Ian Anderson Workshop - Visiting Professional

Ian Anderson came in and I was lucky to be one of the few that got to attend the workshop.

I didn't know what to expect really but it was very straight forward. He first got us to each tell a joke (no matter how good or bad) and then discussed how a joke functions. The basis of a joke is that it has a narrative, it tells a story. After this he spoke about the importance of answering a brief, you need to give the client what they want and make sure the design communicates the story to its fullest potential. At the same time there is the idea of 'breaking the brief' which is a tricky thing to pull off and should only be done with confidence and reassurance that it will be better done that way.

So here was the task for the workshop.

   - design an A3 poster
   - you can use any colour you want but as long as it is black and white
   - you can use any font you want but as long as its Helvetica
   - and it has to use only the words 'You' and 'Me'

These were my responses.

http://issuu.com/charliecrosby/docs/me_you?mode=window

PPD Presentation - self evaluation

Having done the presentation and gotten it out of the way I feel relieved and it was actually quite relaxed. Once you get over the idea that your having to deliver the presentation you can really understand that its about you, your experience and your practice and it doesn't have anything to do with anyone else, with the exception of the people you want to work with.

I discussed most of what I planned to talk about but I never rehearse presentations because they come across to formal and wooden and usually I'll get flustered so doing it on the day is the best way for me personally.

I enjoyed everyone else's presentations too and noticed a few things that I could have mentioned. I could have reflected more on the previous 2 years and maybe even further before that to show the development on a grander scale. Also I could have used more slides to illustrate what I'm talking about instead of having 10 uniform slides. Its a consideration for future presentations that I may have to make in the industry.

Si Scott - Visiting Professional

I'm a big fan of Si Scotts work and I really appreciate that he's always stuck with drawing and and made a career from a fundamental skill that all creatives should have. His talk was quite interesting in terms of the clients he's worked for and he was a very genuine person which is great to see. I find it slightly unsettling or off putting if someone is too uptight about their work or tries to deliver an overly professional lecture.

The key thing that I took away from the lecture was that if you don't do work for yourself and put yourself out there then people wont notice you. Self initiated projects and work can really kickstart and/or refresh the interest in your skills and services as a designer.

PPD3 Presentation slides

This is my final edit of my presentation boards for OUPD301.

http://issuu.com/charliecrosby/docs/ppd3presetation1?mode=window

Cargo Collective - online portfolio

I've at last got round to give some more thought and effort to my online portfolio. With the presentations coming up I want to actually have it up and running properly. To begin with it only have one page with 4 projects on and they were not up to a professional standard. I've made a list of things that can be improved.

   - needs an about page
   - needs a contact page
   - needs an up to date logo
   - apply a favicon symbol if possible
   - upload more recent work
   - make work look more professional
   - adjust the layout of the pages/thumbnails/artwork etc
   - maybe revamp the personal branding

There's a lot to do on the face of things but its just a case of tackling one thing at a time. Firstly I added more pages and set up editing windows for each project that I will have up. The pages are now titled ABOUT, PORTFOLIO and CONTACT. Very straight forward and easy for viewers to understand. The about page will have a bit about my practice and my views and so on so they can get a feel for who I am. The portfolio will house any project based stuff or jobs etc and finally contact will have my details and possibly in the future I can added a client list so people wanting to know more about what I was like to work with can go a contact them.

Three pages is the maximum I can have at the moment. I'd have to pay to get a few extra privileges which I wont be able to afford alongside a lot of other expenses that will be coming up.

Secondly I wanted to edit the thumbnails of the page because they were too big and in your face. It's not great to look at on screen.

These are the new thumbnails.

Making the Favicon was quite easy as Cargo as and uploader for it. Using the dimensions given it was a simple matter of finding a favicon generator on Google that would reformat it for me. This is the favicon on a large scale.

And here it is to scale.

I've replaced the CPJC logo with a simpler letter C in Gotham Bold. I'm contemplating phasing out cpjcdesign and rebranding myself with something thats more personal, current and to the point. At the moment I'm going to stick with the Letter C whilst I work on a some more concept development.

I still need to add a lot of content to the projects and work on a better layout to display the work but Its a very long winded process working with Cargo so I'll come back to it. But for now there is a massive improvement.

Professional Opportunities

OTTO

Since starting the brand as a project purely to make some of my own screen printed shirts, its really progressed and their is potential for it to become a fully functioning business that will allow me to explore and practice my creativity through screen printing and eventually clothing design.

I've been having conversations with my parents and their is the possibility for me to do a kickstarter funding scheme and buy my own printing carousel along with a few other bits to set up a small studio.

