OUGD503 - Studio brief 03 - Project Report

The first brief in responsive I undertook was the Penguin student design award which was an opportunity for students interested in pursuing a career in design to experience real cover design briefs first-hand. I decided to undertake the brief firstly because I felt it would give me an opportunity to undertake a book cover design in more depth. As in the past when designing covers for either a book or publication I feel as though I've rushed this stage, therefore this brief would give me more time to depict the content within book. In the brief you have the option of three books to design a cover for, I decided to design for To Kill A Mockingbird as from briefly reading about the book it created the most enthusiasm and made me think more visually.

Overall I believe this brief was a success for a number of reasons. My extensive research into Penguin and the book itself proved to be very informative during the idea generation process which resulted in me having a range of ideas which I could later develop further. In the end I chose the social class and hierachy of Maycomb idea as I believed it was an ambiguous and a response that has a point of difference compared to current TKAM covers. ‘A point of difference’ was one of the aims of the brief and I certainly believe I achieved that as the cover feels timeless and can be effective on its own and be eye-catching within a crowded bookshop setting, as well as digital retailers such as Amazon. Another enjoyment was looking into TKAM for a first time, before this brief I’d heard of Harper Lee’s famous title but I’d never delved into it. It was enjoyable learning about the book then creating ideas that try not emulate previous covers, it made a challenge of the brief which overall benefited the ideas.

As a smaller brief for responsive I undertook the Papyrus student brief, and in all fairness the only reason I did this brief is because Secret 7 didn't run this year meaning I couldn't do that as a smaller brief. Nevertheless as I looked more into the brief I become more interested in it, as I was attracted to the colouring books potential as it allows freedom and not much constraint to create what I wanted. With it being a smaller brief, only a small amount of research was undertaken into Papyrus and what helps relax people. Therefore I set a time plan to make sure I undertook the brief in only two days, I knew this was short amount of time but I understood that considerations into type, colour, size, and target audience will all be avoided due to the brief.

Overall the brief was short and enjoyable for me, and it was satisfying to know that I set a time limit and stuck by it. This is encouraging for the future as in industry you have a short time to produce work, unlike usual university briefs in which you have months to develop an idea. I was also able to produce a solution that is relatable to my own views on how to relieve stress and hopefully the design can help. In terms of the competition side of the brief I don't believe its strong enough conceptually to stand a chance of being featured in the book, but nevertheless it was nice to be involved with a brief that hopefully will make a difference.

For the substantial brief I chose Display Wizard and I decided to pick this brief as one big motivations to undertake this brief is the prizes available, the winner will be rewarded £500, a Wacom tablet worth £250 and an option of undertaking a summer internship at Display Wizard. With second and third place winning £100 and £50. Also it was a great opportunity for me to work on a real-life marketing project and showcase my work to The Design Council, University marketing department, the large-format print industry and the wider design world.

To talk about the brief in more detail, it tasked me with designing display stands focussing on the social/cultural benefits of studying at Leeds College of Art. I needed to ensure the branding was consistent across the display stands and the design fits with the dimensions of the stand, whilst all the time trying to appeal to prospective students who may want to study at my institution.

My final outcome of the brief I feel is a worthy representation on life at Leeds College of Art, and therefore I have fulfilled one of my personal aims of the brief. To touch more upon my aims for the brief before undertaking it, I felt like the brief would be personal to me as I spend five days a week within the college, so having the chance to reflect the institutes core values from a students perspective was something I looked forward to. And now looking back on the brief I feel as though I've done the college justice and painted a nice image of life here. Furthermore I am happy on how I executed my ideas, because from a glance this brief may seem dry and maybe doesn't offer the opportunity to express the style of an individual. But nonetheless I was able to showcase work which has a subtle hint of my style, while also having a Leeds College of Art feel to it.

In terms of undertaking this brief and how I managed my time, I did leave the brief for a while which I don't necessarily deem bad. As the time away from the brief allowed me to develop my thoughts about the brief, and without noticing it aloud me to further research about what is the social and cultural benefits of studying here. What I can take away from this brief is the experience of working with a larger scale outcome, at times during development I had to question the layout and composition as though it was blown up to real size. Normally during a brief I'd simply be creating something small scale such as a book or poster, therefore its easy to test print the outcome. This brief restricted me to imagine the banner in real size so made me think more about designing for environments and space. From this it made me more enthusiastic about the opportunity to do this type of design, so hopefully I'll have the opportunity to do so in the future.

For studio brief 2 I collaborated with Ben Cooper (Graphic design) and Joe Baker (Illustration) for the D&AD Monotype brief. In this brief Monotype challenged you to embody and express the importance of cultural diversity through a typography solution or campaign. I decided to pick this brief as one i’d be interested in doing because firstly I believe it was current in terms of world affairs, relating to immigration and politics and gives the designer an opportunity to communicate personal views on certain affairs that may interest them. Secondly having the chance to engage in a topic that is vastly diverse such as culture allows you to have an open mind for this brief, referring back to my first point it can make it personal. And lastly being able to work with type attracted me to the brief, as I am eager to further my practice involving typographic responses.

