Evaluation

Today, we worked on the evaluation draft. We started the exercise by interview another person. I find it always helps me to talk about my process orally before I start writing. However I wish we had recorded it as well, like instructed, I think it would have motivated us to talk a lot more. 

• What are the advantages and disadvantages of working on a self-directed project? I think having to organise your own time and set your own restrictions was the most difficult part of this project. However, these points have an upside as well because you get more freedom in making your own schedule and you get to do what you really want to do. 
• Explain the context of your project and how it relates to the area of Graphic and Communication Design. I think my project is relevant to this area because as designers we are asked to visualise the future of many things. We shape the future almost as much as inventors in the way that we influence the general public a lot more directly. I think that visualising fictional universes relates to a lot of jobs in this area as well.
• What are you key research references? I would say that the photographs of Chernobyl and Fukushima sparked a lot of ideas in my mind and were at the origin of most of my outcomes. But sci-fi comic books were definitely the thing that got me started this project. I think this influenced my drawings in my outcomes as well. 
• Identify your greatest successes and challenges on the project. I think my successes probably reside in the fact that I managed to visualise a universe from the main public opinion and the current event. I managed to have a good outcome even though I had never work in 3D before. My greatest challenges would have to be that I had to work With different mediums than I am used to and of course, organise my time accordingly. 
• Explain ways in which you have tested the ideas behind your work with an audience and how this helped you. I did interviewed some people at the start of the project and this helped me a lot to get ideas. I worked with their answers to create interesting outcomes. 

Ongoing work

What I also did today was print the logo for the Hazmat suit on some adhesive paper, following the advice of my tutor. It didn't come out as well as I expected but I definitely look much better than the spray paint. I finished the survival kit. I think it looks quite intriguing and will probably catch the viewer's attention. I am hoping they won't overlook the package as well. 

The poster for the dollhouse is done as well. I wish I had had more time to work on it. With more research I could have made it look more professional but I still think it has the same "vibe" as the dollhouse. 

I think I have everything ready for tomorrow. 

Ongoing work

I forgot to mention yesterday that I went printing and that once again, it did not go so well. Fixing the format of my booklets had become urgent. I did get a couple of things right but I went back today to finally have the final versions. I can now officially say that the publications outcomes are finished. I can now focus on the rest. 

I worked on the evaluation draft. I did it by working with the questions they gave us to help us get ideas.

Sorry if this was quite short but need to finish working on the draft. 

Tutorial

Today, I had a short tutorial with my tutor. She gave me a couple of ideas. 

• For the poster (for the dollhouse) She told me to that, to make it look more professional, I should have an acrylic poster holder (like in hotels). I thought it was really interesting so I ordered it and I hope it will get there in time for Friday. This also means I need to adjust the poster format to A5 but it probably won't be a big problem.
• I was struggling with the logo for the Hazmat suit so she told to use adhesive paper to create a sticker and stick it on the suit. Same thing, I ordered some paper online and will start working on it when it gets here. My classmate suggested that I make a patch to have the logo and iron it on the suit but I don't think this will work on the suit fabric. 
• She told me we could put any other experimentations in the portfolio, so I am thinking of including some things I did "on the side" in my portfolio, that still relate to my project of course.

Final evaluation

We talked about the Final Evaluation and what it needs to reflect. I have yet to write the draft for Thursday. But this made me think I should reflect on how well my project has been going so far. This will probably help me write the evaluation. 

So, I am finally starting to be satisfied with my project, as I have made a lot of progress the last two weeks. It went really slowly at first but I am finalising all the outcomes now and it is starting to make more sense. I think I managed to stay in the topic I had chosen but I probably should have made it more specific. I regret not exploring futuristic utopias as well. But I think that I am just influenced by the current events, and they are quite pessimistic at the moment. Plus, I think there is more material to explore in dystopias. At the start of this project, I did not think I would explore so many different mediums. I had never worked with 3D outcomes before and I think it went better than expected. It will definitely bring something to my project. Now I hope this project will be well-received by the audience. I think that using humour is also good to capture the viewer's attention. I think it is important to point out that I had a lot of fun working on this project so far probably because it relates a lot to my personal interests and that I truly got to do the work that I wanted to do. 

