Using the online resources that you have been introduced to in the module briefing and based on questions raised in the studio workshop and experiences of the first 2 weeks of the course:
Identify and explain 5 reasons why you chose to study on this programme
1. I think that one of the main reasons that I chose to study on this programme was bizarrely, initial instincts and feelings. When I came down to visit the studios and facility areas, it felt right for me after visiting many other larger scale universities that give off a much more hostile vibe. The layout of the studios, general design of the building and atmosphere created to work in, as well as great work and fellow designers around you definetly has a positive affect on any work your produce.
2. A big reason was obviously the course reputation. I had known about the college maybe a year or two previously to visiting it and had been told by friends in the field and previous tutors how good a reputation the graphic design course in and also how the demanding but brilliant structure of the course can only help any young designer to get where they want to be. After seeing recent graduates work from the course. This was the final selling point for me. The work that I had seen being produced by Leeds College of Art students seemed to surpass everything else that I had been seeing at that moment in time.
Work by last year Graduate, Aaron Skipper.
3. Facilities is another big plus when it comes down to studying at LCA. For such a small space, the college has an unbelievable amount of facilities that are easy to induct in and start to experiment with. I have been able to push some of my skills when it comes to using techniques such as screen-printing, laser cutting, embossing etc etc and hope to push my skills further this year, hopefully getting chance to letterpress, which is something that I have been wanting to for quite some time now.
5. Hard Work is the biggest thing that gets good results. LCA BAGD, in my opinion, is the toughest course in the country. With friends of mine being on other courses at universities with great reputations, I can safely say that I get around double the amount of work to do. I feel that by keeping on top of things and working as hard as you can makes you better and better day by day. It's as simple as that. I enjoy pushing myself to my limits and over the last year have created work that I didn't think i could be capable of, in quality and quantity.
Some of my editorial work, taken from the first year CoP Project
Identify and explain 5 things that you want to learn during your time on the course
1. Designing for Web is something that I am really looking forward to this year and have been for some time. I think it is a really useful tool for any designer to be able to do and having to turn down work opportunities before for designing websites is annoying and ambaressing. I need to be able to get a basic knowledge and help boost my work opportunities in the future.
2. Design for packaging is something that I have been interested in for a few years but not really had the chance to explore in the field as much as I would of liked to. With more and more packaging design starting to filter into my personal design feeds and into my life in general, it is making me excited to explore these fields and it is something that I am really looking forward to get experimenting in the field in the not too distant future.
3. Similarly to Design for Packaging, Branding and Identity is another side of design that I am really interesting in exploring. I have dabbled in branding in the past for small businesses or course related work but my ambition is to really push my skills in this area this year. I want to start to look at the whole branding of businesses and start to learn how to build up a brand from sctrach. Another exciting prospect that I am thoroughly looking forward to.
Branding Inspirations and Aspirations.
Some Branding work I did over the summer for a small removals firm.
4. The financial and business side of design is something that is often classed as boring and overlooked but I see the importance of this in my practice as a designer. It is important to learn how to balance my income as a designer and how to know how much money to charge clients for certain pieces of design. Whether this be off how many hours i've worked or what the particular piece of design is. This is something that i have struggled to figure out in the past and something that I need to learn when it comes to becoming a designer.
5. Internships and Studio Visits are something that I need to focus on this year. I need to learn how to go about sending my portfolio out to studios and also how to speak to other designers in the correct manner to go about getting some experience in the industry.
Identify and explain 5 skills that you think are your strengths
1. I am generally a very organised person, with borderline OCD, whether this comes to design or other things in my life. I keep on top of workload and keep on top of all tasks in my life. I like to keep a clean, tidy room, clean mind and find it easier to work this way. I like to work hard in order to get the results and feel that I am going to put all of my effort into everything on the course this year.
Design Life, A Photograph demonstration organisation skills of life.
