Visual Communication

Natasha Mitchell Arts University Bournemouth 2017 - 2020

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FMP Evaluation

One word to describe this unit... Rollercoaster.

This final major project has probably been one of the most difficult but successful projects I have produced while at uni.

From the start I found it overwhelming to try and find a solid concept and idea to get me started however i constantly keept changing my mind over what to do. Turns out your first idea is your best idea, all you gotta do is dig a little deeper.

As User Experience Design is the area I would like to pursue fully it is important to be able to step away from digital products and go back to print where the user is the reader. Not only having the outcome be non-digital (well that was the plan until a pandemic started) but it was important to me to choose a subject where I would be researching and investigating people’s behaviours and habits. Etiquette allowed to do this and by going even deeper to how a single culture uses one specific word has open my eyes to a new perspective of thinking.

During the last 3 years I have struggled with finding “my design style” but in this last year I feel I have a solid idea of what it is. So the design of this book is the essence of my style, big type and bold colour palettes with a humorous edge within the content. I pushed myself even further by developing my least skilled areas of expertise; editorial and illustration. The research & experimentation phase was very key as it shaped the whole book, as the main problem was not getting to overwhelm by information I had gathered. Finding a balance of heavy information to imagery was important for this.

I would very muck like to print & bind my book to bring it to life, as one of my main drives for this project was to create a physical outcome that could be placed directly in a person’s hands without the need of a screen.

During this project I also collaborated once again with Jasmine Samuels to submit our ‘You Get Me?’ project to D&AD New Blood Awards so fingers crossed we win something. Managing both projects was a challenge but it was one I overcame with success.

Like I said at the beginning this unit has been one helluva rollercoaster ride, so now we’ve reached the end of the ride. We experienced highs and lows, a mixture of emotions and feeling a bit ill at some points but now its over, a lull in excitement. However the thing to remember is that another ride is in our horizon we just have to wait our turn.

nm.

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Natasha Mitchell

LINK to my Behance

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Business Cards

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Mockups of ‘Sorry, I’m British’

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‘Sorry, I’m British’ book mocku (Available on issu)

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Sorry, I'm British

Final Outcome for Visual Communication Final Major Project @ AUB

LINK to issu where ‘Sorry, I’m British’ book is hosted

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 Final version // Front and Back Cover

Front = Left 

Back = Right

I chose this idea as I gathered the opinions of others on all the ideas and I had compared them all and how they fit with the book itself: this idea was the majority. I wanted the cover to feel as cohesive as the book does from beginning to end so the cover has to from front to back. The repetition of the ‘sorry’ links successfully back to the overall meaning and theme of the book with out giving too much away. Keeping it only typographic provides a clean front and back and allows the illustrations on the inside to have the full impact on the reader. 

(Inspiration pictured above)

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Cover Ideas / Experiments

I wanted to try a mix of illustration/text and typography only covers. First idea was type only on the front and an illustration of The Queen saying sorry as she represents all that is British. I like the type but as a whole it feels lackluster and not cohesive from front to back. The second idea is inspired by the ‘thank you, have a nice day’ carrier bags, I have always been inspired by the typography on them so created my own version with ‘sorry, i’m British’. The third idea is going very text heavy with little negative space and full bleed, with the accent colours from the book dotted through. Although I like the outcome I feel this is too busy and dramatic for the cover. The fourth idea is using the UK flag illustration from the book with the addition of ‘sorry, i’m British’ on the flag. The minimalist style works with the book but the text looks forced and lost in the image.

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Final Version // ‘I’m sorry, why?’ chapter and summary

For this final version it includes the tweet illustrations, information design based on feedback given about the British ‘sorry’ (we only mean a couple of the sorries and the amount you say fluctuates depending one age e.g. that it goes down during teenage years and elderly years) and page numbers in order for the reader to be able to refer back to certain pages later on. This chapter has a cohesiveness and balance of positive and negative space. The layouts are varied and created especially for that specific information. Basic foundation layouts stay the same throughout the book e.g. typeface styling and hierarchy. Hand drawn elements are shown throughout and link into the main illustrations. This chapter is the longest due to the large amounts of information to explain why the British say sorry so much. The two text heavy spreads are balanced out with the last two illustration based spreads.

The summary page is the same layout as the introduction page as I wanted a feeling of completion by beginning and ending on the same layout. It signifies the end, but also a cycle to begin again.

