I've been working with Arvinn&Finn magazine (see Stack Magazine on Extended Practice), on the design of their independent mag. Although this was a competition brief, the final mag will be printed at mass and distributed around the UK. 

This was a really fun brief to work on, but also a big confidence boost. I've worked on large briefs for brands, but not many where there is such a broad range of distribution. I love the idea that an entire magazine I have designed will be read as a form of relaxation, by people all around the UK. 

I did not really the pleasure in this until I was given the brief, and since then I would really like to work on more mass produced magazines and books in the future. 

Where to start. 

Not to sound arrogant, but I feel the communication side of PPP has been easier for me than others. This is sheerly down to confidence, drive and positivity. When presenting, I feel my presentations have been confident, friendly and informative. In first year, I had very little confidence in my work, but now I am happy to speak about it, therefore speaking in front of the class is much easier. This has been carried forward in placements, where I've transferred those skills to presenting my ideas to others in the studio. This confidence is carried over when approaching studios, where i've found calling up a studio is the best way to get someones attention. I learnt this when calling studios for placements, when I called up two of my favourite studios in January (Two Times Elliott & Graphic Thought Facility), and within 15 minutes both emailed me back with interviews, one of which resulting in a placement. 

In terms of speaking to creatives, I'm sure i've approached it the right way, something i've learnt from Jon Watters. I've never met a tutor so genuine. The way he speaks to us as a year group is almost the exact approach I've taken when speaking to studios. It's down to earth and informal, yet intelligent and professional. 

Jon has taught me that being creative is a gift that should be pushed, and shouldn't be pigeon-holed or held back. He's made me consider bigger and brighter ideas, to push my work and to push where I want to work. I never would have thought that I would be offered a placement in one of my favourite studios in Amsterdam, something I will definitely follow up with at some point in the future. 

The beauty of the design industry is that creativity is a fantastic common ground that almost instantly brings people together, no matter where they are in the world. Networking online is incredibly easy, and organising international visits with an online portfolio to display makes getting a job anywhere much easier. 

Creativity can be pushed out of your defined skill set. I've learned how to make things 'look pretty', but i've also learned to think conceptually and to broaden my mind. I want to push creativity in industries or areas that are alien to me - in fact I've started to produce music  as a slight break from design. Believe it or not, without opening my mind to ideas, I really don't think this would have happened. 

Doing this degree has done more than taught me a skill set, or given me a grade I can impress my grandparents with. I've learnt that unlike vocational degrees, i've come away with aspirations and future ambitions, not just for myself, but also to inspire others, and to pass on the beauty of creativity. 

Below you can see an ISSUU document containing my final boards for my Self Promotion: 

I thought it would be good to note down some of plans for after I graduate. 

1. Take a break from grids, x-heights and Pantone swatches. 
I genuinely think this year has had negative impacts on me socially and mentally. When I enjoy something, I become way too absorbed. My mind overloads with information, which is difficult to get rid of unless I do the work i've set myself. I spend far too long working on projects and struggle to leave work alone. For the passed few weeks i've been working between 10 and 18 hours a day behind a computer, which is surely not a healthy way to live

Even though i've completed larger projects and achieved my goals, i've not been happy. I've neglected relationships without realising and been impatient for what seems like no reason. I've missed out on chances to see people sheerly because I needed to get work done. Although this is probably the right decision as a student, it has not been good for my well being. 

2. Spend time with my family. 
At Easter my father was diagnosed with cancer. I saw him begin chemo treatment just as I was leaving home to come back to Leeds. At first this was a huge struggle to get passed work wise, but I knew that all he would want is for me to crack on and make him proud. He's now finished his chemo and will soon be cured. 

Being away from home at a time like this made me realise how life can change so quick, and although now is a time for me to be selfish and to gain success, it's also a time when it's too easy to neglect those who support you. I cannot wait to go home and spend time that i'v missed with him, even if it just sitting in front of the TV with the cat. 


3. Keep in contact with those who i've met. 
In the passed three years i've made such great friends, people who I will never forget. Even though we will all be going our separate directions, I feel it's vital to hold these connections with those who i'm sure will be successful in a few years from now. 

Similarly, all the studio contacts I have made I will keep updated with. 

4. Get myself a design job I enjoy. 
Lucky for me, London is home. All my favourite design studios are in London, and every placement I have had in London has been convenient to get to and also with a great group of people. I can't wait to work somewhere where the 9 to 6 job pushes me but also where each day feels like the best collaboration I could ask for. 

