PPP TASK 4

Your task is to review your blogs, your research, your work and your experiences to date. Having done this you are asked to identify:

• 10 things that you have learned about yourself as an individual and as learner. These should reflect your personal development and individual journey since the start of the program.
• 10 things that you have learned about yourself as a designer. These should reflect your growing awareness of your own interests within graphic design as a subject, discipline and profession.

Each of your 20 reflections should be summerised in a short but informative statement and 'illustrated' by using appropriate visual material.

10 Things that I learned about myself (as an individual and as a learner):

1. Devoted. Dedicated to the course.

I learned that I can be really devoted and dedicated. Mondays are no longer my hate days because I love going to uni. Sunday became the worst day - there is no uni on sunday. Sometimes I feel that I have no life but than I change my thinking and realize that college has become such a big part of my life. I like all the briefings, the sessions and the lectures. Trying to enjoy everything in uni while I'm still a student. Of course trying to get the best of it out. Even staying for 12 hours in college doesn't seem a drag anymore. 

http://www.myspace.com/devotiondesigns/photos/23163814#%7B%22ImageId%22%3A23163814%7D

2. Get exited when I learn a new skill.

During this term I learned so many software and design skills and new ways of thinking and approaching  designs. Every time I learned something new - I've got that 'bzzz' inside. I really enjoy discovering new  things. The best thing I learned yet is screen-printing. I think it's amazing. I'm usually quite scared of workshop areas. They just look too scary for me. But here in Leeds college of Art staff is just amazing. They really help you trough so many things. I already feel more confident in anything I come up with. I always know there are going to be people that going to help me learn something new. So I'm not scared anymore and I cannot wait to learn even more things. 

http://designyoutrust.com/2009/12/02/you-see-better-when-you-are-scared/

3. English has improved. 

I have been going to English support classes that have helped me with my writing and general english skills. I still have a long way to go. But I feel better talking in English now than I did before. All the course mates are really supportive as well. So are the tutors. I think my living with english people have helped me develop my english skills.

http://englishofficallanguage.blogspot.com/

4. I have better communication skills than I thought I had.

When I arrived to Leeds, I didn't know anyone and was quite scared that i won't be able to make friends. But the people in Leeds are just so friendly and welcoming. I managed to get over my language boundary and get to know quite a lot of people. 

http://info.proactivepr.org/blog-1/bid/101299/Communicate-ideas-better-with-a-clear-graphic-design-brief

5. I can survive a 12 hour day in college.

I think the studio environment that we have is worth using. I can concentrate more there and less procrastinate. I feel good when I come back after a full-working day. I feel that it was productive. In the evening the college gets quite as well. I don't have a mac back home and I do like learning new things on the mack. In college I also have everything I need. I rather leave stuff there and bring it back and forth all the time. 

http://designbyben.blogspot.com/2008_11_01_archive.html

6. Better money-management skills.
After doing a project about time-management I learned a lot of great tips for myself. It seems that procrastination is one of the hardest things to overcome but it is possible. Still working on that last one. As a comparison to last year I think my time-management has definitely improved. Of course there is always more to learn and you can always get better at anything even more. I feel that I do more work than I used to. 

7. Manage to keep in touch with friends and family back home.

The college is keeping us really busy but I still try to keep in touch with my friends that are not in leeds and not in England. I don't really have time to miss them because of the intense course work load. Sometimes I find myself not talking lithuanian for a week or to. To me it's quite a lot. But now I keep that harmony between college work and socializing.

http://www.acharmingoccasionblog.com/2011_05_01_archive.html

8. Got obsessed with graphic design. Type. Grid. Feel like a nerd.

Trough all the design principle lessons we had I learned so much about type and grid and layout an colours that my friends don't understand a word I say. They say this course had made me quite nerdy. I do like finding out more interesting things about fonts and all other nerdy graphic design things. 

http://typomil.com/anatomy/index.html

9. Cannot work in a mess. Tidy.

I learned that I'm a really tidy person because I have to organize all my stuff in the drawer and my room is always tidy if it's not I cannot work. 