Dots Printhaus - internship screen printing

I've been in touch with Johnny and Joe at Dots a few times over the year and last time we spoke Joe mentioned they were considering taking on interns and doing workshops in screen printing. This would be a great opportunity to really learn more about screen printing and whats possible. So far I've been working on my technique and developing the skill purely to have practiced the method, however my knowledge and creativity through screen print has so much more potential.

Creative Director/ designer VHL

View Holographics Ltd is in need of people to create artwork and designs to promote their products and services. This would be a convenient and paid opportunity to work with new technology and methods of communication. As to whether it's what I want to be doing as a major part of my career I'm unsure.

Freelance C2 studio

I've already had a few people come to me through friends looking for some design work to be done so I want to keep the creativity going and get more projects under my belt/help out some friends by taking the briefs on as freelance work. This will be a good chance to push my new personal brand C2 further.

OTTO - the business

Following the success of the OTTO launch event at Outlaws Yacht Club, it has had a great response and I feel that all the effort that went into it was worthwhile.

I feel more confident now that this is something that I would like to pursue as a business venture. Other clothing companies such and Hype, Abandon Ship Apparel and Represent started off in similar fashion and thats the kinda of success and potential OTTO has. It will have to be a steady development which will need to have some financial backing and help from others who have more of a business orientated mind.

Rough plan:-

   - 2013/14 - work part time for living costs and spend the rest of my time on the business. Running it mostly online and through popup events and collaborations.

   - 2014/15 - improve quality of the clothing and work on new collections, getting manufactures to create the clothing more than myself having to order and print them all the time. Get clothes into boutiques and shops in Leeds.

   - 2015/16 - leave part time work by the end of the year and focus on the business. Push the clothes out to shops and boutiques in Sheffield, Manchester, Liverpool, Newcastle and Possibly London. Get a proper website.

   - 2016/17 - open flagship store in either Leeds or Manchester (depending on the success up to this point and the state of the economy) with in house screen printing facility.

   - 2017/18 - launch brand campaign to promote the label and reach out to more places across the country.


This is all an ideal plan which can be realised but there is still a lot of things to sort out before any of it can go ahead. With local interest from boutiques such as The Allotment, Bo Carter and Audere Couture there is a lot of hope and potential for the brand.

Modern Designers Studio Placement

Similarly to Creative Concern It was two years ago and I failed to keep in touch with them. However, a can recap the experience nonetheless. It was much different to Creative Concern as the size of the studio, the amount of people I was working with and the kind of work/jobs they were doing were much different. Going from a big studio at the top of a cotton mill with a great view and lots of books and interesting things on the walls to a small white studio with 2 windows and a dog was quite a transition. I didn't fall in love with it like I did at Creative Concern but I appreciate the experience more now as it was a more hard working environment. And I spent less time following people around and observing and more time getting involved with some of their work and doing a lot of research.

I only spent a week at Modern Designers but it was a long week and I wanted a rest at the end. Now I would say it was a good week and it gave me a good taste of whats to come from the industry. If I could have done anything differently, again I would have prepared some questions and tried to get more out of them instead of getting on with the tasks they set me. I suppose that is part of a learning curve and a development of my understanding of how to get the most out of placement or studio visit.

I'll be sending them a thank you soon.

Creative Concern Studio Placement

Although my placement at Creative Concern was two years ago now I feel its a good idea to recap on my experience and how its informed my practice and my views on the design industry.

Firstly, my taste in design and my design approach was much different then to what it is now as well as my skills having come on leaps and bounds. I would be very narrow with my design approach and only  aim for one thing when given a task or a brief to respond to. Now I'm more open and I let as much of my surroundings, findings and experimentation direct my response.

Working in a big studio was really nice because I got to meet a lot of people that all have different roles and experience. Some were more business lead and worked with organising things, and others were the designers that worked on the projects. For a few days they had a programmer/coding freelancer come in to code a website.

By the end of the placement I was pleased to have done it because I learnt a lot about how studios operated. If I could have done it differently I would have asked more questions, got more contacts and kept in touch more after completing the placement. But at that point I didn't think ahead enough to do anything.

I want to get back in touch and thank the studio so I'm going to make them a customised print/gift that they will hopefully appreciate.

Ian Anderson Lecture - Visiting Professional

Ian Andersons lecture, following his workshop, was interesting. His work is nothing like what would catch my eye today. But with that said, he is a very good designer and his ways of thinking are what really gripped me.

