Evaluation

1. What skills have you developed through this module and how effectively do you think you have applied them?
I have developed idea generation skills, working mainly with imagery. I tend to do mind-maps of words before moving onto imagery, which I think works well for me. It allows me to clarify the meaning of the word and when doing the mind map it triggers imagery in my mind which I then go on to look at it greater depth.
I think I have also learnt to look at ideas of a more objective view, when doing work I used to get so involved with the idea that I forgot what I was doing. I have learnt to step back from it every now and then and go back to what the original brief was.
Crits have helped me to try and look at my designs from other points of view, to see if the audience would take away what I wanted them to take away from the design.

2. What approaches to generating work and solutions to problems have you developed and how have they helped?
When generating work I have learnt to become an expert of the brief, to fully understand the meaning of any given words, and then explore this word using as much imagery as possible. If I struggle to come up with a solution, I now try and break the brief down to just one word. This approach has been a great help, as It gives me a greater understanding of what I am doing.
I have learnt that sitting on your on is not going to help you come with a good design, you need other creative people around you in order to inspire ideas. Sharing a studio that we do now helps massively in idea generation, being able to share thoughts and ideas. I like that this course allows for everyone’s own way of working, it does not encourage everyone to work in the same way. So this enables for a greater variety of ideas to be put to the table.

3. What strengths can you identify in your work and how have/will you capitalise on these?
My strength I think is in idea generation. I really enjoy this, becoming an expert of a word, discovering more about it and coming up with ideas. I like the development of ideas, exploring all the possibilities.


4. What weaknesses can you identify in your work and how could you exploit these more fully?
The weaknesses in my work I think are mainly in my packaging project, if I am not enjoying a project I find it a lot harder to commit to it. It took me so long to come up with an idea of what I was going to do, the final pieces were rushed and therefore I am not completely happy with the outcome.
In other projects I feel that they lack developmental work. I have mainly worked in sketch books, and maybe this is restricting the size at which I can work at so I could look at working on larger work spaces when developing my ideas.
I found it harder to work in a group, because everyone had different ideas, and it was hard to communicate your own ideas, especially as this was the first brief that we had. It was an ice breaker however between members of our class.

5. Identify five things that you will do different next time and what do you expect to gain from doing these?
Next time, I would simply put more time aside to work on my projects. There are many areas that I did not feel happy with in this module, particularly the packaging that I would have liked longer to work on it.
I should also ask for more opinions on my work from other members of the class, I am still not fully comfortable with talking about my own work. This should help to clarify any problems with the message I am trying to put across. Having lots of different points of view and ideas is what creates a good design.
I should use the studio more, during this module I found it easier to work from home, because I need to have all my stuff around me, I feel I should learn to work more in the studio as I think it will benefit the outcome of my work being able to discuss it with others.
I was not very organized with work; this affected what I was able to hand in. I May have done more work than I handed it but I was not very organized with storing it all, and so I felt like I was selling myself short. Next time I am going to keep it all filed in my folder, so that all my work is all together all the time, or make more use of my plan chest.
Next time, I want to be more committed to my work, now that I know how everything within the college and our course work I will be more determined to work hard. With everything being new I felt unsure of how much work we were being asked to do, and I think I was stuck in my routine of college last year, waiting to be asked to do work. But In my next module I will just get on with It on my own accord, which is what I would rather do anyway.

Sunday.. (forgot to actually post until today)

Deadline!
Tomorrow is module deadline day! Pretty relaxed about it all really..i have pretty much done all the work already, just need to do a bit more on the packaging brief..but have all day tomorrow to sort it. It does worry me a bit that i don't actually feel like i have much work to do..everytime i do a piece of work he never takes as long as i think it will. Is this a good thing?

Monday.

Have got a week until module deadline now. Just been doing illustrator work. Still need to do the final five of my own fonts.
Packaging brief, i am really not enjoying this one. Just want to get it out of the way. But i have the net made, well took it from that book so it should not be too difficult to do.

Packaging Brief...

Really am not enjoying this project so far. Have changed my word to prejudice instead of racism as i found prejudice was still relevant to racism but allowed for a broader range of ideas. My idea now is based on the idea of judgement and assumption based on first opinions. This relates into packaging, for example you might have a box shaped like a cigarette box, you assume it is this but you open it up to find and this it isnt! You are assuming something, making a judgement.

Packaging Brief..

Should have started looking at this sooner, but have been doing my elective sketchbook!
How can i package racism? I have started to look at the two phrases that relate to my project...dont judge a book by its cover, or the phrase i used on my poster. Don't let skin colour mask identity. So far i have got the idea of packaging a gun, but on the outside of the cover there is really floral and happy designs, not relating to what you would expect to be on the package of a gun. I think this idea could work, but what colours and designs should i put on the package? I could always use the floral type design from my posters..design relating to masks..does this work?? Its hitting on the idea of prejudice..what you assume for something to be like..so the package will be in the shape of a gun..but the design should not relate to the idea of a gun at all..i think that is my idea sorted. But lets wait and see what happens in the crit!

Posters!

Poster Project Update

Deadline is monday. Unfortunetly i did not make it to college on Friday, so missed the all important crit. I think there is something wrong wth me!! I am always tired and drowsy. I intended to go to college, got up and everything. Felt a bit dodgy so lay on my bed and fell alseep..next thing i know it was gone 12 o'clock.
But anyway, feel this project is never going to end! Its going ok i guess, i guess i am unsure, and having not had the crit doesnt really help. I will have to show it to someone off my course tomorrow and see what they say. But anyway, it is taking shape...stupidly though as i have been experimenting i have been doing it A4 scale. So its going to end up being really pixelated. So will have to try sort that!

Poster Project.

Think i have finally got my idea sorted, going to use the idea of masks. I got to this idea by looking at the idea of racial prejudice. The idea that racists don't look past the colour of the skin, and so their view of these people is distored or masked. And then the text i am going to have is, "Don't let colour of skin mask Identity"
I hope this works! I have a crit on it tomorrow so if i do work on it tonight and discover that it does not work, then im in a bit of a muddle. But, i think i am going to be happy with this piece, the best work i have done since being here anyway.
Last night was so fun, suffering a bit today, thankfully had quite a painless day at college, but am looking forward to a nap when i get back :)
I just read back on my blog and i know im dyslexic, but my grammar is terrible! I know the correct grammar but i just type as if i am talking and dont really think too much about spelling and punctutation and what not.
Back to illustrator Induction!
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