This module has been the one which I have enjoyed the most, and feel like I have learnt the most about myself as a practicing designer. The progress in my skills and design aesthetic has increased a huge amount from the end of second year. I feel that this module has really helped me in becoming a professional practicing designer, and not just a student, with confidence in my work and ability to apply my skills to any given brief and style.
My interest in areas of design has changed throughout the year as well, and while some things such as Typography have remained constant, I have found that I have a much larger interest in design for Web and Packaging than I previously did. While I do not have any incline to continue with Packaging design, I did find working on briefs with this element in enjoyable.
The main reason I enjoyed this module was because of the completely self-driven briefs and work ethic of this module. Being self-directed it meant I could do the briefs that I wanted and not have to create to the same brief as everyone else. I also liked the fact that it meant I could pick my brief time scales, creating as many small or substantial briefs as I wanted. I think that in the first two years of this course, the structure of it was beneficial, but something that I didn't always enjoy. Though this independence I think the main thing that I have developed this year is my consideration when it comes to design and how I approach briefs. My design has become much more refined and sophisticated - something which I set out to do at the beginning of the year, and I believe I have succeeded. There is a clear improvement from the projects at the beginning of the year to the ones which were completed near the end.
One example of this is 'Kakawa' - my collaborative project with Charlie Rotherham. This brief was initially supposed to have been completed in the first term, however we decided to leave it until the end so we could execute it better, which we definitely did. We also managed a huge amount of work within three weeks, something that would have definitely not happened in the first term. This project just showed me how far I really have come as a designer in design and in organisation. Setting out a clear plan for exactly what we wanted to do and when definitely helped in moving the project forward and developing it to something we were happy with.
A second project which I thoroughly enjoyed was the last brief I completed - Brief 14 'Visit'. At the beginning of the year I had set out to develop my skills in all areas of design, and in particular web and App design. This was reinforced even more when I completed my placement and enjoyed working on Apps and websites all day. This brief had originally started off as a branding, editorial and promotional project in creating a holiday pack for people visiting New York, however with a better insight into what I wanted to create, I found that an App was just so much more suited to what I actually wanted to do. I found it enjoyable in working through a brands identity through the App and having to think about elements which would not be thought of if the branding was for just print. I also enjoyed working on the same format and size continuously. I think that the final designs definitely reflect my bettered skills in this area and my love for working on this format.
The brief which I feel I accomplished the most in was Brief 15 - Simplex. It has always been my aim to create a full typeface which is usable as well. Setting out to do this at the beginning of the year, I didn't think I would be able to do it as well as I quite liked, however through extensive learning of the principles in COP, I felt I had much more technical insight into typeface design and how to construct a successful typeface. This brief definitely left me feeling extremely accomplished when I finished it and was able to type text in it, and for it work reasonably well. This is definitely the brief which I did the most work for, from creating the initial designs by hand to creating the variations.
While I enjoyed the majority of the module, I do feel that there are a couple of projects which were weaker and definitely did not do my design skills justice. The first is the yearbook pitch, and the second is DSM. For the yearbook, while I don't necessarily have anything against the pitched idea, I don't think it was as strong as it could have been, and it is definitely not the kind of direction which I would usually move towards or excel at. I don't think that I excelled in this brief at all like I would have if it were something a bit more in my comfort zone. In terms of DSM, I don't think I ever really got on board with this brief since getting the subject for it, and this is what stopped me from getting really involved with it and coming up with something I was proud of. I think the main thing to take away from this brief is that as a designer you won't always get a brief you like, but you have to work on it anyway.
Another brief which I was a bit disappointed at was Brief 5 - The Woodshop. While I am happy with what I produced for it, as it was a client brief which never really got off the ground, I do think there was a lot to be desired, and there was a huge potential for the branding, which just wasn't put into practice in the end. I think this is something that I would really like to expand on in the future and create the brief that I wanted it to be. In contrast, my other client brief - Wheatless & More - became enjoyable and a large amount of various bits and pieces were created.
Something I also learnt this year was to enjoy collaborations and appreciate other people skills. I particularly enjoyed my collaboration with Charlie, and DBA with Sam W, Ant & Ewan. I think both of these projects have a good split in terms of responsibilities and work produced, and the concepts for both of these are strong and refined, with some really good work produced from it. Doing these collaboratives successfully has definitely shown me that I can work in collaborations and do so very well with good outcomes.
Overall I think that there are definitely positives and negatives from this year, but definitely more positives. It has definitely been a huge learning curve and has helped me refine exactly what kind of design it is that I enjoy doing and why I enjoy this. It has also taught me that while I like a certain style of design, I can apply my skills and create something completely outside that, and do it well.
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