In response to the set briefs, the work I have produced in this first year of the course, has both broadened my thinking in terms of the media and materials available to me but also focused my attention of some key areas of design which I was originally unaware of.
To be more specific, the briefs covering composition, for example, made me aware of just how much the arrangement of elements within an image can communicate information and emotions way before style and technique has even been considered. With this in mind I am now more observant of such things when referencing other peoples work and more sensitive to layout in my own work.
The hand drawn lettering and black and white media briefs through the pure exploration of ink and tools, have lead to at least two techniques which I will certainly use again. The first of which is simply using the wrong end of a paint brush dipped in ink and making blobby impacts on the page and dragging the tool to the next point. Repeating this over and over, builds up a nice accidental and haphazard appearance but leaves me in control of the form its self. The second technique uses a very near dry flat, stiff and short bristle 1 centimetre brush to make a mark or a line then work out by dragging the brush away from the original first mark. This allows me to build up layers of shading and subtle gradients and nearly fill a page with ink and leave only the details showing through in lighter tones. This seems to produce a nice atmospheric quality.
Initially, I struggled with the character design brief, perhaps because it suggested we start the process by using shapes and forms either pulled straight from the mind or by using the collection of photographed objects which resembled faces. I found it difficult to engage with the brief as there was no substance or meaning which underpinned it, leaving it for me personally, a pointless exercise. This was however, a very personal objection. However, I decided to approach it from the opposite direction and create a character profile first. I arrived at a thinly veiled version of myself and people close to me. I then took elements from my personal view of the world and reinterpreted them to help me pad out the characters life situation. Once I’d done this, and connected with the character I was much more able to make choices on his physical appearance and try different visual approaches. I began to really enjoy the project and look forward to working on similar briefs in the future.
I found the ideas and concepts briefs very satisfying. The interactive multi media briefs while on the surface just introduced the group to digital image making; they also allowed me to explore the process of communicating messages, simply and effectively. I quickly learned how difficult it could be to successfully communicate with an audience and therefore how impressive and creative, communication design can be when it’s done well. A good example of a successful piece of communication design is an AIDS and HIV awareness poster and leaflet campaign which simply used the image of someone rolling through the streets of London in a large plastic bubble followed by a person handing out leaflets. This simply but effectively highlighted the problem of the social exclusion experienced by sufferers. The briefs encouraged me to seek clarity in what it was I was trying to say and made me more aware of how audiences can interoperate information incorrectly very easily if a design isn’t clear. I found all of these projects really good fun and stimulating and they gave me transferable visual communication skills, which I can apply, to other areas of design.
The final of the first year projects was the altered book, which combined those elements learned from both, ideas and concepts and media exploration. Regrettably and perhaps due to my decision to take on the multimedia briefs in addition to the existing work, I found the time available to devote to this project, minimal. As a result the finish of the final piece and the design process are of lesser quality than I would have hoped for. However this has taught me lessons in how to make better use of my time and that perhaps I should be more aggressive and more prompt in making design decisions when time is short.
In addition to learning some of the technicalities of the design process and new techniques, I have taken satisfaction in seeing a visual style and mode of thought creep in to my work and link the various projects together. As a person, but at the risk sounding pretentious, I need to turn projects in to something satisfying and intellectually stimulating to get the best from myself. I have become more accustomed to finding ways of adapting briefs to satisfy my personal needs but also answer the requirements of the project which I will take forward as I progress through the course and my own development.