When it came to the task of finding other people to collaborate with I was surprised at how only a small number of people were interested in the Monotype brief but in the end I was lucky enough to find an ideal group to work with. We all share similar interests in and outside the creative world which made this brief, in my opinion the best I've undertook in two years studying here. I think it was cumulation things that made it such as success. Such as Parisian youth culture which was the culture we chose to communicate, the understanding between the group, the respect we shared for each others work and ultimately the desire to produce great work and get along.

I can address the endless positives of this brief but to focus on maybe one worry I had prior to this brief and how as a group we solved it. Before the group even undertook any work we had to fill out a creative partnership form. One of the questions was ‘What do you see your specific job roles being in collaboration?’ This question made me mull over what the specific job roles of two graphic designers would be in this brief. My response is as follows:

‘As we have two graphic designers and an illustrator, then it may seem that the two graphic designers need to find distinctive roles. This is because we don’t want two designers doing the same job, nevertheless the brief is big enough to accommodate two graphic designers. For example I could focus on the typography while Ben focuses on layout and editorial which could be another touchpoint of the brief. As Joe is an illustrator his role is pivotal as his skills in both drawing and traditional print will bring a lot to the team’

From my response you can see I stressed that finding distinct roles for this brief was key and now that its all done, I can say that it all worked. To start with research we all separated tasks which was time efficient and made it easier to collate all our findings but when it came to production, myself and Ben were able to easily decided upon the jobs a graphic designer would have to undertake.

To talk more about the brief itself, picking Parisian youth culture to represent was a shrewd group decision as I feel like I’ve learnt so much about this upcoming youth culture. I especially liked the research process as it allowed me to research French graphic design and the industry within Paris which was insightful to say the least. In terms of what the team created, I couldn’t be more happier as we all feel its such a well justified concept and final piece. From the use of Noto sans to the colours used in the posters, video and stickers we felt the amount of research we undertook paid off in the end.

To evaluate on the entire module which has been a long and rewarding module, and if I cast my mind back to the briefing in October if I'm right. Back then I don't think I could have imagined how much I've learnt about my own practice. Learning about what I like and don't like within graphic design but also the way in which I learn and work. For example undertaking the Penguin book cover design made me realise that designing book covers isn't so easy as it may look, so in the future I may approach book cover design differently. Other factors such as designing display stands made me consider working in larger scale and stepping away from what I'm used to which is editorial and poster design and mix my practice more.

Each brief has expanded my knowledge in and out of graphic design as extensive research on most of briefs has broadened my horizons on topics I was totally unaware of before responsive. Other learning curves have been the simple things such as learning about D&AD, YCN and all the other student briefs that have opened my eyes to the possibilities of briefs to undertake in level 6.

The most valuable part of this brief has combined the way I work and learn into one, and that is collaboration. Studio brief 02 presented me the opportunity to experience industry I believe. To expand on this you’ve always got to be open minded and from what Ive learnt this year in college and off my own back if you don’t collaborate with people, you don’t get different points of view. Design is about combining things and in studio brief 02 each member of team combined something to create an outcome we were all proud of. And without the collaboration I think the final outcome would have come out much differently if we did it alone.

OUGD503 - Studio brief 01 - Display Wizard evaluation

To conclude on the Display Wizard brief which I feel is a worthy representation on life at Leeds College of Art, and therefore I have fulfilled one of my personal aims of the brief. To touch more upon my aims for the brief before undertaking it, I felt like the brief would be personal to me as I spend five days a week within the college, so having the chance to reflect the institutes core values from a students perspective was something I looked forward to. And now the brief is completed and submitted to the competition I feel as though I've done the college justice and painted a nice image of life here. Furthermore I am happy on how I executed my ideas, because from a glance this brief may seem dry and maybe doesn't offer the opportunity to express the style of an individual. But nonetheless I was able to showcase work which has a subtle hint of my style, while also having a Leeds College of Art feel to it.

In terms of undertaking this brief and how I managed my time, I did leave the brief for a while which I don't necessarily deem bad. As the time away from the brief allowed me to develop my thoughts about the brief, and without noticing aloud me to further research about what is the social and cultural benefits of studying here. What I can take away from this brief is the experience of working with a larger scale outcome, at times during development I had to question the layout and composition as though it was blown up to real size. Normally during a brief I'd simply be creating something small scale such as a book or poster, therefore its easy to test print the outcome. This brief restricted me to imagine the banner in real size so made me think more about designing for environments and space. From this it made me more enthusiastic about the opportunity to do this type of design, so hopefully I'll have the opportunity to do so in the future.

