1000 word comparison

I am going to select two practitioners and write a 1000 word report that compares and contrasts the processes and practices of my two chosen practitioners.

My first practitioner is a company called Container plus who came to Stockport College to perform a small lecture about themselves. The lady who gave the lecture was called Louise Vormittag who is a designer, photographer and illustrator; she started the company container plus in 2002 and is based in London. The company states its a “multidisciplinary art and design collective specializing in playfully creating multifaceted fantasy worlds across a multitude of 2D and 3D platforms”. (http://www.containerplus.co.uk/) Louise explained to the lecture theatre that she first started the company by setting up a website with her friend and posting portfolios of work onto it and both agreed to help each other into the design world. The company has three members to it that are permanent but will recruit contacts to help with pacific briefs that get. Louise explained that the three members of the team have over 30 years of experience all together and are used to working together, she explained that they attempted to expand the company by recruiting two 20 year old but felt that the experience and commitment clashed and they struggled to function as a larger design agency. Louise mentioned how she came up with her ideas and inspiration, which I found extremely helpful she explained that the three members sit together and talk with full conversations in depth, she said it helps as ideas are thrown around especially if you feel you have hit a wall she said “ by the time you know it you have a completely new idea.” Louise also spoke about her inspiration and where it derives from including Artists, illustration, Greg Ashneider, Christopher Busher, Mike Nelson.

The second company I looked at 999 Design with Dave Sedgewick who is a senior designer based in Manchester. Dave Sedgewick studied at Manchester Metropolitan University he explained to us about his first placements and how they helped him get a better knowledge of what kind of design agency he would prefer to work for. Dave then went on placement at TCW which is now known as Love Creative and found that this helped in him getting his first proper job, but unfortunately things didn't fully work out and Dave was made redundant. Dave explained that through the experience he had from placement and having the job from Love Creative he had made many contacts and found it easier to get a interview. Dave went on to work for a company called Race, whilst working for Race Dave did some freelance work which gained him publicity which then he started work for 999 Design. Dave Sedgewick has worked with many clients such as Warburtons, BBC and many more. 999 Design started out in 1982 and state "aiming to make our mark in the world of design, 26 years on were an award winning, full service communications agency" (http://www.999design.com/).

999 Design work is very fresh and new i find there work inspiring i have looked closely at the Warburtons campaign they have done, i feel i can relate this to my work as i try to have a fresh look to my work. The Warburton campaign was about creating a campaign that would retain the Warburtons brands family ethos and keep in line with a environmental issue. 999 Design first started this campaign by creating a theme and bringing it to life with fascinating illustrations 999 design feel that this is light and friendly and straight talking, which 999 pride themselves of been a honest and straight talking company.

Louise Vormittag's work is completely different her work in my opinion is beautiful and elegant and slightly busy looking where as 999 Design keep there designs simple and fresh. Louise Vormittag created a piece called evil twin in which she set up a photo shoot of a beautiful girl in outdoor surrounding with a fascinating set up she then went on to create a hand drawn illustration for each photograph which told its own story its as if she was trying to show you the story coming out of the page, which brought a completely different look to the picture. Louise's illustrations are detailed and elegant and work extremely well with her photographs the way she uses her illustrations coming out of the page are clever its as if she wants you to know the hidden meaning behind the photograph.

Although both companies are completely different in style i feel i can relate to both depending on the brief. I feel drawn to Louise Vormittag's work because of the beauty of it and the uniqueness her style is something that inspires me she isn't afraid to pick up her pencil and draw her designs or even add her illustrations to a beautiful picture when i look at Louise's work i feel inspired to draw and look further into my designs for the hidden meaning . I also feel i can relate my work especially my final project as they keep there work fresh looking and isn't afraid to leave white space or little detail but still produce a fascinating piece, my final major project consists of a patch of grass and a patch of gravel which is simple but the feedback i have received has proven that it works i feel i can relate different work to both these designers although there very different.

mick

Mick came to Stockport to help us get a better understanding of how to prepare ourselves for life after university.  

Mick studied a HND at Blackburn in Graphic Design but felt he wasnt very good at it so went on to study Advertising till he eventually became a copywriter.  Mick works as a freelancer and works with companies such as Chase, Love, Macaan and many more he also travels places such as Leeds, Birmingham and London.

i found Micks advice extremely helpful he stated that "theres always someone working harder than you" which kind of hit me and made me think there will be somebody that will all goes that extra mile and has really made me think that maybe that feeling that you have done  enough is never really enough and could go beyond.

Mick advised us that we should be in contact with as many different agencies as possible and to start building communications now because in a month or two time there will be thousand of graduates attempting to get placement or jobs.

