First discovered Oslo Agency through visiting Castleton Mill with an architecture student. I am attracted to work at the studio because of the variety of jobs including branding and identity, design for print, web and exhibition design. This would be a great opportunity to build my skills and experience within the industry.
Their style consists of vibrant colours, clean visuals at a professional quality. It'll be hugely beneficial for my practice to get in touch with the studio and ask them a few questions about their projects. Ste Crowther also showed an interest in the studio, therefore we organised a joint studio visit.
Contact - Studio Visit
During the visit I showed them my Behance portfolio which demonstrated my design skills and style. I tried to aim for projects similar to the types Oslo do in order to appeal to them more. I expressed my eagerness to gain experience in what it's like to work in the design industry, especially the time management and design stages when working with clients.
As a thank you for agreeing to meet with Ste and I, I gave them one of my screenprinted lunar calendars. This will also boost my chances of them remembering me.
Contact:
Alex and Eleanor proposed a shared internship between Ste and I and we discussed how we could make it work alongside our studies. After working out our uni schedule we decided on two days a week (Tuesdays and Wednesdays) for a 6 week period. We were originally offered an 8 week placement, however this will allow us to manage our time between uni work and placement.
Reply:
Documented the placement each day:
Day 1 (Week 1)
Briefing
Provided us with really useful tools for creating a brand/identity.
Brand Story
Created a brand story to create a complete picture made up of facts, feelings and interpretation of the brand. I tried to include words associated with the occupation of physiotherapy such as 'stretch', 'balance' in order to encompass the entire brand.
Brand Mission
The brand mission is a short statement that aims to highlight the market and competitive advantages of the brand. Highlight the businesses goals and philosophies. It defines what an organisation is, why it exists and its reason for being.
Brand Values
Guiding principles placed at the core of the brand to dictate the brand message, look and personality.
Brand Message
A short phrase/sentence to influence that relates to the brand and target audience/buyer.
Oslo offered us an example of the Brand Discovery which is a really useful tool for the future and offers a consistent layout:
The thorough preparation provided us with a solid foundation to move forward into the research and initial concept stage. In the past I have failed to identify the core values of a business, however this has been really beneficial and will provide a useful source when tackling brand and identity briefs in the future.
Day 2 (Week 1)
Started to put our sketches into digital format
I really struggled with transferring my sketches into digital artworks due to my lack of Adobe Illustrator skills. On the positive side I have identified a weakness and I can use the rest of my time to learn from Alex, Elly and Ste and build my skills.
Working with colour - I usually design in black and white and add colour at the end. My experience so far, combined with Elly's expert knowledge has drawn my attention to another weakness in my practice.
Day 3 (Week 2)
Continued to mock up designs
Introduced imagery
Learnt Photoshop editing skills -
Gradient Map:
Prepared document to send to the client
Day 4 (Week 2)
Sent files over to client
Quick turnover - Starting the next brief - Future Humans - Brand/Identity and website for a music producer
Starting to enjoy working in a studio as it helps the decision making process
Working within music is more of my interest therefore I was confident starting the brief
Used Pintrest to upload inspiration and keep everyone on the same page for the visual identity
- Highlighted colour, type, style
As a quick task we were asked to
Day 5 (Week 3)
Waiting for feedback for Ideal Physio
Continued working on Future Humans - Sketches
Elearnor lent me her wacom tablet to transfer my sketches into a digital format
- Found it hard to get used to but good to gain experience on new techniques. Whilst this wasn't suitable in this particular case I would like to introduce it to more abstract artworks and illustration.
Day 6 (Week 3)
Aimed to have two concepts mocked up as posters to send over to client
Learnt new techniques and processes with After Effects - Neon
We all watched a tutorial on how to create space effects - This was useful as it allowed everyone to learn something new.
Not working fast enough as I didn't get the two concepts completed.
Day 7 (Week 4)
Feedback from Ideal Physio - Ste's concept was taken forward into the development stage.
Continued development for Future Humans - Struggling to design my concepts due to a lack of Adobe skills which has held me back
Created a nebula using a Photoshop tutorial which can be applied to future briefs:
Day 8 (Week 4)
Continued developing Future Humans
Created an instagram post for Colour In Design Awards - A new design competition paired with Dulux. The aim of the social media posts is to increase awareness and exposure of current designers who have been picked up by the organisation.
Also highlighted the variety of shows that the organisation will be attending:
Again this has highlighted the importance of colour which I will draw back into my practice.
