OUGD601 - CoP Practical - Initial designs

My initial designs were to fit with a more traditional sandwich net and were based on my sketches. I knew that I couldn't use a plastic window like sandwiches normally have to show the contents so I decided on trying to illustrate the sandwiches themselves. Because I wanted to keep the packaging as environmentally friendly as possible, I only wanted to use one colour ink so I feel like it is hard to determine the contents of the sandwich without more definition and colour. I also tried different variations of a label of sorts using more organic lines to represent plants and vines.  I'm not sure about this design, I feel like it is missing something and I can't quite place my finger on it. 

OUGD603 - Lifting Tower Projection - Final animations & Evaluation

These were my two finished pieces to go into the animation sequence (compiled into gifs, they are a lot smoother in video format). Considering that this was my first time using after effects properly I am really proud of the outcome. However, I did get a lot of help from my animation peers in my group. My favourite animation is the jumper pattern one, even though this was not my original idea I think that the simplicity of it and the bold graphics made it work really well when projected. The couple animation lost its detail when projected and felt a bit lacking without a narrative, which is a shame. I would have liked to refine the couple one a lot more, but again, the limited timescale held me back. The limited colour palette has also worked really well to give the animations a definite Christmas theme. I think that it definitely fits the brief and target audience.

Additionally being able to see the animations be projected onto the building was really inspiring. I’ve never done a project like this before so I am really pleased that everything turned out well in the end. Perhaps this will push me to try and create more motion graphics in further briefs. I think that as a group we did really well, although we did have issues with clashing deadlines and trying to write our dissertations at the same time I feel like the outcome was good considering this.

Also Ollie, one of the animators I was working with managed to get some pictures of my animations on the tower.

Strengths & What I liked

I enjoyed the initial process of submitting the animation treatment, working with y illustration skills to create storyboards and illustrate characters. I think that the assets that I created for my initial animation proposal were of really high quality.


Weaknesses & What I didn’t like

Though when it got to the animation process I realised how clueless I was about where to start. I thought that the process would be similar to when I worked with the animators last year - I provide the assets and they animate. Unfortunately they only had time to animate their own ideas so I had to teach my self how to animate and ask for help from my peers.


Team Work

I think that as a group we did really well, although we did have issues with clashing deadlines and trying to write our dissertations at the same time I feel like the outcome was good considering this. If I hadn’t have been working with the animators I would have got no where with this brief. They basically taught me how to animate using After effects so I am very grateful to them for this.


Final Outcome

The final animations came out better than I expected. With the help of the animators I was able to make them move successfully and I am really proud with the outcome. The limited colour palette has also worked really well to give the animations a definite Christmas theme. I think that it definitely fits the brief and target audience. My favourite animation is the jumper pattern one, even though this was not my original idea I think that the simplicity of it and the bold graphics made it work really well when projected. The couple animation lost its detail when projected and felt a bit lacking without a narrative, which is a shame. Additionally being able to see the animations be projected onto the building was really inspiring. I’ve never done a project like this before so I am really pleased that everything turned out well in the end.

OUGD601 - CoP Practical - Sketches

After deciding on going down the route of convenience food, I thought I would choose its biggest offender - lunches to go. So I made a mind map to come up with some names. All of the name ideas had to represent the eco conscious brand that I was trying to create so had to seem 'green' in a way. Initially I was really drawn to the name 'earthly' because it sends a very eco friendly message and I sketched some ideas based on this. 

I had done some research into stocks and found some seeded paper that grows plants when you plant it. I thought this would be perfect for my project and even though the degradation of natural plant products creates methane I hope that the growth of the plants will counteract this through producing oxygen. Also because I found that plastics were bad in my essay due to their source from fossil fuels I decided I couldn't use any in my packaging. As sandwich packaging in particular usually has plastic windows to show the sandwiches I thought that a good solution would be to produce illustrations of the sandwiches instead. I also thought about drawing the individual ingredients for a bit more clarity, or producing a purely typographic design. I will experiment with these ideas digitally.

After my sketches I decided that the name earthly didn't really fit. I narrowed the name down to two: bloom and sprout and decided to experiment with some sketches of logos. Though I liked both names I felt that bloom felt a bit more feminine and perhaps like a cosmetics brand rather than a food brand. Also I liked the idea that the name sprout represented what the packaging would do when it is planted. So I chose sprout as the name. 