OUGD503 - Studio brief 01 - Display Wizard evidence of submission

OUGD503 - Studio brief 01 - Display Wizard final

As a part of the submission to the competition a 250-300 word descriptions is needed to explain the inspiration for my designs and how I think it will stimulate interest in my institution and its city. My small description is as follows:

'My designs aims to communicate Leeds College of Art as a specialist art college with fantastic facilities. The inspiration behind the main message is the total number of studios and workshops in square metres to signify the facilities available. While the 5sqm shows how far a creative student will be from you while studying here, and the math behind it is 5678 sqm divided by the amount of students studying here. I chose to showcase specialist art college and facilities as the best social/cultural aspects of studying at my university because my extensive primary research showed me that its a small, close knit community in a creative atmosphere where anything feels possible. The design also looks to the future and opening horizons for students, as it informs the prospective students of the current extension of the university which will mean even more state of the art facilities for everyone to use.

The design is bold and welcoming, similar to Leeds with the 'Ey up!' giving the design a slice of the Yorkshire personality. It also combines the distinctive colour palette of the university with the core of the universities identity, the mosaic. The mosaic of Leeds College of Art has been around for many years now and is a fundamental part of life at the college, so I deemed it necessary to include as it introduces the prospective student to 'life at the college'

I hope my designs will engage prospective students and open their eyes to the beauty here, that is the studios and workshops are all next to each other rather than being spread across a huge campus, and the students all see each other in the cafes, workshops and studios so there is a strong community that supports individuality within those networks'

OUGD503 - Studio brief 01 - Production

The production of the stands was an enjoyable process as it allowed me to follow guidelines and restrictions which added a professional manner to the brief. For some of the guidelines I've never really used them within my work such as outlining fonts but undertaking this process has made me aware of preparing work for a professional print run of this manner.

OUGD503 - Studio brief 01 - Display Wizard development

Now that the main 3x3 banner design was complete I had to then design a smaller roller banner to go along with the main one. This banner has be similar to the first banner in terms of style and message so I felt this was easier process as I was simply replicating the first design but in smaller form.

In the ideas the main message is used but not the body copy which in my opinion would be obsolete in the smaller banner as the aim is to keep it simple. It aims is to support the main banner so it doesn't require much content therefore I felt the smaller banner almost designed itself, as I used the same elements from the original design and the only obstacle was to keep it cohesive as a working pair.

The two variations I designed only differ through the size of the mosaics. When working in smaller scale while maintaining the same style it required thought into the composition of the two main elements 'Ey up!' and the message therefore I decided that overlaying content wouldn't work like the 3x3 banner design. Therefore I left aligned the content which utilized space while still being simple.

Feedback
Feedback was essential to seeing how the designs worked together and seeing which idea my peers preferred. Everyone agreed that the designs are both consistent and compliment the the 3x3 banner design but the opinion was split again on which one worked best. People thought the larger mosaics were more subtle while people also thought the smaller ones represented the bigger stand design, as one peer commented 'its almost like a condensed version of the bigger design'.

I mulled over the two designs but in the end I thought the best option was the larger mosaic idea as I felt it was more subtle and structured compared to the other idea.

OUGD503 - Studio brief 01 - Display Wizard development

After feedback I decided to choose one idea to further develop and from positive feedback and my own preference it was the third idea with the vivid yellow and counteracting 'Ey up!' and main message. Although people were split upon two ideas, I felt that this idea was more of the final article and didn't require too much change. Another reason for choosing this idea was working with scale, and this idea definitely includes more elements which will engage the viewer more when the design is enlarged to the scale of the banner. In the development of this idea I adjusted minor things such as the logo and alignment of elements but also experimented with the message which my peers recommended to do in last feedback session.

In the left corner is the logo adjustment and this was done to just tidy the design up but also to make sure I was sticking to the brand guidelines of Leeds College of Art. I found in research that the logo always has to have sufficient space around it and as a general rule use the height of the type to measure the space around the logo. This allows the logo to breathe within space and in my banner design I made sure to fix this.

I experimented with different messages as my peers recommended and all bring a humorous tone to the design but I feel like the content is too long. Its intended to be quick and snappy by supplementing the main message but the addition of more type drags it out. I agree with changing 'hello' to 'hey' as its more suiting to the target audience and is less stern.

I experimented with the colour of the design by selecting the colour palettes which I felt worked best in the original ideas. With all the variations of colour I feel as though the 'Ey up!' takes center stage and distracts from the main message, compared to the original white, yellow and blue palette which are all flattened with the contrasts helping bringing out the hierachy of importance.

Following minor changes to the idea I finalised this one as the main banner design to submit to Display Wizard to best represent Leeds College of Art.

OUGD503 - Studio brief 01 - Display Wizard development

Once I knew what I was working with in terms of content and what to specifically communicate I started designing the 3x3 banner stand first. I chose to design the bigger stand first as I felt it would communicate the message in more depth, and once I had decided upon one 3x3 banner stand then I could apply the same style to the smaller pop up stand. This would also help with keeping the style consistent as this one of the requirements Display Wizard encourages you to consider.

Instead of sketching rough visualisations of the ideas I decided to jump straight into Illustrator to mockup the ideas up in different variations. Once I decided upon a few variants of type layout and compostions, I could then apply different elements in the banner design to get a number of distinctive ideas to potentially take further.

