.

 

- Have confidence with my designs and my design concepts, not all of them will always be accepted but I have to have the confidence to put my ideas and work forward otherwise what is the point of me doing it.

 

- Do more competition breifs whenever I get the chance, as they really are a tool for design practice, I have learnt a lot from this module and can only learn more, it also helps force me out of my comfort zone, by accepting briefs I would not usually consider under taking.  

 

- Keep developing my time Management and Organisationg skills, I need to stay ontop off all things at all times and at some points at the minute I feel lost and don't know where to start and this has caused me problems in past briefs. 

6. how would you grade yourself on the following areas? 

Attendance - 4

Punctuality - 4

Motivation -4

Commitment -3

Quantity of work produced - 3

Quality of work produced -4

Contribution to the group -5

Responsive // Responsive Report

We were asked to create a publication which will be used as a digital project report, to be handed in with module submission.

CoP // Publication Concept Boards

Psychology of Logos Publication - Concept Boards

To show my current progress in developing a concept for my publication, I have created these boards to explain the direction I intend to take this book in, I have tried to highlight the main areas I have researched and intend to incorporate in the publication.

The flow chart explains the way i intend to structure the content of the publication, and the remaining boards outline the content I will be including.