Monday 22 October 2012

OUGD403 - Group crit and evaluation: Kirsty typeface

My crit involved sitting down with Simon and another student to review how successful my typeface is. I found the conversation really constructive and helpful and I was able to gain more knowledge on ways in which I could ensure my work is to the highest standard possible. I was told I could maybe experiment with my typeface by completing the following tasks:

  • Print off one letter enlarged to produce an image rather than a set of letters
  • Try lowercase lettering to see how well it works
  • Maybe try my letters in sentences to see whether all letters work well next to each other
I was given lots of positive feedback which gives me confidence. I was told that my work was intricate, detailed and even at a distance or when it is at a smaller scale it would still work as a set. 

When I get any spare time I am going to experiment further and develop my work by considering what was said to me during my crit. I don't think this will be too time consuming but it will be worth it to see a variety of outcomes.

 

Monday 15 October 2012

PPP1 - OUGD402: Question 5: Are all images linked?

PPP1 - OUGD402: Question 4: Is the writing style academic or informal?

PPP1 - OUGD402: Question 3: Are design decisions thorough and evidenced?

PPP1 - OUGD402: Question 2: Has all work been blogged?

PPP1 - OUGD402: Question 1: Is there annotation on each post or is it just simply images?

PPP1 - OUGD402: 40 minute studio exercise

After our PPP1 session regarding 'what is higher education?' this morning, we then had a break followed by a studio exercise in our blog groups.

Firstly, we were asked to write down a list of anything we might want feedback on, taking into account all of the work we have done so far. My list is as follows:

Anything I want feedback on?
  • Blog
  • Annotation
  • Work
  • Research
  • Amount of work produced
  • Whether I have tagged/labelled work appropriately
  • Use of media
  • What level am I at?
We then looked at what we had found in our blog groups and produced a list, followed by a list of evidence which we could use to evaluate work.

FEEDBACK

  • Blog
  • Annotation
  • Work
  • Research
  • Amount of work
  • Whether blog is labelled appropriately
  • Use of media
  • What level
  • Essay
EVIDENCE
  • Our blog
  • Written work
  • Experimentation/development
We then looked our lists with the rest of the class and made one list:

Group list
  • Use of blog
- Content
- Tagging
- Organisation
- Quality
- Quantity

  • Assessment criteria
  • Time and project management
  • Academic writing skills
  • Critical evaluation (myself and others)
  • Standard of work
  • Design decisions
  • Understanding of design principles
  • Individual improvement
  • Appropriateness of responses
Having looked at this we were then asked to formulate 10 questions and criteria in which we are going to use to judge other people's blogs.

As well as the questions we also had to write down how we would check that each person had achieved the necessary requirements.

Question: Black
How we would check: Bold

1. Is there evidence of successful time management?
Time and date of post in relation to when set

2. Is the content of each post clearly identifiable in each title?
Check PPP, design context, design practice

3. Is there annotation on each post or is it just simply images?
Check PPP, design context, design practice

4. Are posts in the correct place?
Check all posts

5. Has all work been blogged?
Check briefs

6. Are design decisions thorough and evidenced?
Read through

7. Is the writing style academic or informal?
Use of vocabulary

8. Are all images linked?
Check images

9. Are all posts labelled/tagged? (orange link)
Check all posts

10. Are all blogs linked to the homepage?
Check homepage

Our task to go away and complete is to...

Identify 5 questions which I will get feedback on. Each question needs to be an individual post/question on PPP and the rest of our group should add comments.

The questions I have chosen are:

  • Number 3
  • Number 5
  • Number 6
  • Number 7
  • Number 8

Friday 12 October 2012

OUGD403: Alphabet Soup Part 2 - Group power crit

Having had my crit review with the rest of my group and Amber and Simon I now know what I need to do to improve my work and ensure it is designed to the highest quality possible.

To improve my work I am going to experiment with the following:

1. I am going to experiment with visual variations by seeing what the shapes I use will look like in negative space (reversing my current designs).