The first idea uses the theme of the mosaic which is at the core of LCA's identity, the mosaic itself is versatile and can be applied in numerous ways as I learnt from looking through the brand guidelines. The mosaic of LCA has been around for many years now and is a fundamental part of life at this college so I deemed it necessary to include it a backbone to my ideas in my cases. This variation pairs only the message and big bold mosaic for a striking design. By using the colleges colour palette it allows each mosaic to visibly stand out in a rather colour saturated design.

A variation to the colour saturated design is a more subtle approach which uses outlines instead of block colour for the mosaics. This alternative is a basic version of the idea it still has the unique qualities of the original design but in a more restrictive way.

The next variation is more bolder and combines a number of elements but also offers a different version of the message. The content is placed at the top of the banner which allows the message to take centre stage in the design, but this time the 'Ey up!' being placed underneath the message. The eye is drawn to the 'Ey up!' straight away but with the message being overlaid it almost counteracts the 'Ey up!' The mosaics are used again but this time to help frame the message in the centre of the banner and the numbers within the message are also highlighted to signify importance.

Using the strictest colour palette yet this idea utilizes space with the use of two larger scale mosaics, the contrast of pink and blue help the white display type pop out from the rest of the design I believe. Another way of using exposed space in this design is the body copy at the top, instead of the title and copy all being aligned within one block. The title sits to the left of the copy which uses up more space which I feel is needed in a more simple design which doesn't include many elements. 

Similar to another idea this one uses 'Ey up!' to welcome possible students to Yorkshire in a more up front manner and this achieved with the enlarged and altered type that sprawls across the banner. 

In my opinion this is the boldest design but the one with the least amount of elements, in a sense it is less is more. 

Feedback

I required feedback on my designs to allow me to choose an idea to further develop, therefore I asked a number of my peers which idea stood out to them from a glance, and which one communicates the message the best. I required feedback on other factors such colour and layout as these could be further tweaked in development.

The feedback was split 50/50 on the 3rd and 6th design as people believed these two were my strongest outcomes. People noted that both were different designs in their own right, which they think swayed them towards the designs more than others. But one thing my peers all settled upon was the need to maybe change the tone of 'A Yorkshire way of saying hello', they remarked that all the designs are playful and exciting but the tone of the message dulls it down a bit.

They suggested to say 'Hey' as its more inviting and suiting to the target audience, this was a valuable piece of feedback. And another addition to make to 'A Yorkshire way of saying hello' was maybe to include a numerous message to end of it like 'A Yorkshire way of saying hello, but you'll grasp it soon enough' or 'A Yorkshire way of saying hello, you'll be hearing more of that'. By adding these extra lines it acts as a invitation to the university and the way of life in Leeds.

I do question why I never received similar feedback in prior development of the message. Now I look back I think its because when the message stands alone without the playful design it has no context and works sufficiently.

All my peers believed that which ever idea I take forward, I should definitely experiment with the bold colour palette I selected. I took this on board as I was aware that some of the designs I put forward heavily rely on the colour palette.

OUGD505 - Studio brief 01 - Evaluation

To conclude on Leeds public spaces which has been a fun brief to undertake for a number of reasons. Firstly the brief opened my eyes to a number of pivotal events in the history of Leeds, it allowed me to explore a number of events that helped shape the city but in the end I was able to celebrate and communicate something that I feel is personal to me in Leeds. As I've only lived in the city for two years I may not have an insight into the folklore of Leeds and certain events that have benefited the city and the people of Leeds. Nevertheless certain places have had a profound affect on me while studying here, nothing more than the independent cinema that is five minutes away from my house in Hyde Park.

Therefore I chose Hyde Park Picture House to celebrate as I believed it was perfect thing to portray which has benefited the city and people of Leeds. The grade II listed building is iconic in its own right but as I dug deeper in research I discovered the cinema has had some iconic and very important events in its long and lustrous existence. Ranging from its opening in 1914 to the first film shown and the morale boosting dramas aired during WW1, which boosted the morale of the local people surrounding the cinema. As I continued researching into the institute I felt their was only one event which has truly benefited the cinema and the people of Leeds, but also this event helps celebrate all events before and after it, in one. In 1989 the cinema hit rough times as multiplex cinemas and home video were rocketing so Leeds City Council intervened to save the cinema from closure. This event meant the 'Cosiest cinema in Leeds' remained the cosiest and continued to provide a authentic experience to film lovers in Leeds.

My research was extensive and broad but it was highly beneficial when it came to ideas and development as I was able to have an informative reasoning behind each design decision. I enjoyed idea generation as I thought of numerous ways to celebrate this event but I felt the final poster design I did represents a number of things at the cinema. Ranging from the celebratory message, the cinema peg board influence, the identifiable yellow colour scheme of the cinema, the bespoke typeface with diamond angles which are inspired by the diamonds throughout the cinemas architecture and interior.