Day 9 (Week 5)
Continued with Future Humans - Started to develop web experience and wireframes to map out how the site would work and identify assets required. I have limited experience in design for web so I asked for advice.
Made another animation for Colour In Design Awards
Day 10 (Week 5)
Continued with Future Humans - Assets and animation
Helped Ellie create a document for Investors In People. The organisation recognises and awards businesses who treat their workforce fairly.
We had to visualise percentages in order to make the document more engaging.
My knowledge on infographics helped with this.
We decided on a visual style
Brand guidelines were provided for us to follow.
This was a very corporate document however I made it more engaging by changing the opacity and layering the pi charts.
Day 11 (Week 7)
Continued to develop document for Investors in People
Pie chart showing occupations most effected by stress due to lack of organisation. In order to make the piechart more engaging, I cut out the centre so that it was represented by a ring:
Regional Headlines:
Made additional animations for Colour In Design Awards' Instagram account. Having the experience from creating the social media assets and videos for Creative Convos was really valuable as I could complete tasks for the studio independently.
End of placement.
Alex mentioned to both Ste and I that if we ever needed somewhere to work their office is always open for us. I feel confident that I have the skills to work at Oslo Agency as it is a great learning environment. Alex was keen for us to come in again and work on briefs with them which is a really positive sign.
Sent Oslo an email to reinstate my appreciation for them taking me on for a placement:
Reply:
On the website:
General Reflection:
My experience at Oslo has also given me confidence in the design industry. Having only established themselves a few years ago, Oslo's reputation and quality of design has dramatically increased. Speaking to Alex about how he set up Oslo was really encouraging as he barely had enough money to begin with but through keeping a positive relationship with clients, he was able to build a profile. This is evidenced by the majority of their work coming from word of mouth. This has encouraged me to consider creating my own design studio in the future that focuses on tactile print but also collaborate on digital briefs. It would be wise to spend some years in the industry in order to absorb as much knowledge and skill as I can to feed into my own business.
Work balance between Alex and Eleanor works really well as they both balance each other. Alex is more business minded whilst Eleanor's knowledge and passion for design and colour creates a very profitable relationship and business.
I was a lot more motivated to complete the work for Oslo than my own personal briefs! Which just shows how Oslo made the work enjoyable and stimulating. Considering my previous short placement at Extra Strong (Bristol), Oslo was a much better place to work due to the studio being filled with plants and natural light, as well as the professional guidance.
Enjoy working with Alex and Eleanor as they're very relaxed and I feel comfortable asking them for help.
Learning on the job
Starting your own business - Not impossible - The company is still very young however the growth rate is very fast
Important to have a good reputation - To achieve this Oslo Agency make sure that briefs are completed on time and rely on word of mouth to gain more clients.
Need to be a lot more proactive
Need to work faster
Dont just design for designers - Throughout the course I have focused my designs in order to adhere to design principles from Vignelli and Modernism. Whilst this has been really beneficial, I feel that I need to use these skills to design for the public/client in order to provide them with an appropriate solution that they want.
Important to ask for help/advice
What have I learnt?
More efficient on Adobe software - Shortcuts
Branding - Creating a brand document
Learnt new skills on Adobe software
Design for the public, not designers.
Doing work you don't want to do for clients you don't want to work for is part of the job
Working alongside Ste has really informed my knowledge of user experience
Web design
It is possible to set up your own business / studio - Alex offered his business services if I ever wanted to set up my own business.
What have I enjoyed?
Working in the studio with other creatives
Working on live briefs
Research Stage
Getting feedback from creative professionals
Learning new techniques and process on Adobe software
What have I disliked?
Working on corporate documents
Looking at a screen all day
Working at a fast pace
Do I want to continue this?
To an extent. I really enjoy the creative process and working environment. I would like to work in a smaller studio because its easier to communicate and make decisions. Whilst I have identified digital skills as a key tool for the industry, I enjoy a more tactile approach to design. This doesn't mean I'll neglect digital, however I aim to focus on tactility and experience. My software skills clearly need improving therefore working full-time in a creative studio would allow me to learn on the job. The 6 weeks I was at Oslo has taught me a plethora of valuable design skills in such a short period of time, whilst clearly need improving, working fulltime in a creative studio would allow me to learn on the job at a fast pace.
I have been invited back to Oslo before I move back to Bristol to discuss my time on placement and further work opportunities.