It was also interesting that he'd had success with Designers Republic and then it failed and has been revived. Gives young designers like myself a reassurance that you can come back and pick yourself up if something goes wrong. This is one of my main concerns as a professional. I just don't want to be a disappointment.

GFSmith Paper Stockists - Visiting professional

GFSmith came to college to showcase their Colorplan paper stocks. It was really interesting especially for myself as I've always had a keen interest in paper and print. I never knew their was so much that could go into creating paper. The quality of the samples was amazing as well which really made me want to use some high standard stocks.

I've already got in touch with GFSmith and asked for the Colorplan swatch pack so I can reference possible stock choice for my briefs and studio projects in the future.

These are a few of the samples that I had the pleasure of looking at. I particularly enjoyed the bicycle magazine as I was doing a bike anatomy based brief at the time.

http://www.gfsmith.com

Team Impression - Visiting Professional

Team Impression came in to talk little about the business and the services they can provide. Basically there is a lot that they can offer and the turn around time is very good. It's a perfect connection to have if I were to start a studio or in need of a specialist print job.

http://www.team-impression.com

Dots Printhaus Visit

Dots was a great visit, the guys were really friendly and even though they were very busy they took the time to talk to me and answer my questions. I've been dying to go back and get some experience screen printing their and really improve my knowledge and and technique. These guys are perfect as a contact as well for what I'm doing with OTTO and they may become a key part of the businesses productivity in the future.

Furthermore, they do a lot of collaborative work and creative events with I think is always a good thing to do to keep up the fun and variation in a job and lifestyle.

They also have dogs...studios with dogs are a good thing.

http://dotsprint.co.uk

Craig Oldham - Visiting Professional

The Democratic Lecture was great, it was a really refreshing and innovative way of delivering it because as an audience we had some say in what we wanted to hear about and you didn't go into the lecture with the expectation of sitting through slides of someone else's work. In a sense the lecture, the process and the publication are part of Craig's work which paradoxically means we are looking at slides of someone else's work. But more importantly I took away a lot from this lecture.

It was more of a pep talk and an encouraging lecture on how to get yourself out their and be a part of 'the real world' which is different to spending an hour and a half listening to another designers career and success story.

I was inspired enough at the end to purchase the book which I've not started reading yet but If the content is as engaging as the lecture then It'll be a good buy.

Portfolio surgery sign up.

I signed up for my portfolio surgery and I'm having mine with Aidan Nolan from AND studio in Huddersfield. I've been looking at his work and he seems like he'd be a good professional to talk to as the studio does a lot of branding work like myself. I've spoken to some people who have already had their surgeries with other professionals and they all said that they were very useful. I've not changed my portfolio based on what I've heard from them however as I want to get feedback on my first idea of my portfolio should look like.
http://www.aidannolan.co.uk

Portfolio Surgery with Aidan Nolan

I didn't prepare any questions for the surgery with Aidan but I did bring up a few concerns that I had thought about before meeting him. My main concern was the layout of the work and the overall content. He generally thought it was good and appropriate which was reassuring but suggested that I brighten up the images and there a few things that I could possibly photoshop to tidy up.

Portfolio final draft before surgery.

Portfolio 2nd draft.

Portfolio first draft.

Portfolio considerations.

After purchasing my portfolio folder it became apparent that I need to consider a number of things and make some choices. With the portfolio surgeries approaching I want to have as much done so I don't have to make too many big changes to it.


Things to consider:

   - landscape or portrait?
   - layout - images of deliverables? development? ideas?
   - font choice?
   - which briefs include?
   - what kind of work?
   - what to write about the briefs/whats appropriate?
   - what details about myself should I include?

Decisions:

   - landscape
   - layout - images of deliverables on a double page spread for each brief. Images on the first page then more images and a bit about the brief on the second aligned to the right in a column.
   - Minion pro - for its neutral aesthetic across the entire portfolio and because I don't want to use Helvetica.
   - include briefs from OUGD301
   - briefs should all be based on branding and identity
   - an overview of each brief roughly 100-150 words long explaining the purpose and the design choices. Maybe include some print and production specifications.
   - my logo, my contact details and a short about me paragraph

LinkedIn - Finally signed up

So after the most recent PPD session with John I decided it's definitely time to find out whats so good about LinkedIn and sign up. 

I'm now officially on the site and i've requested to join a few of the design orientated networks and already begun making connections. Mostly to people on the course but its a start.

Personal branding

Looking back at my personal branding, I have gotten used to it and I'm quite comfortable with it for now. At this point I want to push it further forward an begin applying it to a small range of branded materials that I will actually use when designing and networking.

