Mattia Mognetti - Design Process - OUGD405

Mattia Mognetti is a photographer and digital artist who continuously uses the kaleidoscope effect within his architectural photography.

I think using his work to influence my own will be highly beneficial to me as this is the style I wish to pursue in my three images/designs.

I have chosen to study a selection of images from his 'Istigkeit' series. These images all show consistency through using the repetitive and manipulative effect of kaleidoscope making these images unique and unusual. I want to use this ethos throughout my own workings to ensure I keep the design interesting and eye catching.

This effect is created by repeating the image 4 times and rotating/mirroring the image whilst maintaining the centre point where all 4 images meet.

Here is another great piece and probably my favourite of his images as it really emphasises the use of shape within his work, I could reflect this in my own work as it really emphasises his use of shape in his photographs.

This image incorporates all kinds of shape within it. I like how the circle in the centre and the rectangles sprouting out of it shows a contrast between them.

The image above is more of an optical illusion generated in the same style as kaleidoscope, this particular illusion is called the Penrose triangle, or more widely referred to as the 'Impossible triangle'. I like the idea of incorporating illusions into my images as this would make the consumer want to look at the frame and therefore increase its buying appeal.

I think this image exudes high class. It looks very extravagant and would appeal to people with an expensive taste as it looks very metallic and 'shiny'. Bearing in mind this is all generated by shapes occurring in architectural photography.

Here is an example of quiet a grainy image that has been repeated 4 times, similar to the images above, but this image has more of a rustic feel to it. This wouldn't work as well as a frame backing paper as I think the image has to compliment the frame it goes into. I think this is a bit too rough around the edges to suite this type of product.

Kaleidoscope Research - Design Process - OUGD405

Whilst idea generating for this brief I stumbled across a good use of imagery that could be incorporated in the frames I am designing.

Kaleidoscope

Traditionally, a Kaleidoscope is an instrument which uses the reflection of mirrors within a tube to create an illusion type effect to the viewers eye through a single tube.

Here are a few examples of where the kaleidoscope effect has been used in photography. I think using this effect could really make the frame stand out of the rest and draw the attention away from the frame housing and more to the content of frame. This giving the consumer more of an idea of how the frame will look with an image in it. I also like this idea as it doesn't use any cheesy cliche family photographs or landscapes.

Negative Space - Design Principles - OUGD404

During this session of design principles, we had to learn about the advantages of using negative space within design, and how it can convey more than just a word or an object, but a message within these subjects.

The famous FedEx logo in greyscale with an arrow within the 'Ex' to represent their company, delivering goods.

To begin the task I had to choose a word I thought would be effective to represent in such a way. I found that choosing a word was not the difficult part. It was thinking of what I could incorporate into the word that was harder for me. I knew it had to be quick and witty, so once I'd narrowed it down to one word I brain stormed the best options I could take.

Initial idea: I chose coffee as I enjoy it and think it would be easier for me to think of idea's for something I'm interested in.

Expanding on the previous idea, I chose to discard the idea of the letters 'e' being a mug as I thought it was a bit repetitive.

Furthering my idea development I chose to draw it in a different style. This design flows better than the other two but still lacks an effective use of negative space.

 The previous designs led me to create this. I will obviously have to refine the 'e' to resemble a cup when vectorised but I think it has worked out as I set out for it to.

Scanning the image into Adobe Illustrator helped me establish where I needed to put anchor point and add the correct curves. As you can tell I chose to use a single 'e' instead of both as I think it still gets the message across that it is a cup of coffee yet keeps it simple and readable.

I wasn't happy with he live trace, so I decided to expand and use the pen tool to create anchor points on all of the edges of the lettering. This then enabled me to be able to use the convert anchor point tool to curve the lines perfectly and precisely. I did not want it to look too digital as I wanted it to maintain that hand drawn feel to make it more relevant to the stereotypical 'enjoy a coffee at home' vibe.

Evaluation - OUGD403

During the last 8 weeks, I have tackled 4 studio briefs, all of which have opened me up to some new techniques and development processes that have previously been unused. I will admit my time keeping hasn’t been up to scratch to keep up with workload, this is something I have to adjust to in future projects to ensure I do not fall behind and create backlogs of work.

Throughout studio brief 01, ‘Alphabet Soup’, I got to test my lettering skills and develop my idea’s in much more of a conceptual fashion. To receive feedback in the interim crit was the most valuable aspect of this brief; as it gave me valuable insights of what path I should take in developing my ideas further, I liked how I could gather the opinions of others and incorporate it into future drawings. If I were to improve on anything in this brief it would be to apply more time into research than jumping straight into the deep end.

