Tag Archives: Graphic design

Exercise: Photomontage

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Green plastic bottles on an orange background with a fish in the middle

Whereas I had to drag myself through the Abstract Cities exercise, working on the photomontages was a complete joy and something I could happily carry on doing outside of the course. I decided the issue I would focus on is environmental sustainability. I had several ideas about how this might incorporate issues around food production/monocultures. Although it is hard to draw a montage I did sketch out some ideas to give me a starting point.

This helped me to assemble a number of stock images and some of my own photographs to create the photomontages themselves. I decided to work in Photoshop as for me it is the most efficient way to combine images and easily work with layers and masks. I created six photomontages, laid out in the order they were created:

  1. Just before midnight: three core elements with a textured background showing a parched earth
  2. Time running out: playing with the Just Before Midnight (JBM) approach and morphing the clock
  3. Wheat: A more structured design using the cycle of wheat production from growing annual wheat to supermarket shelves to waste and mould
  4. Three Fish: I had something else in mind but when I added the fish layer it came up this big and I liked the way it looked lying on the rubbish. So I added two more fish to resemble fish lying on ice in the fishmonger
  5. Down the plughole: working with the fish and rubbish theme and showing everything ultimately swirling down the plughole
  6. Plastic shoal: I had made an early sketch of fish swimming with bottles and this is the result

Just before Midnight started with the background. I then added the earth on the left, followed by the clock and the pumpkin. I finished by adjusting opacity and using some masking. It is designed to be read left to right.

Time running out (TRO) was created using a similar process with layers and masks and using the distort transformation tool.

Wheat used  a more formal grid structure. I wanted to try a different format and to create something that looked at the issue of monocultures and the growth of annual wheat varieties in particular. The background image is of a huge dust storm to which I added the photos of the wheat roots and the soil differences. I moved the images and changed opacities and added the wheat. I added the circles of supermarket shelves and finished with the mouldy bread to show the lifecycle of the process.

Three fish was very simple in process terms. I found the rubbish image and used that as the background. I was intending to weave the fish into the rubbish but when I added the first fish I decided to just copy them and overlay them on the rubbish. I left both at 100% opacity.

Down the Plughole used the same background as three fish and I integrated the fish into the rubbish. I thought I would just fade the bottom as a metaphor for bleaching coral but this looked quite top heavy and I wasn’t sure how how best to finish it. Thinking about pollution I decided to ad an oil slick. I completed DtP by working with opacity levels, masking, using the swirl filter and adding a plughole.

Plastic Shoal came directly from one of my early sketches. I knew I wanted to use green plastic bottles so decided on an orange background. I added the fish and made some adjustments because it wasn’t quite flat on. I then added the bottles in a fairly random order. I finished by creating more of a repeating pattern with the bottles.

I shared these images with other students at our recent monthly Thames Valley Group meeting and had some very helpful feedback. The two images that seemed to stand our most for the group were ‘Just before Midnight’ and ‘Plastic Shoal’ (PS). Some liked the image of JB4M but felt that the message wasn’t clear enough. Everyone felt that PS had the most graphic feel but one person thought the message was too strident/obvious. It seems the issue of message is a hard balance to get right. Someone said the images with the fish felt quite ‘pop art,’ which was appropriate for the subject in terms of reflecting on where consumerism has brought us.

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Exercise: Seeing the Light

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Twenty different designs using three elements- a block of yellow, a light bulb image, the words light bulb

Using only an image of a light bulb, the words ‘light bulb’ and a block of colour of your choice create different designs that explore visual dynamics. Think about your composition trying each element at different sizes and cropping your photo. Create as many different designs as you can. Edit these down to about 20 designs that you feel represent the breadth of different approaches you have explored.

I did this exercise over several months as I could easily sketch different thumbnails as I travelled and as ideas came to mind. To start with I used a tablet and created random compositions as ideas came to me, this was followed by drawing thumbnails in my sketchbook.

Finally, I tried to be more methodical using a grid that I initially used for sketching and then collaging. I realised as I was collaging that most of my previous compositions had been portrait so I then worked in landscape for the final ideas.

In total I developed 64 designs and by the end, although they were more neatly contained within the grid than my thumbnails, they felt like they were getting looser in terms of composition. I also played with the notion of what the ‘block’ of colour meant, cropping it for different shapes and using triangles instead of squares or rectangles. I was surprised about the number of designs that emerged and I could probably carry on developing them for the rest of the course! The challenge by the end was trying to make sure I wasn’t duplicating earlier versions.

