OUGD603 - Module Evaluation

For extended practice I created and fully realised 13 briefs. Each brief was different and met my interests as a designer. I was drawn to  packaging and branding at the start of this year and focussed quite a lot of my briefs on this part of graphic design, though I feel like I am a versatile designer and wanted to push my skills into new areas. 

Over the 13 briefs I have completed, I have tackled packaging, branding, web design, publication design and art direction. Targeting a wide range of skills has helped me develop my overall practice and boosted my time management and organisation skills. I feel as though I have improved as a designer in general and now I am able to produce work to a professional quality. 

Planning my time efficiently was a very important part of this module and helped me complete all of my briefs for the submission. I gave myself a timescale for each of the briefs and while not all of them were not completed on time, some were completed early so this balanced out and allowed me to finish all of the projects within the overall timescale. 

Conducting research for all of my briefs was crucial to better my understanding of the project, audience and existing graphic design. I found this part of the module challenging but beneficial, as it showed me new areas that I had not yet considered. Throughout this module I have also encountered many challenges in producing the final outcomes. Problem solving was a large part of this module and ensured that I was always learning and building on my knowledge as a designer. Creating packaging design was often quite a challenge as visualising the final design was quite difficult, and would only be fully understood once printed and assembled. I also ran into difficulties when photographing products using props. Art direction is a new skill for me and producing a set in which my designs would fit was a rewarding obstacle to overcome. 

This module has helped me become aware of what kinds of design I enjoy and what I do not. Learning this in a practical setting was useful and allowed me to explore other routes while not fully committing myself to that kind of design (e.g. web design). I have developed an interest in packaging, branding and children’s design as my practice is colourful, fun and vector based. These areas are where I am most comfortable working and throughout this module I have developed a style that comes naturally to me.

Extended Practice was a vast module that tested a lot of my abilities. Ensuring that everything was finalised for the submission was a challenge on my organisation and time management skills, and creating the work itself was a test of my abilities as a designer. Overall, this module has developed a broad range of skills and helped me to become the best designer I can be. 

eden keshia / evaluation

eden keshia / design boards

The brief was to create a look book and promotional packaging for Eden Hardwick's fashion line. She will be using the deliverables at Graduate Fashion week and the work produced will get exposure across a new industry

Overall this brief was challenging due to timescale but the actual resolutions were quick and simple to create. As Eden had a clear idea of what she wanted and already had branding, it was just a case of creating designs that fit her brand guidelines.

Unfortunately the swing tags were unable to be produced in the short timescale of this brief as they needed special finishings applied, but everything else was printed to a high standard and ready before the deadline.

It would have been beneficial to have more time on this brief and to work more thoroughly with Eden, but as the deadlines were so close it was difficult to have enough time to properly develop the designs in my own style. As Eden doesn't need the actual deliverables for some time, it leaves an opportunity to develop the deliverables further after submission.

eden keshia / final outcome

The final outcome for Eden's brief includes all of the deliverables apart from the swing tags which could not be produced in the given time frame. Everything was printed to a high standard using satin or gloss stock to enhance the colours and images which are an important aspect to Eden's brand.

eden keshia / production

Most of the production for Eden's deliverables were fairly straightforward. Unfortunately the swing tags were unable to be produced as they needed to be gold foil on thick black stock and this was not achievable in the time frame.

The look book was printed on thin, shiny stock to bring out the images and to keep it lightweight and easy to fit into the promo pack. The folder was printed on satin to keep it professional and not too shiny. The folder is going to be handled a lot so satin will help with reducing fingerprints and marks.

The A6 Bio's were printed on double sided 200gsm gloss card to allow them to be attached to the garments and not get damaged/creased in the process.

The CV was also printed on satin to match with the feel of the folder and keep consistency throughout the deliverables.

eden keshia / promo pack

The promo pack for eden includes a folder, CV and stickers. I created a folder that matches her colour scheme (pink and black) which will match the existing stickers that Eden has signed off on:

Stickers

Folder Design

The folder will contain all of the deliverables for eden to hand out to prospective clients and employers.

