visual thoughts

[oliviaappleby]

Via. @valentina_muntoni

[oliviaappleby]

Via. @pinterest

[oliviaappleby]

Via. @pinterest

[oliviaappleby]

Via. @wabisabistudi0

[oliviaappleby]

FINAL REFLECTION

It has been an amazing rollorcoaster. Communication design studies has provided me with a range of experiences and new understandings of design skills. I have learnt so much about the design culture and history that has led design to where it is today. I was able to understand the influence of design movements of the society in that era. I have also developed a great skill range with Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign. I will continue to build my skills and knowledge of those tools. I also was able to experiment with the technical skills of how to make a publication design; the zine. All of the assignments, lectures and class workshops has assissted with building rapport with my peers. It was inspiring to hear and see how they projected their creative voices on to the assignments. This also benefited my self education and how I could take on a new perspective for the course assignments. I also want to acknowledge the difficulty to balance between all three courses assignments and dealing with the difficult challenges within them. I also wanted to say a huge thank you Ben, Andy and Karen, I really do appreciate all of your work and effort for us this semester.

[oliviaappleby]

ASK ME ANYTHING: FINAL ZINE

I’m finally done with my Zine!!

I have chosen Mirka Mora as my interview subject. I was fascinated her zest for life as a noted colourist. Her spirited artwork was a major influence in the overall design for my Zine. I had studied and researched her philosophy of life, as she is such an iconic figure in the Melbourne art scene. I tried to mirror Mirka Mora’s previous contemporary art and playful painting style into my zine by using bright colours and a handwritten like font (Noteworthy).

The most challenging part of this project was the layout. It was so difficult to align the text and body paragraph, alongside the images. I wanted her artwork (the images used) to speak for themselves. There was so many parts to the development of the layout composition. It was hard to know what to start with, in a combination with finalising the copy and then selecting the images. Knowing that she wanted to put a stamp on Melbourne, I wanted to replicate her ability to ‘draw outside of the lines’ in a playful way. Therefore I am constantly referring back to previous interviews, doing more research to get new inspiration.

This assignment has taught me a lot about Adobe InDesign. I really struggled with the new tools and layout formats, but over time I have adjusted and learnt a new skill set. I have also learnt about experimenting and practicing with a subject matter that is unique to my own design style. I think it’s really important to be able to adapt to new designs, as this could play a key role when dealing with clients in the future. I hope to use these new skills and understanding of layout compositions in new assignments to come.

[oliviaappleby]

WEEK 12 LECTURE: LAST ONE

For the final lecture of this course we started off with a summary of all the concepts we have covered and I’m impressed with the range of history and range of theories we have covered.

A very important form of visual code that is “shared by some and not by others.”

An important quote Karen and Andy pointed out, it’s very important to understand the underlying messages. A key study how communication can be used as a code.

Carrying onto week 12, Karen and Andy questioned the idea about ‘Decolonizing Design.’ A bonus theory, delving into changing the way we think about design. Opening our perspectives and questions of gender.

“Why is the history of design only written about men?”

Karen and Andy want us to continue to celebrate all genders and all races from around the world. They spoke about this emerging fashion designer, Tolu Coker and another artist Lauren McCarthy who works in code and design, and many more. I’m grateful that they spoke about these young talented artists and I could here about their stories. What was most inspiring was their use of a variety of mediums, there is no limit to creativity.

Karen and Andy summarized the lecture with the objectives of the communication design. It was a great reminder to develop theoretical and practical tools, and how theses two work together.

Karen said to “think with our hands”

and to physically experience those craft practices that shaped the movements we learnt about. Andy made me realize the assessments are important but what’s more important is to have a reason for why I design. In this time off I want to reflect and learn how I can grow being a designer.

[chl0wang]

Final Zine - Ask Me Anything

After weeks of time and effort I’ve put into the zine, I finally did it! That amazing feeling of ticking it off my to-do list and close all my tabs on my laptop. 

I have chosen Massimo Vignelli as my interview subject as I’ve heard about him and his work numerous times this semester. I looked him up and read about him, his concept and his works. I’m just really inspired by his style of minimalist, clean designs, the use of grids and the influence of Swiss-style graphic designs. I tried to mirror Vignelli’s previous work styles into my zine by using Helvetica and the colour of black, red and white. Yes, it seems pretty easy but it’s way harder than it sounds. There are times that I think my zine is too simple, boring, expected and basic. But the whole idea of Vignelli’s designs is the minimalist approach and timeless designs. Therefore, I constantly refer back to his previous work, do more research and get new inspirations. 

