OUGD602: Live Brief - Harrison France identity

The proposal for Harrison Frances’ branding is simple yet contextually appropriate and succeeds in generating a strong identity for his practice. The abstract combination mark is boldly engaging and creates a point of difference that stands out within the photography industry. The simplicity of the identity allows a range of variations to develop that are essential to ensure each application of the brand is appropriate to its platform and reproducible over a variety of physical scales and brand extensions. Contextualising the identity within print and digital forms demonstrates the breadth of the identities ability to translate across a multitude of brand extensions and the establishes that the logo variations are essential in order to ensure each application of the brand is appropriate to its platform. This creates the basis for a strong identity that can be used over a long ranging lifespan due to its flexibility, innovation, and simplicity. 

Working with Harrison was my biggest client challenge to date, having already developed a sophisticated route he then wanted to change this concept completely. Due to the brief being unpaid and still having a range of briefs to complete for my extended practice module I chose to continue the proposal independently. I initially felt as though I had failed in not being able to provide the client with a resolution however established that the project needed to be mutually beneficial to work well in my portfolio and established creating a further concept would hold no personal benefit to my portfolio or academic submission. Receiving extremely positive tutor feedback regarding the concept we agreed I should continue this route independently as it works conceptually for my portfolio and from a design perspective is a strong resolution. This experience will definitely inform future client work as I will ensure the client is able to understand my voice as a designer and will engage with my creative style, conversely I will holistically seek out what the client wants to achieve within their brief and assess whether I can realistically provide this for them so to not waste anyones time. 

OUGD602: Live Brief - Record Store Day 2017

Working on a live brief with Rowan was a good experience in liaising with a client and ensuring a constant line of communication throughout the design process. Working with Jumbo Records to create a campaign for their 2017 record store day event creates a live opportunity to work with a client and be attributed to my portfolio. The response to the brief is a sophisticated and conceptually relevant to fulfil both the clients needs and engages the target audience appropriately. The concept is playful and innovative taking the well established jumbo branding and dissecting the letterforms to reimagine them as abstract patterns. this cleverly establishes the brand while creating an aesthetic that is representative of the record store community and appeal to the target audience. Screen printing the resolutions creates a mindful approach to the production method as screen printing is similar to vinyl in that it creates an appreciation for the process and further engages the target audience who are largely part of the creative community, this is also considerably cheaper to produce for the client than digitally printing the resolutions and in this case is more contextually appropriate. Commercially the design direction is appropriate as although it promotes a celebration of Vinyl music through the Record Store Day celebration the aesthetic reinforces the brand and encourages its audience to shop at JUMBO records as opposed to one of the other established independent music stores in Leeds that will also be holding Record Store Day celebrations. 

Working collaboratively with Rowan went really well, The resolution is finished to a high quality and is representative of our individual design styles the process of collaborating allowed me to step out of my comfort zone within the design process and helped me reflect on this and identify areas in which I can improve such as planning my time, especially when producing large physical resolutions. The client reacted really positively to the final resolutions and said they fitted the store perfectly and fully resolved the brief, this was positive to hear and demonstrates a sophisticated understanding of product, range, and distribution. 

OUGD602: Competition Brief - YCN // Greenall's Gin

To engage with the industry I chose to enter the YCN student design competition as I enjoyed this process last year within the responsive module, Revisiting last year submission I identified that the resolution was far too complicated to exist as a commercial design solution. Understanding this I wanted to create an innovative response that would still be commercially valid to the judging panel. 

The ‘Come or Shine’ campaign exceeds the commercial expectations of the brief embodying the brands classic sense of humour, with a touch of irony to actively engage a millennial audience. This effectively positions the brand as a catalyst for having a good time, instigating social drinking environments irrespective of the stereotypical British weather, and enjoying the summer with Greenall’s. The concept is contemporary and engaging to the clients target audience, it is also holistically reflective of the brands tone of voice and engages the user within the brands playful personality. The physical resolutions succeed in promoting the campaign across a range of different platforms through a consistent campaign aesthetic to ensure easily identifiable campaign extensions. The umbrella iconography is used consistently throughout the campaign and inspires innovative collateral to develop that is uniquely appropriate to the concept, this ensures the campaign works holistically across a range of platforms and allow the audience to fully engage with the brand which can later be converted into brand equity. 

I identified the brief was asking to utilise a classic British moment to engage a millennial audience however my dissertation focused heavily around this millennial audience and I was able to identify that utilising cliche'd iconography would in fact disengage this audience. Having the confidence to change the brief to work better for me as a creative and that will more holistically engage the client's target audience is something that I wouldn't have considered in level 4 or 5 and is a result of growing in my own confidence as a creative.

OUGD602: Masters - Manchester / Acceptance

Based on my interview I was short afterwards offered a place on the MA course for Graphic Design and Art Direction which I plan to accept. The MA course is the natural next step within my practice as it allows me to explore my creative direction further and being to consider art direction as a career prospect. I am excited to begin postgraduate study and engage with these challenges to develop as a creative as well as personally. 

