- Architecture of lines workshop

So this corresponds to pages 135 and 136. A double spread from my final major project, the book called

 "Seeing London through the eyes of a designer". Chapter 12 - "Rules".The workshop that gave place to this chapter was about coming up with a London Architectural landmark that would instantly become a touristic attraction. (Attracting this way media, a bit the london eye effect). And this was my proposal. A solarium. A place to venerate the sun. To be placed in Hide Park. To be covered in grass, the same existing grass on the park. It camuflages itself in the envirenment. 3 levels, each with a small forest in the middle. Not only works as a Solarion on the three levels but also produces shade to those who prefer to stay at ground level. The shade moves with the Sun. People move with the Sun. To be produced with recycled crushed brick, wood and earth.

- Time shift workshop

So, as we were proposed in the Time shift workshop, i started to document the life in my fridge. Each day i would make around 8 different pictures, from the same angle of the refrigerator (i didn't find another way of not repeating the word fridge- i mean, refrigerator). But... on week two, my flatmate decided to clean it - you know what  iam referring to... 

So, well, week two never started.

- Vernacular type

My first typeface, based on the Elephant and Castle shopping centre logo. A lot of work!

- PPD year review

Blog

As we were given the blog brief i realised the dimention of it. I realised that if i was capable of managing it well, by the end of the year i would end up with my work and research doccumented, and, the opportunity to show more about my personality as well. From the first post i focussed on giving myself (the student  junior graphic designer) a positive impression to the eyes of a potential employer. 

As i look now through the first posts, i realised that i’ve improved in the way i present things. If before i would use a quick iphone photo to show what i had done in class, now, when i report a project, i have a blog post always in mind. This made me work differently, i am now aware that as a designer, everything counts towards a good presentation. Whatever i do, from writting to sketches, i try to make it look visually good, just in case i might need it later (photographed, scanned...). Well, it is not always true, but i try.

I regularly post a link of my posts into facebook. What i intend with this is shouting to everyone - hey i am a designer. It is effective and i realised that people do actually go and see my work. Over the past eight months i had more than six thousnad visitors, over a bit more than one hundred posts. I have some nice comments. 

At the time of my first blog review, with Josh, i was told that i needed to use more images and less text. I took the advise on board, and indeed, the blog became more interesting. I ended up being forced to finish the day with something interesting to put on the blog. As a consequence, today i have my progress doccumented and it is really fabulous to look back. One academic year, i’ve certainly improved.

The first weeks workshops.

Well, these workshops were amazing. They were inspiring, challenging and fun. From them i understood the need of thinking fast and adopting the just do it mentality. I had (and actually still have) a servere problem with going into unexplored fields. I like to have the whole plan in my head before starting to produce. I like strategy, and seeing things happening one after the other, but realised with these workshops that i am also able to produce work when i just let things go, by doing, and doing and doing.  From these workshops i learned a technique - when i am stuck in a problem, i give myself two hours and i dont care what the result will be, but it has to be the best that two hours working fast will allow. It works, sometimes better than others, but it works. I cannot understand why i dont do it more often.

The mad collages project.

I know that the title of the project does not include “mad”, that the project was never meant to count for evaluation, and - worse of all - that the exhibition never took place. But... i loved the mad collages project and that is how i intend to cal it on my portfolio. That is what i thought when we were given the brief - One hundred collages? - In such a short time and having other stuff to do? - They must be mad! With this project i realised that i love working in the space between word and image that allows wit to exist. I produced one hundred collages on time and i am depply sorry there was no exhibition.

GDF project

Oh the GDF! I spent hours and hours on this, and, wasn’t able to come up with a very good solution, i like my idea but wasn’t able to produce the final outcome with the graphic design appeareance that i would like to. What i’ve learned the most from it, that i cannot swap from idea to idea all the time just because i am afraid of what i have to do, in order to develop it further. Instead, i need to explore, more.

GDA01 - Project in collabration with the Whynotassociates.

