OUGD602 Module Evaluation

The PPP3 module has allowed me to build on skills and experiences have been introduced over level 4 and 5, Within an ever evolving practice I have been able to develop my contextual understanding of industry and identified areas of specific interest that I have engaged with throughout the year.  The development of the module has supported ongoing personal development and ensured I remain contextually aware of the ever changing concept of visual communication engaging with networking opportunities, industry events, and plans for further study. 

Brief 1 documents my engagement with a commercial practice developing a sophisticated personal branding strategy that appropriately articulates my current practice. The identity is successful in encapsulating my current design practice which holistically references my aesthetic inspirations and my personable tone of voice. Creating a simple logomark that evokes a humanist sense of personality both within its physical composition and type treatments as well as within its brand strategy plays to the unusual spelling of my name to create a bespoke identity as a result. This has been praised throughout the year by students, tutors, and external creative directors demonstrating the success of the concept and its application within my practice.

Developing my online presence has been the biggest challenge within the module, creating a fully functioning website to host my online portfolio is the most effectively way for me to personally engage with studios and freelance opportunities. A PDF portfolio is also available upon request and will be developed into print based upon the feedback of upcoming portfolio surgeries. Printed collateral is developed to further establish my brand, developing business cards in preparation for industry networking events such as the End of Year Show and D&AD New Blood festival. The use of colour within the physical business card is consistent with my websites landing page to ensure a seamless transition between print and digital mediums. Printed collateral is further developed with a creative CV and invoice form, these similarly utilise coloured stock to create a point of difference amongst the sea of white applications is informed through a modular and efficient aesthetic. 

Brief 2 presented opportunity to thoroughly engage with a live creative practice. This ongoing process has inspired new areas of inspiration and allowed a more holistic understanding of the wider contexts of Graphic Design. Engaging with industry talks and seminars provides engaging insight to a range of differing creative practises and provides opportunity to practically engage with such, partially within the DBA brief. This was a great opportunity to network with a range of creative directors that were able to create an engaging resolution for through the structure of the brief  and receive a range of invaluable feedback on presenting styles through pitching our responses directly to them. Further networking opportunities included a range of studio visits and talks with practising designers such as the The Archipelago, Thompson Brand Partners, Harrison Park, and developing a creative report with Lotte Van Baalen to gain a more holistic insight to her practice and discover more about the field of curation. These experiences all resulted in receiving invaluable feedback on my current portfolio and allow me to develop a range of industry contacts that will be exceedingly beneficial when leaving university. 

My main focus within brief 2 has been to explore the potential for further study. Having personally explored where I want to sit within the industry I engaged with the prospect of Art Direction as I feel my practice is heavily revolved around developing sophisticated design concepts and feel this would allow me to explore a wide area of the industry. Attending a range of open days at varying institutions I applied for the MA in Graphic Design and Art Direction at Manchester School of Art, This comes highly recommended due to its prestige within the art and design community. Successfully receiving a place on the course this feel like the most natural progression of my practice and I can’t wait to enrol in September.

Overall the PPP3 module has been an invaluable process of exploring my own creative practice, developing a sophisticated brand identity and excepting this into various online platforms to promote myself as a dedicated and creative practitioner. Successfully engaging with a range of creative professionals has allowed me to build up an extensive range of industry contacts that will be essential when leaving education. Extending  my proposal into further study has inspired new areas of creativity to develop in order to reach my aspiring career goals.  

OUGD602: Personal Branding - Manifesto

Thinking about my manifesto I didn't want to create a ten commandments style rules that I had to follow or conversely didn't want to create an essay that was labour intensive to read and waffled on. Instead I chose to create a succinct paragraph that accurately reflects me as a creative and the style of work I produce. Choosing a small paragraph makes it easy to embed with my website and application forms to give clients/ studios a flavour of my creative style. The content reflects my current style, ambitions, things I enjoy and how my practice runs. Printed this is placed within the modular grid applied to my CV and invoice to ensures consistency within extended collateral. 

"I’m easy going, enjoy what I do, and will always make time for a drink. My design philosophy is simple, make good design with a great concept. I enjoy designing for a millennial audience and focus specifically on brand and campaign identities but will give anything a go at least once, I’m a quick learner. I engage with challenging the conventions of typical Graphic Design incorporating a range of materials and processes into my practice, this allows me to explore other areas of inspiration and never be bored of what I do."