The most challenging part of this project is the layout. It is hard to fit all the content and texts into a minimalist layout while being unique and creative. But I have made my way around it through adding small details and adjusting minor changes as they do make a difference! 

I have learnt a lot just from this assignment through exploring, experimenting, understanding and practising. Especially the skill set that I’ve learnt by using Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign. I believe that I could use these practices and knowledge into my future design studies. Lastly, I just want to thank everyone who gave me feedback through the process! :)

[oliviaappleby]

Chloe this looks amazing! I can really tell that you have put a lot of work into this Zine. You have definitely captured your artist minimalist approach while still adding touches of your own design. Your eye is definitely drawn to your bold colour choices, it’s very appealing to look at. Well done Chloe, what a great feeling to have it finished.

[oliviaappleby]

ASK ME ANYTHING WIP

This week I finally feel like I have progressed with my Zine. You can see how it has transformed since I last checked in. It was crucial that I incorporated a contrast of her material and photographs of the actual artist, Mirka. You can also see a change in the colour palette. Looking through Mirka’s colour palette I decided it needed to be more vibrant, to represent her personality. The font type for the title has changed from a Serif font, to a playful, child like drawn font to depict a hand written style.

For the layout of the Zine, it is still very chaotic but I think this captures her style of paintings. They are very busy and full of life, however I do need to change the alignment of the text and the spacing between the words, it still doesn’t sit right.

Based on Ben’s feedback I have a lot to change but for the better. I’m still getting used to InDesign so it’s great to get advice wherever I can. The main changes he suggested was to change the larger words at the start of each paragraph to have their own character styles. I will also need a new cover photo, whether I find another version or I edit the design myself to suit the overall theme. I must also ensure to have a consistent body text and to have a clear pink-white motif throughout the piece. Also super happy about the second extension!

[oliviaappleby]

TUTORIAL ACTIVITY

As a part of Week 11 tutorial Ben gave us a task to re-configure a magazine page. The task was to make the text or the image the dominant piece. It was a simple task but focused on the page layout, which was super helpful at this point with my Zine layout. It also really tested my photoshop skills. In the short time, I had played around with the text warping tool, this completely wiped out the readability of the actual words but it was fun to create. I’m not entirely sure what the effect was on the image, but ben describes it as a ‘crunch’ design.

I definitely liked this activity, it gave me a chance to experiment and make decision on things I wouldn’t normally make. I’m definitely going to rethink some of my layout choices for my Zine.

[katrinablogyblogblog]

Katrina Dickinson, Assignment 3, Ask Me Anything

Finally finished my zine!

I found the hardest part of finishing, is knowing when to finish - I think with my perfectionist tendencies I could have endlessly tweaked. 

But anyway, I am quite happy with outcome and think that it maintains consistency in style and is legible. I am now wondering whether I should have been more experimental with my approach, but got to a point where I knew I just had to stick with my original plan of a ‘fine art book’ style of layout. 

This was possibly one of my favourite projects this semester as we were able to both explore an area of interest and compile it in a publication style document, which is always satisfying. I was really looking forward to learning more about the printing process by printing my final piece, but COVID had other plans, so that’ll have to wait anyway!

I am also really glad Ben told our class about making an Issuu, I think it was an important final touch to at least give it that ‘publication feel’!

[joedesigned]

So cool to see Katrina’s final product!! Ben was right, Issuu really brings it all together I’ll definitely be using that to present mine zine. Also props to you for finishing two days early I’m impressed!? 10/10 for time management !! makes me want to hurry up and get a move on with mine.

[oliviaappleby]

I thought that was really inspiring too, your already done. Your work looks amazing in Issuu. I will definitely use that to present my work as well. The colour palette and overall layout was nicely created to match your topic. :)))

[emilyorj]

Week 12 Tutorial Activity 

In today’s tutorial we were given 5 minutes to change the layout of a photoshop file 3 times: text focused version, image focused version, and free for all version. I’m struggling a lot right now with my zine in terms of experimenting with the layout and making it visually interesting. Ben mentioned concerns Andy and Karen voiced about ‘straightforward’ designs and mine, right now, is a v good example of a straightforward design. Thankfully, Ben can give me some helpful feedback. 