2. Having shapes emerging from the shape to give it an added dimension.

3. Ensuring my shapes don't get lost within my letterform and deciding on whether they are going to be in block colour or just linear. 

I will document this experimentation in my Design Practice blog.

Tuesday 9 October 2012

PPP1 - OUGD402 - What is graphic design? Study Task 3 Part 2

Study Task 3 - Part 2

After our studio session today we were asked to look at the lists we had made related to our personal research and to then:
  • Identify a range of examples of Graphic Design appearing in different design contexts
  • Identify a range of Graphic Design performing different functions
  • Identify a range of examples of Graphic Design communicating different types of messages/ideas/concepts
  • Identify a range of examples of Graphic Design using a different tone of voice
  • Identify a range of examples of Graphic Design produced at different scales/places
For each one of these categories I am going to use the lists I made with my blog group as a guideline to ensure I cover everything.

CONTEXT

ADVERTISING
I have always loved this advert in the Vogue magazine. I think it is striking and I love the composition of the photograph. It has been really well thought out in terms of use of colour, space and structure.

 

VISUAL IMPACT
This image immediately captured my attention as it is visually intriguing and inventive.

 



PACKAGING
This packaging has been well designed and constructed. The design itself illustrates and portrays the word 'Samurai' as the bottle looks like it has been sliced in half.

 



This packaging cleverly reflects the product. It is simplistic and not only do I like the design of the jar but I think the label works really well.

VISUAL IMPACT
 
This is a clever use of the Nike logo as it has been situated in a stunning environment to create visual impact and making it very memorable.


 

FUNCTIONS
PROMOTION
I think this is a really clever idea as it will be seen everywhere and is a way of promoting through interaction.


Straw advert

 
PROMOTION

This is another example of promotion through interaction as the advent calendar has been designed especially to promote a business rather than having the stereotypical chocolates inside.

Madison Design Group Advent Calendar

Madison Design Group Advent Calendar

Madison Design Group Advent Calendar

Madison Design Group Advent Calendar

Promotion

PROMOTION
'The University of Houston Graphics Alumni Partnership (UHGAP) is an organization made up of alumni whose primary focus is to give back to the Graphic Communications program in various ways. One of those is by providing scholarships to the best and brightest students. To help raise funds for the scholarships a series of posters were created to help raise awareness of the campaign.'
 
This was taken from the website I found this on, and it explains the purpose behind the design. Interestingly enough people had commented on a forum and said that because of how complicated the design of the pig was, it meant that not everyone could participate, perhaps implying a flaw in this advertisement and promotion.

The University of Houston Graphics Alumni Partnership Poster Series

The University of Houston Graphics Alumni Partnership Poster Series

The University of Houston Graphics Alumni Partnership Poster Series

The University of Houston Graphics Alumni Partnership Poster Series

The University of Houston Graphics Alumni Partnership Poster Series

The University of Houston Graphics Alumni Partnership Poster Series

Promotion and participation

TO GRAB ATTENTION
This instantly caught my attention when I was browsing the internet. I think it is a very unique advert with a memorable concept.



AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION
When I came across this I found it really funny and most certainly different so anything I've seen before. I think it would catch on quite easily in places and would be spoken about a lot, which indicates it is a successful advertisement.



ADVERTISE
I thought this was a clever use of image manipulation. It works well as an advert as it captures attention instantly.
 



 
This image caught my attention as it is quite out of the ordinary. The plates have been used to advertise Hermes and they all have the Hermes print on them. The colours of the beach have been reflected in the plates also, allowing there to be a consistent colour theme.




CREATING AWARENESS
Without even having to look at the text at the bottom of this advert it is obvious that the toilet roll is representing an advert to promote recycling. I think this shows that the image has been successfully used and it is very memorable.
 


MESSAGES

FACTUAL
This image represents Nike whilst at the same time provides facts about the company. This is a clever use of advertisement and I think it works really well to promote and portray a company.


