End of Module Self Evaluation

BA (Hons.) GRAPHIC DESIGN    LEVEL  04     Module Code      OUGD101             Module Title    DESIGN PRINCIPLES       

           END OF MODULE SELF-EVALUATION

NAME    Sadie Thompson    BLOG. ADDRESS    http://s-thompson1013.blogspot.com/

1.  What skills have you developed through this module and how effectively do you think you have applied them?    

My time management and punctuality have both improved greatly since beginning this year, which has been something that was a problem in the past. I think that this also reflects my level of commitment towards the course .
I feel that I have learnt how to take criticism on board and channel it constructively to improve and develop my work. I also feel like I respond better under pressure and can produce an acceptable piece of design in a short time span.
Something that I am very pleased with is how quickly and easily I have found it to grasp the basics of Illustrator and Photoshop, especially knowing nothing at all about this software from the start.

2. What approaches to/methods of research have you developed and how have they informed your design development process?                    

 The main development for me has been recording the majority of the research that I do straight on to my blog. This particularly helps when referencing certain designers, artists, books or websites. I have also started to read more and find research from books rather than relying solely on the internet and search engines to do my research for me.
                 
3. What strengths can you identify in your work and how have/will you capitalise on these?               I am good at recognising faults within my work and improving them to develop and improve my work. I feel I am good at coming up with ideas on the spot and developing a concept so that it is relevant to the brief.
I enjoy making things aesthetically pleasing and colourful, although this doesn’t always apply to the brief I may be working on.

4. What weaknesses can you identify in your work and how will you address these more fully?          My main downfall is that my computer and software skills aren’t up to scratch, which I feel if they were it would help to aid my designs and in most cases give them a more professional finish.
When working with typography I find it hard to find type that works and is relevant to different aspects of the design. Image, concept and the space surrounding it being a few elements that need to be considered, although I am not entirely sure how.

5. Identify five things that you will do differently next time and what do you expect to gain from doing these?                   
Research more.

I feel I need to research in more depth before diving into an idea and getting too carried away with a concept. Another thing is recording all of my research as I go, as a lot of it does get lost due to lack of organisation.

Ask people’s opinions.
Develop my work by asking other people’s opinions and getting outside influences.

Blog as I go. I need record things on my blog as I do them as opposed to leaving it until the end of the week or brief deadline. By doing this it will ensure that I am recording my thought process while it is still fresh in my mind, and also avoid missing certain ideas or research out by mistake.

Experiment.

I need to explore and use different methods and techniques of working to broaden my skills and knowledge, even if I feel it is outside of my comfort zone. An example of this would be to explore different ways of printing within my work and experiment with different stocks.

Read.
Buy and read more magazines and newspapers on a regular basis to become more aware of contemporary designers, and also to respond to cultural influences.

       

No News is Good News... Mail Shot Feed Back

No News is Good News, Mail Shot

No News is Good News... Feedback

No News is Good News

Evaluation- Alphabet Soup... Creating a typeface

Which personality traits did you choose to respond to and apply to the typeface?
The main trait I responded to was Charlie's height as this is the first noticeable thing when you meet him. After talking to him and reading his completed questionnaire I also found that he is quite nostalgic and likes the outdoors (tree climbing, climbed a mountain etc) so I decided to also use this within the typeface.

What are the reasons behind the design decisions you have made for the typeface?
I chose to play and experiment with perspective to give the illusion that its tall and towering above you, this was in response to his height and also the reference to trees and mountains. The use of horizontal lines running across the type also aids the perspective of it being tall and gives it a tree- like, 'barky' look. When experimenting with upper case it made the typeface look huge and intimidating, so i chose to use lower case, as this is not a direct personalty trait of charlie.

In what ways are the results effective?
I feel that the perspective worked well and it is easy to tell that the typeface is supposed to be towering over you, although with some letters such as Y and W it was difficult to communicate this so I had to find another element to make it look tall, hence the use of horizontal lines. I also think that it successfully reflects personality traits of my partner, even though readability can be seen as a problem in some cases. My next step is to draw it out in upper case and experiment with the kerning and tracking to see if it improves the readability.

Alphabet Soup.. Creating a typeface

 

 

Progress Crit- Alphabet Soup... Creating a typeface

Issues Raised
My experiments and developments on working with perspective (to communicate my partners height) may cause problems when spacing them and putting together a word.