OUGD603 - Extended Practice Crit

Crit Rules:
1. Bring the brief
2. Bring 5 Questions you want answering
3. Bring Practical work
4. Have a scribe

My 5 questions
Little Art Collection Brief:
- Do the patterns portray their themes?
- Are they unisex and fit the right target audience?
- Are the patterns too flat?

PPP Stuff:
- Does my CV have the correct information? Or is it too formal?
- Are there anything else I should send with my cards?

Little Art Collection Feedback

I showed the group my patterns so far (as seen below.)

In regards to the general theme of all the patterns I was told it should be less blue, as blue is quite a boyish colour = biased. I was told to make the clouds and background paler on the aeroplane and the background on the baking a different colour. Also to make the aeroplane design simpler, removing the text from the stamp as baby grow/jersey material can't hold fine detail that well. The general feedback was good as it is not aimed at the babies themselves - adults buying it, rich adults. I was told to do some more research - aim for M&S, John Lewis. They are high end and would sell products to the target market the brief is for. I asked if I should include a caravan in the camping one, the group said no as it would downgrade it. They said posh people don't use them, people are going back to traditional camping. I need to be aware of the target audience and their hobbies and skills, they're wealthy so a different class. I was told to look at Joules and Seasalt for more inspiration as well as the Paul Smith dinosaur campaign. I then asked if incorporating text into them would work, specifically putting yummy in the baking one. They replied saying that with the baking one this would work and be cute and relevant. Someone suggested that I should create bold single images or scenes to match each theme and possibly make a set for each one. 

Next I showed the group some christmas cards and hotdog CVs that I am planning to send to studios before we break up for Christmas. I had just got the cards printed so couldn't really get much feedback on those but I asked for feedback on my hotdog CV.

I was told immediately to drop the professional titles and to make it more fun and more 'me'. I need to show my personality through the design which is more important than the massive amounts of information according to Alec. I was told that I need to make it a lot more fun, illustrate it more, talk, chat, design but not write. Also I showed this as a print out version and they said that a better paper will give a higher quality finish. There was a really good suggestion that I could illustrate the love and hates bit to include patterns and picture of what I do and what I like. Overall the consensus was that it needs to show me as a designer, what I'm about and what I do. 

This was really helpful as Alec has experience of receiving these kinds of things off people for his magazine. He said he'd rather see what I'm about than a formal CV. 

OUGD601 - CoP - Practical Ideas

I brainstormed some ideas for my practical research project based on what I have learnt so far in my essay. I have realised that a lot of plastic packaging that we use is unnecessary, especially in fresh produce. Is it just so we can see what we are buying? These plastic bags could easily be replaced by paper bags or even string to keep them together. Also, I wanted to experiment with the use of more biodegradable materials so even if they weren't recycled they would degrade within landfill easily. I found online places that sell paper with seeds in them so that when you are finished with the paper you can plant it and let plants grow. This idea I feel is very sustainable because, in turn, it is helping the environment replenish its oxygen. 

However, the idea that I thought was most relevant to the essay would be redesigning sandwich or convenience food packaging as I found these to be the most wasteful of all packaging as it is simply used to hold the product then be immediately thrown away. So I thought that if I could create packaging that could be thrown away without guilt, because it would biodegrade, it would be more sustainable. 

OUGD603 - The Little Art Collection - Sketches

I started by sketching out objects related to some hobbies and interests that I quickly thought of using a brush pen. I liked the quirky style the brush created a really organic feel. I wanted my designs to appeal to both children and their parents so I must keep this in mind when I am designing them. Also I want them to look as friendly and approachable as possible.

 

OUGD603 - The Little Art Collection - Initial Ideas & Research

Because the theme is based on hobbies and interests I decided to brainstorm some rough ideas that I think would work well being unisex and as a pattern.

Hobbies & Interests:
- Baking
- Cooking
- Travel
- Cycling
- Camping
- Drawing & Painting

I quite like the idea of the first three interests because of the 'affluent' audience of the brand. But having read the brief again I found that you can include 10 images so technically I could do most of these ideas and show them in context to improve my chances of getting a design picked.

I started to look at some children's illustrations for some inspiration on what would suit the baby grows and blankets.

However, after looking at some of these illustrations I realised I shouldn't base my concepts solely around children's illustrations as I am designing to appeal to the parents and not the babies. Of course, there needs to be some playful aspect to the illustrations but it doesn't mean necessarily that they have to be catered to children. So I decided that it would be best to use my own stylings for this brief, not only so I can develop it further but also because I believe it appeals to the selected audience of affluent adults.