SAFETY
This is such an effective way of making people aware of what may happen if you are driving whilst sleepy. The simple illustrations combined with the image of the eye closing is enough to make you think. 


 
This advert promotes Mercedes-Benz and also one feature in particular called the night view assist. By simple manipulating the image to form the word child with all of the lights outside they have captured their message in a powerful way.
 





 
I thought this was a really clever way of making people think about health and safety as so many people will walk up and down those steps every day so it would definitely create awareness.


 


This is one of my favourites. I particularly like the way they have formed an image of Australia on fire within the end of the cigarette. This creates awareness for people to understand how something so small can cause such a huge impact on an area and people's lives. This could have a secondary effect too and cause people to stop smoking.


 
TO COMMUNICATE
I think this visually communicates an important message. It communicates with the audience through text and imagery.
 
 

 
 
 

SPEAKS FOR ITSELF
This is a really quirky way to portray FedEx as being such an effective company which transports goods all around the world. The image speaks for itself and needs no explanation and little use of text which is why I really like it.
 

 
TONE OF VOICE

THOUGHT PROVOKING
I think this phrase is so true and most definitely thought provoking. I really like the simplicity of the design and the colours used.



Thought provoking type


I think this is a really clever use of typography as it is portraying the word's meaning through the design.
 


SERIOUS
This has a very serious tone to it, encouraging people to seek help if they are being abused. The look on the woman's face speaks volumes.
 



INFORMATIVE WITH HUMOUR
I found this funny as soon as I saw it. I think a lot of people would be able to relate to this advert which is why it makes it memorable.

 
 
PLAYFUL
This is designed to be a playful, fun and interactive fortune teller which brings to life the fun of a holiday. The colours used are playful, inviting and the structure is easy to follow and assemble.
 
Prejean Creative Holiday Card
 
Prejean Creative Holiday Card
 
Prejean Creative Holiday Card
 
 

SCALES/PLACES

LEAFLET
This leaflet is pretty self explanatory and works well to capture attention as the colours used compliment each other and stand out.



BAR
From a distance you would think this said one thing but the small print says otherwise. This is a good way to get customers in and will make them laugh the closer they get to the advert.



Sunday 7 October 2012

OUGD403 - Alphabet Soup: Group crit and evaluation

Group Crit

Today we presented our work to the groups we were assigned to. Once we had done that we were asked to select our strongest five designs and put them up on the wall.




As a group we were then asked to rotate around the room and sit infront of a different set of letters. We then had to eliminate each letter one by one until we were left with a collection of five letters which we felt were the strongest designs. Then we were able to feedback to the rest of the class what we liked about each one and why we had chosen them.

Below is an image of our chosen five.


Here are the five letters which were chosen out of our groups' work.



I found this group crit very beneficial as it was interesting to hear opinions from other students about what they felt were the strengths and weaknesses of other people's work. This helps to broaden our knowledge as a group and will help us to improve in the future when we are set more briefs. The discussions worked well as everyone respected each other and carried out the exercise in a mature way, ensuring that nobody felt offended if their work wasn't chosen. 



Evaluation

When designing my ten letters I found it quite challenging to try and create something which represented 'pop' without it looking unprofessional. I decided to design them quite literally to make them easily recognisable. I had many thought processes along the way and my ideas changed quite a lot throughout my development. I am fairly pleased however with the outcome of my work but after doing our crit review I felt as though I could have improved my work a lot. Whether this is because I felt that there were much stronger examples I'm not too sure but it is hard to determine the reason as everyone has a different style of work and we shouldn't really compare because everyone thinks differently and works in different ways. To create my letters I collected images and eventually came up with a continual theme which I would portray running throughout all examples. I think if I was to redo this work I would maybe try not to create a sequential set of letters but rather design each one individually to make it more appealing and interesting to look at. Despite this, I do feel that my work represented the word successfully and I did spent a lot of time on the thought behind the concept which is why I don't feel disappointed that my letters weren't chosen during the studio exercise.