Eden's CV was sent to me as follows:

She wanted me to develop it to fit her branding. As the typeface was in all caps and there was a lot of text, this part of the brief was a particular challenge. I started by making the background black and using the pale pink across the top of the page:

Development

I removed the uppercase text as this is not easy to read in large amounts. The page was split into two columns to draw the readers eye to one section of the CV and make it easier to understand the different sections. I finished off the CV with including Eden's logo on the bottom:

the internet's love of dogs / evaluation

This brief was based around research conducted over quite a lengthy period of time. The goal was to produce an appropriate response to the research that was gathered over primary and secondary sources.

I conducted surveys, polls and looked into secondary areas of interest to do with the theme of the project: dog memes. This subject is quite a new area of interest across the internet and has become extremely popular on social media. The output was an encyclopaedia of all the information gathered throughout the project. This was the most suitable outcome as it goes through each dog meme in alphabetical order explaining it to the audience.

Improvements to the brief could have been the binding method (as using tape and glue wasn't the initial choice for the publication), with a perfect bind being the preferred choice. As memes in general are always evolving, changing and new ones being created, a more adaptable outcome could have been produced, e.g. an online documentation of memes whereby more content can be added when it's created. Unfortunately, my skills as a designer are not suited to creating digital platforms, so a way around this could be to create an annual every year to discuss the latest trends and content available surrounding dog memes. This could also be expanded to other popular animals such as cats and reptiles.

Overall, in the given timeframe and research conducted, this outcome meets the brief and shows off the research in an easily understandable and ironic way that is suited to the content.

spectator / evaluation

Spectator was a brief in which a fully realised magazine was produced based around an A7 zine created in the DrMe workshop. The overall concept of the original zine is to remind people of nature and nudge them towards appreciating the natural beauty of the world. The final deliverables of this project was a 68 page magazine with content gathered from various sources to highlight the Earth and all it's wonders.

Creating Spectator in a digital format rather than in a collage based zine was the first challenge of this brief. Research was conducted based around collaging and zine making, and the results were that there is no right or wrong way to do this. I collected a lot of images that were scanned in and digitally manipulated to create a collage effect. There was a suitable amount of content for a magazine which explains the concept in the first page and the last page of the publication with a sentence split in two. This invites people to flick through the pages and see all of the content in the book before realising what it is actually about.

I feel that this brief could be improved by the overall finish of the publication. Perfect binding was the preferred option to get the impression of a professional magazine, but this type of bind for a one-off 68 page publication proved to be quite costly. I opted for a staple bind instead, and used the print facilities in the university. As a large publication, it was quite difficult to get a professional quality by myself. I also feel that if I were to print this publication again I would use a different stock - gloss on the front and thinner, shinier paper inside to mimic a traditional magazine.

Overall, the project has met the brief and I have produced a suitable deliverable that gets the core concept of the initial zine across. The time planning of this project was effective and meant I was able to get the brief finished on time.

penguin / evaluation

Penguin was a competition brief whereby students are invited to cover submit designs for 1 of 3 books. The deliverables for this included a PDF document of the cover and wrap around design, and if shortlisted further deliverables are required. The book I chose do design was In Cold Blood, by Truman Capote.

Although the design was not chosen by Penguin as a winner, this brief is one of my personal favourite outcomes of the module. The design is conceptual in nature and gives off a contemporary feel as stated in the brief. Modern design treatments such as outlined text and bold serif typefaces have been used throughout the design. The response to this brief was highly based off the context of the book, giving it an underlying meaning to those who have read it before. To a newer audience, the cover looks mysterious and interesting, leaving a lot of questions unanswered.

Penguin did not give specific feedback so it is unclear why my design was not chosen, though looking back it could possibly be that the design is quite flat/vector looking and could lack of impact from afar.