Action to be taken
Explore different ways of communicating his personality and include different characteristics to the typeface as opposed to just the one.

Rational and Questionnaire- Alphabet Soup... Creating a typeface

A questionnaire filled out by my partner Charlie...
Where are you from?
Manchester
Which living person do you most admire and why?
Will Smith... Cool as f**k
Cat or dog? 
Dog
Where would you like to live?
Australia or New York
What would your super power be?
Super strength
What is your most unappealing habit?
Ego
What is your favourite word?
Fajita
What is your favourite book?
Spot the dog
Who would you invite to your dream dinner party?
The mighty boosh
If you could edit your past, what would you change?
I'd climb more trees
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Climbing the highest mountain in the Atlas mountains
Tell us a joke
...please
Tell us a secret
I'm not that good


RATIONAL...
What is the problem you intend to solve? 
To design a typeface that communicates my given partners personality and characteristics.

Who is the audience?
My partner, Charlie Crosby.

What do they need to know?
That the typeface is directly relevant to them and successfully communicates their personality.

Why do they need to know? 
In order to answer the brief.

How will they understand the outcome?
I intend to interview him and use key elements of his personality to communicate him as a person visually.

What research is required? 
Primary- Information found out through information and questionnaire.
Secondary- Research into to other typefaces and fonts.

Self Evaluation - Alphabet Soup... 10 letterforms

What is being communicated & how?
The starting point for my ten letterforms was the word divide, my first idea was to use acetate to layer and seperate sections of the letter, although this had a pleasing outcome it did not meet the brief as each frame had to be easily identifiable as an individual letterform, and with this idea it was not the case. So after experimenting with the positive and negative spaces of a letterform I decided to use them to communicate the letter rotating and dividing from itself.

How well does this answer the brief? & why?
I think that this simple approach to the word 'divide' successfully answers the brief, although it could be mistaken for the word 'twist' or 'rotate'.

How well has the idea been visually explored?
I think that I have explored various visual ideas and concepts fairly thourougly, all of this being noted in my sketchbook. This allowed me to experiment with different ideas, inculding seeing how the letterforms would look using computer software, and find out through the process of elimination which ideas work best.

What are the strengths of the resolution?
I feel the main strength is how well the 10 letterforms are communicated as a series, it is very clear that the letter 'n' is being slowly rotated from itself. I also like the hand reendered approach I have taken to this brief, producing a more interesting outcome.

How could it be improved?
I feel that towards the end and individually the letterforms can be quite hard to read, although as a series they work well together. Also on the last letterform it is hard to tell wether its actually an 'n' or 'u' as by this point it is rotated upside down.

Alphabet Soup.. 10 letterforms

Self Evaluation- How To...

What roles did you take on in the group?
'Talker' presented and shared ideas and work. Hand rendered images for posters and contributed to editing them on photoshop.

How well do think you performed in the role?
Good communicator of ideas to tutor, class and group. Not very experienced on photoshop but I feel I have learnt from it.

How do you thinkyou worked as a group?
I feel that I was more vocal than others and it  took a long time for us to find level ground with ideas. Also some people were less independant and had to be designated tasks.

What were the positives of working in a group?
Bouncing ideas off of eachother and having outside influences apart from your own. Also being able to share the workload made it possible to get more done.

What were the negatives of working in a group?
Disagreements with final ideas and organising a time that was conveniant for everyone to meet up.

What will you do differently next time?
Improve time management and meeting up with the entire group at the same time, also I would ave prepared our presentation more thouroughly.

Where could you have improved your resolution?
More promtional items with theme and branding.

What were the strengths of your presentation?
Brand identity, which solved the brief and this was successfully communicated this to the class.

How To Avoid Getting Lost

 

Rational- How To...

Group members
Sadie Thompson, Sarah Roberts, Sarah Pritchard, Ryan McMormick and Samuel Edwards


The Problem
Not knowing where anything is as a fresher. How To... Avoid getting lost.

The Evidence
Personal experience.. not knowing where certain usefull places are such as closest supermarket, cash point etc.

We Intend to...
Design and create a map that can be personalised to where the student is living, this will be focused around the main halls of residents for first years. The map will highlight usefull places for freshers, quickest routes to the college and information on things such as club nights and taxi numbers. Also create a series of posters and possibly merchandise promoting the map, using the 'Where's my milk?' theme and tagline.