The print process of this brief was enjoyable too as I was able to screenprint the poster but understanding the limitations of this process was a learning curve in this brief. I experimented with a gloss finish and applying it wasn't so easy, so I feel during this brief I had to consider and understand my process more in production. In terms of the final print quality then its just a case of the limitations of screenprinting which I personally feel I grasp more each time I screenprint.

Overall I am pleased with the final print and from feedback and personal preference I feel like the poster does justice to the cinema and helps celebrate the event through different avenues.

OUGD505 - Studio brief 01 - Feedback

I required final feedback on the print to gain an understanding on people perceptions and whether or not people think the design is celebratory and pays homage to the cinema. For this feedback I introduced the research and concept to individual peers so they had a full grasp of the project, therefore they were able to give in depth feedback on each design decision within the print. Also I wanted feedback on the overall quality of the final print so I encouraged my peers to be as critical as possible.

The first peer felt the use of high quality stock from GF Smith brings out the character in the print, but also had this this say about the stock 'The bold yellow stock helps highlight the type but also the informative reasoning behind it, along with the colour theory of yellow being a happy colour really helps make this a celebratory design'

'The message is good enough to stand alone I think and now that you informed me that the cinema has held the title of Leeds cosiest cinema since 1914, I feel as though you celebrate two things in one. Long live stands for the council part, then cosiest cinema for the history and legacy of the cinema'

The feedback then switched to the quality of the final print which was screen printed and my peer believed that the charm of the print is that it isn't perfect. 'The cinema is over 100 years old and yes it isn't perfect, but does it have to be?' Personally I loved this piece of feedback as it made me look at my work in a different perspective. My peer also believed the alignment of the type being a couple of millimetres off added to the design, as they felt it added more depth to the type over the dots.

One critical piece of feedback which I wished I could have received back in development was that the type at the bottom of the page could be more utilized. 'Hyde Park Picture House and 1989 have their own space so they need to be more effective in that space I think'. They suggested that maybe the type could have been similar to the display type by being flush left aligned with bespoke type, but whether or not that would have utilized the space remains to be seen.

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The second peer I received feedback from believed the print could celebrate cinema in general. By removing 'cosiest' it would create the message of 'Long live cinema' and although this would deter from the point of celebrating Hyde Park Picture House it would remain celebratory and push the message of cinema. I questioned my peer why they believed the print could celebrate cinema altogether and the reply was 'My initial reaction to the print just reminded me of cinemas and in particular independent cinemas, i'm not sure if its the peg board that triggers me to think of old fashioned cinema boards and lettering but it shouts cinema for me'. This was a really encouraging piece of feedback and then my peer went onto comment that the design doesn't have to be so literal and clear through the peg board design, its more how the message makes you feel. 

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For the last piece of feedback I actually contacted the cinema itself to see how they would interpret the print. 

INSERT EMAIL HERE

OUGD505 - Studio brief 01 - Final print

Once I selected the final print I booked a photography studio to take pictures of the print, this was for the module submission but also my Behance. Taking professional standard images of my work is a must at this stage of my practice, as I need to consider my portfolio. Also I remember the OUGD504 submission when a tutor remarked that the quality of our work needed to be a high standard when presented in different formats, whether that be a photoshop mockup or studio imagery.

The final print is a simple and bright look that feels celebratory as its built from bold display type with a strong message. At the heart of the design is three factors, firstly the celebratory message which is shouty but personal to the cinema as it celebrates an accolade the cinema has held since 1914, 'The cosiest cinema in Leeds'. Furthermore 'Long live' indicates that the cinema is still here to this day and will continue providing the people of Leeds a real cinema experience and be a constant, and a regular friendly face in the Hyde Park area. Next is the traditional cinema peg board design which helps elevate the importance of the message. Then finally the application of yellow which is instantly identifiable to the Hyde Park Picture House but also helps contrast the design and brings a warming effect to the poster.

OUGD505 - Studio brief 01 - Production

Once the development stage was complete and all materials were prepared it was time for production. Preparing the screen was a simple process as I've done this a number of times now but as ever its a time consuming job. Nevertheless I was able to stick to my planned time schedule by having the screen prepared and posters printed within two days.

I bought only two A1 Colorplan 270gsm sheets from Fred Aldous totalling £6 as I settled for quality over quantity in terms of stock, but I knew this would have its potential downfalls. With the poster being A3 I only had a number of opportunities to print the perfect poster, and as I know from screen printing in the past it takes a number of goes to get that perfect print. As I considered this a potential limitation to the production of the poster, I took time on each print to make sure each one was to a high standard.

The first stage of the process was applying the white layer first onto the stock, to help guide the layout of the poster I used the original exposure print (bottom of the image) and compared it to the first print to see if the dot elements were in the correct position. Using kodetrace was another helpful part of the process as it allowed me to test print before applying paint to the stock.

