End of Stage 2 Evaluation

 

Stage 2 was enjoyable as I got to develop my ideas of what I like most about graphic design while also improving my skills and learning about different sides of design in the industry. With the first project ‘personal branding’ I found it difficult to get going as I was uninspired and I was given just one week so I couldn’t fully expand on any one idea. However, when it came to the ‘quotation design project’ where I got to design my own font for a quote of my choice I became more invested in my work and the quality of my work was better because of this. I chose a Nas quote, one of my all time favourite musical artists, and it was a quote which has resonated with me as well as within hip hop culture. It was enjoyable designing my own font and drawing inspiration from the artwork of Nas’ Illmatic as it’s style was popular at the time and it’s what made the album cover iconic in music history. The calligraphic characterisation of the letters in ‘NAS’ appeared similarly in my own design. I further improved my digital drawing skills when experimenting with different ideas for this project. I also became more invested with the idea that my designs would have an effect on the outside world in terms of marketing and branding. The last project however was the most enjoyable for me. The ‘album cover design’ project I was very passionate about as I cared about the piece of music I was designing for and the messages it carried. I enjoyed going outside and taking primary sources of the sunset and other natural imagery that I would use and manipulate for my final design. I also enjoyed sketching in my book different ideas for symbols I could use on the album cover which I would then scan and edit further in photoshop. This project helped me improve my photoshop skills and allowed me to practice with my composition and use of colour. I was successful in this project at documenting all the different sources of inspiration which carried into my final piece. I referenced other graphic designers like Storm Thorgerson and Hipgnosis, psychedelia and how it can be displayed through album art, insights into Frusciante's time as an addict and how it effected his music career etc. When it came to the album cover project I had greatly improved my time management skills and had become more productive with my time also. However, this is still an area I have to improve on as I know I'm not reaching my full potential yet.