After Christmas I met with my client, Lauren Riley, and discussed ideas about what this project should entail. At this meeting it became clear that my client is exceptionally passionate about, and undoubtedly adores art. This has been showcased throughout the whole of the project as she has been extremely easy to work with and regularly included her own input. After this meeting I scoped the project and produced a project proposal. The following five things were agreed to be produced at the end of March:
1. A website
2. A social network site (Instagram)
3. A logo designed and created
4. Business cards
5. An email account
Explain and justify the rationale for the work:
The website is minimalistic and whilst you would expect an exceptional design on an artistās website it became apparent during research that a complex design could easily distract a userās attention from the main display - that being my clients work. Equally, I noticed in my research these complex designs take the longest to load.
Furthermore, my SWOT analysis notes that Illustration is not something I specialise in or have much knowledge of and as a result of this I had to explore the codes and conventions of art Illustration to fully understand my clientās needs. I found artists such as Jamel Akib and Samantha Payne and explored their websites. I noticed many common themes within this niche including minimalistic appearance, clear fonts, and a self-portrait. I noticed a correlation in which many sites used four or more columns to present their work. In addition, they all use social networking and can be contacted via email.
With the business cards I could not space the text as I hoped to. However, the font used helped create a visually pleasing and consumable appearance. To maintain consistency I ensured the business cards were minimalistic. In addition, while I personally dislike business cards with images on, I respect the fact that the best way to showcase an artistās work when networking is to show them first hand. Unfortunately, I had to crop the image because of the restrictions on Moo.com but despite this my client was really happy with how the image was showcased and especially liked the contrast of the darkness the image pervades alongside the white background of the business card.
It was particularly difficult to maintain consistency but one of the ways I tried to overcome this was through the use of font. I viewed a number of fonts by using DaFont. However, when incorporating the font from Dafont it became pixilated and thus lacked a professional appearance. Using the fonts available on Adobe Illustrator a new font was incorporated into the logo.
When this completed logo was added to the website it was concluded that it did not work well because the title: āLauren Riley Artā was used too much. It was decided to remove the text from the logo for the purposes of the website. This ended up working well because it helped the website look cleaner and allowed the text font used elsewhere within the project to be used consistently. The full logo was used on the Instagram account and business cards.
Font, as I understood should be clear, with the use of conventional upper and lower case letters used throughout and at no point display a large amount of text as there is a strong possibility of putting users off with this.
Group organisation and participation:
Only my client and I were involved in the project. Any problems that arose were discussed with my client and that is how decisions were made.
I felt my project management skills were of a high standard. I particularly enjoy being organised and supervising tasks. However, with that I had to also realise at times that this project was for my client and whilst some of the decisions my client made are not necessarily ones I would make I had to take a step back and carefully listen to what it was my client was asking.
My client was a great client and although I understand that being my housemate communication would be easier than with someone I did not know very well, I ensured to keep āmid-contractsā throughout to clarify my clientās needs were met. In addition to this, despite this ease of contact, my client also had her own projects and could not always take time out to meet with me and so meetings had to be arranged to suit both my client and myself.
Merits and problems of the final artefact:
The business cards arrived on time and were produced to a high standard. My client was really happy with these and the professional look they attain. I originally was going to have the cards printed by VistaPrint but fortunately I listened to advice given to me by peers, as Moo.com definitely produced sleeker, higher quality business cards.
The website works really well. However, the themes had to be changed a lot due to the aesthetics of the website. All the pages link really well and are easy for userās to navigate throught. It was a long, tedious task uploading all of my clients work but the final product was well worth it. A lot of the themes I tried included credit to both Tumblr and the theme creator. I ensured that by editing the HTML and removing this credit would not cause copyright issues by checking the hostsā site.
The only problem faced by using Instagram was the cropping feature which meant my client would lose parts of her work. To overcome this issue I used an App called Square InstaPic which rejected the cropping feature.
When uploading images to the website and Instagram I noticed that some had an orange colour to them from the room they were taken it. I used PicMonkey, a website dedicated to editing images to fix this problem. I understood that Adobe Photoshop would be more professional to use but as I regularly use PicMonkey for my own image editing I felt much more comfortable using this. If I needed to do more than colour correct the images I would have collaborated with someone who could then go on to produce high quality edited images.
Moreover, my first Gantt chart created stated that the project sign-off would be March 16th. This did not happen due to lack of planning around possible setbacks. An example of this would be the time allowed for making changes after reviewing with my client. As a result, a second Gantt chart with more time was created.
What are the possible future developments?
My client and I discussed a possible future of developing this website into a small business. However, as my client is still a student this is something not possible for present. For now, my client hopes to be able to use this project as a platform to show possible employers.
Equally, as my client is very fervent about art and Illustration she is thrilled by the possibility that she can now use her own website, Instagram and business cards to share this passion for individuals to enjoy.
There has also been a conversation about possible photoshoots of my client at work for the website. In addition, my client and I have discussed a possible future in more social networking as this is currently a major platform for young artists such as Lauren.
Evaluation of artefact:
All software used worked well without too many difficulties because of previous teaching. If I were to be creating a website for a business I would have considered a different website building host instead of Tumblr as Tumblr has a higher risk of being one-dimensional and less customisable. In the case of my client, Tumblr was enough and worked well for this project.
I was providential to have chosen to order business cards with Moo.com as they produced high quality business cards and arrived on schedule.
What would I do differently if I had more time?
If I was given a longer time schedule I would have incorporated more social networking. This could include a Facebook page, a Pinterest account and so on.
Moreover, if I had more time I would have helped my client market herself. I am particularly fond of this aspect of developing a project and this is something I will hopefully be involved in beyond this project sign-off, if my client wishes. This type of marketing could include advertisement on social networking sites to spread my clientās audience beyond the targeted demographic. Networking with relevant artists who could showcase my clients work on her behalf would have also been good to do as this is great publicity. My client and I could have attended a few exhibits and shared my clientās business cards to expand my clientās audience further.
To conclude:
I have really enjoyed creating this artefact. It has been especially enjoyable working alongside a client and to experience a professional project.
I have gained new skills and expanded my knowledge about the Illustration world. I hope to continue being involved with my client in future developments. I have overcome problems and taught myself to take a step back when it is needed and listen to my clientās needs without the influence of my own personal preference.
My client is very happy with the end result and all needs have been met. I will now continue evolving and using the expertise I have gained from this opportunity.