I was lucky enough to work with Welsh & Jefferies, a tailors on Savile Row - Please see my Extended Practice blog for design work. 

This was a great experience for me as a freelance designer. It was the first time I have ever branded a highly traditional, well established business. Of course I have branded individuals and small companies before, but this was the biggest and also most intimidating live brief i've ever done. 

My confidence and professionalism was tested with weekly meetings at the tailors, over Christmas and Easter. Not to mention not knowing how you should dress when visiting a tailors...

Originally, all that was required was a website revamp. However, I managed to push for a full rebrand, printed collateral and all. This has taught me how to work with higher budgets, and also the benefits of working with serious clients. I have also learned ways of pushing for more work, which also means being paid more. 

Working with smaller clients with less of a budget has been much more tough, as they have been less inclined to pay, and constantly seem to strive for the cheapest options. Working with Welsh & Jefferies also worked better as they seemed to have more respect for me as a designer. 

An exciting day out of the centre of Leeds to Pressision in Pudsey. 

Some examples of work they've printed: 

Conclusions From Visit

This was the first time i've ever visited a professional printers, and it was really good fun. Pressision was set up by an ex-graphic designer, and they specialise in creative printer. It was inspiring to see work they've printed, and made me feel really hopefully that when I'm funded with bigger clients in the future, I can get worked printed really interestingly. 

The most impressive printed for me was the litho press, which prints an incredible amount of pages a minute. I would love to design something that gets printed at mass. 

Another interesting fact - Pressision have a digital printer that can print white, something i've never known can be done. This also means white can be used as an 'underpinned' colour, so in general, lighter colours than the stock can be printed. 

Pressision also had some charming foil block machines, that are still in use after 50 years. 

I was lucky enough to visit Andy at Graphic Thought Facility today, which was really fun. 

Here are the only sneaky photos I took of the studio: 

Andy was a really nice guy - Originally from Sheffield, he knew Leeds well, so we had a common ground to discuss. 

I took him through the work on my website, he was particularly interested in the type revival I produced for my COP practical. We discussed typeface revivals in general, something both of us were really passionate about. 

Interestingly, Andy explained how they commission A2 Type Foundry to produce logotypes for them,  instead of designing them in house for their clients. Unfortunately, places for interns are full until September. Andy said I can keep in touch and keep busy until then. He also said it could be beneficial for me to get some experience at A2 type foundry, who he obviously has links with. 

I promised to keep in contact, and hopefully working at either A2 or Graphic Thought Facility at some point could be arranged!

If i'm honest, I did not really like the environment at Graphic Thought Facility. It felt too office like, and not as relaxed as my placement Two Times Elliott was. However, their work is by far my favourite of any studio, so I would love to give it a try before making a sweeping assumption. 

Roxanne suggested going to this Sign Painting exhibition in Shoreditch with her. It's not normally something I take much interest in, but I was excited to see something new anyway. 

Conclusion

Unfortunately, the exhibition itself had finished. The space that was originally gallery space had been turned into a bar / cafe, making it awkward to look at the work. Nevertheless, it was still really great to see, especially in person. Being able to see the brushstrokes used, and the vivid choices of colour really inspired me.

Being from a Fine Art background, I really do miss getting my hands dirty. When I have the tim after graduation, I think it would be great to give sign painting a go. My knowledge of typefaces should give me a slight head start, but I think it would be a fun skill set to have, and also something unique nowadays! 

After discussing work experience with Andy from Graphic Thought Facility at Christmas, I was informed that they only offer internships. I planned to discuss this at Christmas time at the studio, but unfortunately Andy did not have any time to see me. 

After some of Graphic Thought Facilities work was displayed at the Design Of The Year, I took this as a great excuse to email Andy with a catch up of what i've been up to. Even though I have very little time before I go back up to Leeds, I thought I could at least try to see him.

My email:

Andy's response:

Fingers crossed he will have time to see me. Graphic Thought Facility is my favourite studio, and working there is really convenient, with the studio only being 30 minutes commute away from home in London. 

