feedback.

We recently recieved feedback from our Exploring Graphic Design project, for which I recieved a 2:1, which I am incredibly proud of, seems as we had 3 weeks for Christmas break off, in which I couldn't recieve any feedback on some of my designs, which I was worried about and had to 'go it alone'. But I am very pleased with myself, and I've learnt so much already from both sets of feedback, both for Visual Communication and Exploring Graphic Design. I've learnt to ensure to include plenty of contextual references, and to take note from these, and try and incorporate things I've learnt from them into my work. I've also learnt to become a little more self critical, and not just accept my work because it's so close to deadline day, anything will do. And also, to be confident enough to ask my peers what they think, and to use this informal feedback creatively, and use it to help my work become better. I'm going to try my very best in this new project, and hopefully (fingers crossed) I'll get a first for all my hardwork! 

more books, again...

So I've chosen my idea for my competition for this new brief, I think I'm gonna' do a children's book competition, or a writing competition, where the trophy is a bit of a rag doll of a character that I'm going to hopefully be able to invent, to pull through the posters, and the magazine etc, and then the end product would be the rag doll. I've decided to go with something more illustrative (even though I can't draw) and try and do some collages, but working in lots of different textures, and maybe bring some textiles into it, as it's a children's competition, I want them to get involved and take a hands-on approach. I just need to start researching artists, which there are plenty of Children's Book's illustrators out there, and I need to start working out exactly what I'm going to do. I'm really excited about it though!

Today we also had our interviews for the vogue work experience, and although I was very nervous, I tried my best and I think that the answers I gave where honest, and showed my enthusiasm and excitement to go, and how I would take that opportunity with both hands and absolutely run 1,000 miles with it! What an opportunity of a LIFETIME! Amazing. We find out a week today, and I'm keeping all my fingers and toes crossed!

new brief!

I really can't believe how quickly the briefs are passing me by, and how quickly the year is going. And yet again, today we recieved our new brief, for Graphic Communication for concept. The brief is pretty exciting, and will help us to explore our creativity. We have to design promotional material for a competition, either invented or already established. I definitely want to try and do something quirky and a little bit off the wall, but my brain is absolutely dead! My initial ideas were more about a village fete, but doing a really quirky slant on it, the trophy being a golden turnip or something silly, a bit fun. However, recently I'd saw some really lovely, vintage looking homeware designed for H&M, very traditional looking illustrations on pillow covers, or as tea towels.



I think a little more research into possible competitions is needed, or maybe a chat with other people to see what more ideas I can come up with. 

organisation.

A skill I clearly wish I still had. I used to be so good at organizing my time, but now I've just got out the routine. After hand-in on Friday, and feeling crappy because we had to take a hour out to do a workshop, so I thought I wouldn't finish in time made me realise that I can't keep working on the 'main' project all the time, I need to loosen up and be multi-tasking. I think my problem is, that I'm good at focusing on one thing at a time, and only when that is finished, can I move onto something else. Clearly something that needs to change! Eep.

underwater.

Recently, I went to visit an exhibition I saw advertised on the internet called 'Underwater' at the Bluecoat, where a range of artists where displaying work that focused on being submerged in water and the world of water, and being underwater.

Firstly, I watched a video call 'Jellyfish Lake' by Dorothy Cross (2002) in which a woman, whose head is above water, but not held upright, but floating, is floating in water, with lots of jelly fish floating around her. There is no sound, which I found incredibly eerie, and because you don't see the woman's face, you begin to ask questions about her physical state - is she dead? and her mental state - is she okay? Why is she floating in the waters like this? However, even though all our questions are about the woman, the video focuses very much on the jellyfish, how they move, their patterns of movement, as they duck and dive in front and behind the camera. Even though it seems quite eerie, it is also very calm, the water in which she's in is calm, and settled, and although "spooky", it doesn't seem to alarm us to any danger.



Still from 'Jellyfish Lake' by Dorothy Cross



Secondly, was 'Submarine II' by Cut + Scrape, and my initial and only thoughts about this installation piece, which had a motion sensor on it and emitted submarine noises, was what is the point? The dates on the information said 2007-10, and I couldn't comprehend what they'd spent three years doing.

Another video was showing, called 'Becoming Light' by Bill Viola (2005) which showed two people (possibly lovers) half submerged in water, but unlike Cross's woman in the water, these two looked as though they were struggling, the video was in high definition and slow motion, which looked really interesting, but I thought the video represented a different side to water, the more dangerous, imposing side of it, which could possibly symbolise the love of these two people? Just some thoughts...

Some more pieces that I loved where two photographs by Daniel Gustav Cramer, which were called "Untitled (Underwater) nos 17 and 18" (2009). These images where incredibly appealing to me, but also incredibly spooky looking, I think Cramer has really taken on board the aspect of looking at the underwater world as another world. The waters he depicts are murky, not the picture perfect seas we see in the travel brochures, but I absolutely love these images of his, I think they are beautiful.



From the Underwater series by Daniel Gustav Cramer



Finally, I looked at some illustrations done by Ed Pien, from a set called "Two Worlds" (1999), these images seem to depict aspects of our world, above water, with those of the underwater world. These combined, present us with a kind of morphed character, which sometimes look ugly and scary. Could this be symbolic that land and sea can never be one? They are two completely different entities and cannot and should not be combined?

An image of some of Ed Pien's work for 'Two Worlds'

ways of seeing.

The deadline for 'Exploring Graphic Design' is Friday, and I feel a bit more relaxed than I usually do. Today I went to visit the crypt in the Metropolitan Cathedral in Liverpool, which I think will help me tomorrow when I'm putting my magazine together. I've not been able to do much work on my magazine at home, because I don't have the programmes on my laptop. This might start to become more of an issue as I start to work towards the final deadline, but for now, I've done most of my background work at home, and using my time in university to use the computers and other resources I don't have at home.

Today I also finished the book I was reading called 'Ways of Seeing' by John Berger, it is a a book of seven short essays, four of which combine words and images, 3, are just entirely images. The 7th essay interested me the most, because it was about advertising, an industry that is highly associated with Graphics. Below is a passage from the book, which I found quite interesting:

"Publicity images also belong to the moment in the sense that they must be continually renewed and made up-to-date. Yet they never speak of the present. Often they refer to the past and always they speak of the future. We are now so accustomed to being addressed by these images that we scarcely notice their total impact. A person may notice a particular image or piece of information because it corresponds to some particular interest he has. But we accept the total system of publicity images as we accept an element of climate."

I appreciate that as a Graphic Designer, this information is incredibly important, possibly worrying, maybe designers are finding it much harder to be influential and make an impact, when the society we live in, including ourselves as graphic designers, are not actively noticing advertisements. Or is it worrying that we are doing this, and frighteningly, are picking up the messages these adverts send subconsciously, which is an altogether more powerful thing.

new year.

So it's the new year, but only two weeks left before the Exploring Graphic Design submission. I can't wait to finally put together the magazine i've been working solidly on for the past 5 weeks. I was in need of a tutorial, which I managed to get today, and between me and my tutor, we worked out what I now need to do to get the brief finished. Over the Christmas holidays, I felt like I lost my way a little, and was just doing any kind of work I could think of, just to make sure I was doing something. Sometimes I need reigning in, and go back to the point of the brief. I'm back on track and I'm feeling bright about the submission.