So far I just have a business card and a few social networking accounts with very little on them. I don't use them frequently enough to promote myself that way and upload work or interesting subjects.

I need to upload more to my online portfolio and customise the layout which will take some time but will be very worthwhile. I also want to look into a specific mailing list that I can send a some mail to. I've decided not to send any sample of my work but to send them a taste of my creativity.

I've also considered a concept for a bespoke website. I wouldn't actually create one as I'd rather not pay to have it at the moment. The concept would be based around my initials, there will be four pages Charlie, portfolio, jobs and contacts. Charlie would be about me as a designer and my interests much like a home page and an about page merged together. Portfolio would be a page of all my projects which could be for clients, for competitions and for personal practice. The jobs page would define what kind of jobs I'm looking to do and which skills I have so people looking for a designer will know exactly what to expect from me and whether or not I'm the right man for the job. Finally the Contact page will have my details and links to social networks and clients that I will have done work for previously.

Sounds like a lot but I'm not going to spend too much time designing but more time just doing things.

Joe Gilmore (Qubik) - Visiting Professional

We had a short presentation given by Joe Gilmore which was quite enjoyable. His work is interesting and some of it unusual which I think is due to the scope for experimentation when design predominantly for the arts and cultural sector. He talked about the process of some of the projects and how he actually goes about making some of the work which is different to most other visiting professionals who just show the work and talk about it instead of explaining the way it was created. It great to see work that I haven't seen or heard of before as well. I lot of the work was short run projects and some personal projects which further showcased Joe's practice.

Studios

This is a list of links to studios that I'm interested in visiting and some are ones that I find inspiring but are not necessarily in synergy with my own practice.


View Creative http://viewcreative.co.uk
Duke Studios http://www.duke-studios.com
Dots Printhaus http://dotsprint.co.uk
Box-head http://www.weareboxhead.com
Raw http://www.weareraw.co.uk
The Beautiful Meme http://www.thebeautifulmeme.com
Build http://wearebuild.com
Generation Press http://generationpress.co.uk
Founded http://wearefounded.com
Passport http://passport-db.com
Creative Concern http://www.creativeconcern.com
Modern Designers http://www.moderndesigners.co.uk
BVD http://bvd.se/our-projects/
Morse Studio http://www.morsestudio.com
Design Project http://www.designproject.co.uk
Progress Packaging http://www.progresspackaging.co.uk - interesting for packaging ideas.
Heydays http://heydays.no/projects/
Berg Studio http://www.bergstudio.co.uk/index.php
Bedow http://www.bedow.se/work/ - not really what I practice but I like the way they display their projects and even demonstrate the techniques and concepts behind the work.
Studio Lin http://www.studiolin.org
NB Studio http://www.nbstudio.co.uk - probably not my kind of design jobs however they have a brilliant motion graphic to explain exactly what they are about and they have some great points about design and client relations.
Hey Studio http://heystudio.es
Maddison Graphic http://www.maddisongraphic.com
Studio Small http://studiosmall.com/work - very broad range of projects but some are along the lines of my own briefs for FMP so they will be good contextual references and influences.
Bunch Design http://www.bunchdesign.com/#page=/projects/project-67.htm
Ideas Factory http://www.ideasfactory.co.uk - really nice publication design.
Kurppa Hosk http://kurppahosk.com/work/
The Entente http://the-entente.org/info - very different studio to most and they are open to having interns and even encourage it which its great to see. They also set up a type foundry called Colophon Foundry http://www.colophon-foundry.org/information.
Sawdust http://madebysawdust.co.uk
Neubau Berlin http://neubauberlin.com/archive/ - quite a busy webpage but their is lots of very dynamic and avant garde design on there.

Professional Concerns

Do I need to go straight into work after my degree?
Will I still be able to afford to live away from home?
Can I manage a business on my own?
Can I afford to not go straight into work?
Who am I going to target to work with?
Do I want to work in a studio for the rest of my career?
How the f**k do you run a business?
What do I need to do to remain financially stable yet progress further?

PPD TUTORIAL - Session 2 - Tasks

Task 1
Identify 5 companies/studios which you consider potentially synergetic
to you personally.
Write a short explanatory paragraph and reasons for each. 