2. I am a very reliable person again in all aspects of my life. I don't like to let people down, whether this is a client or deadline or just meeting up with an old friend for a pint. I feel that being reliable is a good trait in any person and this will definitely help me when it comes to working in the design industry.
3. Hard work and Networking are two of the main things I like to do to help get my name and my work out there. I enter as many competition briefs and live briefs as I can, and do work for any people or business that I agree with in order to get as much experience as I can. I am a religious networker and host my work on things like Tumblr, Twitter, Behance and Cargo in order to be accessible online. I often find that hard work and commitment in this field often works out well as I have managed to get some work in the high street shop 'Republic', designed vinyls for Brazilian band CSS and had work on various design networks and blogs as well as magazine features which is always a great way to get your name out there.
CSS Vinyl, desinged as part of Talent house Secret 7"
4. Editorial work and Design For Print are both aspects of design that I have been interested in for a few years now. The first year's projects fell that they helped me to improve on these skills and working in Photoshop, Illustrator and Indesign to create consistent and contemporary design for print and editorial work is something that has become a real skill of mine. I would like to use this knowledge in order to help me to branch out further this year into Web, Motion and Animation and design for Branding and Packaging.
5. I felt like the first year really helped to develop my skills of using design sheets wisely to help get through the development stage to a better final product. I have found this to be extremely useful for generating a larger range of ideas before jumping into one idea that might not necessarily work. I am confident in moving forward and generating a number of different possibilities before choosing the best outcome.
Identify and explain 5 things that you want to improve
1. After realising how much of an important aspect of being a designer it it, I really need to improve of my presentation skills. I'm deciding to take the approach that doesn't put pressure on myself. I feel that my skills in this area are naturally improving the more that I do it. I believe that I delivered a confident and satisfactory presentation at the end of the first year and continuing to do this can only build on my skills. I have realised through talking with tutors and friends that as long as I am passionate and knowledgable about whatever it is that I am presenting, then the rest just falls into place. I have started to become better also by rehearsing presentations, in order to make sure I know what I'm talking about at what time.
2. Something that I am going to work on more this year is the organisation of my blog. I did quite a lot of work last year which is a good thing, but received critism because there was so much work it was hard to find, even though everything was labelled sufficiently. I am going to continue to clearly label everything, as well as being selective with work and keeping work in smaller, less frequent chunks which will make it easier for other people to view. I have also cleaned the layout of my blog up over the summer to make even easier to view certain labels and posts.
3. Again, this is something that was mentioned by Simon in the workshop. I want to be able to ask for help more this year. I think that with Simon and Lorraine letting us know this from the beginning, this will make me more confident when asking about anything. Whether this may be software struggles or any other side of the design. There is a lot of knowledge between all the tutors and even people in mac suite and facilities and I've begun to realise that it is stupid not to take advantage of this before it's too late.
5. Essay Writing is another thing that I struggled with last year. I think that by hitting on the previous improvement of asking for help will be useful when it comes to structuring my essays and written peices. I feel that I have the intelligence to write a good essay but it's all about selecting the correct sources of information and the right structure in order to get the better marks. It has also been pointed out to me that there is numerous essay writing skills and tips available on E-Studio, so this is something I will look at also.
Identify and explain 5 ways that you will evaluate your progress
1. A good way to start is to re-write the same questions as these ones as much as I can, to see where I am progressing and what still needs to be worked on. Re-evaulation of the same set of questions is a good way to see what you have actually gained in a certain amount of time.
2. Group Crits and Presentations are obviously one of the best ways to keep track and evaluate your progress. I'm going to try and get the most of my crits this year by also conducting self-initiated mini-crits outside of the larger ones, as suggested by Lorraine. I want to be as well prepared as I possibly can be in a crit, in order to ask the right questions to get the best out of it.