OUGD602: Creative Report - Plants on Pink // Zine

Due to the project revolving so much around imagery I felt it was appropriate to interpret my interview with Lotte into a zine / lookbook, this would give me opportunity to use some of the great online content she curates for the project and create a purely engaging resolution. Designing this zine I wanted to create a minimal publication that experiments with contemporary arrangements and would commercially appeal to not only the creative community but the following of plants on pink. The zine is split into two distinct sections, an image only a4 publication with a smaller a5 insert that houses the interview. I explored running the interview across the main stream however felt it was more appropriate to contain it as a contextual understanding of the project that is in-keeping with the minimalist style of the publication and allows a linear narrative. Printed on a thick pink stock is consistent to the insert to create continuity within the cover, the tone of voice is informative and presented in an interview style to add commercial value to the publication so to be appreciated to used to inform beyond the purpose of the module. I was really happy with the output, unfortunately I had to source the image online and due to the constraints of the instagram platform the images ensured some forms of pixilation however this is unavoidable asking Lotte for home HD images she sent me 3 good quality files however this wasn't enough to fill the content of the zine. The production values are finished to a high standard and evaluated the final quality of the creative report. 

OUGD602: Portfolio Review - Thompson Brand Partners

Discussing with tutors extended opportunities to engage with the industry, Amber suggested contacting alumni Jimmy Smith, who works at Thompson brand partners as a means to build up industry contact. I love the work Thompson produce and felt a looking through my portfolio would be a non-invasive way to become familiar with the studio. Emailing jimmy directly he initially didn't reply however a follow up email quickly responded saying he would be happy to help setting a time and date for me to go in and get a feel for their studio space. 

Talking through my portfolio with jimmy was a great experience in understanding the etiquette in engaging with live studios and gave insight as to how potential interview scenarios might take place. Jimmy offered a range of great insight into my current portfolio this ranged from taking certain projects, adjusting their running order, and the role of narrative within each brief. He said he really liked my brand proposal for Harrison France and the use of innovation within my Greenalls submission and said its exactly the things Thompson look for and try to implement into their own practice. The main point I took from receiving feedback from jimmy was that he said 'Bring it to life make sure the story you tell is consistent with the one on screen' this advice is a great platform to build from ensuring I am passionate in how I talk about my work as this will inspire whoever I am talking too and get them excited about what I am producing. 

OUGD602: Design Strategy Presentation

Creating my design strategy presentation allowed me to reflect not only on my level 6 experience but my full university experience at Leeds College of Art. To inform this presentation I looked back at both my level 4 and 5 presentations to review my development which is reinforced through my first slide of how far I have come, and how I will take these skills to develop further as I move forward into postgraduate and commercial practices. through this presentation it allowed me to explore my current practice, my current brand and how this is promoted to the world, and how my practice can develop further. This presentation is representative of me as a designer and inspires me to continue to develop my practice as I transition into the industry. 

OUGD602: Portfolio Review - Harrison Park

As our portfolio surgeries have been delayed until after hand in I wanted to get some feedback on my portfolio before I submit and felt this would be a good excuse to get into contact with Harrison Park, an LCA alumni I follow him on social media and really like his work. I was curious to ask him about his experiences after graduating and how he chose to move into the freelance sector. Harrison was happy to meet up and despite a few timetable clashes we arranged to meet up for a pint and look through my portfolio. 

Meeting Harrison he showed me his portfolio and how this had developed from his student portfolio to his current professional folio, It was interesting to see how he has evolved as a designer in the two years since graduating and the difference in the type of projects he now engages with commercially as opposed to his student briefs. Looking through my portfolio was really helpful as he pointed out some stylistic changes to make regarding some briefs. Harrison was complementary of my work he seemed genuinely engaged with the projects I was undertaking and completed my Harrison France brand proposal and said that my YCN competition entry was particularly strong. Talking to Harrison beyond subject of portfolios gave me a greater insight as to what its like to work within the industry, he emphasised how from a freelance point of view time is money therefore he works fast creating a 2 or 3 sophisticated design proposals for a client in a day. This shocked me slightly as I am in a routine of having weeks to work with design proposals and is something I will need to improve upon when graduating so to keep up with the faster pace as a designer. Talking with Harrison made me aware as to how naive I am as a designer, he mentioned a vast range of studios I had never heard of, my response to this is to start taking a more active role in looking through design bloggs such as its nice that and computer arts to develop more of a sophisticated understanding of what is happening in the design world and what different studios are working on. It was a really great opportunity to just sit down with Harrison and have a beer, he gave me some great insights into the industry and helped me develop my portfolio further both digitally and through my website. 