Twenty different designs using three elements- a block of yellow, a light bulb image, the words light bulb

Twenty designs

The final 20 designs I have selected show the breadth from hand drawn to collage. Some are quite formally arranged while others are more abstract with more random relationships between the three elements. It showed me the value of sketching a wide range of ideas before committing to a final design. It also reinforced the influence of composition when using the same three elements – how the interrelationships between the elements could convey weight, movement, light and so on. In some compositions I noticed my eyes were making a relationship between the light bulb and the colour as if the light was being cast by the bulb. In others the relationship was more random.

This felt like a very valuable exercise and followed well from my research into more minimalist design approaches. Having the constraint of the three elements was really useful in helping explore composition and showing it still leaves plenty of scope for creativity.

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Assignment 2: Reflections on tutor feedback

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It was very useful to have my tutor feedback from Assignment 2 as it has reassured me that I am working in the right direction. Accepting that there are always areas for improvement I feel like my confidence is growing. If nothing else I am less worried about picking up pens or pencils and sketching out my ideas.

The comments from my tutor indicate that:

Overall, your response to part two has been very good. There are some excellent finished outcomes (fruit and veg) and you reflect on your process thoughtfully.

In terms of improvements he has highlighted the need:

To think about how you document your creative process more visually.

This is something I will address in future exercises and assignments. There is definitely a process happening but I recognise that I don’t always capture it as I go and am then confronted with a mass of uploading which becomes a bit daunting. It is also a bit of a personality trait that I do a lot of internal processing and then make what seems to be leaps of logic to others because I expect them to have followed my process! I know it is something I have to be mindful of and that it is helpful for me to be able to look back on the stages I have been through as my work develops.

This has made me reflect on my process and given the feedback I thought I might try and do something visual. I looked at a number of infographics thinking I would try and develop my own. Some of them looked complicated and I wasn’t sure I had the Illustrator skills I needed – then I found the Squiggle which seemed to cover it beautifully!

A squiggle on page to show the design process from messy and untidy to a single line denoting clarity

The Squiggle, Damien Newman (published under Creative Commons)

My process tends to follow a format that I think is reflected in the Squiggle:

  1. Key words – analysing the brief
  2. Mind mapping
  3. Sketching ideas
  4. Researching online/hardcopy examples
  5. More sketches
  6. Shortlisting ideas
  7. Finalising ideas developed
  8. Feedback
  9. Improving final ideas

Project feedback

It is very helpful to have specific feedback on the exercises as I have found that they need a lot of work and they clearly build towards the relevant assignment. Generally, I seem to be approaching them appropriately and my outputs are well received. I was particularly pleased that the HG Wells book covers and Point of Sale materials received positive comments as they both took a lot of time and effort but were also the two I probably enjoyed the most.

Your HG Wells covers were very good, making some intelligent decisions…

Your point of sale artwork was excellent…

In terms of the visualising ideas, it is noted that while I had presented the physical materials well I hadn’t taken this through to a final design. I confess this was a misunderstanding on my part as I had read it as being about the different formats of the leaflets and didn’t do a design as a result! This is a good lesson in reading and analysing the brief thoroughly – clearly a client would not have been amused!

As with the overall comments, the main critique of the exercises is that I have not shared enough of my process visually, including mistakes and variations, which I fully accept and will address in future.

Assignment feedback

It was good to have positive comments in relation to Assignment Two:

Your growing card was very good. It had a clean visual quality…

The snake card was a simple but effective idea

The Tattoo card is good but perhaps the most conventional…the inside phrase and type worked well

My tutor has included a number of useful development suggestions that could have taken the ideas further:

  • Making more of the lettuce photo and creating a better connection between the front cover and the fact the card transforms into a seed tray
  • Maybe considering a different style of Tattoo without flowers to make it less traditional looking
  • Developing my own ideas for the ‘Bake’ card rather than using the stock photo

Of the ‘Bake’ card the feedback says:

As you’ve reflected on, the stock photography of the final card fell a bit flat, especially in comparison with the thumbnails you’ve developed. The sentiment and ideas were there, but your resolution felt off the shelf.