Ongoing work

Over the weekend, I worked on the survival kit a lot. I am wondering if I should add other things to it but the package would probably not be big enough. And would it be relevant to add anything else? That is something to think about. 

I have decided on the final version of the logo for the Hazmat suit. My initial plan was to use spray paint to print it onto the suit. I had experimented on the edge of the suit to see how the paint attached to the fabric. Unfortunately, despite my tests, the logo did not print well. My stencil was not flat enough. I am wondering what to do now. Could I keep the logo? Work with the "messy" look of the logo? Or try another technique and fold the suit in a way that the bad logo doesn't show? Unfortunately, I don't really know what other technique I could use for the logo.

I have made a couple of postcards but I don't know if I will have a good amount in time for Friday. Once again, I want to use humour in the messages, and make a sort of parody of tourism. If I do get to finish this outcome, I will probably get some metal stand to present the postcards and have people pick them up to look at them. If I had more time, I would make a lot of them and even sell them. 

Museums of Brands and Packaging

Today, I went to the Museum of Brands and Packaging. The gallery was interesting but definitely not worth 7 pounds the admission. I found a couple of things that were relevant however. My tutor had suggested I check out the 60s and 70s and look out for space-toys packagings. I did find quite a lot of these and there were really interesting: the boxes were quite vintages but the toys looked like the ones we still have today. It really shows the influence that the first steps on the Moon had on the community during that time. I am thinking about using the pictures I took as inspirations for my dollhouse packaging idea and perhaps some other idea will appear from this research. 

Developing ideas

I did developed some of the ideas I generated yesterday. For the postcards idea, inspired by Postcards from the Future, I even experimented with spray paint and acrylic but it didn't exactly go well as I was not happy with the colours. I need to go back to the Graphic centre or try something different with the paint. I also looked into the social issues signs idea and found I could a series of photographs with "protesters" but that means I need to find models. The future newspaper idea was also interesting but I still feel it's too weak to be actually developed. It needs a bigger, stronger concept. Finally, I looked into what I could add to my Hazmat suit and survival kit idea, using "bugging-out bags" infographics I found online. This idea also needs a stronger concept before I start actually making it. 

During the Tube ride back to my hall, I also found some ideas of words to put in a "future slang dictionary". I think I need to watch some futuristic movies to get more ideas for the words. Other than that, I have experimented with the furniture of the dollhouse but hand-made furniture doesn't look really good so I have decided to actually buy some and paint it to make it look more futuristic. 

Crit

So recording my reflection seems to have worked. Unfortunately I didn't do it today, as I wrote it during class. 

The crit today went well. I felt like I had a lot of work displayed compared to most people. I also felt like I was the only one who had not done anything typographic (I don't really think it would be interesting for this subject but I might change my mind, should a good idea come up). I was proud to see I was one of the few who used different mediums but there were also some very good works in the classroom. Noor's posters with the strange symbols gave me an idea for futuristic pictograms and traffic signs. I also need to ask Lemon how he edited his video to get more info on how to do an animation. 

My work seemed to be well received. The tutor really like my dollhouse idea and she gave me references for two museums to go see and a booklet (Protect and Survive) to research. It has motivated me to do some more work on the furniture, which is still missing. I left a question on my desk and it has add many answers.

People have told me my robot outcome (which I have yet to finish...) reminded them of a character from Star Wars, and it has given me the idea to go look for robot design in the series in order to make more designs for this outcome.

Someone also suggested for the picture of the brochure that I include more recognisable locations -which I think is a good idea but in practice, a little harder to make- and make it darker, which is not something I agree with as I am trying to keep humorous as well.

Some other student suggested I print the brochure on lower quality paper, to make it look like it really come from a post apocalyptic era, which I think is something I will explore, as it is a good point. They also said they wanted to see more 3D work which is encouraging and I will definitely try to go back to the workshops after the holidays. 

My hand-drawn Hazmat suits were also well received. Someone said they preferred them from the digitally drawn ones (because they add more texture) and suggested I made some stickers or emojis out of them, which is something I could definitely explore. 

