This year I have continued to explore and combine physical and tangible processes with digital. This experimental practice lead me to discover Dafi Kuhne who has been a massive influence on the module this year. Having to interview a creative was a daunting prospect however having the passion and knowledge about Kuhne and his techniques gave me confidence. I now feel a lot more confident to approach other professionals because of how beneficial their opinions and perspectives of design can be. Booking print/photography studio slots allowed me to get high quality images of my work so that it looks professional online. This is really important for my practice as my outcomes are predominantly physical and the high quality images supported my submissions for competition briefs.
I have an increased awareness of the importance of design for screen from OUGD504 because it made me aware that it is a medium that is here to stay and will keep on growing. It is important that I continue to increase my awareness and understanding of what is going on not just with print but screen as well. I have enjoyed bringing print into screen especially when responding to competition briefs because online videos reach a diverse audience when imbedded in social media. My experience in Berlin lead me to discover a project by Pathetic Sympathy Seekers which combines photography, collage and typography in a conceptual publication format. Combining physical, digital, analogue and photography together on screen is something I aim to explore as I move forward with my studies. I intend to continue improving my skills with the Adobe software, especially After Effects because moving image/graphics is more engaging.
I am really pleased that I managed to get a short placement with Extra Strong at the start of the year.
Reflecting on this experience, I have developed my digital skills which gives me confidence to go back and for a longer placement. Looking forward to third year, I am really keen to get a placement because I learnt valuable lessons at Extra Strong and the experience made me a better designer. I have identified some studios that I would like to contact, however they are from a diverse range of disciplines which doesn't show consistent vision as I am still unsure of what I want to be. Crack Magazine has an office in Bristol and I feel I am suited to working for them because I have an interest and understanding in the articles and topics (music, art, fashion) and their contemporary style really appeals to me. Working in an editorial context would be great for increasing my knowledge and understanding which I can transfer into my own practice.
The Collective was a really exciting brief because it provides opportunity to get my name and fellow students names into the real world. Combining all of our interviews into a publication was initiated by the fact that we all interviewed well established and recognised designers. Feedback supported the project and encouraged us to get it into the real world because they saw it had great potential and it will also be an opportunity to get some money for our design work. If we took it into production it would be a really great experience for the future because we will have to deal with external printers and commercial considerations in order to make sure it is printed to a high standard. Looking forward to third year, it would be great to get more work into the real world.
My research and discoveries of working with traditional letterpress (Dafi Kuhne, Nomad Letterpress, Winter) was an eye opener because it made me realise the complexities of the process and how much I need to learn. The processes and equipment are all very expensive to buy/rent and even workshops are too expensive/ To overcome this, I intend to get in contact with some letterpress studios and visit there studio and I may need to find a part time job to fund this travel and workshops. My interview with Dafi Kuhne, as well as listening to other creatives talk, made me aware that designers can't do what they want to do because, at the end of the day, they need to make an income. They often work in a studio in order to make money and self initiate projects on the side. Simon suggested looking into the 'artist in residence' scheme which would allow me to get the university facilities for free for an extra year in order to explore my personal interest and practice.
Technology and typographic manipulation is an area that I have identified an interest in, especially with the dark room techniques and processes because I feel there is great opportunity to combine the two. Due to the heavy workload this year, I didn't manage to get back into the dark room and experiment with ideas which is a shame because it would have supported this submission. Kuhne's advice however justifies this because he believes the concept can only be applied when appropriate, not just for the sake of it. I aim to find a purpose for the concept next year because I believe it has great potential.
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