For me the crucial sentence in the feedback is:

Have confidence in the work you are producing.

As my write up for Assignment Two suggested, I think I knew this but I was seduced by the image and should have trusted my instincts and put it to one side. This feels like a very useful piece of learning. I may develop some of the ideas further if time allows as I finish the course.

Further viewing/reading

A number of blogs have been suggested as well as the work of El Lissitzky, which I will now follow up.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Point of Sale feedback

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Love fruit poster with fruit heart in the middle

I am slightly conscious of working in my own bubble recently and although I have been getting feedback from friends and family it felt like I was at a point where I needed something more. I decided that with the point of sale exercise I would go to some of my fellow students and ask for their views.

I am not as confident in the graphic design field as I am with my photography so this was quite a big step. I felt comfortable approaching the Facebook Visual Communications group, partly because it is more visual platform and partly because I still seem to have tech gremlins logging into the OCA fora for some reason.

That aside I got some very generous responses and I am grateful to everyone that replied. Opinions naturally varied and some people preferred the backlit fruit whereas others liked the puppet warped fruit. Comments included:

…It reminds me of a stained glass window and I think would definitely work well from a distance. Using lots of different fruits too makes it versatile…

…this feels like 2 totally separate posters (the landscape version of sliced fruits) and not as coherent as the first image.

I like this, fresh and simple.

…it’s my favourite but I feel like the fruit blends into the background a bit. Perhaps a green or blue background would be punchier?

I really like the photographed fruit but the Heart + ‘Fruit’ in the middle is not as interesting to look at… I’d rather fill my eyes with all those translucent shapes! Why the typewriter font? Is there a reason for choosing it?

It was obviously great that people responded positively to the ideas but what was interesting was the questions that were raised:

  • The colour of the backgrounds
  • The choice of typeface
  • Whether there should be gap in the centre of the sliced fruit
  • The red heart being distracting

All the points were useful insights because they were not necessarily the things I had seen and/or they were a good test of whether I had made conscious choices about what I put where. Taking on the comments I played a little with the backgrounds, and the typeface and heart on the sliced fruit version. Thanks to Charlotte for suggesting what now seems obvious about combining the two ideas (if I were to rework it again I’d use a backlit orange slice too)! In the end my preference is still with the single fruit & veg on a white background but other people did seem to prefer the backlit versions.

While the process was a little nerve-wracking I’m glad I did it and it has given me confidence to ask for feedback again. It was particularly useful in highlighting the value of different iterations of a design and a good test of how willing I was to let go of some of the aspects of what I had produced. The exercise also highlighted the challenge of managing the seemingly infinite variety of solutions – colour, composition, typography etc.!

 

Exercise: Visualising your ideas

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Two white sheets of paper folded for leaflets

Exercise (p.41 Graphic Design One): You have been asked to design a leaflet for an organisation, inviting people to volunteer for a task. In addition to a title the information has been broken down into four chunks each of about 120 words. You will also need to leave space for contact and address details.

Working with a sheet of A4 paper or larger if you prefer, and ignoring the actual words and subheadings, explore the different formats for leaflets that are possible. Consider and experiment with options for final size and types of paper. In your learning log describe how you found turning ideas into visuals. Did you discover anything unexpected?

This was an exercise that was more layered than I had originally imagined.  I began with a single sheet of A4 paper and simply folded it in a number of different ways. When I had folded as many I could think of I did a bit of online research and found a number of diagrams of different folds and their names.

Following the folding I started to think about layout given the information in the brief – space for a title, four chunks of information and contact details. Initially I just started to sketch them roughly but found I was then thinking about placement and what might make the leaflet attractive. I started to think about the visuals and again did some online research.  I found I was thinking more about what sort of leaflet I would design and the notion of a hand or hands came to mind. When I did an image search for volunteering it seems that ‘helping hands’ is one of the most common visualisations! I often find my first ideas are the most obvious so wasn’t too worried that this was the case; I guess I have to start somewhere.

I noticed I had been thinking of the information in blocks, but then started to play with how the text might have different layouts. How a leaflet can be made appealing, and the importance of the cover. I became particularly conscious of the contact details, assuming that this needed to be some sort of tear off strip that could be removed and handed in. This made the layout take on a new dimension as it meant the contacts section would need to be removed leaving the important information on the leaflet intact.