Overall, I'm pleased with what I created for Penguin and felt I have met the brief by creating a design that uses contemporary techniques to appeal to a more modern audience. The design is conceptual and takes aspects of the novel, such as blood, finger prints and empty space (to represent the cold nature of the killers) to convey a chilling and thought provoking design.

EOYS / Evaluation

The end of year show was a live brief conducted by myself and Lo as a collaboration. The brief was to produce an identity for the Leeds College of Art End of Year Show 2017. We produced the work in a quick turn around and both were happy with what we created overall. The deliverables for this project included a poster, a6 invites, an e-invite and other varying collateral for promotion around the college and city.

We created a varying amount of collateral and produced a presentation which was sent to the SMT for judging. Although our designs were not moved forward to the next stage, we felt that we created a fresh new identity for the show with an aesthetic that has not been explored by the college. Our concept was strong, showing LCA as an innovator of the creative industry keeping the aesthetic on trend. The overall design was a combination of mine and Lo’s design approach, bringing something new to the table for us as a team. 

As Lo was on placement throughout the project, a lot of the work was created in spare time in the evenings. We managed to meet the deadline for the presentation but an improvement on this brief could have been more development time and a tighter overall resolution. Although creative differences and time management issues were a challenge within this brief, we produced a high quality resolution that we felt was fresh and something the college could have benefited from. 

To have been a successful, the design could have been pushed towards a more ‘safe’ approach that a wider audience can understand and appreciate, though myself and Lo felt that it was more successful to our own practice to create something we thought was appropriate.

creative networks / evaluation

Working in a group for this brief was beneficial towards the time plan and fresh ideas. Myself, Joel Isla and Emily worked well together on this brief and created something that wasn't the usual route for Creative Networks. Taking risks, however, doesn't always pay off as unfortunately our design wasn't chosen as the winner. We received feedback for our designs which was helpful and constructive towards our development.

Our overall idea was fitting to the brief and had a strong conceptual concept. Tearing the paper away to reveal whats hidden underneath relates back to the speaker and how they will be revealing more information about themselves and their practice.

Improvements to this brief could include making the video more professional and less 'crafty' looking, by using a typeface and not including a hand - the paper could have ripped away by its self. The overall look and feel of the branding could have been more dynamic and appealing, and more deliverables could have been created (i.e. leaflet and vinyl stickers) to send to the team to further explain our concept.

Working in a group was quite tough and having to compromise on aspects is often difficult, but we all worked together and ensured all ideas were taken into consideration. We all had an equal amount of work to do and spent time together creating the designs and the video as a team.

confectionary packaging / evaluation

This brief was one of the most enjoyable out of the module. I have created designs that appeal to a wide range of people while keeping the fun, bright and colourful aspect of confectionary packaging.

Aspects that I would improve on would be the production of the packaging. Not using professional facilities and constructing the boxes myself led to cracking in the ink and some parts of the box the joins did not stick together properly. This wasn't too much of an issue as the products were photographed and you cannot tell there were problems with the boxes themselves. The chocolate wrappers were the more simple and effective designs and there weren't any major issues when putting them together.

Curating the photoshoot for the final outcome was a new experience for me. Putting together a scene with props and planning product photography was something I had never done before but it felt right for this brief. I was very pleased with the outcome of these images and felt that it really struck the right tone of voice for the campaign and brand overall.

To improve the brief I feel that some primary research could have been undertaken to get a real feel of the audience, and testing could have taken place to see whether the branding was effective. Unfortunately due to time constraints this part of the project could not be completed.

170 anniversary / evaluation

Overall I feel I have created something that fit the brief and allowed me to enhance my illustration/vector skills. Ensuring the deadline is met on a live brief is crucial and keeping to my timeplan was an essential part of the project. This project actually took less time than I had planned which helped me with submitting on time.

Unfortunately the design was not chosen to feature in the magazine but I created something I was happy with and that shows my skills in colour theory and vector design. The process for this brief was quick and I could have possibly spent more time on developing the design. Not receiving feedback for the design from the organisers was a downside to the project and wasn't told how the design could have been improved.

