Brief 1: DR.ME Design Boards & Evaluation

This was a one-day brief set by visiting professionals, DR.ME. I was paired with Sarah Goldthorpe for the first two tasks. We found this brief really enjoyable. Due to our different strengths in Design, we were able to work efficiently in both our ideas and developments. The tasks were really open to interpretation. 

When designing both the vinyl cover and the event poster, we worked in a systematic manner. Each of the concepts were considered as thoroughly as possible in the short time given. For the record sleeve, we played the song a couple of times to listen for ideas or references we could base our design concept on. After brainstorming our individual ideas, we were able to develop a concept, which incorporated multiple elements of the music. The final design incorporated ten individual images of feathers spread into a circular format to resemble a propeller. The duga-3 building was placed full-bleed in the background of the vinyl sleeve. The two images were merged together in Photoshop. The three aspects brought together the different sound interpretations of a transmitter (the duga-3), a woodpecker (feathers) and propeller sound (central metal piece of a propeller). We were really pleased with the final outcome as we felt it effectively depicted the song in a mysterious and eerie manner like the music itself.

For the second task were required to create an event poster for an Odonis Odonis gig. The design process took a similar format. We listened to a few of the songs to get an idea of the music genre. We also gathered image research of the band and their style. We wanted to be as creative with these projects as possible, within reason as we only had one hour. Working more digitally this time, we decided to use hand drawn type, which I created in Illustrator. The supporting imagery was bold, colourful and noisy to resemble the attitudes and style of Odonis Odonis. We managed to pull the design together pretty quickly. With both of these tasks we were really surprised at how quickly we were able to come up with an effective concept. We were also given positive feedback from DR.ME during the development process. We decided to take their advice, helping us to reach our intended outcome. We were really happy with the poster. Sarah and I agreed that the designs were very different to the work we often produced so it was refreshing to create something completely new. 

Unfortunately, for the final brief, I hadn't allowed myself have as much time to develop such a detailed concept. As I have always appreciated line drawn patterns and illustrations, and also lotus flowers, I wanted to have a go at drawing my own. Part of the main reason for doing this was because I rarely draw things due to a lack of confidence and practice in that field. However I was pleased with the final drawing. The design received positive feedback, giving me a boost of confidence in my drawing skills.

I really enjoyed this brief. The fast pace of the day encouraged us to produce work quickly, and we were pleasantly surprised with the result. The three briefs worked as a nice series, but also formed strong visuals independently too. If I were to attempt this brief again, I would allow more time for the third task as I would have liked to have taken this further. In general, I thought this was a really enjoyable experience.