OUGD502 - Taking Care of Business - Study Task 1

Once we formed our group (Me, Becky, Laura and Daisy) we got straight into thinking about areas of graphic design that we are all interested in. 

When coming up with names we wanted to focus around our specific interests in analogue and traditional methods of design. We looked at a lot of synonyms of "different" because we wanted to do be a different kind of studio that battles against the digitisation of design. I personally really liked the names "seed" and "roots" because it portrays that idea of going back to basics or back to traditional design in our case.

Before deciding on a final name we thought it would be best to outline our 5 areas of investigation so that we could get a feel for what sort of studio we would be. We really want to emphasise the use of print based media, having something that's tactile that you can touch and feel rather than staring at a screen. 

OUGD502 - Studio Brief 1 - Creative Report - SNASK articles

After I decided that I wanted to do Snask for my creative report I started to look out for any other articles or interviews that they have appeared in or written. I found that Snask (Freddie Ost) writes a section in the back of each issue of Computer Arts magazine named "snaskified" that contains their quirky style as well as useful tips for aspiring designers.

I also contacted a previous graduate of our course who is in contact with Snask to get her help on how to approach them and what tone of voice to use. She was really helpful and suggested that I read up a lot about them before contacting them and perhaps do something different if I was trying to email them to ask for an interview. 

Below are some of the articles/interviews that they have done recently:

Washington Post Magazine Cover

Desktop Mag chat with Snask

OUGD502 - Neon Workshop in Wakefield

At the weekend I embarked on a neon workshop - to learn how to make a piece of neon art. We were told the history of neon and how it was used. Most people call it neon but it is in fact known as cold cathode lighting because the gases used aren't always made from neon. There are many other gases each with their own unique colour. There were a lot of stunning pieces around the workshop itself, each made by the owners.

This particular piece was made out of a number of different tubes with different gases the helium gas which gives a soft peachy colour to the light, xenon creates the light blue light and another gas for the white. 

There was also a small exhibition space behind the workshop with some really interesting pieces. I love the fusion of the different colours of glass to create these pipes. This combined with the ambient blue glow gives them a really calming aura. 

There was also some neon created by an artist (whom I've unfortunately forgotten the name of!) and were blown and bent in such a way to replicate intestines. These are very interesting in the way that the artist has managed to make subtle folds within the curve without letting the glass touch. 

There was also lots of examples of different type that was lit up. My favourite by far was the hand written "Less". I really like how it almost conveyed the less is more ethos within the type, it doesn't have a script or a fancy typeface it is just simple hand writing. Also the colour is not in your face or too bright so it works really well. If I could have afforded to buy this piece I definitely would have done!

For the workshop itself I found it really fun to do! We started out with glass tubing, which we had to put a tube in one end in order to be able to blow through it to even out the diameter of the tube when being curved. I opted for a simple chevron type curve for the first one and it came out beautifully! The tutor was very impressed which made me quite proud. For the next tube he asked us to make a more complex shape with a thinner tube. However when I tried this I ended up curving the tube too much so that it collapsed back on itself rendering it unusable. But overall the experience was really fun and I would definitely love to try it again. I was also thinking about asking to do a sort of internship or a work experience thing because I would love to learn more!

OUGD502 - Study Task - Dreams/Wish List

In our session today John talked about how important it is to be yourself and have your own personalities when it comes to creative design. Everybody is different and we each express ourselves in different ways. Our task was to write down our dreams for our lives and our careers. At first thinking about this was a bit daunting but when I started to think of my own practice I came up with a lot of goals that I could probably reach.

I really like the idea of being able to have my own printing studio. Ever since I discovered print making I absolutely love every aspect of it, so having a printmaking studio with screen printing, letterpress and lino cutting facilities would be awesome. To be able to expand my knowledge and possibly even teach others this I think is my biggest dream.

One of my other dreams, which might be quite achievable to do, is to learn round hand calligraphy and other types of calligraphy. I have actually started to practice with but not properly. My calligraphy style at the moment uses the rules of round hand calligraphy with my own looser style. 

Also thinking about it a lot my dream job would be an illustrator - maybe even an illustrator for children's books. However I don't feel like I have my own style of illustration so that is why I chose to do graphic design instead. I equally enjoy both subjects, I just enjoy the freedom of illustration more, how it can be taken way from the computer screen and I could do it anywhere. 

Additionally I would love to travel the world someday - especially Scandinavia. I seem to be drawn to there because of its beautiful scenery and relaxed and laid back attitude to life. 

From looking at all of my wishes/dreams for my career I think that they are all possible within my lifetime. It's just about putting my mind to it and practice.