What emerged from this exercise was a series of problems to be solved, not all of which were immediately obvious at the outset. Working with the physical folding helped me ‘see’ what was needed as I developed my thinking.

 

 

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Assignment One: Introducing Myself

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Introducing myself – the final set

Introducing Myself – the process

Initially, on tackling this assignment I was thinking in terms of a coherent series but as I began developing different ideas I decided to use it as an opportunity to experiment with a range of techniques and approaches. I started with a mindmap and developed the ideas from there. After the minimalist sketches I worked on lots of little thumbnail sketches to develop more ideas.  I have created a set of five postcards that introduce different aspects of my personality, my interests and my life.

 Minimalist Books

As a starting point for the set I knew I wanted to try something very stripped back and quite minimalist. It is not a style I am very familiar with so I thought this would help me start to think in graphic design terms. I did some research online and started a Pinterest board for my postcard inspiration. During the research I found the work of Genis Carreras and that really helped me think about how I might communicate the essence of something important to me (particularly his Values and Philographics series).

Using a mindmap as a starting point I made four small sketches based on a notional ‘work, rest & play theme,’ these then developed into four postcard size ideas, of these it was Work and Books that I preferred. It wasn’t until I had worked on some of the other postcards that I then came back to this set and decided to go with books. I also felt it was something I might be able to try in Illustrator.

Johari Window

The brief made me think a lot about how best to introduce myself. Whether I should represent my work, my home life, my personality traits or preferences and so on. This led me to question how much it is ever possible to share anything that might go beyond the superficial. How can I introduce what I might not even know about myself?

I do a lot of personal development work and use a variety of models and was reminded of the ‘Johari Window’. I decided I wanted to include this as one of the postcards and quickly sketched the two by two matrix.  I did an internet search and found that almost all the diagrams used for the model are four boxes with text in each but I wanted something more visual and very simple.

I did an initial sketch using circles (like ‘minimalist books’ it was in part inspired by the work of Genis Carreras) and decided to go with that approach, I didn’t do any alternative versions as this felt right very quickly. I then decided that the simplicity leant itself to my first tentative steps to learning Illustrator.  I used the full circle for those aspects of me known to myself and to others, half circles for those elements known only to me or only to others and then a black rectangle for those hidden aspects. Where I did try alternative versions was with the colours but given the infinite variety available this felt a bit like falling down the rabbit hole! I’m not sure I got the colours quite right but I was really pleased to get as far as I did in Illustrator!

Smile

Two postcard size collages with people laughing, cats, cupcakes, pencils and a beach

Alternative Smile Collages

Smile was prompted by my enthusiasm to do something playful and built on some earlier collage work I had done for a previous module. I could have made it a Photoshop composite but I wanted to keep it as tactile as possible and preserve the cut edges. I simply thought of things that made me smile, collected some images from my archives and royalty free sites and played on the page. I created three collages and chose the bicycle version for the final selection.

I really enjoyed making these and was surprised how quickly they came together. It was a good reminder to play and not be too caught up with ideas of ‘perfection.’ The sunflower was printed just as my printer was playing up but I decided to keep it because I quite liked the effect. I’m not sure whether ‘Smile’ fits a graphic design label but it certainly says something about me!

 

 

Still life

An early idea in the formstorming was based on some of my recent still life work. I have spent some time researching the history of still life and particularly the Vanitas tradition. The Tulip for me has now become loaded with meaning – connoting beauty, wealth, capitalism, economics, life and death. I experimented with framing the the tulip in different ways and decided on the less cropped version. I wanted to show an almost ethereal tulip and to include the text ‘still life’. The words are arranged for the reader to read them in different ways – stillness, life, still life the genre, and still living!

 Universal Declaration of Human Rights

This was the last of the ideas to emerge and came out of a desire to create something different in format. As the others were evolving I was trying to think of something that might have a more sculptural or ‘off the page’ feel to it. This was in part influenced by some recent photographic work on still life where I was trying to break the conventional frame of the image.  As I was continuing with collecting for my Pinterest Board I came across the book cover by Nina Jua Klein.