Once I completed applying the white layer the next stage was the black layer including all the type content of the poster.  Compared to the last stage this one didn't go as smoothly, the first problem was simply aligning the type over the dots. Kodetrace did help but I couldn't get the perfect alignment on all prints, with some having the type slightly off the dots. The second issue was the mix of paint and binder, as I'm told the mixture is meant to mainly binder. Sadly for the first few prints I did the mixture was off, resulting in the paint drying quickly on the screen which meant the paint wasn't getting through. I quickly fixed this problem by simply adding more binder to the paint but this didn't resolve the next small difficulty in production. When applying one layer of black paint over the white layer, the dots were still showing underneath on a number of prints. It wasn't until a small crit after production when one peer suggested I should have just simply done another layer of black again to fix the problem.

The final stage in the printing process was applying the gloss over the display type, I purchased gloss paste which Mike recommended to use but he warned to be careful as the paste dries extremely quick. I quickly noticed this as the paste would dry after one use and then block the screen for the next print. Another difficulty of using gloss paste was aligning it with the display type, using kodetrace is almost obsolete for applying gloss paste as you barely see the paste once its applied to kodetrace stock. Therefore I had to guess the layout then quickly apply the gloss before it dried out. Luckily most of the guesswork actually paid off as the gloss was applied directly on top of the display type to create a nice shine and add depth of field.

Now that I completed all the stages and had my final prints, Mike from the print room and Dan from Goat Collective had a look at the work and we assessed the prints. Dan who is a graphic design alumni who specialises in screenprinting was the peer who recommended to simply go over the black layer again, but he also suggested another point in the feedback. He thought that maybe the gloss applied over the dots would work better but once I explained the reasoning for glossing the display type he understood and commented that it would give the print more of a 'pop'. Mike selected which prints he thought were the strongest in terms of quality and recommended me to go over the type in a ink pen and through this you wouldn't know the difference if its done properly.

Following Mikes feedback I then went over certain aspects of the prints which paint dint fully get to, with a ink pen. It can be described as a botch job but I asked a number of peers if they noticed and they were oblivious to the ink pen addition.

OUGD505 - Studio brief 01 - Development

Now the print was ready for screenprinting it was time to consider materials and printing techniques to apply to my poster. As I discussed prior I required a range yellow stocks to experiment with in production so I looked into different variations of yellow on offer from paper merchants such as G.F Smith, Arjowiggins but even the college library provides good quality stock. Below are examples of yellow being used in the cinemas colour scheme and this moodboard gave me an indication of what I should be looking for when sourcing stock.

Materials/Stock

After finding only three yellows which I deemed appropriate for the poster I tested each one to see what works best. I found that G.F Smith colorplan Citrine was the most suiting to the poster and the cinema, the other options such as Sunshine yellow was too saturated and distracted the eye from the display type. In the end the main reasoning for deciding upon the G.F Smith option was to keep in schedule with my time plan. To expand, I can easily purchase the colorplan stock in Leeds (Fred Aldous) while Arjowiggins has no stockists near me so I'd have to order online. Waiting three days for postage wasn't an option as I planned to print once I arrived back in Leeds on the 19th April after my easter break. Therefore I can easily pick up the stock once back and begin the production of the posters without waiting upon the arrival of a Arjowiggins delivery. 

Printing techniques

In research I looked into traditional printing techniques to learn the potential and limitations of the processes available to me at college. As I decided to screenprint the poster I wanted to experiment with certain finishes that I cant achieve through digital print. After thought into what techniques could be applied to enhance the aesthetic value of the design, I started to think more about what finishes could be applied through meaning. The biggest influence and aspect of the poster design is the peg board, so I thought about the qualities and characteristics of a peg board. Its a 3d object with the type being slightly elevated on the board, therefore I required a print finish that creates a 3D feel in 2D. Applying a gloss finish over the display type creates a sense of depth in the design and furthers the importance of the message of 'Long live the cosiest cinema'. 

OUGD505 - Studio brief 01 - Development

Once the development of the poster was done I had a rough idea of the poster would look once screenprinted, the only difference will be most likely the saturation of the yellow as I will experiment with a range of yellow stocks to find one which is most suiting to Hyde Park Picture House.

Preparing the design for a two colour screenprint was the next stage of development as the printing techniques requires you to separate the layers for each colour of the design.

OUGD505 - Studio brief 01 - Development

In development I decided to choose the peg board idea to celebrate the survival of Hyde Park Picture House in 1989. From positive feedback and a real desire to push this idea further I felt it was the best option to develop as it has a number of aspects which are celebratory.

I drew influence from peg boards used commonly in coffee shops and restaurants but the direct link to this brief is that the cinema uses them to communicate showings and times. They are versatile and functional pieces of the cinema that provided me with real influence to portray my idea using a peg board style.

The main typographic treatment is the display type which is the focal point of the poster. Using the peg board dots to create a bespoke typeface with rounded characteristics which has a contemporary feel to it. Creating the typeface was an enjoyable process as I combined each dot with blend in illustrator but when designing each letterform I aimed to relate the type to the cinemas features. When designing the 'V' I had an opportunity to have the letterform informed by the diamonds which feature on the front of the building, like alongside the traditional lettering and on the ticket booth. Again I could use the diamond angle on the 'A', but this time around I mulled over the type design. I felt the 'A' was weak and undermined by the other letterforms, this is down to the crossbar being high so the eye is undermined. Compared to the more robust 'A' I originally designed, this one has an apex which is mainly the reason I ended up picking the diamond shaped 'A'. Along with it having more of a informative reasoning behind it and my peers believed it was more bespoke, even 'weird' was one word my peer used to describe the characteristic of the letterform. Other small changes I made to certain letters was the middle stroke on the 'E', this was to just make the letter more subtle and less robust.