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Illustrations for ‘what we say vs what we mean’

Taking inspiration from the tweets by “verybritishproblems” I chose six to illustrate for my book. I chose the ones that would be the most successful in a visual form, where they have a context or features something specific i can illustrate e.g. ‘sorry, is anyone sitting here?’ tweet where it mentions a bag taking up the space of a seat, where I took this as being on public transport, for instance a bus where the person saying sorry is having to stand so asks the bag’s owner the question. I added the blue chapter colour as an accent to highlight certain details in the images.

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Final version // ‘I’m sorry, where?’ chapter

For this final version it includes the chosen type experiment and added typographic detailing of the section title and page numbers in order for the reader to be able to refer back to certain pages later on. This chapter has a cohesiveness and balance of positive and negative space. The layouts are varied and created especially for that specific information. Basic foundation layouts stay the same throughout the book e.g. typeface styling and hierarchy. Hand drawn elements are shown throughout and link into the main illustrations. This chapter includes two illustration heavy spreads of the maps of the uk and the world so to offset that I wanted to include a large typographic piece to create an equal balance which I think has been successful.

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Type Experiments

These are some typographic experiments I created that could be included in the book, however some are more successful than others. The top two are for the ‘where?’ chapter in which it compares the British sorry culture to those around the world. It shows sorry in Japanese and Swedish. I feel that they are successful as the colour contrast and the two words inter-winded together creates this idea of togetherness, which represents how the Japanese sorry culture is the most similar to the British sorry culture.

The bottom four were created for the ‘why?’ chapter, in which it explains the real reason why we say sorry so much and how most of the sorries have no meaning and aren’t truthful. I used a clipping mask technique and layering to create this double-meaning pieces. However, I feel that they aren’t as strong as my other work for the book and don’t fit in with the feel of the book, so they will not be included.

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Final Version // ‘I’m sorry, who?” chapter

For this final version it includes the updated final version of the second data visualisation and added typographic detailing of the section title and page numbers in order for the reader to be able to refer back to certain pages later on. This chapter has a cohesiveness and balance of positive and negative space. The layouts are varied and created especially for that specific information. Basic foundation layouts stay the same throughout the book e.g. typeface styling and hierarchy. Hand drawn elements are shown throughout and link into the main illustrations. This chapter includes an illustration only spread as they tell the full story without the need of accompanying text, only that of the jar labels.

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Final Version // ‘I’m sorry, when?” chapter

For this final version it includes the updated final version of the etymology timeline, Will vs Will and ‘when do British people say sorry?’ and added typographic detailing of the section title and page numbers in order for the reader to be able to refer back to certain pages later on. This chapter has a cohesiveness and balance of positive and negative space. The layouts are varied and created especially for that specific information, this chapter has more illustrations so I wanted to make sure the balance of them to text is proportionate. Basic foundation layouts stay the same throughout the book e.g. typeface styling and hierarchy. Hand drawn elements are shown throughout and link into the main illustrations.

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Final version // “I’m sorry, what?” chapter

For this final version it includes the updated final version of the first data visualisation and added typographic detailing of the section title and page numbers in order for the reader to be able to refer back to certain pages later on. This chapter has a cohesiveness and balance of positive and negative space. The layouts are varied and created especially for that specific information. Basic foundation layouts stay the same throughout the book e.g. typeface styling and hierarchy. Hand drawn elements are shown throughout and link into the main illustrations.

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Developments // Data Visualisations

Building on from the top two previous visualisations, I decided to show the data through speech bubbles and accompanying text. I used filler illustrated people (provided by Open Peeps by Pablo Stanley -  https://www.openpeeps.com) when doing a first draft of the book to figure out the flow and layout in order to improve time management of the illustrating further down the line of the project. 

The final version now includes my own illustrations and improved text handling that now matched the rest of the book. I feel these are a unique style of visualising data and it works with the overall aesthetic and style of the book instead of being graph heavy. Having a visual representation allows the reader to see the bigger impact of what the data is saying and using the amount of speech bubbles and their sizes shows that data clearly.

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Developments // Will vs Will

Based on the feedback I received, I split up the two Will’s over two spreads so each get an equal appreciation and also allows more space for the reader to digest and understand. Before the spread was heavy with limited negative space. Now there is plenty of space and also the illustrations are more of a focal point and creates a successful contrast to the text and the stark white background. The two Will illustrations are the only two with eyes as they are drawn to be realistic of the two people behind the quotes and they are the  focal and important pieces on the spreads, compared to the others that are more  included to enhance and the main text.