Finally, someone suggested I create a survival kit, which I think is a good idea to add with the Hazmat suit mannequin idea. I will make some more sketches to see what it could look like. 

Later we had a talk about what the exhibit is gonna be like. It was mostly basic information (dates and such) but it made me think about how my work will be displayed. I definitely want to add my Hazmat suit mannequin idea but I still need to figure out how to do it and how I could make it more conceptual. 

Generating Ideas

Finally I have generated many other ideas in my sketchbook that I hope to develop during the holidays. Some are more "powerful" than others but I have approximately fifteen-twenty new ideas so there is a lot to choose from. I know I definitely want to add something to the brochure, like a comic or some character designs or maybe just more drawn pictures. 

Study support

I went to study support today to improve my reflection. I was given a few questions to help me reflect on my work a little better. I tried something new and decided to record myself answering these questions, because I always seem to be able to express myself orally better than in the written reflection. Here's the transcription of what I recorded.

Ongoing work

I did a lot of practical thinking today. Especially for the dollhouse furniture, should I make it or should I buy it? I thought I could do it with recuperated materials, paint them and glue them, maybe, but I am afraid it won't look really professional. I managed to find a few objects that look like they could be used for furniture and not look too bad but I am still struggling with what to do. I hadn't put that much thought into the furniture when I started and I realise now I need to develop that aspect a lot more. I plan to go back to the Toy Store, but at the same time I don't want it to look like I just bought the objects and added them, so perhaps before actually buying anything, I should do a little more research on that. 

I finished my painting today and found a solution for the letters used in the collage. To make them more visible, I simply included a white outline. It did work quite well as the text looks more striking now and easier to read. 

Now, if I had more time, I would have also developed something with the pictures on the fake brochure I made. I think it's too bad that I am using pictures found on the Internet, taken by other people, rather than ones I would have taken myself. I feel like I am "stealing" their work a little or that I could have something more interesting with pictures I actually made or took. But then again, I need to move on to other outcomes and taking or creating these pictures would take quite a long time and a lot of preparation so perhaps I will leave that for later, if I still have time at the end of the Unit. The options would be to take pictures in abandoned places but I am a little worried as I don't have anyone to come with me to these places. The other solution would be to create the background using Photoshop but I don't think my skills have reached this level yet and I kind of like the way the pictures already look on the brochure. 

One of the questions also concerned "using research into outcomes". I think I did that as I was inspired by this game called Fallout Shelter. I really like the layout of the bunker in which the characters live in and it was actually what inspired the whole idea. I think I need to go back to the video game to get more idea for the furniture. I also found new inspiration in the work of Lori Nix. She is a photographer who constructs her set and her sets do look a little bit like dollhouses. It is a little bit more dystopian so it wouldn't be as helpful as the video game but it is still interesting. 

Tomorrow we will have a crit and I expect I will get some feedback on my work. So they told us to prepare a question and I'm thinking of asking something about the visualisation of the world I created. What would they add? Does it spark their imagination? 

I can also start thinking about the package for the dollhouse, as it will make the outcome more visually impactful and gives some more context to the whole thing. 

Progress Tutorial

Today I had a progress tutorial. The tutor told me a few things about my work:

• She thought the research was very good and the analysis interesting. It's good to know I have finally managed to understand how to write a good analysis. I think the fact that I'm deeply interesting in the subject might have helped. She also recommended a movie that I intend to see very soon (for future reference High Rise)
• The reflection part wasn't near as good unfortunately. I must admit I have not been reflecting daily and I intend to put a reminder to stop forgetting to do it. She also suggested I go see Pauline in study support, so I need to send her an email. I have already been there a few times and I don't think I will learn anything new but reminding me of what I need to do can't hurt and will help me assimilate it once and for all. The tutor said my reflection must be more in depth as I tend to just be descriptive and not explain what I mean (which I seem to do ok orally). 
• My workflow organisation must be fixed as well. I am really bad with Workflow -can't seem to link the pages to one another- but it needs to be clear for people to see. I will need to talk to someone about it and I have the names of a couple of people who could show me how to do it. 
• Finally, the tutor wants me to take more risks. I agree I have been working on one media only and that is on my computer, mainly because it is what I like to do and want to get better at it. But I definitely need to step out of my comfort zone and create different outcomes. She gave me a few ideas which I thought were really interesting. My concept has the potential to be a whole universe and I need to explore that more. Different mediums will definitely help my "universe" be more realist. Some ideas include: a mannequin with a Hazmat suit at the exhibit (perhaps I could paint it or add some equipment to it but I think it would look great and would definitely attract viewers. Now I need to figure out if I will be able to borrow a mannequin or not), a fake TV ad (I have been wanting to explore animation as well -I guess it scared me because I didn't think I would be able to do something very good but experimentation is how we learned, right?- so I think I will explore that idea as well.) Finally she suggested I do something with film or photography. But I do not know lots of people in London and doubt I will be able to live the city to photograph things relevant to my project so I still need to work the logistics. 