The next stage of developing this idea was playing around with the alignment of the display type. The original idea is set in flush left / ragged right, this offers the most legibility but I wanted to experiment with the alignment as many peg boards play with the layout of lettering as the perforated peg board offers versatility. Flush right / ragged left and a mix of left and right alignment was tried out but I felt the original maintained the most legibility and stability. I also believed using centred aligned wouldn't work as the bottom half of the display type would be too bottom heavy and the eye would simply be drawn to 'cosiest cinema'. Therefore I stuck with flush left / ragged right alignment for 'Long live the cosiest cinema'.

The use of colour is key to this as this is when the decision was made to screenprint the poster design. Sceenprinting offers not many limitations in terms of colour and thickness and nature of the material on which the printing will be carried out. Therefore I felt I could experiment more with finishes, stock and colour with screenprinting. For the colour palette I focused on the already existing and recognizable colour scheme of black, yellow red and white that the cinema uses. In development it was a case of trying each colour out as the background colour and seeing which one works the best with a contrasting type colour. 

At this stage I was rather unsure on which colour worked best so I required peer feedback, the feedback as follows: 'I want to say red or black, more likely the red as it says cosy to me. The yellow is a little too light to be seen as cosy i think'. This was a piece of valuable feedback as it urged me to look more into colour theory and subsequently this would help me choose a colour scheme to go ahead with. Even though I could experiment with the colours during the print process with the use of different stocks and inks, it was a valuable part of the process to look at colour theory to see which one represents the cinema best and acts as a celebratory colour.

Yellow

Yellow is the colour of sunshine. It's associated with joy, happiness, intellect, and energy.

Yellow produces a warming effect, arouses cheerfulness, stimulates mental activity. Use yellow to evoke pleasant, cheerful feelings.Yellow is very effective for attracting attention, so use it to highlight the most important elements of your design.

Red

Red is the colour of fire and blood, so it is associated with energy, war, danger, strength, power, determination as well as passion, desire, and love. Red is a very emotionally intense colour. Red brings text and images to the foreground. 

Black

Black is associated with power, elegance, formality, death, evil, and mystery. Black denotes strength and authority; it is considered to be a very formal, elegant, and prestigious colour. Black gives the feeling of perspective and depth, but a black background diminishes readability. Black contrasts well with bright colours. Combined with red or orange, other very powerful colours, black gives a very aggressive colour scheme.

White

White is associated with light, goodness, innocence and purity. It is considered to be the color of perfection.White means safety, purity, and cleanliness. As opposed to black, white usually has a positive connotation. White can represent a successful beginning. In heraldry, white depicts faith and purity.

From looking into colour theory I had a more clear understanding of what colours to use. Firstly using yellow as the background colour it helps to produce a warming effect and arouse cheerfulness but also attracts attention and contrasts well with a black type. Using black type with a yellow background helps highlight the most important element of my design. As the type is the main aspect of a peg board, I needed a colour that helps highlight the type again for the dots so I chose white as its subtly pleasing paired with yellow and black. These three colours working together are often used for the cinemas promotional work so they seem relevant to use too.

Once the colour scheme was settled upon I added body copy which gives insight into the event which saved the cinema in 1989. The body copy is 18px so more than okay for screenprinting as the lowest is 12px for this type of traditional print. This now acts as a informative poster which delves into a part of the cinemas history. With the addition of body copy I altered the layout a number of times to see which composition was best. Other design decisions to be made were the type choices for the body copy, the three I highlighted were all sans serif fonts but the final decision was Rubik as its slightly rounded corners help compliment the rounded corners of the display type.

OUGD505 - Studio brief 01 - Development

In development I chose to create four of the ideas in Illustrator in basic form to get a rough idea of how the potential final pieces may look like. I chose these four as I believed they received the most positive feedback but also ones I felt I could enhance more. From initial sketch to mocked up in illustrator I could see which ideas stood out, although I knew each idea could be considerably changed in development. I felt it was clear which one had a strong enough aesthetic, originality and able to celebrate the event confidently.

The first idea of 'Long live the cosiest cinema in Leeds' is set in Colophon foundries Central Avenue which is based on  hand-painted signage. The typeface style is a simple sans serif but with a industrial and and contemporary feel to it. It fits perfectly for old cinema signage but this response like my peers mentioned in feedback is obvious and maybe can only be altered a number of ways in development. The second development is the peg board idea which plays with the cinemas informative peg board which is situated outside the door of the cinema. 'Long live the cosiest cinema in Leeds' is constructed from dot to dot in a custom font. In the first attempt of this idea, not enough dots were available to create 'cosiest' but I was able to figure out how the idea would look on a basic level. This idea reminds me of work of Paul McNeil the typography designer who combines dots to create typefaces and systems.