OUGD602: Creative Report - Plants on Pink // Q&A

Sending Lotte a series of questions I wanted to focus these around a design practice as opposed to talking generally about the project as I felt this would allow me to get the most out of the interview. I had to chase up Lotte for her response to this due to looming print deadlines however she was more than co-operative and provided me with some great responses that provided a clear insight to you and the project and how she works as a creative. 

OUGD602: Creative Report - Plants on Pink

Evaluating at this stage in the year it was not appropriate for me to engage in a placement due to the Extended practice workload having already been let down my a studio and had real difficultly opening a line of conversation with others I still wanted to demonstrate a sophisticated engagement with the industry in a way that felt more beneficial to me as a creative. Last year in Level 5 I interviewed Ben Biondo, a Freelance designer from California and was really inspired by his insight into his design practice. Having already collated a report on a freelance designer i wanted to research other aspect of the creative industry and identifying how difficult it has been to get in contact with studios ruled this out also. 

Thinking about different areas I was interested in I came across the Plants on Pink Instagram account, this innovatively looks at curation in a new sense being performed totally though instagram. The concept is so simple and the account functions as an online catalogue of plants against pink backgrounds, I really like the aesthetic of this and wanted to find out more about how this has become so successful attracting over 80,000 followers. I contacted the owner of the account Lotte Van Baalen to discuss her role in curating the project which falls into the category of Art Direction, which is something I want to explore further within postgraduate study therefore this insight becomes truly relevant to developing my practice. 

Thankfully Lotte replied promptly saying she'd love to help me and would be more than happy to answer my questions. 

OUGD602: Personal Branding - Invoice Form

An invoice form is appropriate collateral for my personal branding as engaging with live briefs throughout the year I am required to send invoices for payment. I wanted this to be consistent with my other forms of collateral and therefore used the same gridded template from my CV. The invoice follows a standardised structure and will also be printed on coloured GF smith stock to apply a creative treatment to the document, this further creates ties with the use of colour within my practice directly linking to my business cards and website anding page. 

OUGD602: Personal Branding - Creative CV

Producing a creative CV is slightly less appropriate for me, taking up post graduate study however felt it could still be beneficial when applying for studio placements over summer or engaging with freelance work. Aesthetically I chose a gridded template to section off each area of work, these will be printed on coloured GF Smith Stock to catch the eye of the client / employer. I kept to a relatively standard CV template yet tailored this content towards a Graphic Design Role. 

OUGD602: Personal Branding - Business Cards

Having researched business cards over the past two years I feel I have a good understanding of their format and concluded it doesn't really matter what goes on them as long as its relevant to my practice. Exploring new areas of inspiration I loved the juxtaposition of type and colour within this examples and wanted to recreate this aesthetic style with the simple phrase 'hello' within my branded colours. developing this further felt it didn't work as appropriate as within the example. Exploring alternative routes business cards often depict a range of works produced by the designer however as my practice centres around brand it wouldn't be appropriate to place examples of my own work within my business card as this would be promoting a client instead of myself. 

I really overthought the physical business card, due to its small scale its difficult to design for in creating an instant wow factor. I was getting really stressed out as what to put on my card and figured I should just keep it simple. Exploring the basis of my practice I identified that type, colour, shape, form the overarching consistency within my portfolio as and established I should present this within my business card. I cleverly took inspiration from my landing page and recreated this in the form of a business card, this creates continuity between print and digital forms and will allow the user to instantly associate the two platforms as part of my personal branding. 

Using a block colour as opposed to a gradient for the printed business card create a bold statement that is so simple it reinforces the brand in isolation. This places  refined focus upon the logo mark and can be developed over a series of colour ways. 

Keeping the aim of simplicity within the reverse of the business card the reverse side is juxtaposed with a solid which background. This features the most important information centred within the card: a link to my website and email address. I have also included my practice 'Graphic design // creative direction' splitter and cropped at the top and bottom as a stylistic feature that accentuated the white space within the design. 