3. Another interesting but effective method is to try and get fresh eyes on my work as much as I can. As i'm a member of Behance, a collective of designers and professionals, there is an awesome feature which lets you upload in progress projects in order to get feedback from professionals where you need it. This is something that I will be taking part in more this year. I will also be asking other people outside of the course as much as I can in order to get a different interpretation and fresh set of eyes on my work. All different creative influences are importantly taken on board.
4. I've always been well informed of design around me at the time. I'm a big fan of contemporary design and I plan to maintain evaluation of my own work by constantly comparing my work to work around me that is inspiring me at the time. Moving into the second year, I believe that my work should be of a similar standard to most of the work that i am aspiring to.
Two Times Elliot - One of my inspirational designers at the moment.
5. I will also refer back to my initial ideas for a particular project to make sure I have taken the most successful route and design secisions. This way, I can also see how my work has evolved along the line from my initial thoughts. This will help me see how I have progressed from a certain point, or let me know where I might have gone wrong. For me, this is one of the best ways to evaluate your progress from a particular brief.
Identify 5 questions that you want to find the answer to
1. What rates should I be charging as a young designer? How do I organise the business side of my design?
2. How do I go about getting an internship? What is the correct approach to take when emailing, writing to or talking to professionals or design studios?
3. How do I design for web? This is something that I believe is an important asset of any designer. Also, should designers learn how to code? or is that something left for the IT geeks because it seems like a waste of time which could be spent designing!
4. How easy is it actually to set up a placement abroad, outside of the UK? What opportunities are there available to me, and how do I go about searching and acting upon these?
5. Will I be fully prepared for the industry after LCA?
1. Collaborating with professionals from so many different walks of life as well as different creative backgrounds from all over the world. The chance to meet and share thoughts, ideas and work with so many different people is exciting and makes it worth being a part of the massive design industry
2. Networking and Design Feeds is something that has become a part of my daily routine. this is a great way to keep up to date with new design every day and to surround myself with design in order to inspire and get my creative juices flowing. I often use Pinterest, Tumblr, Behance Network and Cargo Collective on a daily bases to see work and keep in contact with other professionals.
Behance Feed
3. Living with people that have the same ambitions and similar interests with you just inspires you to keep working hard and is also good to bounce ideas and any thoughts of of each other. It's a way ok keeping design running through the studio and into my social life aswell. So there is no escaping.
CreativeCOLLECTIVE
4. Seeing your work around is something that I will always get excited about. Whether it's a shitty little flyer you did for a club, A CD design in HMV or a T-Shirt design in a high street shop. This is why I do what I do and that's when I get the most satisfaction out of all the hard work I put in. I like to see my work out there and people enjoying it in the real world and it's something that inspires you to keep going and do bigger and better things!
Some of my work featured in the latest issue of [BranD] Magazine
5. Finally, Travel is a big inspiration for me and my work. I have been lucky enough to travel around places of the world, some of which have really changed my views on the world around me. I believe that this is healthy as a designer to have some sort of life experiences to help mould your view on things and where you stand as a designer. The most influential travelling experience has to be the time i spent in India a couple of years ago. I got to grips with the scary levels of poverty which I didn't realise would be so bad until i got there. It's experiences like this that completely change your whole outlook on life.
Work I created collaging photographs I took whilst in India
Identify 10 examples of design that illustrate your fields of creative interest
1. Contemporary Branding. Sleek, Professional, Simple and Beautiful.
2. Logo design within branding. Again, carefully crafted, well thought out, simple but beautiful logo design. One of my favourite logo's is the one of 'Rapha' cycling brand.
3. Experimental Type is something that I have seen around quite a lot recently and works well when put into context. Sometimes it is overused and used for the wrong kind of reasons.
4. Innovative Product Packaging always amazes me.
5. Well put together and cleanly designed editorial work.
6. RISOGRAPH PRINTING
7. Simple, Minimalist Contemporary Packaging Design
8. Using Stamps/Press in branding design. Simple and Effective
9. Clean Lines, Shapes and the simple connection between Type and Image.
10. Big Fan of Contemporary Design!
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