Moving onto studio brief 02 made me realize just how versatile you have to be with developing thoughts into solid ideas. This was my favorite aspect of this module, as it gave me the chance to work in something which I feel strongest in, Adobe Illustrator. Although I feel confident in Illustrator, I still feel I have a hell of a lot to learn when it comes to reducing rendering time, such as keyboard shortcuts and features, which speed up workload. However, this is something that is picked up over time and doesn’t happen over night. I will continue to expand my digital design techniques as I progress on the course.

When I was briefed on message & delivery, I thought it was a strange subject to have to work towards, but then it became clear to me that as a designer, I must stay up to date with current public affairs and what is occurring around the world. Staying well informed will simply help me keep my work up to scratch and relevant.

The delivery aspect of this project wasn’t as easy for me, having picked quite a low-key story (Russell Brand BBC Newsnight Interview) I found myself struggling to find information relating to it. So I ventured further than the story itself. Looking into Brand’s current book ‘Revolution’ which is what the interview was supposed to be about, gave me an extensive insight into what Russell wanted to convey from the beginning of the interview before it was distorted by the question about 9/11. The word revolution set me off into a train of thought, so I decided to watch ‘V For Vendetta’ a movie from 2005 which is all about government corruption and revolution. Watching this helped me gather symbols of revolution that I could illustrate to use in my posters. In this case, it was the famous Guy Fawkes mask, also linked to the Anonymous ‘hacktivist’ group. I chose this because Brand is often pictured wearing one of these masks, more recently in a protest in the streets of greater London; called the ‘Million mask march’ this happened to be in fact a worldwide ritual. This is why I was prompted to use the Guy Fawkes mask in my designs.

To sum up, my time during this module has been interesting to say the least. Having such a wide palette of briefs and such little time to explore them has made me learn how fast passed the design process has to be. If I were to change anything I have done during this module it would be to spend more time researching, to ensure my final outcomes have substantial evidence to back them up, something in which I can work towards in future modules.

My outright favorite part of this project was having the chance to create my own typeface that can actually be applied into my own pieces of design. This gave me huge satisfaction to see the finished product printed and presented in a professional manor.

Message & Delivery - Research & Ideas - OUGD403

Having being briefed on the second part of this project, I think now is a good time to look more closely into Russell Brands ideology towards government corruption; disillusioned, distrust and dissatisfy of today's politics. Which personally I feel strongly towards.

To begin my findings, I chose to dive into the source in question which began this whole news article, Brand's most recent book. 

Brand, Russell. (2014) 'Revolution' [Clearview], UK, Century.

Brand's current position in society is undoubtedly influencing today's population, young or old (mostly young) people are listening, love or loath him, it's unavoidable. He has pointed out many times before, there are things that need to change, some would say these are opinions, I myself would like to call them concerns. And like the interview which sparked the controversy, it was clear the BBC tried to handle the situation to give both sides of the audience something to talk about, his 15 minute slot on Newsnight was nowhere near enough time to create a level playing field.

Finger pointing aside, I would like to focus more on his book for this aspect of the project. As all of the articles I have delved into make various references to his book, I would like to highlight these specific key points: how people are often disillusioned, distrusted and dissatisfied in today's politics. Focusing primarily on the UK, I will also be looking into US slightly, this is purely to see if I can see a correlation between both governments to justify his points.

My initial ideas were to represent distrust:

 Text only, the numbers on 10 Downing Street falling.

  Text only, the numbers on 10 Downing Street falling. Also shown inverted.

 Text and Image, the Downing Street sign falling.

 Text and image OR image only (without the use of the quote).

Text only
Represent the number 10 Downing Street door number in a way that conveys previous mistrust in the government, in this case, I am using the expenses scandal.

Researching existing styles:

Concrete poetry: A good example of how words can be used to create the outline of a symbol. In this case, it is a Guy Forks mask, a great example made famous by 'V for Vendetta' a novel published in 1989 by Alan Moore which was later made into a blockbuster in 2005. This is also the symbol for Anonymous, a computer hacktivist group who want revolution.

Keep it simple, use text in its simplest form and use a straight forward message, not the best example but it certainly does the job.

Here's a great example of the two images above combined, yet again, using only text.