Group tutorial

Today, I had a group tutorial. It went well: my sketchbook work was good. The tutor liked my idea and gave me a couple of ideas to make a couple adjustments, such as creating the pictures myself. but that will require a lot of planning. I decided to explore the humorous aspect of it a little bit more. I do feel like I should explore a different medium than just image-making but it's what I enjoy doing the most. I'm still hesitating between a brochure or a zine -which would look more like a book with more pages. I won't probably finish it by Thursday but the tutor said I could do a couple of spreads and present them. 

Ongoing work

So on Thursday, I was ill again but instead I worked from home on the Illustrator poster. I finished it but I seem to have trouble with types when it comes to design. Maybe I should ask someone's opinion to find out which one is best. 

Generating ideas

Over the weekend, I worked on a couple of ideas for Monday. Asking interview questions helped again. I had an idea for a more personal concept this time. I don't know how to visualise though. I tried a couple of things, such as cards, but I think I should try a different approach. Perhaps asking more questions for more opinions will help. 

Then I turned to another idea. I want to create a sort of brochure for post-apocalyptic tourism. I hope I will get good feedback from this one. This one was much more interesting, from my point of view of course. I think I did a nice work with the sketchbook visualisation. I added pieces of research in it, which helped a lot. I am going to try to do this more often. 

Generating ideas and workshop

So over the weekend we were asked to finish the exercises they had given us last time. We were also told to make plan for how we will make use of a piece of paper. I first thought about making a comic strip or to make a John Harris-like painting. I did buy some paint but I still feel a bit nervous when it comes to using an unusual medium. I will try to motivate myself to do it over the next weekend. 

Instead, like I was ill, and also didn't have a 1x0,5 m paper, I made a poster on Illustrator. This poster works maybe as a book cover for my whole project. I think my outcome look interesting but someone misinterpreted so I may have to rethink it. I really enjoyed drawing on illustrator.

On Tuesday, we had a workshop for Illustrator. I learned a lot and it was really interesting and relevant. I didn't have a lot of time to think about an outcome. I thought it would be interesting to have a logo for my project too but I couldn't find a good idea. Asking interview questions did help, but I hit another blockage later. So instead, I decided to go for a vinyl-cutting outcome. So I created some robots outline that I'm thinking of sticking to a piece of transparent plastic and then incorporate them in the present urban landscape. 

Planning:

• Create a painting version of the Illustrator Poster
• Make more robot designs
• Fix the format of my robot design to get it vinyl cut
• Think about the final outcome for the robot idea

Generating ideas

So the tutors gave us a few assignments to start generating ideas. I thought they were really interesting and enjoyed working like that. The first exercise was to interview people. I didn't think it would be relevant but it turned out the answers were really interesting and I'm thinking about using that technique again in the future. It helps getting the perspective of other people on a subject and get their opinions. 

The other exercise they told us to do was to visualise 30 ideas. I didn't get that far, unfortunately, but some of the ideas I had, I already want to develop. Finally for the research, it was quite easy: I already had lots of reference. I found movies are a great source of inspiration, because just like comics, they not only visualise a universe but also put some characters in it and develop storylines to explain and explore that universe. It is a good thing I was interested by this topic before because it makes it more fun to work on this project.