FMP Evaluation

I set out to produce a body of work that concentrated around the theme of ambient media. This didn’t actually pan out as I expected. I stated that I wanted to take part in a lot of competition or live briefs, the majority of my briefs were either live or competition, but doing a broad range possibly didn’t work in my favour. I did resolve the majority of the briefs fairly early on, but then I didn’t go back to finalize layouts and context boards. This has let me down in presentation, which is something I stated I wanted to improve by producing a professional body of work.

My design context was possibly the most interesting and useful part of the module as I learnt so much about the industry, but my final outcome does not reflect this. I began looking into why certain companies use ambient and outdoor media, I found out lots of facts and figures surrounding the subject matter and conducted several interviews with David Sore, from an outdoor media company. However, I found that the information I acquired was a bit dull and boring rather than interestingly informative, so I thought it would be better to just showcase the best example from leading UK agencies.
I like the pack of postcards as it acts like a directory for all the large advertising agencies and shows a more fun and frivolous side. Yet, it appears like an uninformed collection as I didn’t take the time to design it as this is not where my strengths lie. In my rational I stated to just be brave and get on with doing my own style of work and not get frustrated with how everyone else is getting on, this did not happen and towards the end I got so frustrated with my work it stopped me almost completely.

In the beginning stages of the final major project I was fuelled with lots of ideas and was excited to begin and that’s when I produced my best work. I had a range of briefs to get on with and also had a lot of interviews with various ad agencies driving me forward. But, towards the end stages, everything spiraled out of control. I am really annoyed as my time management was good, almost better than ever, I constantly updated my blog and was forever researching but I think I found myself wasting a lot of time in the research stages. To be on a graphic design course I know that the design is of paramount and I feel that still, at these final stages that it is not the design that is relevant to me. This is perhaps why I spend so much time in the research stages, as I feel no matter how beautiful the design, it simply doesn’t make a bad idea work. An idea driven role, as oppose to design, is a role I aspire to have in the professional world but I think I adopted the design role too early and didn’t consider my practice.

The end of year show, although it was a very quick turnaround brief it was possibly the most successful and enjoyable, as myself and Bel had two clear roles and stuck to them producing possibly the best piece of work through this module. I came up with the concept for the poster and Bel using her meticulous layout skills produced a great identity, we sat together playing about with different layouts and I acted as art director I suppose, this was very successful and I wish that we had produced the interior design book together.

The interior design book was very insightful at the beginning stages, talking with the students and tutor and finding out exactly what they wanted us to produce, although working collaboratively with friends was possibly not the greatest idea as we were all very similar in our desired roles and there wasn’t room for 4 designers. I would have liked to have had a stronger role, as I don’t feel I had much input towards the end and it was probably not the greatest use of time in my project.

The crits throughout this module were of great use but in the final stages, due to poor time management, there were lots of factors that could have had a large impact which directly effected my markets briefs which never really got resolved. I got myself into a bit of a fluster and wanted to produce something so great that it never got off the ground. I didn’t want all of my research to go to waste so I just put it up in a form of a blog, which was most definately not my desired outcome.

I presented my self in a professional manner at the end, which is what I wanted to do, and it looked like a considered body of work. This final major project has undoubtedly helped me move towards my final goal and got me ‘ready for the real world’ but I don’t think that is clear from what I have produced. I got too concerned with grades that it stopped any creativity. I don’t have a next time to improve on, but going forward, the strengths and weaknesses from this project have most definitely informed me on any creative jobs I apply for. I have discovered my role to be an art director which is why the end of year show was so successful. Working more freely is something I will also take away from this experience.

Great design doesn't just look good, it communicates: it inspires, it intrigues, it involves, it informs.
Bostock and Pollitt