Due to the simplicity of the design I wanted the production to stand out, Exploring commercial option for this I email Pressission regarding a run of 50-100 of business cards with a foiled logo however this was far too expensive for me to consider. Exploring alternative production methods found MOO produced raised spot varnish business cards that would add a tactile element to the business card and would make the user want to physically engage with the card that was far more reasonable, this was also applicable over a range of colour ways with no added charge making this the best option for me. I considered producing these within the college however the primary purpose of these cards will be to give to industry professionals within the End of Year Show and D&AD New Blood Festival therefore they need to be consistent and finished to a high standard. 

[sample printed in university]

OUGD602: Personal Branding - Physical Portfolio

With a strong web presence the module also requires a printed portfolio, I created this a single PDF which can be used digitally and in printed format. I don't feel as though I will use the printed form by choice as I feel it is easier to demonstrate this digitally and support with physical examples of the work. The portfolio takes from the feedback received from Alec in that the imagery needs to be the focal point as Graphic Design is such a visual experience. Based on this I chose to use on lead image that is the focal point for each page, underneath this is juxtaposed with a very brief introductory sentence to give a brief over view of each project and its context. This format works well as when sending this to studios they can gauge a genera overview of the brief and when used within studio visits can use this text as a base to explain the project upon. The simple composition again makes it easy to add and remove projects easily ensuring the portfolio remains up to date. I plan to produce a printed portfolio for the End of Year Show however due to portfolio surgeries being scheduled for after hand in felt it is appropriate to wait until after this time to print my physical portfolio as this will give more opportunity to engage with the feedback identified within these surgeries.

OUGD602: Personal Branding - Website // Critique

Scheduling a critique with Alec was a good way to get feedback on the development of my website, I asked Alec as with intern he looks through hundreds of student / freelancer websites so will be able to tell me what to include and not include within my site to attract the right sort of attention. The feedback Alec gave was largely positive I explained how the websites primary purpose to to showcase my portfolio and be used as a presentation tool when invited into studios as a means to talk through my work. The changes Alec suggested were mostly stylistic this included altering the order the projects appeared in and changed some of the lead images to ensure a diversity at a glance and an aesthetically engaging composition for the homepage. He said the website translates nicely to mobile and I had kept it simple which is always a bonus when designing for web and functions appropriately for its primary purpose. I am happy with the feedback received thus far, now that I have a starting point I can easily add projects and tailor content quickly and easily to ensure the website is always up to date. 

OUGD602: Personal Branding - Website // Landing page

Through primary research into studio websites I identified a nice touch within these website's was to include a landing page as a preview to their work, this acts as welcome to engage the user before throwing them straight in to see the work. Exploring how I could create an exciting landing page that would instantly engage the user was initially difficult to visualise. I trailed a range of initial ideas including this examples which plays on the button 'take a look' and is juxtaposed with the site name 'made by rhys' the use of my hands evokes humanist connotations and the googly eyes provides analogue layers to the digital platform which demonstrating I do not take myself to seriously. Reflecting back on this I like the concept of how the imagery works with the button to engage the user however was unsure on the aesthetic. 

Utilising the platform and understanding the difference between a printed portfolio and digital site was important as within this digital space I could freely incorporate moving image, I established this would be effective for the landing page to engage the consumer and not have them land on a flat image. I chose a more subtle design direction that plays with colour as I like to embed this holistically within my practice. Having a limited experience with after effects I taught myself through youtube tutorial and peer learning to create a looping gradient effect that works appropriately to reflect me as a designer, always changing direction and evolving. This further promotes to clients I can work digitally with moving image as well as producing high quality print based resolutions. 

I was really happy with the outcome of this video, especially due to my limited experience of the software, I think it provides an appropriate first glance to my practice and a great first impression which provides the user with a more immersive experience within the site. 

OUGD602: Personal Branding - Website // Inspiration page

Analysing a range of websites from practising design studios I admire within my practice I was most engaged by the websites that included blogs within their navigation, I found this particularly interesting as it shows what inspires the studio who creates examples of Graphic Design I love, By association this provides extended inspiration and allows more of a personal connection with the studio. 

Over the past two years I have curated a design blog that is used solely for my own personal inspiration, It functions as a means to engage with contemporary design trends and new industry work, I scroll through in my spare time re-blog good maples of design so when I am stuck within the design process I can revert back to my blog that has become an extensive online catalogue of the type of design that inspires me creatively. I felt it appropriate to include this within my website so the user can better understand my design process. This creates a more personal encounter and can feed particularly well into networking as this could identify commonalities that can function as ice breakers. It also presents opportunity for potential clients to see the type of design I am inspired by and will help them get a better feel for my practice when deciding if they want to work with me. 

