OUGD402 Leeds Print Fair (Studio Brief One)

I visited Leeds Print Fair whilst it was on at Munro House in Leeds. Whilst there, I looked around all the stalls and felt really inspired by the designs that the companies selling their products had created. Below are some of the images I took. I found the trip really useful as there were lots of talented print makers there and they all had their own specific style - something I will hopefully have by the end of the degree course.

This is a photograph of one of the stalls selling prints. I thought this stall was really interesting as they were really good at upselling - there was a small boy who questioned us which print we thought was the most important on the table, which ofcourse was the print that portrayed the message 'never trust a Torie'.

I thought this stall was also really interesting as they weren't just selling prints, but sold little pins and badges which were really cute. The design of the prints were also really original and interesting to look at.

This stall was my favourite as it had a lot of different items for sale, including little notebooks with really cute patterns printed on the front cover. I bought one of these and it came with a little business card which I think is a really good way of getting the name of your brand out there. There were also business cards on the table to pick up so you could purchase an item later in the future.

This stall had prints for sale with little quirky illustrations on which I really loved. They were simplistic yet I think had been designed using Adobe Illustrator so were slick and neat at the same time. I also really liked the use of colour as mostly they were black and white outlines with just one block colour.

These were some of the prints from the actual print festival which I thought were really nicely designed and really abstract and colourful. I also liked the fact that they are so abstract that the observer had to interpret the design themselves, whereas some of the other designs, the message was very obvious.

OUGD402 Gourmet NFN Trainer Box Design (Studio Brief One)

I recently bought a pair of trainers and I am incredibly inspired by the geometric grid design on the packaging. I tink the design is really slick and very relevant for the trainers and actual brand of the company. Although the photos I took of the box isn't great as the lighting in my uni room is poor and there isn't a lot of space. I particularly like the fact that the cardboard is the same colour, as with some shoe box designs you often get the colour of the box a different colour, for example Nike and Adidas trainers.

I also think the design is really current and in keeping with the brands identity, something I will have to focus on when designing my self-branding project. I also really like the typography used as I think it looks traditional as a serif font is used, however there are gaps in certain sections of the letter which make it look up to date and current at the same time.

I also really like their logo. It is designed based on an octapus, which is in keeping with the name of the brand. The design is incredibly slick and I really like the way the logo is enclosed with a patterned circle as it makes it look really professional and well designed.

OUGD402 Self Branding (Studio Brief Two)

For studio brief two, we have been asked to design, develop and produce a self branding that effectively communicates and promotes myself as an individual designer and learner. To inform my design decisions I should reflect upon my learning, aspirations and design direction. I should aim to communicate the context of my interests by referencing specific designers, studios, principles and audiences where necessary.

This brief should be my opportunity to explore, develop and demonstrate content, processes and areas of design that interest me at this point in time and may indicate your emerging creative concerns in Graphic Design.

OUGD402 April Ashley Exhibition, Liverpool Art Gallery (Studio Brief One)

I saw this exhibition about half a year ago in Liverpool and I found it really inspiring as the concept of the exhibition was incredibly strong, and it was also a celebration. It was celebration the life of April Ashley and her bravery in persuing her career and staying a strong and inspirational woman through-out and after. The exhibition was basically a timeline of her life. It was really interesting and i particularly liked the graphic design behind the layout of the timeline, as the colours worked really well together and the design was really slick and contrasting - similar to the concept of the exhibition.

OUGD402 Shezad Dawood, Leeds Art Gallery (Studio Brief One)

I went to Leeds Art Gallery and looked around. I found this piece of art by Shezad Dawood really inspiring as I think the colours and the perfect shapes look really great on the wall. I think the way the installation was laid out in the gallery was really effective also, as it basically had its own room and it was really inspiring and eyecatching. I'm not really too sure of the meaning of the installation, however I think it's really aesthetically pleasing and I would love one in my room at home - obviously on a smaller scale.

OUGD402 The Wolf of Wall Street, Stratton Oakmont Inc., Logo Design (Studio Brief One)

I am currently watching The Wolf of Wall Street, a movie starring Leonardo DiCaprio, and in the movie he rebrands his company so that the target market of his business will be broader, and aimed at well established companies instead of small businesses. In the movie, he unveils the logo design for his new company, which really inspired me as the design for the logo is spot on for what he is trying to achieve. This is the new logo design that is used.

I looked into the logo design (which I originally thought would've been designed specifically for the movie) and I found out that it is actually a real company, which suprised me as I didn't know the movie was based on a true story. Stratton Oakmont was a Long Island, New York 'over-the-counter' brokerage house, that is mainly known for the defrauding of many shareholders, which eventually lead to the downfall of several executives and the closing of the firm. 

I think the logo looks incredibly trusting (and so must of a lot of big firms), for example the typography used is a serif font, which makes it looks like an old company with good values. Also the fact that a lion is the main logo, and lions generally represent strength and bravery. I also think the fact that the grid used behind the lion was incredibly slick, as it sort of looks like a stock market sheet, but also it is morphed so it looks like the Earth as well. Overall, I think the logo is incredibly successful and definitely portrays what the company apparently stood for. 

OUGD402 Design Studio's, Study Task One (Studio Brief One)

In today's session, we went through studio brief one, and were told we need to update our blog regularly with inspiration, art and design. We were split into 5 groups and were given a design studio to research. We had to create a 3 minute presentation for the outcome, and only had 40 minutes to research and compress our information. My group was given the design studio Kontrastika, a design studio based in Slovenia. Below are the people that founded the company, and what they do to contribute to the design.

		Matjaž Tomažič Graphic designer, illustrator and information architect
		Mojca Janželj Tomažič Graphic, textile, interior designer and photographer
		Tomaž Jamnik Assistant graphic designer

We then looked into the meaning of the logo. The logo apparently has a profound meaning from marketing, as well as sociological and religious meaning, however the meaning has yet to be revealed. It is going to be revealed on the brands 50th anniversary.

We also looked into the type of design that the studio creates. Personally, I'm not too fond of some of the branding as some are quite messy-looking and they don't really communicate a brand meaning, similar to the company's own logo - although maybe there is a reason for this? However, I really enjoy their graphic design as I think they're really expressive and aesthetically pleasing, although again don't really communicate a message. 

Some of the studios that the other groups looked at include Snask, Sagmeister and Walsh and Hey Studio.