The reason i picked up this project was due to the possibility of working with suh a well known studio, and, to further explore the fields of brand and identity. I explored many very good agencies. By exploring identities i became aware of where are the states of the art in this field. Simplicity rules, and it is not a matter of filling every space with great skills of graphic design. I learned that, and tried to apply it to my design. The most positive aspect from this project was at the time of the crit with Paul, just after the date of formative assesment - i realised that no, what i had done was not good enough, yet i had the best mark in the group -  and this, made me seriously improve as a designer although i am not able to explain why.

Before crit with Paul Link01, and after Link 02.           

GDA02 - Project in collaboration with the institute of Contemporary Arts

This was a tough project. Tough because i spent a lot of time with nothing to show, and that was very... best word really is, depressive. I had many thoughts about quitting design. I just couldn’t come up with something to show. Days and days, and days, and days, with notthing. With this project i’ve learned that it is true, sometimes ideas come at the last minute, and if you keep calm, you can make them look good. Again, i had the best mark in the group. After this project i stopped caring about the grades, and here i started to explore more.

Final project

I consider this project as my favourite from the year. I decided that i wasn’t going to stress about it. That i would just explore, use the just do it mentality that i was forced to have in the first weeks. 

With this project i feel that my time is much better managed, and that makes things easier. I’ve’ve explored techniques i had never done, such as french folding, monoprint, patterns, mapping with type (although i havent done this workshop - blogs are really great for this) and others. I feel relaxed and i am able to produce stuff that i am pleased with, and actually, i must go back to it.

Great, great year.

Thanks.

- Typeface done

So, based on the Elephant and Castle shopping centre and the available time i developed this typeface. It obeys a series of rules, it takes time and can be a bit irritating at some moments, but when things start matching up is really a great pleasure. 

- Designing a typeface

So, as part of the vernacular typography workshop, i ended up doing something, that indeed doest not quite match up (just yet) with the examples of Mike Perry. But this was the idea that i had in class, Katy approved it, so i continued developing the idea at home. I've drawn it based on the rules found on the Elephant and Castle shopping centre logo. (You you are wondering why did i pick up such a grrrrrr logo, it's because it needs to relate to the area, and the design in the area is... let's say, strongly identifiable).

Most of all, and that is the reason why i stoke (the past of sticking) to the idea was because i really enjoyed the process. I am at half way to what i visualize as the end of the development. Now i want to bring these measurements into illustrator, and build it digitally. Wasting too much time on this though...

- Bit more than a week

- London Journeys

- Silhouettes, love war

- Concept challenge

Today i went for the third time to Marylebone high street and photographed. I had a plan. I had a list of things to photograph. It's a great experience, you feel really professional. It's time effective, and very productive. You understand what i mean...? Instead of just going and making some pics without knowing exactly what to shoot, you go with a plan. Give it a try.

- Underground

This is one of my monoprints for the book. Simple, yes, but i love the texture and style that you can achieve from this. Or is it not so much more interesting than to have it as a perfect sign?

- Screen print

To screen-print. Two colors. I've done it already, but it is at school, drying. For the book project. To me, it relates to london.

- Day spent in the print studio

- What the hell did i start!

- Moooo

For my layers chapter... Found this lovely street art cow this morning, in brick lane...

- Mark making

Found in brick lane, this morning while i was doing some pictures for the book project.

- There

Found this while doing some pictures around temple. Around 5 o' clock. I agree, i am to close to the X, but i'll go back there.

- Patterns

- Final solution for Whynot

- Architecture of lines workshop

We had yesterday our workshop number 10. I remember those who started to read this blog now, that the workshops correspond to the chapters that will constitute  the book i must produce as my final project for this year at the FdA course in Design for graphic Communications, at the LCC.
So, for this workshops task we had to come up with a building to work as a landmark in London sceario. It had to relate to london obviously, and we made it through the parks and the need London has to reduce it's carbon footprint. We ended up with this construction. It was most of all, a great group work, which i, really enjoyed.