By Hunter Zhu
Graphic and Media Design In Superunion ,I have already involved in several designs of some famous brand’s key visual. The logos we designed usually undergo these steps: researching related information about the brand and desired logo, brainstorming of ideas, determining the suitable design, and sketching of logo. Once completed, it will be submitted to the company for further evaluation. In case the logo is rejected, it will be subjected to revisions and will be resubmitted to the company. Through these experiences, I have acquired many skills regarding logo design. Some of these skills are more practical and certain as compared to the lessons learned at school, which are enumerated as follows: 1. Do not start the project without a course plan. In terms of logo design projects, it is of outmost importance to create a plan to ensure that the project will go well. Determine first if the following questions are answered: (a) Who are the target audience of the company? (b) How to improve the old design or create a new logo? (c) How the logo should look like? (d) Is there a need to create several logos? (e) What could be the possible limiting factors in designing the logo? In order to create a concrete plan, it is necessary to talk and form an agreement with the client when it comes to the logo design. We must learn what clients really want,not they say they want or what we think they should want. 2. Create a logo that will stand out from others. This will help the company to be distinguished from the competitors. Therefore, the design must be unique. Do not make it similar to the existing brand logos, or else the created logo will be less recognizable. The design must portray ingenuity and originality in order to create an element of surprise and impress people as well as the company’s image and culture. 3. Do not make a simple design but do not make a very complex one too. The logo design should allow the company to use it for several purposes. A much simpler logo will look similar when zoomed in on open-air advertisements, company gates, digital displays, or even when zoomed out on shirts, bags, business cards and mobile phones. 4. Avoid using complex colors. First, this is because it will entail higher printing cost. A logo is usually designed using two or three solid colors to make sure that the brand logo will stand out. Instead, we could create white logos on solid colored backgrounds for better visual experience wherever you see it. 5. Popular fonts should also be avoided since they are updated once every decade. Fancy fonts are maybe just fads and are not appropriate to use for logo design. When it comes to logo design, it is best to go for classic or simple fonts. 6. Do not offer numerous designs to the client. Also, the design ideas should be consulted within the team and not with the client. Offering the company with too many design ideas might lead to wrong judgment of the client, which will make the project more difficult for the team. Two to three designs are more efficient and sensible to discuss with the client and other designers.
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By. Daom BAE Design Management and Culture One step closer to the future I have started my first Researcher Internship in Design Do Korea. I was lucky enough to step into the world of branding and work with new people and partner companies. I have been running around, researching markets and design trends, analysing consumers and organising design samples, events. I also assisted at a photo shoot sometimes. Design Do & My Desk What have I learnt through Design Do? Through this internship, I could feel that whatever I do, I need to remember that every work-experience allows me to learn from my mistakes and find new ways of overcoming challenges. Based on my experience, what would I advise anyone trying to get some invaluable work experience? Here are my Individual perspectives do and don’ts when interning :
Never give up and stay passionate even if you are only completing the most basic tasks. It does not matter what you do but how you do it.
The project I look forward to the most this year is volunteering at the Volunteer Society Nepal. I have always had a fascination with travelling – not only to see beautiful places, but mainly to gain knowledge about them. I love to try new food, learn about the history and religions of different cultures and meet people who can give me their point of view. This volunteering opportunity will allow me to discover a different culture, where I will be able to use my skills and leave something behind. The experience will allow me challenge myself and see how I am able to work within an unfamiliar place.