http://www.logodesignworks.co.uk/blog/logo-inspires-uk-to-keep-britain-tidy

10. People you live with affect your lifestyle.

Las year I wasn't too happy about the room-mates I had. Actually I hated living with them. The people I lived with were too bossy and grumpy all the time. It got my mood down. Now I realize that it's important who you live with. It's important to choose good room-mates that will have something in-common with you. Best if it's the shame shared in interests.

http://www.salon.com/2011/05/18/kleptomania/

10 things I learned about myself ( as a designer):

1. Feel more confident using adobe software. 

2. Realized that design process is a never ending circle. 

3. You can always develop your design further.

4. Screen printing is really fun.

5. Discovered new designers and design studios that did not know before.

6. Not afraid of workshops anymore.

7. Got better at presentation skills.

8. Better time-management than at the beginning of the course.

9. Working in the studio is better than working at home.

10. Sharing ideas with course mates helps developing them further..

Exploring new designs.

I took a book from library called 'Non-Format.Love song.' It's basically one design studios portfolio, the things they do and such. I really liked the book so I did more research on the internet and found their web page. The design is amazing both the sited and the designs of the studio. I think it's a brilliant company. 

http://www.non-format.com/

Kjell Ekhorn (Norwegian) 

and Jon Forss (British) have 

worked together as the creative direction & design team Non-Format since 2000. They work on a range of projects including art direction, design, illustration and custom typography for arts & culture, music industry, fashion and advertising clients. They have art directed the independent music monthly The Wire and also Varoom: the journal of illustration and made images.–A bestselling hardback monograph entitled Non-Format Love Song waspublished by Die Gestalten Verlag in 2007. A second edition was published in Spring 2008.–A Non-Format edition of Pyramyd’s Design And Designersseries was published in 2006.–Non-Format is based in Oslo, Norway and Minneapolis, USA

Non-Format (US)

–

T: +1 651 603-0767

–

Non-Format (Norway)

–

T: +47 95 42 62 91

–

Emails:

General

Students/Employment

Business

I took another book out of the library called Print formats and finishes' and it had load of interesting designs. The book talks about limited budget doesn't limit the design quality and creativity.

http://kukusi.com/?page_id=2

Andrew is a creative director who currently works with the London office of SapientNitro.

Andrew is instrumental in bringing in and developing exciting new accounts from Viacom (MTV/Nickelodeon), The Energy Savings Trust, Playboy, The Automobile Association, Channel 4, UKHO, and Tesco Digital with a combined business value of over £5m.

He has a thorough understanding of how to engage and inspire consumer experiences in today’s multi-channel market place. I also have a solid background in graphic design and print, and uses this to define innovative experiences across a range of current and emerging platforms.

Prior to joining SapientNitro, Andrew co-founded the award winning ‘Red Room’, EMI Music’s in-house art department. The department was responsible for all of EMI Marketing’s design and artwork requirements, saving over £2m per annum in artwork fees.

The department worked with a wide range of EMI’s most successful artists including David Bowie, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Blondie, The Buzzcocks, Genesis, Roxy Music, and Duran Duran. It also provided creative services to Blue Note, Disney, Parlophone and EMI Classics.

Whilst with EMI, Andrew was also responsible for kickstarting the digitisation of EMI’s artwork assets stretching back over 110 years.

Not all the work on the page I enjoyed but I did like his Duran Duran CD Box Set. Every box is hand-stamped typography. 

Another great studio that I found is ZIP Design I like the variety of work they produce, also they have different styles of work which is always good:

http://www.zipdesign.co.uk/

Zip is a multidisciplinary design studio with 15 years experience working across a wide range of sectors from the music industry to the UN (United Nations). 

We provide creative solutions across all media; offering art direction, graphic design, brand development, iPhone apps, web design, web development, web banners, motion graphics, illustration and project management.

How we work

We work on both large and small projects. Our pricing and planning 

structures are bespoke to fit individual needs. 

We believe in being objective in our outlook. 

We aim to convey our client’s message using the right tone of voice, whether it’s directed at young people or the boardroom.

Who we are

Neil Bowen - Creative Director 

Alexandra Cunninghan - Head of Production & Business 

Mary Patel - Project Manager 

Dave Gaskarth - Designer 

Tom Parkinson - Director In addition, we have a team of regular freelancers and collaborators (programmers, illustrators, photographers, printers, etc) to work on specific projects.