I really enjoy creating the blog and is something I will continue to do after university as it constantly inspires new creative directions and allows me to keep up to date with the contemporary practice of Graphic Design

http://madebyrhys.tumblr.com

OUGD602: Personal Branding - Website

Identifying an appraise range of collateral for my identity I established a website was paramount to my professional development. Throughout the MA application process it was advised to send your portfolio via website however mine was distributed through electronic PDF, A website is further beneficial for freelance opportunities and creative exposure particularly looking towards the degree show and D&AD New Blood Festival. Identifying the main requirement for my website it to showcase my work, particularly when going into studios for visits and portfolio surgeries this established large bold imagery needed to be at the forefront of my site. 

With a student budget and little coding experience I needed to utilise a platform that was relatively simple to use exploring Wix, adobe portfolio, tumblr, and squarespace I identified Squarespace as the most appropriate platform as although it is the most expensive they provide a generous student discount and is the quickest and most user friendly experience to create a custom domain. With an online presence it is important to create continuity to ensure my profile is easy to find, searching across a range of domains and social media accounts I found 'MADEBYRHYS' was available across all of these. I feel this domain is particularly appropriate as within my practice I like to physically create and make things, this is evident within my response to the Greenall's // YCN brief, my dissertation, as well as a range of other examples within my portfolio highlights my ability to create bespoke physical outcomes that work effectively to enhance the resolution. 

Developing my website I chose a theme that was centred around photography with full bleed imagery and a simply scrollable navigation. I have made it a priority to take a range of professional photographs of all of my level 6 outcomes, this makes building a website so much easier with a range of rich engaging imagery that elevates the digital presence of each project. 

Incorporating type into my each project was initially ambiguous as I didn't know how much / little to include, asking for tutor feedback and discussing this with other students found an introductory sentence to the project and small summative description wold be most effective to give the user a succinct overview of the project, concept, and output. 

Even though the basic template for the website is relatively simple it functions effectively as a platform to promote my practice which will be an extremely useful tool when talking to students and generally engaging with the industry having this base to direct people to my work. 

www.madebyrhys.com

OUGD602: Personal Branding - Brand Refresh

Developing my brand into level 6 I was surprised at how many compliments I received regarding my logo, this came from tutors, external practitioners, social media and was commented on positively within my postgraduate study interview. Based on this response to my personal identity I felt no need to change it just yet as it clearly engages my target audience and I feel it is still reflective of my practice. 

My level 5 brand proposal was relatively naive in terms of a professional identity so I chose to update this element of my brand within level 6 creating a set of brand guidelines however with the brand being personal I felt it wasn't relative to create an extensive brand guidelines document as it will be only me working with the identity and doesn't need to be understood by a full creative team like with corporate identities. Instead I chose to create a summative document as a poster that gives a basic outline as to the style of my identity to get a snapshot of how this is present across all branded collateral. 

I updated my selection of typefaces from Level 5 to include Karla as my predominant body font, this works appropriately as its geometric skeleton looks great across print and digital platforms. I chose Stanley Poster for a display typeface as it is contemporary bold and engaging, it complements karla well and will work well within my portfolio. Developing a colour palette for my identity I opted for a strong swatch as the bulk of my branding is black and white, I actively incorporate colour into my practice particularly pastels therefore is appropriate to include within the identity. 

OUGD602: Personal Branding - Level 5

Within my Level 5 Design Strategy presentation I picked up on this image which I felt powerfully articulated my approach to personal branding, that where I am now as a designer  will change as I develop both personally and creatively, this took away the pressure of designing an identity that needs to stand the test of time, instead I chose to design an identity that encapsulated me as a designer at present taking into account when my creative style evolves I can re-brand myself to better suit this. 

Based on this I created a typographic identity I took a base typeface of Brandon Grotesque and created an interesting visual arrangement. Developing this I liquified the type to inject a feeling of movement into the logomark in order to remove some of the digital rigidity of the typeface and evoke a humanist detailing within its aesthetic. I was happy with the outcome of this identity development and felt it encapsulated me as a designer appositely, Branding myself simply as 'Rhys' plays to the unusual spelling of my name and feels minimal and uncomplicated which is an element I try to incorporate into my creative practice.