The communities of Nepal suffered a huge set-back in early 2015 when they were struck by a series of devastating earthquakes (R. Kathryn, 2018). Nepal has been in a good space to receive volunteers and tourists for some time now, however rebuilding has been slow and there is still a need for assistance in this area. Due these events the numbers of children at orphanages has increased hugely and therefore volunteers are needed more than ever. This will allow me to gain a perspective of what many people in under-developed countries have to endure. I would be a part of this growing community, and take time away from this fast-paced lifestyle. Many people believe we do not appreciate what we have, we take things for granted, I often realise this therefore it would be an honour to give something back to a much more in need community. The planning stage of this experience has already been an exciting experience, as it is my first big trip outside of Europe. It has made me realise how much preparations have to take place before we travel. I have already planned my trip and I will be arriving in Nepal, Kathmandu on the 6th of August, where I will be living with a host family. The charity has given me a timetable of how my stay will look like (Figure: Image). In the first week I will be able to settle in the family guesthouse, attend Nepali language classes and visit cultural heritage sites. This will be an amazing opportunity to record my travels and use as reference in my final year of university. Being interested in projects which affect social change “Design For Change”, it will play a key role in my final year studies, as I will record various data and experiences. I will be working as a photojournalist and providing imagery for the charity’s social media in order to raise awareness of their causes. They are a big organisation who work with orphans, children with disabilities and women, who are able to receive support and empowerment. I will be able to visit all the sectors and understand the way they work, I believe this will be an extraordinary encounter.Work experience and volunteering abroad is an amazing opportunity in order to portray my determination, it is an experience that shows that I am not afraid to challenge myself. Ewa Dykas Graphic and Media Design 3 @_ewadesign Being a publishing agency in the 21st Century, Uncommonly needs to constantly adapt their way of thinking and expand their skills and create solutions for their clients needs. Therefore, we pitched an idea to Scott Dunn, on how to continue working with Uncommonly without publishing a magazine.
This is a great example of my creative role in a complex and technologically driven world, as being the most exposed to digital media, I had the ability to create what was once physical and tactile from the magazine to a digital form. I created content from the latest issue of the magazine and adapted it for Instagram or Facebook. From a “Clever Combination” feature, where the writer included six best city and beach holiday combinations - “the best of both worlds”, I created a quick “Instagram Carousel” animation, to portray the six paired destinations in 6 images. Another example of my quick digital thinking was creating a short animation of the “Going Up & Going Down” concept where the more trendy travel essentials are gaining popularity and which essentials are not as popular and not in style. I enjoyed this brief as I was able to explore other methods of design, which I was not able to do everyday. Most of Uncommonly’s projects revolve around editorials and publications therefore, I was able to show them how else they can utilise my skills in order to produce more current content for their clients. Ewa Dykas Graphic and Media Design 3 @_ewadesign by Rita Desport (GMD) I wrote my last blog post just after Christmas and right in the middle of my six month internship at SPIN. Four months later, here I am, writing this one after a long (and wonderful) first week at Pentagram.
Looking back at my last post, a lot has changed. It’s a “new” year (2019, obviously) and, this might sound extremely cliche, but I’ve changed as well. Six months at SPIN gave me a lot of knowledge, experience but, most of all, confidence. Working along side such great professionals constantly encouraged me to do my very best and work my very hardest. I felt a gradual increase of responsibility as weeks went by which, on a positive note, was pretty good! But responsibility also meant dealing with big clients and meeting early deadlines. As a very stressful and perfectionist person, this was quite a challenge. My efforts to meet the deadlines and expectations involved a lot of extra hours and sweat but were always successful (thank God!). Two of the most gratifying jobs I did were the “What is Universal Everything?” book for Unit Editions and the 280 High Holborn identity and marketing campaign. The book was a long project which lasted almost 4 months (during which I continued doing some smaller jobs on the side mostly for social media and marketing assets). I had the opportunity to learn the creative and technical process involved in the production of a book from the editorial design to the actual printing of the spreads. Can’t wait to get the final result and dive into the pages! The second, and personally the most rewarding, was the identity and campaign assets for the 280 High Holborn building in Central London. This was quite special as it was my final project at SPIN and my first solo big client job. Tony and Claudia really allowed me to explore as much as I wanted and make this project my own. In the end, the client loved it and everyone congratulated me on the success of the proposal. Best day ever for sure! After finishing my internship at SPIN, I went home for a couple of weeks to rest and focus on my personal website which I had been postponing up until then. I set myself a deadline for it and redesigned the entire layout and retouched every image. I ended up using every minute of my imaginary deadline which was set to the night before my first day at Pentagram. It felt so satisfying clicking on that “Publish” button! (Feel free to visit it here: www.ritadesport.com). Also, shortly