DESIGN PROCESS. SELF-EVALUATION

1.  What skills have you developed through this module and how effectively do you think you have applied them? I have learned screen-printing which to me is quite exiting, because I’ve never done it. I found out new ways to look at the whole design process. I improved my Photoshop skills, learned some things on Photoshop that I never knew before and I cannot wait to use some of the features later on. I realised that research doesn’t stop throughout the whole creative process. That there are no boundaries to develop any project further. I learned how to set up a clock movement :> I also improved a lot on my illustrator skills and finally it became a habit and I feel more confident now using the software than I felt at the start of the course. I also did some drawings with a pen tablet which is a really useful tool for imagery.
2. What approaches to/methods of design production have you developed and how have they informed your design development process? I learned that research is a really important thing, that it’s a cycle. I learned that if You want to improve on things - You have to come back to the steps you already taken and revisit them, change them. I learned that doing surveys or questioners helps to get to know your specific audience more. We had a lot of workshops that helped us brainstorm and organise our research. We also did a lot of feedback crits. Knowing other peoples opinions really helps to develop your work. I learned what is the difference between quantitative and qualitative  research.  We learned a lot of  about where to start the research and hot to make a theme a specific subject. I tried different materials and approaches to design. Used a lot of design sheets to develop ideas.
3. What strengths can you identify in your work and how have/will you capitalise on these? I think the fact that all of the pieces are interactive and their actually are helping You to solve the time management problem is the strength of this module.  I really enjoyed doing something that is more innovative – in the future I will try to make more designs that are interactive and innovative. I started to develop the ideas more in depth, rather than just making ‘pretty’ design. This is the one thing I always lacked concentrating on – it seems as if my mind has opened up. I already feel the advantages of this course. Also I learned a lot about research; it has to be a 25/7 thing. It’s an on-going process. You can find interesting pieces of research in the most unexpected places or time. It’s a also good to start building up a recourse source which I finally started doing. I think after this module I realised how important the context and the content is. I also developed on organising and categorising information. As well, I experimented a lot and tried different techniques which is always a good thing to do.
4. What weaknesses can you identify in your work and how will you address these in the future? I think my work works like separate series rather than like a one solid outcome. I would probably find the same colour theme and keep it throughout the whole 10 pieces. Though that is quite a hard task if You’re printing something digitally and screen-printing something because you have to mix up your own colours but I guess that comes with practise. If I had more time I would have created an identity. Only when I was finishing my pieces I realised that I could have created a brand of “Nation of Procrastination” and that would tie all the products together.  In the future if I’ll screen-print, I’ll know more about it and won’t make the same mistakes. In the future I will also know that if You buy clock movement you should check do the arrows really fit on.  I also think that this brief my time-management wasn’t too good – it’s quite bizarre  because I am doing a project about time management, at least I now know what was I doing wrong.
5. Identify five things that you will do differently next time and what do you expect to gain from doing these? I would leave more time for screen-printing and possibly book the sessions rather than go into he drop-in.  Because the drop-ins are late in the evening, if it’s busy you do less.  I will already have an induction and will know how to screen-print so I’ll save time by doing prints and knowing what I’m doing. I would choose one colour to go throughout the entire series and create an identity. Because I think visually it works better to have the same theme throughout products. I would leave more time for the designing of the final outcomes. Than I could actually develop the design further and make it more consistent and clear. I would blog more often because it helps You develop ideas and get your head around what you’re doing. I probably wouldn’t go back to Lithuania while having such a big project because I get distracted. For the next big project I would not go back home because I just cannot work there; too many discretions.  I think that would have helped my research more.
6.How would you grade yourself on the following areas: (please indicate using an ‘x’)  5= excellent, 4 = very good, 3 = good, 2 = average, 1 = poor
	1	2	3	4	5
Attendance					X
Punctuality					X
Motivation				X
Commitment					X
Quantity of work produced			X
Quality of work produced			X
Contribution to the group				X
The evaluation of your work is an important part of the assessment criteria and represents a percentage of the overall grade. It is essential that you give yourself enough time to complete your written evaluation fully and with appropriate depth and level of self-reflection. If you have any questions relating to the self evaluation process speak to a member of staff as soon as possible.