OUGD602: Masters - Manchester / Interview

Having applied for the MA at MMU I successfully reached the second stage of the application process and was invited in for an interview. I wasn't sure what to expect from this as I had already talked through a range of my work with Clinton however between our initial meeting and the interview I have had time to develop a sophisticated body of work through engaging with the extended practice module. Talking through my latest projects was again so beneficial in receiving that external feedback and helping to develop my portfolio. Amongst this we also talked about how I can tailor my current practice into a more sophisticated MA route, Clinton said my work is very good at being commercial however the masters is an opportunity to explore design without necessarily considering product, range, and distribution as holistically. 

OUGD602: Masters - Manchester / Further Information

With Manchester Metropolitan Universities (MMU) course being the most relevant to my practice I contacted the programme leader for the Graphic Design and Art Direction Pathway to arrange a meeting to talk in more detail about the course as he was absent from the open day. Arranging a meeting with Clinton this provided me with a much better insight as to how the course runs, we discussed typical proposals of study, how this develops and changes over the year and what the optional research modules entail. 

Furthermore I saw this as an opportunity to get feedback on some of the work I have been producing which was a valuable experience, Clinton responded well to my current portfolio talking in depth about my Figment Zine and dissertation projects. He felt these were conceptually developed to go beyond a aesthetic resolution and could see the sophisticated development of a concept embedded within my design resolutions. This was a great opportunity to get my work critiqued by other members of the design community and gave me confidence to apply for the course. 

OUGD602: Masters - University of Leeds Open Day

Attending the Leeds University open day I was unsure what to expect from the Russell group university regarding its creative courses. The event was held in a large room within the clothworkers building with representatives from each pathway available to talk through the programme. Talking through the course structure I quickly discovered this programme was not for me, it felt like an advanced foundation degree as in the first two months you experiment with every discipline from fashion to product design and then choose the most relevant pathway to explore further within the rest of the programme, Having already established I wanted to focus on Graphic Design I felt this doesn't appeal to my creative practice. Furthermore talking with the programme leader,  Dr Lonsdale she identified that they get a broad group of students applying for the MA design coming from subjects such as philosophy and politics to try something new, although she meant this as a positive aspect  of the programme this suggested to me the course was something that I wasn't looking for having peers that weren't familiar with the basic principles of design and wouldn't allow my practice to grow as holistically as some of the other programmes I have been looking at. 

OUGD602: Masters - Manchester School of Art Open Day

Visiting the Manchester School of Art open day, this was the institution I was most excited to visit. Its midpoint distance meant I could commute from Chester and its course title suggested I could learn more about Art Direction as an industry and career prospect. The open day was for the whole MA school of design and unfortunately the course leader for the Graphics Design and Art Direction programme was not able to attend as he was moderating PHD work however the student tours and talks provided me with a good amount of information to get a basic overview of the course. My only reservations were the studio size as the whole MA design programme was held within one studio which felt as though it could be small for its size. 

OUGD602: Masters - Chester Open Day

While home for easter this coincided with one of the Chester University MA open days. I took the opportunity to visit the institution and see what the MA design course was about, I found this interesting and felt the course would meet my needs however was still unsure about the institutions reputation within the design community and how much added value this would apply to my employability. Being an MA course in design I also questioned the amount of contact time and tutor direction that was specific to Graphic Design as alot of the examples and stores told about the course revolved around fashion and product design. This raised questions as to the relevance of the course to my personal and professional practice. 

OUGD602: Masters - Research

Thinking about what I wanted to do after graduating I explored a range of options however having spoken to Lord Whitney felt Art Direction was something I wanted to go into more seriously. Exploring how I could get into this friend found a masters route to be a good start for this process. A masters always something I have been aware of however only in my final year have I tarted to consider it as a serious proposal. I would want to do this as a linear progression from undergraduate as when I have establish myself with a studio I personally don't feel I would have the motivation to reengage with academic study and that I would succeed more when ready thinking with an academic mindset. 

Exploring institution that offer this MA course I initially thought about the Royal College of Art even though it is very exclusive and difficult to enrol on the rewards of studying at such a prolific institution would be great. investigating this further found the MA course in Graphic Design was 2 years and realistically this was unfeasible for me to live in London for 2 years while studying full time with the available funding for a masters. 

Looking beyond this I considered other institutions I that provided a relevant MA programme, From this I found Leeds University provided an MA in design, which would be nice to study in a city I am familiar with. Chester University also offered an MA in design which would allow me to live at home however I am unsure about the reputation of this course within the design community. Finally Manchester School of Art offer a course in Graphic Design and Art Direction which would be incredibly relevant if I wanted to pursue Art Direction as a career after study. Reading the syllabus of all these courses they all sounded interesting however the academic language used doesn't give a real insight to the course, I plan to book onto as many open days as possible in order to get a feel for the staff and institutions before making any decisions based on where I would like to study. 