This was just the inspiration I needed and it got me thinking about what text I would use by way of introducing myself. I went through favourite books, articles and so on but nothing quite landed. A lot was happening around current affairs at the time in terms of Brexit, migration, horrendous atrocities and complex national conflicts and so on. It was also the time of the Olympics and Paralympics. I was reminded of the 2012 Paralympic opening ceremony (I have a connection to one of the two Artistic Directors) and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) presented itself. I felt it was a perfect text to use in terms of my concerns for social justice, equality and human rights in general.

The UDHR also felt right because Article 27 enshrines the right to participate in the cultural life of the community and I know how privileged I am to be able to do so.

Article 27.

 (1) Everyone has the right freely to participate in the cultural life of the community, to enjoy the arts and to share in scientific advancement and its benefits.

(2) Everyone has the right to the protection of the moral and material interests resulting from any scientific, literary or artistic production of which he is the author.

I experimented with a range of layouts, and after many hours of cutting up and re-positioning the strips I produced a sculptural version, I then photographed the final result.

All the postcard backs were produced using Publisher, I didn’t feel I was ready to tackle InDesign but that is next on the list. With hindsight it was probably a mistake to do it this way as I then needed to make some convoluted format changes to get them to a suitable state to upload. I should have been brave and done them all in Illustrator, which I think I would do in future.

 

 

 

The art of postcards

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Collage of lots of different postcards

The humble postcard is something I have probably paid little attention to in recent years, although I do often seem to spend time hunting for one to add a ‘thank you’ to my occasional second-hand book sales.

As with the paper exercise I had a look through my stationery stocks to see if I had any postcards and was surprised to find I actually had quite a few – some plain, some from past work projects, some from my travels in Canada and some art cards. I also found the beautiful CIA Graeae project postcards made from all the artworks in the exhibition. I then had a quick trawl online for inspiration and bought a few more including a historical set.

During my search I came across a real gem in the Marimekko set of 100 cards (50 designs) that are beautiful, fun and a riot of colour. They are a tribute to the textile design of Marimekko and have certainly given me some inspiration.

The postcard seems so well suited to its purpose it has hardly changed in 120 years. Reading some of the different accounts of the history of postcards in the UK it looks like it took about thirty years to get from the original version to its more familiar form with an image on one side and a divided back to allow for a message and address. Rather than repeat the detailed chronology that others cover well, I really wanted to note how it has been connected to social, cultural, technological and political contexts.  In summary the history of postcards follows several phases:

  • 1840 the penny postage stamp introduced
  • 1869 Austria introduces the first postcard
  • 1870 first postcards issued in the UK
  • 1894 first picture postcards produced
  • 1899 standard sizes introduced – 5.5” x 3.5”
  • 1902 the divided back postcard was introduced
  • 1902- 1914 the Golden Age – the texts of their day!
  • 1916-1930 White border era and a shift in popularity from greetings to view cards
  • 1930-1945 Linen card era. Vivid colour on linen paper. Main genres are view, comic and political humour
  • 1939 onwards Modern Chrome era. Technology allows the production of high quality photochromes

Postcards seem to come in a variety of genres which have evolved over their history, including:

  • Greetings
  • View
  • Art
  • Commemorative or historical
  • Promotional
  • Humour

In developing my postcard set I obviously have a specific brief in terms of introducing myself but researching the history of postcards has helped me explore the kinds of messages I might want to communicate.

History sources:

http://www.oldpostcards4sale.co.uk/history-of-uk-postcards

http://www.arthistoryarchive.com/arthistory/photography/History-of-Postcards.html

Contemplating the history of graphic design

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Poster by Alphonse Mucha in Art Nouveau style

Setting out to look at the entire history of graphic design seems at best an act of optimism and at worst sheer folly. Even the concise published histories run to at least 200 pages. However, undeterred, I did at least want to get some sense of the field and see how others have defined it.

I found a number of helpful infographics, particularly the one from James Cain on the history of visual communications. This was useful in terms of the starting point being prehistoric picture writing, which reinforced for me the depth of our interaction with visuals. Neuroscience suggests that at least 20% of our brain is dedicated to vision.  I’m not sure I’m up to producing my own timeline yet but maybe later in the course.

Rather than recount any particular chronology, which feels a bit overwhelming at this point, I have tried to look for themes and patterns.