FINAL POSTER DESIGN:

I chose to keep it simple. By gathering the actual list of members of parliament that were actually apart of the expenses scandal, I put it in the font of the number 10 downing street (Trajan) and used the pathfinder tool to minus back on the text to create this effect. The text represents mistrust in parliament, by getting the list of all MP's involved in the expenses scandal, I was able to give the text a hidden meaning in which the viewer must look into.

Text and Image:

This image is a representation of a scene in the movie 'V for Vendetta'. I really appreciate the straight forward style it conveys, I could translate the same illustrative format into my own pieces as it has to get my message across as easily as possible.

Although this poster uses more than 2 colours, but I think even in greyscale this poster could be greatly improved.

I like the idea of using a quote of some sort, but in order to keep my designs consistent, I would rather use the list of MP's involved in the expenses scandal again, as it holds more of a valuable message than something of this nature.

Another example of a Guy Fawkes mask used alone side a quote.

FINAL POSTER DESIGN:

Keeping it consistent. I have made the Guy Fawkes mask into a type of vector image and overplayed it on the text. This then gives the poster a new meaning, in this instance, a revolution.

IMAGE:

This movie poster for V For Vendetta is a good example of simple imagery to convey a meaning. I like how it looks as if it has been spray painted in order to symbolise rebellion.

This is more of a vector style of poster, keeping it simple yet communicating the message is a as easy as looking at it for a split second.

A picture of the current PM, David Cameron, I think it is apt for me to include him in my final image poster as it strongly relates to the subject.

This is an image of Russell Brand, he is painted in the light of Che Guevara, a key part of the Cuban revolution. Thus resembling Russell Brand in the same way. I could combine the image of David Cameron and the Guy Fawkes mask to create a contradictory piece, an almost ironic piece if you will.

FINAL POSTER DESIGN:

David Cameron's face with a Guy Fawkes mask slapped onto it. I made this poster to represent how the general population should be in charge instead of Parliament. I also intended it to be ironic as I relate humour to Russell Brand, especially humour of the sarcastic kind.

Vector Type - Applied Grids - OUGD403

During the exploration process of looking at grids for my typeface, I quickly realised that if I was to use one single grid for every letter I wanted to produce it would become a nightmare figuring out which line is for what.

So, to counter this issue, I decided that after my interim crib, it would be quicker, simpler and easier if I were to create separate grids for different styles of letterforms.

Here are my initial/finalised sketches:

I did a series of tests to narrow down which letters would be best compatible for this particular grid. These were:

B

E

I

K

L

F

H

P

T

T

S

U

Z

R

In this grid, I found rounder, more wider letters would fit, these were:

C

D

G

J

O

Q

Finally, this grid was designed for the widest letters in the Futura font family:

A

M

N

V

W

X

Y

To further my understanding of the importance of a grid when designing your own type, I scanned the sketches in and then digitised them in Illustrator to use as a guide for my letters.

Here are the finished grids:

Alphabet Soup - Digitised Typeface - OUGD403

Here it is, the final designs I have digitised ready for printing.

"Saturated"

I created my final designs in Adobe Illustrator using only the pen and pencil tool, with help for the pathfinder function (Unite + Minus Front/Back).

Here is my type represented in my given word as a poster.

I plan to create variations of my type, such as outlined, light, bold etc... The possibilities are endless as I have made sure I kept it versatile and easily adaptable for future manipulation.

Alphabet Soup - In Depth Research - OUGD403

Before I go into finalising my idea's and producing them digitally I firstly wanted to make sure I had explored all possible directions in terms of how I could represent my given word (Saturate(d)).

Here are a few images I have picked out and why they could help me represent my word:

A possibility is animating the letters in a similar style to this piece. I think it represents the word saturated in the form of water, and in this case, waves.

Here is one I like for its minimal style, it's a possibility but quite sparse, therefore for me to do something similar to this would mean I'd have to add more waves defeating the object of keeping it simple.

I love how this is an optical illusion. It really creates a sense of movement and could easily represent my word with a little alteration.

This is probably my favourite out of all of the selected images. I like how it is represented in a 3d form (Obviously for my designs to be classed as a proper typeface, I couldn't actually use this technique for every single letter.). In my opinion, this image represents saturated more than any of the others.

This could make for an interesting square format throughout my letters. If the lines could join it would look like one continuous line of waves.

Here is an alternative approach to what I have currently been looking at. If the letters were to look at if they are reflecting against water I think it would be very effective as I could actually apply this in real life by reflecting letters of water, taking pictures and tracing them in Illustrator.

Again another square format image. I would be limited with this style at it would be difficult to achieve in the given time for the brief. But I could experiment to see if it would work better than the other idea's.