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Screenprinting induction

Recently I had an induction into screenprinting, personally this has been the most helpful induction to date as before the induction I was unaware of how to screen print but it was also helpful because I currently have a brief upcoming in which the final resolution has to be a screen print. Previously I thought that screenprinting was a complicated printing method but the induction assured me that its rather simple, just the cleaning and set up of the screen itself is time consuming. Overall I enjoyed the induction and now feel confident screenprinting, as I'll be using the printing room more and more for uni work along with personal work.

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Lord Whitney studio visit

Recently as a class we visited Lord Whitney studios for a talk about the 'connoisseurs of make believe' Amy Lord and Rebekah Whitney's story, from Leeds Beckett university to art directing a Nicki Minaj music video. The start of the talk was all about letting us know how they set up, I found this the most interesting and inspiring part of the visit as the two only knew what they truly wanted to do, one week before finishing a three year course studying Graphic arts & design. This was encouraging because it made me realise that I don't have to worry about what I want to specialise in  once I'm on the course because once I leave university I might take a complete different path in graphic design like Amy and Rebekah did. Even though Lord Whitney don't exactly specialise in graphic design but set design, they talked about  how they are always eager to take on new and challenging projects. This was another encouragement as maybe I need to step outside my comfort zone to achieving doing work in other disciplines.

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Studio Brief 01
Photography lighting induction

This latest induction into the facilities available at college was personally very helpful to my practice, firstly because beforehand I was unsure on how to use the lighting equipment such as the lamps but also how to set up all the equipment available but now I know, I'll certainly be taking advantage of this facility more because I'm eager to photograph my own work in a professional manner and this was a part of the induction as I had to bring along some of my own work to light then capture.

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Number 04 Studio

Number 04 is a studio I came across recently when I was influenced by the editorial in Hypebeast magazine, which they design. I decided to do further research into the studio, to see other projects and the processes they follow as I was drawn into the style.

The studio was set up by Davis Ngarupe and Jordan Haynie but the studio itself wasn't the initial idea, they started a design club called Internet Explorers as a way of establishing a community and working on personal projects after work. But after a few months they decided to plan and produce these projects full time, So created Number 04 as a type of studio / publishing imprint where they could take on commissioned work and create consumer products. Based Utah, the designers at Number 04 believe they are in a good place due to the mix of people in arrears to the universities. When I was looking at the archive of work at Number 04 I took onboard that the work crosses disciplines and is very varied, they like taking on projects where they can explore format and approach every project that every design element is subject to change. 
I checked out the available interviews with the studio, and the designers say themselves that they are impatient when it comes to process, always thinking about two projects ahead, in some ways this reminds me of myself as I tend to plan ahead while I'm currently half way through a project.

I'll continue to keep up to date with Number 04 work as I'm incredibly interested in all the diverse work produced by this studio, I'll also continue researching into studio and will contact them to gain a better understanding of other process they have along with inspirations of they're own but at this time I need time consider a focused set of questions to ask that will benefit me. 

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Binding & Monoprint induction

Recently I had workshops in book binding and mono print, in both Ive learned new skills as prior to the workshops I'd never done either. In the bookbinding session I produced three varied types of books, all made using different binds and stitches

Firstly the bookbinding workshop was very useful, even know I only learned three ways of binding, from that I learnt the basics which will serve me well in future briefs. Before I had the workshop I most likely would of been slack when it came to binding my work and picked the easy option of stapling but now I know numerous binds, I'll be able to apply them to my work.

The second induction was in mono print, which was another first for me. I really enjoyed this workshop because it made a change from constantly being sat behind a computer screen. It gave me an opportunity to be more hands on with my work and enabled me to think about more ways in which I can use this printing method.

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Studio Brief 02
Branding style inspiration

Stepping away from the the Instagram final outcome idea inspirations, I needed to look at other personal branding that related to my concept, I needed to design an icon / logo, have a tone of voice that resembled my personality and overall a style that is communicated through the Instagram feed. So I looked into other personal branding that is similar to my style.

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Studio Brief 02
Instagram Influences

For some research and inspiration I delved into Instagram accounts that I follow to gain a better understanding of what makes them successful. My personal Instagram is a mix of my practice within graphic design and my personal life, but for the personal branding account I want solely focus on graphic design. When I was looking into other accounts relating to graphic design, whether it be an individual or studio, they all seem to keep it simple and make the work posted the focus. The work posted to my account will be my own to gain exposure but also work that currently inspires me.

As you can see the designers or studio normally have a small icon / logo then a small bio. This will all be apart of my branding, as I need to consider the tone of voice, and how I'm presented just through the small bio.

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Studio Brief 02
Concept development

Following talks with my peers and further thinking about my personal branding concept, I've decided to change the final outcome of my personal branding. At the beginning my plan was to have a website  but now when I consider the benefits of this, I don't think a website is the right choice at this stage of my practice. For a website to be successful you need a certain amount of coverage, not just online but in the physical world. The other options online are, Facebook, which was good for a certain time but lost its cause and isn't the right platform for exposure. Twitter is predominantly word based and graphic design can only say so much. Instagram is the perfect balance right now for graphic design interest and personal perusal, it allows greater expression of one personality than Tumblr and easily captures what you're all about.

I think Instagram is the perfect balance for my practice at this time, by using an account I can expose my own work along with showing other work I'm interested in, following the eye to eye concept I have.  

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Secret 7

I've been briefed on my latest brief as part of OUGD406 Design practice, the brief is to produce album artwork as a part of  Secret 7. I believe I'll enjoy this brief personally, firstly because I'm interested in the link between music and graphic design but mainly because its a live brief. Previously when I've took part in live briefs in the past, I find myself more motivated to produce work as it will be displayed in the 'real world' of graphic design and provides the opportunity of my work to be noticed by others. So personally I think this brief will help me to really consider my processes behind my design and to visually and conceptually exploit every possible angle of your ideas.

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Fontsmith type specimens

Earlier in the year I contacted Fontsmith type foundry about the possibility of them sending me some Typeface specimens that would help my the current project at the time which happened to be typeface design. Fontsmith replied and were more than happy to send multiple type specimens to help me, I took inspiration from the layout of the specimens to give me guidance on my final type specimen, furthermore the specimens will prove a useful source on possible future briefs on typography. However, what I personally gained from all this was just emailing a professional practice, it gave me the confidence to not be afraid of making contact with studios / designers to ask for help or this case a product that would personally help me.