OUGD602: Studio Contact - Easter Contacts

While home for easter in Chester I felt this was a good opportunity to contact a number of studios from Liverpool as this is close and easily available to reach, I contacted 4 of the Liverpool studios that I felt would give the best experience going into and getting feedback on my portfolio which included: Black and Ginger, Smiling Wolf, Uniform, and Studio SB. Of these the only studio to reply to my email was Studio SB who asked me to send along my portfolio unfortunately they said in the short time period I was home for they would have time but said they engage with an internship programme which I should look at for when I graduate. 

OUGD602: Studio Contact - Passport

Frustrated in not receiving replies I decided to contact studios directly starting with Passport Agency in Leeds, Calling them up I told them I was a student from Leeds College of Art and would love to come in for a studio visit, The receptionist sounded shocked by this request and asked me to note it down in an email and they would get back to me. Despite this and a follow up email I never received any response from the studio. 

OUGD602: Studio Contact - Love studio

Having worked with Love for my dissertation and having Richard and Matthews personal emails I felt this stood me in good stead to atlas get a studio visit if not a placement from the studio. My initial email was at the end of January when I received my dissertation results thanking them for all their help and at the end  asking if they ever accepted placements or studio visits. When I didn't hear back I send another email directly asking for a studio visit. Unfortunately I didn't hear anything back either time which is disappoint considering how we'd worked together on my dissertation. 

OUGD602: Studio Contact - Alphabet

Contacting Alphabet I felt I had a good chance of being invited into a studio visit  as the founders are alumni of Leeds College of Art studying on the Graphic Design programme. I quickly hear back from Abbas, a contact Amber put me in contact with who asked me to send a selection of work over. Having sent this I did not hear back from Abbas despite sending multiple prompting emails and also put this time to the studio being very busy, I plan to contact them later in the year regarding a studio visit and see what come from this experience. 

OUGD602: Studio Contact - Lord Whitney

Exploring other studios I felt I would get a valuable experience working with I identified Lord Whitney as a great contact to have. Their portfolio sits outside of Graphic Design in Art Direction and set design however I love the diversity and experimentation within their practice, it feels fun and like there would be never a dull moment. On their website it says they occasionally take inters however at this stage I just wanted to go in see their studio and talk more about art direction as a practice as this is something that interests me as a potential career. In order to get my foot in the door I decided to create an invitation bespokely created to ask Lord Whitney if I could come in and have a chat. This featured a large cutout of the word lord which backs onto one of my pattern designs, this shows the invitation was created just for them and would stand me in good stead to be invited in. Inside there is a hand written message asking to learn more about them and their practice. 

Sending this invitation off I heard back from the founders Amy and Bek saying they unfortunately wouldn't have time to have me into the studio at present however to keep in contact as they are considering events to invite students into their workshop in the near future. Unfortunately this is disappointing however the hand made invitation will hopefully be memorable for future experiences and engaging with the studio in the future. 

OUGD602: Internship - The Archipelago

Talking about placement opportunities Michael discussed how when they have placements into the studio they like to provide an immersive experience where they take interns to client meetings, pitch presentations and allow them to work on design in isolation as opposed to shadowing another designer for a week. He described how this process works really well for them as a studio and shows how all the pieces of the puzzle fit together as opposed to just seeing how a designer designs. This was the type of placement I wanted to be involved in and help this would allow me a great commercial insight to the industry. 

Catching up with Michael via email it became tricky to arrange a time for placement, He initially said to contact him in the new year however this kept being dragged out due to the high volume of work the studio was receiving. Micheal said he didn't want an intern in when they were really busy as he wouldn't be able to provide the type of experience he talks about. Eventually we established this wouldn't be feasible within term time before May unfortunately letting me down with regards to the ability to come and work within the studio. 

This puts me in a difficult position naively putting all my eggs in one basket assuming I had a placement puts me back at square one at the end of January when most of my peers already have placements organised by now. I will definitely learn from this in the future that although something may be scheduled this can always fall through and that I should defiantly have a plan B just incase. 

OUGD602: Studio Visit - The Archipelago

Keen to engage with practicing designers and studios throughout level 6 I began to contact studios to get feedback on my current studio portfolio, chat about their practice and begin to create external contacts outside of Leeds College of Art. The first studio I contacted was the Archipelago based in Tower Works, Leeds, I really liked their style especially the work they produce for the Plant Room which they also curate and wanted to learn more about how they work with such a small set up. 

Going through through my portfolio Michael was impressed with the work I had produced thus far commented on my work for 505, with the Hawarden Farm shop and my response to last years COP project when I created the physical bottle as my response to the brief. This gave me confidence in that I was producing work that had a good insight and my attention to detail within the physical production was appropriate to a live brief standard. Talking with Michael gave me a good idea of how to engage with to industry professionals, we talked about the college and wider creative topics within Leeds. Interestingly Michael gave me a good insight as to how it feels to work within a live practice, juxtaposing client demands with a good design practice and how working in a small studio can go through quite points then be insanely busy within a couple of days. Through this conversation and talking about the requirements of level 6 Michael offered me a placement in the studio, which was a great opportunity. Working with a small studio such as the Archipelago would allow me to get a better idea of how a full studio works and not just a department within a larger corporation.