5.2

Today we had a lecture on printing and prepress, which was really helpful in knowing what to do in order to prepare a professional print.

The studio was spent working away and refining our brochures and meeting with tutors for feedback.

For independent study I will continue to refine my brochure, especially refining micro details.

4.2

Today we had a lecture on maps, mapping and map making.

We started the studio pairing up and drawing directions to our 3 locations in 1 minute on a napkin.

We then spent some time working on our maps, which we had a sharing session/critique of.

The rest of the studio was spent working on our brochures and getting/implementing feedback.

For independent study I will continue to work and develop my brochure as a whole and continue to work on developing from feedback

4.1

Today we had our interim critique, where we shared one of our intro pages and two of our destination spreads. We had sheets of questions about our work and went around critiquing others. It was useful to get feedback from others to know what needs refining and general suggestions to improve my work. Some of the most useful feedback was to make the title more eye catching (whether that be bigger or bolder), fix some weird spacing and sizing with my type, and integrate my text and imagery in a way that is more cohesive and connected.

3.2

In studio today we shared our brochure compositions. The feedback I received was that all of the elements in the composition I shared are purposeful, and reflect the location. Also, my collage has a nice sense of process - and this is something I can use across all my locations. The colour palette is also working well, and the use of white space is effective and gives somewhere for the eye to rest - I do not have to fill all of the space. I need to start working more on my text, perhaps having less, and start to bring in some icons

We also analysed some brochures and looked at the way they had combined type and imagery, different compositions, to source inspiration for our own. We began to analyse hierarchy, grid, ease of reading, line length, point size, leading, paragraphs, orientation, negative space etc.  

For independent study I will continue working in my InDesign document, developing and refining the combination of visual elements with layout and typography. I will need to also continue to look at visual precedents, influential graphic styles and artist models, and looking at brochures for inspiration. I will need to write the information for each of my destinations. I will also need to prepare for interim presentations by choosing and refining 2 destination spreads and 1 topic overview spread. I will also need to collate my work to date to share my process.

3.1

Today we had a lecture on grids and composition, which was useful for considering how our brochure will go together and how it will be structured.

In studio time we drew up some quick thumbnails of potential brochure layouts, marking out key information (title, blocks of text, images etc.) within the grid space provided. This will make it easy for collating my information together in my InDesign file now that I have considered how it should fit within the space.

We then looked at the collages we'd created so far to get feedback/critique. The feedback I received was that I should begin to find my set style and keep this similar across all my collages, as at the moment they all look very different. It should be obvious what each collage says yet they should all relate, too, and be a cohesive set. I should also consider having a strong single focal point instead of lots of things drawing the eye. We also then looked at how the collage creations could fit within the brochure layout plans we'd sketched, eg. a picture of someone lying down could work nicely with a horizontal brochure instead of vertical.

For independent study I will continue to create my visual compositions. I will also look into visual precedents, influential graphic styles, and artist models, particularly those that involve type and image. I will also need to begin writing the content for my brochure. I will also need to set up my InDesign file (12 page, A5 document) and begin to place my text and imagery.

2.2

Today in the lecture, visual language, style, and aesthetic was explored. This was a good way to begin to consider what styles I could be communicating in. We also briefly looked at resizing images for print and managing file sizes which was extremely useful.

In studio time, we analysed a selection of design books, with a focus on their stylistic approaches. In groups we matched up certain adjectives (active/energetic, sophisticated/elegant, technical/scientific, organic/natural) to certain design pieces, examining what feel each piece had. We then shared our top picks with the class and cross referenced findings and identified common visual traits similar across the array of works picked. It is valuable to consider what we aim to express in our work, and what styles and emotions we should utilise to convey our chosen places. For example, one of my locations House of Dumplings is completely wooden, and everything is recyclable and naturally sourced and made, therefore, I should consider organic and natural styles, reflected in colour, font choice, image treatment, etc. All of the individual elements make a statement and something as simple as font choice can impact a design heavily.

We then shared the collages we had made from independent study with our table groups and then with our tutors for critique/feedback. The feedback I received was that my ideas are working well in the fact my subject matter is clear and obvious as to what it is. My individual elements interact with each other in a way that shows a process - the process of making things (my theme). The collages are pretty rough and could be more refined and sophisticated. I should keep developing these ideas and apply them to more compositions and begin to make them digitally.

For independent study I will begin to look into different stylistic approaches and find which ones match my locations, and trial them visually. I will make more collages building on the feedback I received. I need to work on being quicker in the synthesis of my work, producing lots of different collages as opposed to spending hours on a single collage.

2.1

Today in the lecture we were introduced to visual cues - semiotics, icons and symbols, and the importance of context. 

In studio we synthesised our visual research, sorting collected material into the different destinations/activities and then into relevant groupings (colours, textures, etc.) and began to think about any semiotics/icons/symbols that could fit in with these. We shared some of our findings in our small group, especially our found objects. I brought in some beads from Village Beads (pictured below).

We then did a drawing exercise focusing on line, shape and tone. We did a series of different observational drawings to explore qualities associated with different techniques (continual line, negative space, contour, etc.), different media (pen, pencil, charcoal, ink, etc.), and marks conveying emotive nature (excitement, speed, rhythm etc.). We also spent different amounts of time on each drawing, and it was fascinating to compare our 3 minute drawings to our 3 second ones. It was a good exercise to see how many drawings we could produce in such a short amount of time. Although I do not consider myself to be a strong observational drawer, I really enjoyed this exercise as it allowed me to produce some quick basic sketches that were a little bit crazy and free.

We then spent 20 minutes collaging some of our found materials. Afterwards, we shared one collage with the class by pinning them up on the wall, and picked out some of the most effective and eye catching pieces.

For independent study I will continue to collect and make material for my topic and add/compile them into my matrix. I need to collect a range of semiotic signs (icons, indexs, and symbols). I will also generate some words to sit alongside the matrix in order to try and create a sense of what to include in my work. 

1.2

The focus of today's lecture was the design process. It was useful to get an idea of how we should be working.

In studio time, in groups, we critiqued the matrixes we completed for independent study. It was interesting to see what everyone had come up with. We worked on distinguishing what was working and what wasn't, if the places were too similar or too different, and what would create the most imagery to work with. It was good to get feedback, and my group told me which of my matrixs that they found most unique and interesting, which was the 'making' series, with jewellery making, dumpling making, and pottery making. We then spent some time expanding on our chosen matrix, adding to each of the categories.

We finished the day with a point of view exercise which we completed in pairs, thinking about different perspectives. In our chosen locations there are lots of different kinds of people (and maybe even animals) who interact with the spaces in different ways, and trying to put ourselves in other people's shoes is a good way of thinking about what each space means to different people and how we can use that to understand and portray the area in our work.

For independent study I will go and visit the locations on my chosen matrix and begin to collect a variety of information, visual, written, and experience (photograph, sketch, read, write, look, do, collect etc.). I will also look at the senses (smell, hear, taste, feel) and consider details, textures, patterns, and colour swatches. I will also collect some tangible things to bring into class.