after that, I launched my first ever design profile on instagram (ritadesport_wip). I’ve always wanted to create one but kept thinking it wasn’t the right moment or that I didn’t have enough content for it. Finally checked that box! Back to my first day at Pentagram. Got there last Monday half an hour early (just in case!) almost screaming with excitement and really nervous! First days are always so overwhelming! Anyway, met Marina Willer and the entire team as well as a few random people that passed by as Cleber showed me around. First impressions: - so big! - and so many people - Marina is the best - everyone in the team is incredibly kind and welcoming - love that half the team speaks Portuguese - I’ve already been briefed in a big project - the team treats interns as proper designers :) - the free lunches are surprisingly tasty - drinks every Friday on the local pub sounds really good So far so good (better than good, actually!). Can’t wait to see what the next 3 months hold for me! Laura White - Illustration & Visual Media Throughout this DPS year I have been mainly entering competitions to count towards my work experience. This was not necessarily out of choice - I personally found it difficult to find work experience and internships, and not for lack of trying. I applied to a variety of types of work experiences and internships - design and/or advertisement agencies, publishers, theatres, event organisers - basically anyone looking for a design or arty person. However, I rarely received feedback and if I did I was told: - "too illustration focused" "... purely because I would prefer a graphic design student, rather than an Illustration student." "not what we're are looking for" Even though I had the skills they were asking for, and was always enthusiastic to learn, it always felt like that they were after graphic designers, even though the skillset for an illustrator is not too much of a stretch. But I digress - since experiences in offices or studios were not coming easily, I started to look into competitions that I could apply my skills to or learn something new. Throughout this DPS year I have entered a variety of different competitions, some illustration based, many not. I shall briefly talk about three of the competitions I entered to show the the variety of work I produced for them.
Little White Lies x Barbican Centre: Life Rewired - this brief was inspired by Life Rewired, "a season exploring what it means to be human when technology is changing everything" at the Barbican Centre. The brief was to produce a portrait of a famous actor enhanced by technology. The portrait was to be produced purely digitally and had a small colour scheme, both of which I had not really had to consider before. From entering competitions I have expanded the mediums I more confident with, particular with digital work, since I am more of a traditional illustrator. I have also come to realise, like the companies looking for interns, that you need to understand design, not just image making, to get work and to get work done. Illustration skills are transferable and flexible and can only improve when incorporating with graphic design. Plus this stuff is great for my portfolio and I now know of companies that do competitions so I can keep an eye out for future ones. Although I wish I was doing work experience in a psychical studio or office or the like, following briefs for competitions definitely gave the experience of being a freelance illustrator/designer, and it kept me busy and practising my discipline.
I’ve always thought of networking with a capital N. It’s big, scary and involves you trying to look sophisticated, sipping wine and making witty conversation with people who are far more qualified than you. Except maybe it doesn’t. Maybe it can actually be fun and casual.
The DPS year started with me knowing that I wanted to work in the Art Department on films. However I didn’t really know anything about film. I enjoyed watching films but I didn’t push myself to engage with them, however this changed when I volunteered at the London Film Festival last autumn. Over the two weeks I watched a new film basically everyday, most of these with Q&As with the filmmakers after. Some I loved, some I didn’t, but no matter what I thought I was starting to engage with the industry. I continued going to film screenings, smaller festivals and talks. By being at these events I was putting myself in the position to meet new contacts, whether this was being introduced to friends of friends in the industry or by talking to speakers after the event. I’ve attended a few screenings and panels at BAFTA in Piccadilly, not only were the events great but I also got the chance to hang out in their bar, normally reserved for BAFTA members and various film high-ups. I’m not saying you’ll come away employed but you might get an email or two and possibly have the chance to talk to an Oscar winning Director. I’ll admit, I haven’t talked to every person I should have these events, however the more you the more natural it becomes. I went up to Cardiff at the end of March for a BAFTA Guru day. It may seem like a bit of a trek from London but it was completely worth it for me. The divide between speakers and audience was much less noticeable than at other talks I’ve been to in London. The more casual environment gave me the confidence to speak to a Graphic Designer for TV who’s work I have admired for a while. I realised that while I was little nervous to speak to him I didn’t feel uncomfortable. We ended up having a great conversation and after a couple of emails back and forth, the Art Director of Doctor Who how has a copy of my CV. Dare I say it, but I think I might be starting to get the hang of this networking business? Ultimately my experience with networking has taught me that while you need to make an effort, it doesn’t have to be a horrible experience. It just about getting ourself out there, go to events which interest you. Go to enough and eventually you’ll end up meeting a few people who can put you in touch with a few more and so your network grows. Just remember always send that follow up email, or what’s even the point? |