The third developed idea is the one which utilizes exposed content with the combination of text and imagery of the cinema. I think this idea is the least informed in terms of the style but the use of images help reference the cinema and the unique features of the grade II listed building. The body copy of the design has small insights into the event in 1989. The final developed idea really pinpoints the year the council saved the picture house as it lists all the years the cinema has been around then 1989 is outlined for signification.

Feedback
As I stated in the introduction to this blog post I felt it was clear which one had a strong enough aesthetic, originality and able to celebrate the event confidently. The second idea of the peg board stood out the most for me and my peers believed so too. They believed thats it is both contextually informed and aesthetically informed as the message celebrates the event while the style has roots to not just Hyde Park Picture House but also cinema in general. They also liked how it isn't obvious at first that the design is a peg board and also believed the type can be played with more to make this an interesting response. Other feedback on the other basic developments were that the exposed content idea had potential but in the end wouldn't be as celebratory as the peg board idea.

OUGD505 - Studio brief 01 - Feedback

After I sketched the initial ideas I required feedback to allow me to develop some ideas further. I asked a number of my peers for feedback and asked them to look further than the rough sketches and imagine the final piece. I did this because I know myself that the rough sketches aren't the clearest examples of the ideas, but they offer a reference point and aim to give a vague indication of the visual idea.

I introduced all the ideas along with underlying concepts and the event itself so my peers knew the background of my ideas first. Peoples first initial thoughts of my ideas were that ones with 'Long live the 'cosiest cinema' in Leeds were the strongest, this is because they felt the message was celebratory and can stand alone as a typographic approach. The idea which is influenced by old cinema type and signage received positive feedback but people believed it was a obvious response and likened it to Alphabets work for the cinema. Although I did look at the Alphabets work for research, I do feel like this idea can be executed differently, even Alphabets solution for the picture house is rather simple and obvious by being inspired by traditional cinema type.

The other idea using the message that received good feedback was the peg board idea, people liked the peg board informing the design and it isn't obvious until you know. People believed various alterations can be made to this design in development and advised me to take it further, furthermore other visual ideas that people liked was the more contemporary design which used exposed content to highlight the event. Its the only idea with imagery, with the imagery showing the original features of the cinema. People liked the idea of the picture house having a more contemporary solution that makes people look at the cinema in a different way.

Ideas that didn't really take off with my peers were the ones including illustrations of either the cinema reel or the features of the building. One peer didn't see the relevance of the cinema reel while others believed having illustrations of the original features was celebrating something different. While I mentioned that by the council saving the cinema meant in turn it saved the beautiful features of the building. They still stuck by their beliefs that it went off topic and was celebrating maybe the building being granted grade II listing in 1996.

OUGD505 - Studio brief 01 - Ideas

For further development of the ideas I sketched some initial visual ideas in rough form to get an understanding of my ideas on how to celebrate the cinema. One theme that featured a lot during my idea process was 'Long live the cosiest cinema in Leeds' this was derived from research, as when the cinema first opened in 1914, a small section of a local newspaper said 'The cosiest cinema in Leeds opens'. Still to this day the cinema remains the cosiest and with the message 'long live' its a celebratory message which highlights how the cinema is still here.

This idea is influenced by the peg board which is located in the entrance of the picture house, the board is used to inform people of the latest showings and what times they're on. 'Long live the cosiest cinema in Leeds' is used in this design and looks like a film title on the board. In development this idea can be transformed a number of ways as the position of the text can be moved around. Many peg boards dont stick to a structured layout as many times before Ive seen the picture house play with the lettering in different ways such as rotating individual letterforms. In terms of the printing method of this idea then it could be simply screen printed as one colour screenprint, using black stock and white paint would be the obvious response as its informed by the peg board but experimentation could occur in development.

This second sketch is influenced by my love for contemporary posters which explore exposed content. Again I think this idea would be best executed as a black and white screenprint to help highlight the content in space. The idea aims to showcase the buildings architecture through imagery that would be halftone if screenprinted. Other content includes the year the council saved the cinema and informative content on the happenings of the event which secured the cinemas future.

This idea is a simple response which only uses typography to celebrate the council saving the cinema, on the left side of the poster a list of the years since the cinema was saved. This is to show the aftermath of the cinema but also this can be developed to show all the years of the cinema in a list then '1989' is highlighted to be specific of the event.

The two ideas above combine illustrations and typography to show the grade II listed buildings unique character that was saved by the council. Features such as the famous clock, ticket booth and peg board all feature. 

Influenced by old cinema signage and typography this idea communicates 'Long live the cosiest cinema in Leeds' but through a more traditional approach  that is heavily informed by the cinema history.

One idea that focuses more on generic cinema than the picture house itself is this one, using a cinema reel to sprawl across the design shows that the picture house is still very traditional such as being the last gas lit cinema in the country.