  • Links between art movements and developments in graphic design: it seems to me there has been a constant interplay between art and graphic design. Interestingly, the art nouveau posters of Mucha, themselves became regarded as art over time rather than advertising billboards. Modernism, post-modernism, constructivism, pop art to name a few have influenced the designers of their day.
  • The impact of war and propaganda on design: wars appear to have had a significant impact on the nature, purpose and sheer quantity of graphic design at different points in history.

The First World War established the importance of visual design. (Hollis, 2001: 32)

By the outbreak of the Second World War graphic design had become an established element of the political landscape and an essential component in delivering messages to populations.

  • Developments within particular national boundaries which then spread further afield. A number of countries have been credited with specific developments:
    • Russia and constructivism
    • Italy and Futurism, and the Milanese style
    • The Netherlands and de Stijl
    • Switzerland and the ‘Swiss style’
    • France and the Moderne, and so on…
  • Technological development and its impact on graphic design: Technology has both enabled and influenced the history of graphic design. This includes design technology and wider technological developments that have supported graphic design solutions such as the global mail system, lithography, the typewriter, the photocopier, photography, digital technology. I’m really looking forward to Graphic Means being released as it looks like it will give insights into some of these technologies!

Another theme that has emerged is that the key figures mentioned throughout the histories appear to be men, which raises for me the question around the gendered nature of what they produce. I know it is a bit of a rabbit hole to fall down but it does highlight questions about the nature of visual communications and whether gender affects outcome.

I know this is just the tip of the iceberg but it gives me some insight into different approaches and influences on the field of graphic design. It also starts to bring out some themes I might look at in more depth. There is obviously still much to explore!

References:

Hollis, R. (2001). Graphic Design: A concise history. London: Thames & Hudson Ltd.

 

The joy of eclecticism

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Yesterday, I was being opportunistic and with hindsight a little optimistic about getting to a number of exhibitions in between meetings while I was in London.  I have read somewhere about keeping my influences broad and staying in touch with culture in its widest sense to improve my graphic design sensibility. So, I had lined up in my head:

  • The V&A Illustration awards 2016
  • William Eggleston at the National Portrait Gallery
  • Dutch flower painting at the National Gallery
  • Georgia O’Keefe at Tate Modern

Inevitably travel across London took longer than anticipated and in the end I managed two of the four. I thought I might just squeeze in the O’Keefe but the queue for tickets was just too long. In the case of Eggleston and O’Keefe, although I didn’t get to see the work, it was interesting to see the graphic design involved in their promotion.

The Illustration awards were a bit of a disappointment, not in terms of the work but in their display and presentation. They were tucked away in front of the National Art Library in brightly lit cases with a lot of red in the background. I’m afraid I felt it just didn’t do the work justice. You get a better sense of all the work online as well as being able to see all the entries.

Display case with text a red background and a small figure in the middle of menacing shadows

V&A Illustration Awards 2016: Bill Bragg’s ‘Now I’m Afraid’

The illustration that stood out for me was Bill Bragg’s ‘Now I’m Afraid,’ I found it incredibly powerful and liked its simplicity. It worked so well with the text and completely captured the sense of menace Masuma Rahim conveyed. The quality of all the work was very high and it was interesting for me to think about how I analysed illustrations as opposed to the more familiar photography or painting. I found I was considering them in the light of not just the quality of the art but whether they fulfilled their purpose in illuminating the text or the point being made.

Of those that didn’t make the finalists I really liked Lesley Barnes, Jill & the Dragon. It is lively and engaging, and looks to me like it has some historical references in its Bayeux tapestry type form. Let’s face it what’s not to love about dragons!

 

Banner for Duth Flowers exhibition at National Gallery August 2016

Dutch Flower Exhibition banner

From the V&A I went to the National Gallery to indulge my recent preoccupation with Vanitas Still Life, I particularly wanted to see if any of the women I had researched for my last photography assignment were included.  Although these were specifically flower paintings rather than Vanitas you could see elements of the genre in a number of the paintings – the cycle of life and death.

I was interested in the graphic design incorporated in the promotion of the exhibition that not surprisingly focused on the beauty of the flowers.

It was also fascinating to see the mass of merchandising the exhibition had generated in the shop, everything from notelets to a glasses cleaning cloth. Perhaps surprisingly there wasn’t a catalogue but there was pretty much everything else. Most of the heading font was serif combined with san serif body text. I could understand the use of the serif header text because it looks in keeping with the historic nature of the work.