As mentioned in my end of year PPP Presentation, I would love to work in San Franscisco briefly to work at Manual. 

http://manualcreative.com

As you can see by my favourite project of theirs, for Google, their work is really intellectually stimulating and well considered: 

After researching into their internships, I came across this PDF:

I also researched into the studio's design team, and noticed their founder is from Yorkshire. This is something to remember and could be a way in:

Tom Crabtree

Creative Director & Founder

Born in Yorkshire, England, Tom began his career in London working for leading design studios with clients in art, architecture, fashion, and music. After a decade in London, Tom relocated to San Francisco to join Apple's design team, working on packaging design and art direction. In 2009 Tom founded Manual with the intention of creating a design studio that fused these two backgrounds—combining creative expression with highly disciplined brand creation.

Below is the email I sent through. From interviews with Tom, he seemed like quite a relaxed person, so I decided to be slightly more informal and personal in my email:

Fingers crossed something great will come of it! 

The Rijkmusuem is comparable to the Tate Britain, but much bigger. It is such a big museum, that Roxxie and I decided to focus on the big enough collection of Rembrandt they have on exhibition. 

Being from a Fine Art background at A Level, I'm a fan of the classically taught painting style, and Rembrandt is the absolute master of it. 

The Rijksmusuem in all it's glory: 

Inside:

A beautiful Self Portrait of Rembrandt in his early life:

Portrait Of A Women (1639) - Rembrandt

Johannes Vermeer - The Milk Maid

Johannes Vermeer - Woman In Blue Reading A Letter

I couldn't resist seeing some Monet, here's La Corniche. 

A classic Van Gogh piece - Self Portrait, 1887. 

Banquet at the Crossbowmen's Guild in Celebration of the Treaty of Münster by Bartholomeus van der Helst (1648)

Night watch by Rembrandt

The library in the Rijksmuseum was also truly spectacular: 

Conclusions

Absolutely amazing work, true masterpieces. 

All of these artists spent a lifetime perfecting their skill. It made me think that i'm still young, but if I keep at whatever i'm good at, one day i'll have my masterpiece.

It won't be a Rembrandt, or a Vermeer, but hopefully the design equivalent! 

Many of the painting exhibited would take years and years to complete. This made me think why can't this be the same with one of my projects? I would love to spend years creating something that would make a mark and be seen as my masterpiece. 

The Stedelijk Musuem is an art gallery, that is like the combination of the Saatchi, The Design Museum & The Tate. There is contemporary art, graphic design, product design and some classic painting. 

Whilst I was at the Stedelijk, there was an exhibition on of Matisse's work:

Personally I prefer his drawings to his paintings: 

A section on The De Stijl Movement:

De Stijl is Dutch for "The Style" and, was a Dutch artistic movement founded in 1917 in Amsterdam. The De Stijl consisted of artists and architects. De Stijl considers pure abstraction andreduction to the essentials of form and colour; they simplified visual compositions to the vertical and horizontal directions, and used only primary colors along with black and white. 

Some more Matisse drawings:

The navigation at the Stedelijk is really nice, I'm a huge fan of the Grotesk typeface used:

 Some beautiful art deco posters:

Some Russian Constructivism: 

Some wood block printing: 

A house designed in the style of De Stijl: 

A famous Wim Crouwel (Mr Gridnik) poster: 

Love the vibrant colours below: 

Not really sure why this was exhibited..

Really nice screen printed covers: 

Great colours in these cups:

Some work exhibited by a Jewellery design that Design Poilitie have branded: 

 

Great use of illustration: 

Ed Atkins

Ed Atkins works primarily with High Definition video and text, exploiting and subverting the conventions of moving image and literature.

The below exhibition was really strange. I've never come across Atkin's work before, and it was quite shocking. He was given a vast space to exhibit his animations, which were the highest quality CGI I have ever seen, let alone as a Fine Art piece. The videos themselves were non sensical, the only thing I could figure out was an outlook on modern technologies affect on us. 

As you can see, it was hard to photograph:

Back To Matisse:

Really nice calligraphic handwriting: 

A famous print:

Matisse's cut outs are really inspiring. He uses primary colours well with such a basic form. 

I would really like to create this sense of play in my work somehow. 

Beautiful vibrance in the pop art section: 

Some nice Pop art letters by Robert Indiana:

Some signage before leaving:

Conclusions

This has been one of my favourite museum visits, simply due to the diversity. I was able to see classic and contemporary art, as well as design all in the same place. 

De Stijl - De Stijl's simple colour palette and basic form has inspired the minimalist inside. 

Matisse - Again, his colour palettes have inspired me, but to be more playful and maybe more hands on with my work.