In conclusion, this brief was enjoyable and allowed me to produce work that I was happy with and can place in my portfolio.

lights / design boards

eden keshia / look book

Eden's look book centres around one specific trend and photoshoot. She was going to shoot more images over the weekend (6th May) but unfortunately her model cancelled and was left without any new images. She sent me her existing pictures that were all shot in a dark setting and I began to play around with the layout and design of the cover:

The image I have chosen for the front shows off the interesting garment and overall trend with the rug and low lighting. The font is bold with a subtle serif that matches well with the aesthetic and overall tone of the images, looking elegant and grand.

Inside, the spreads have no more than 2 images to keep the focus on the garments. They blend into the black background and look seamless on the page.

The type on the pages are laid out in a way that they don't distract from the images or the garment. The information lines up with the images, for example: "A juxtaposition of belongings from around the globe; the idea of an ever-growing collection informs thready textiles and a dynamic colour palette. The convergence of worlds shows the lavish celebration of colour and pattern." On this spread there is one of the images upside down, reflecting the juxtaposition and dynamic colours Eden talks about.

Feedback:
Eden is really happy with the overall document. She likes the images I have chosen to go together and doesn't need to reshoot her garment now. The only things she is unsure about is the typeface and asked to change the upside down image to horizontal instead:

lights / evaluation

This brief was an ongoing project throughout the year as shooting the images took time and planning. I have learned a lot throughout the process of this brief. Art direction isn't something I have much experience in but being with the photographer on location was a refreshing experience. Guiding them to the perfect shot was satisfying and helped me improve my team work and communication skills.

Laying out the publication was a difficult process as the images were all bold and bright. Many of them were well suited to a full bleed as they were stunning scenes, though this would lead to a fairly boring and uniform layout throughout the publication. Using a black background helped with this process so the images could blend into the page and the lights really popped out.

The inserts were also a tough decision in this brief. In the end, removing them proved to be the right decision as the images are the focal point of the publication and the viewer is left to decide on how the image makes them feel.

The I'm slightly unhappy with the overall finish of the book. A Japanese bind was the most appropriate for the budget of the project but if I had more time/money I would have loved to see the book perfect bound with more content.

Overall I feel I have managed my time well with this brief and organised the entire project to the best of my ability. Working with a photographer was challenging especially with a geographical factor, but with clear instructions I was able to get images I was happy with.

eden keshia / initial ideas and feedback

Eden's Logo is an intricate set of vector lines to form a flower and pair of hands:

As the majority of the deliverables for Eden are fairly straightforward and don't require much design I began working on the swing tags and A6 bio's.

A6 Bio's -
There is room for experiment with the A6 bio's. These will be attached to the garments to inform the reader about the collection and inspiration. Eden sent me some patterns she liked for the background which I experimented with, creating a double sided bio for her collection:

Eden sent me this document to develop further

These pink paint patterns were sent to be used on the background of the Bio's. I experimented with using her hand drawn Eden logo on the front and kept the back more simplistic where the copy will be displayed: 

Feedback:
Eden loved the first design with the repeat pattern and how her logo was on the back of the design, although she would prefer if the copy was centre aligned to match the rest of her collateral. This can be easily updated before being sent to print.

Swing Tags -
The swing tags are a simple design featuring Eden's logo in gold foil on black stock. Creating this with the university facilities could be a challenge, but I thought of a way this can be achieved. Printing the design in black ink on thick black stock then using foil and a heat press should deliver great results. The file was set up with a thin border around the edge to finish off the design and make it look professional:

Feedback:
Eden loves the tag design and border. The simplistic design complements her bold and exaggerated garments and won't overshadow her designs.

Stickers -
The sticker design is unfortunately difficult to get gold foiling on using the university facilities, however with the A6 bio Eden was keen to use the pale pink as part of her identity.

Feedback:
The stickers have a great colour scheme and match with the rest of Eden's collateral, she loves the pink and thinks the stickers will work with so many aspects of her brand.

up yer sleeve / design boards