View Creative

View creative do a lot of work for View Holographics where my dad works and it's a thriving studio. It started out as just one man, Simon Cotton, in 1999 and now he has roughly 20 other creatives working with him. This attracts me to the studio because it really shows that they're doing something right and they aren't just sustaining the business but its expanding. It's based in Conwy North Wales which is close to View Holographics and its very picturesque. The work on the website seems to cover a wide range of deliverables and they provide a full package of design work. Each project has a very distinct and different aesthetic and approach so the work thats going on is never the same.
http://viewcreative.co.uk

Duke Studios

This isn't an actual design studio but its a creative hub where lots of other creatives and small studios or companies have set up. Its very new and its still under a lot of development but It's in a great location in the centre of Leeds which is perfect for inspiration and accessibility as I could live in Leeds in a flat and it would be affordable.

Dots Printhaus

I really young and enthusiastic print service based in Leeds that also take on design jobs and are willing to collaborate. I visited the guys that set it up over summer and they print mostly t-shirts which I'm really interested in as everything they do is screen printed. Working with these guys would be great as It would be really hands on all the time and I'd get really good a screen printing which is something I'm very interested in.
http://dotsprint.co.uk


Box-head


http://www.weareboxhead.com

Raw

Based in Salford near Manchester Raw are a good sized studio. Their website really sold them to me and I want to contact them and hopefully go and meet the team. The 2 reasons why I've picked this studio is because they like to get to their clients and understand them fully which I believe is a great practice and produces work that the client will feel involved with and attached too. The second reason is the collaboration and crafted side of their work which the about page mentions. I like to collaborate and I love to craft when working on a project.
http://www.weareraw.co.uk

The Beautiful Meme

I really like the projects that this studio undertakes. The responses are very innovative and interesting in the depth of their concepts. The work isn't what I would normally think of producing so I think I'd have a lot to learn from them and the ways in which they think about a brief or a problem.
http://www.thebeautifulmeme.com/about

Build

Builds out look on their work and their clients is one of the reasons I'm interested in them. They produce very different responses to all their briefs and look to work for people who are open to new and innovative resolutions. I really enjoy their work and the concepts behind them. Secondly to this reason, they do a lot of work with Generation Press who I have an interest in.
http://wearebuild.com

Generation Press

Generation Press have a lot going for them that interests me. Firstly, they specialise in print. Print is a massive passion of mine, I love printed media and deliverables and I want to work more and more with print as time goes by. Secondly, they are eco friendly and work hard to keep their impact on the environment down.
http://generationpress.co.uk

Task 2
Identify the top choice and WHY you feel that they may have synergy with your practice now, or in the near future. 

Dots Print haus - this is because I'm doing a lot of work with screen printing onto clothing which is the bulk of their income. They hand screen everything they do and produce others work as well as their own. They are young and there is plenty of room to expand and collaborate. Has I've started a clothing label which has short run amounts of screen printed designs I feel as though this studio is the most in synergy with my own practice.

Task 3
Is your choice based on:
LOCATION 
DIRECTION OF PRACTICE 
THE BRAND PHILOSOPHY 
CLIENT BASE 

My choice is based mostly on the direction of practice however they location is also very appealing with it being in Leeds city centre amidst lots of other creative opportunities. Looking further into the studio they are very ethically driven and produce everything on the most environmentally friendly materials possible.

Task 4
What if none of those is your main reason for choosing to follow this organization, what is it specifically? 

Besides the above reasons for my choice, Dots also do a lot of collaborative work with other independent designers and studios of different practices. They show a real passion for connecting with people and have a good time with their work and developing themselves.

Task 5
When considering these practices:
Please CONSIDER WHO they are/who are you?
WHY you are contacting them and why they should listen? WHAT do you want them to do next and what do you actually want. WHY they should get back to you? 

I'm a very hands on creative and I like to labour over my work. Screen printing is a very laborious process and a very creative one. I've met the Johnny and Joe who run Dots and they a very honest and welcoming people, even though they were very busy when I first met them they still took the time to have a chat and let me look around the studio.

I'm contacting them because I would like to learn more about screen printing outside of the college facilities and practice the process. I think they should listen because I am aim to continue the clothing business and if it progresses and expands then there will be an opportunity for them to get work from me.

I want to work with them on a project that will help me explore the process of screen printing and incorporate it as a well developed skill into my practice.

Task 6
Now you have identified initially these studios you feel synergy with. Please list 8 methods you could utilize to contact them. 

   1. go and see them.
   2. send them a free t-shirt each.
   3. email.
   4. invite them to a promotional event for the clothing label.
   5. offer to collaborate with them.
   6. send them some screen printed work to impress them that they can pin up on the studio wall (the studio walls are plastered with other posters and interesting bits of work.
   7. tweet them directly or Facebook them with a prompt to respond through my own page.
   8. screen printed letter.