By this point I knew there wasn’t time to fit in both Eggleston and Georgia O’Keefe so I headed off to Tate Modern, sadly by the time I got there was not enough time left to get a ticket and do justice to the show so that will have to wait for another day.

Banne for Georgia O'Keeffe exhibition outside Tate Modern with St Pauls in the background

Georgia O’Keeffe Exhibition banner

As with the Dutch flower paintings it was interesting to see how Tate Modern was presenting the show, something I might only have shown a passing interest in before now.  Would I have used the white flower as the main image? Possibly not. It gives a sense of her fluid style but I don’t think it conveys the vibrancy of much of her work. The font used seemed to be very much in keeping with the Tate house style and very clear and clean.  Apparently the brand identity was designed by Marina Willer of Wolff Olins in the late nineties.

It was really about finding the balance between making Tate much more democratic and accessible to lots of people, without taking away any of the things that they’ve built over the years in terms of respect and authority.

Willer, 2011, Creative Review ‘Branding the Art World’

Surprisingly, during my visit to London the piece that most caught my eye was the poster showing the changing design of the London Underground Roundel – it was fascinating!

Large poster showing the change designs of the London Underground roundel

100 years of the London Underground Roundel

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What is graphic design?

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Grey question mark on black background

Graphic Design is the creative discipline that brings together words and visual imagery to communicate to an audience…Graphic design is essentially a process of problem solving – how best to get the identified information to a particular audience…Graphic design is rooted in language; it deals with written language through typography and  visual language through images, colour, composition, signs and symbols… (Open College of the Arts., 2010:12 -13)

Graphic design, also known as communication design, is the art and practice of planning and projecting ideas and experiences with visual and textual content. The form of the communication can be physical or virtual, and may include images, words, or graphic forms. The experience can take place in an instant or over a long period of time. The work can happen at any scale, from the design of a single postage stamp to a national postal signage system, or from a company’s digital avatar to the sprawling and interlinked digital and physical content of an international newspaper. It can also be for any purpose, whether commercial, educational, cultural, or political.  American Institute of Graphic Arts,

One of the delights of moving into a relatively new field is that it opens up your perspective and brings new insights. Graphic Design could be said to be ubiquitous and I realise that for me that means it potentially goes unseen, it’s outputs have become so much a part of the fabric of cultural life.

I don’t think I had taken it for granted, in fact in my own search for a sympathetic Graphic Designer I discovered how challenging it is to work with someone who couldn’t seem to communicate what I was looking for as a client . It is a complex relationship that takes effort to build into a visual language. Anyway, I digress.

As part of my introduction to GD1 I have challenged myself to consider exactly what graphic design is and how it potentially differs from other art related disciplines. Interestingly, others seem to have framed a similar quest in terms of ‘what is the purpose of graphic design?’, which already highlights something distinct as it is not necessarily a question you might ask of other artforms.

Definitions seem to focus around graphic design being art with a message, rooted in visual communication. It could be said to have three roles (Hollis, 2001: 10):

  1. To identify: to show what something is or where it came from
  2. To inform and instruct: indicating the relationship of one thing to another in direction, position or scale
  3. To present and promote: to attract attention and put forward a memorable message

To do these things it seems to me that graphic design needs to be aware of its context and constantly adapt.

Graphic design constitutes a kind of language with an uncertain grammar and a continuously expanding vocabulary.(Hollis, 2001: 10)

Although this poses challenges in terms of how I might ever get hold of such a slippery practice the notion of it constantly evolving is very appealing. One of the things I have often found useful in my photography is to know some of the ground-rules but to be ready to bend or abandon them where appropriate.

One of the definitions I therefore prefer focuses on graphic design being ‘a shared framework in which to invent and organise visual content.’ (Lupton & Phillips, 2015: 8)

This seems to place emphasis on the capacity to experiment and develop work within given parameters. I hope the course is going to help me understand what constitutes the ‘framework’ for graphic design.

References and citations:

Hollis, R. (2001). Graphic Design: A concise history. London: Thames & Hudson Ltd.

Lupton, E., & Phillips, J. C. (2015). Graphic Design The New Basics (2nd ed.). New York: Princeton Architectural Press.

Open College of the Arts. (Ed.). (2010). Graphic Design Level 1: Core Concepts. Barnsley, UK: OCA.

http://www.aiga.org/what-is-design/