Anyways, this task was relevant given my current dilemma. I did enjoy experimenting with the last version. Wish I could do something out there for my zine but it really doesn’t suit my subject or the current style. 

[oliviaappleby]

I really like how Emily was so honest in this post! Her experimental work with the image and text really caught my attention. My favourite piece is the reflection of the lady on both side of the page that has been saturated in pink and purple. It’s very different to my own experiment of this task, but that why I like it, it’s unique.

[thehopefulquotes]

There is hope, even when your brain tells you there isn't.

— John Green, Turtles All the Way Down

[oliviaappleby]

I think as I progress to finalising all of my projects and feeling a little uninspired, it’s important to remember that there is hope. You will finish your projects! I have been stuck in a creative rut at the moment and really congested to create new ideas.

I think for my Ask Me Anything project I will have to decide on a layout and colour theme and just stick to it. My perfectionist side is really holding me back from experimentation, once I have an idea I can just blossom with that. I will take on Mirka Mora’s attitude and try to incorporate her cheeky and wild side into my Zine. It’s also important to remember that her painting style had no limits and are full of bright colours, I want to make sure that is reflected in my own Zine design.

[oliviaappleby]

WEEK 11 LECTURE: WHATS NEXT FOR DESIGN?

Week 11’s lecture topic was about the future of design. We were looking at the speculative ideas of what designers can expect.

Karen and Andy touched on the idea that you can take data and information of your name/ social activity and transform it visual or type. The exploration just goes to show the emerging technologies of the 21st century that continue to transform the mediums designers can now use to create art.

Karen and Andy also spoke about the revolutionist technology from our time period, Generative Art. Seeming I had never heard about it before but was fascinated that technology could regenerate a piece of artwork making it slightly more unique than the first one. Researching more about it I found out that Generative art takes full advantage of the computer capacity to produce compelling art that artist have pursued to create in modern art.

Another topic that continues to control our lives was the internet. There is just a whole world out there to explore on the internet, but I’m not sure if that safe or not. Everything can be observed from our screens, its over stimulated. It’s overwhelming to grasp that our lives revolve around information/data that is just easily fed and accessible from our phones. I think I will try to reduce the amount of time I spend on my phone, as much as it is unavoidable.

[oliviaappleby]

ASK ME ANYTHING WIP

After last week’s work in progress for the final project, Ask Me Anything, I needed some direction and feedback as to how I could really express Mirka Mora’s artistic style into my own theme. The biggest part of this project for me was to learn to take risks and experiment, I hope to continue this new design approach.

Based on Ben’s feedback, I need to build an aesthetic across the whole Zine to create a sense of harmony amongst all the pages. I think I need to continue working on the layout in order to build a sense of readability of the questions. I also need to add more of Mirka’s artwork for it to be more visually appealing. It was also interesting to learn about Hyphenation.

[joedesigned]

This is the poster I made for one of our specialist classes for image and identity, but I definitely was inspired by the content we’ve been learning in comm design studies. I have been really into collage as an art form so made my poster from a collage of photos I’ve taken over the last 6 months. I cut the letters of the words out of the photos and then layered them on tp of yellow coloured paper to help they stand out.

[oliviaappleby]

I really like how Joe positioned the text to be going the opposite way of the photos. I think it adds a sense of contrast which makes it “pop” and catches the readers eye. The use of the yellow title blends nicely from the colour palette of the photos behind. His design is extremely different to mine as I used a large amount of photos, but what I continue to learn is that simplicity is more.

[em1lykim]

C’S GET DEGREES 

Our week 7 activity is titled ‘Shapeshifters,’ and we looked at some of the theories we touched on such as Modernism. We were asked to create the alphabet with squares, triangles, circles, semicircles and so forth. I concentrated on my c’s as i wanted to go express different ways of creating c’s from simplistic to complicated, and minimalistic to almost futuristic. This activity enabled me to understand how we can create so many things with just a few materials, objects and shapes. 

[oliviaappleby]

This was really interesting to look at and I like how Emily showed the gradual build up of simplistic to complicated. I really like how the elements laid out in this piece are balanced with a symmetrical pattern which draws in the readers eye.