Mick also advised us to work all the terrible jobs that no one else wants to do he said that this would show commitment and could lead to a full live brief job he also stated that we should keep onto agencies even if they dont firstly respond as this aswel shows commitment.

i found the whole lecture really helpful and inspiring it has given me that push i needed into getting my portfolio perfected and stepping up my communication with companies more.

my issue and practice

My issue and practice question is “why are female Graphic Designers outnumbered by men? Is this changing?.” I choose this question as my issue and practice as I felt it was a common issue that is brought up a lot in the industry.

From my research into the industry and the different opinions I have collected I feel that it’s the bigger graphic design companies that are affected more by this issue as opposed to the smaller ones. I contacted different companies in England with the question and also visited companies and asked there opinion.

Lynsey who is a freelance designer explained to me that after working for a larger company she could fully relate to the question, she explained that where she worked men and women were on completely different wages for doing the same job and that it was the men that were paid higher something she said she could never get to the bottom of the reasoning.

Cactus design agency also gave me feedback on one of the previous experiences with another design agency explaining that she felt her boss was sexiest she explained that there was three women in the department who were all treated the same even though they all had different titles, it became that bad that after 6 weeks one women left due to rudeness. She also went on to explain that the other men in the work place started to pick up on the way the boss treated them and would join in as they felt it was normal. She gave her job up after 7 months due to the constant battle and lack of respect.

Another company I spoke with was Liquidigloo a man called Rob. This contact took immediate offence over the email. I approached many graphic design agencies and got a lot of helpful and friendly response many from women but I did state in the email to him that I wanted to hear opinions of both men and women, as I felt this wasn’t a witch hunt in any way just a simple issue that’s been on going for many years and wanted men to have there say and opinion herd. Liquidigloo became very defensive over email and stated “Maybe you could also head count the number of male nurses against female nurses, and ask ‘Are they Out numbered” and asked where was I going with this, I did respond to his email explaining that I was a student and this was purely a essay question I also provided him with some web links to prove that this issue has been ongoing for many years. The response I got back from that was extremely rude stating “I’m guessing your teacher is a woman, with a chip on her shoulder about men.” And in response to the web links I sent him as proof his response for one of them was “Maybe the woman that wrote it feels suppressed. Maybe her husband is a slob. I found the contact with this designer a real experience and never intended any offense.

After approaching different companies with the question why are female Graphic Designers outnumbered by men? Is this changing? I have had some really helpful responses and found that women are wanting to talk about there experiences and are willing to help. I sent out at least five emails to male designers and only had one response back which was extremely rude and sexiest I feel that they either don’t feel anything towards this question or they just simply don’t find anything wrong with this. I have learnt that this essay question is aimed more towards the larger graphic design agencies as it seems to be the larger ones that most people refer to. On a portfolio visit to Axongarside I sat with both female and male and asked them the question together there response was inspiring, they answered as a team explaining that there company is all for professionalism and fairness and work as a team, watching them working together and the good vibes from them was really nice to experience the whole visit was very relaxing The only issue they could relate to was Caroline explained that in previous job interviews she was asked about having a family and what her plans were which she was quick to explain that Axongarside however wasn’t one of these companies. This issue plays a very big factor in employment law and is usually forbidden as this could be counted as discrimination towards women, but maybe this is why there could be a small divide in some companies or maybe men are threatened by women this issue has been ongoing for years and I don’t feel it is any closer to changing especially if you receive the same response I did by simply asking.

Tal Rosner

Tal Rosner biography quotes him as BAFTA award winning for the work he did for the popular television series Skins. Tal Rosner took a BA Hons in Graphic Design, which took him three years. Tal was interested and explored into movement and took a moving image degree in London. Although he had degrees he feels he was self taught in using the software he needed to create his work digitally.

Tal stated in the lecture that he prefers working smaller to a lower budget, he created a piece for two french pianists who wanted a CD/DVD that would attract a younger generation. Tal showed us a piece that was split into two screens but he had tried to link them manually together although it was a strain on the eye and slightly hard to follow the imagery was really good and effective, the whole piece was unique and very abstract.

I found Tal Rosner's work very different to the other lectures i had attended, his work was unique and intriguing.

Truth, Lies and Typography

A member of Truth Design called Darren gave a lecture on the Manchester based company, which is two and half years old now he explained how the company likes to keep things simple there belief is less is more, they prefer one on one with clients to help get a better understanding and can sit and explain things through with the clients.

The company have produced many fonts including-

• DST
• Sodium
• Bad Angel
• Rub On
• Nitrogen
• Amplifier

Darren explained how he created a full alphabet in a day, which was extremely stressful he told us the alphabet was 10% design and 90% production. Truth Design mainly use computers to create there designs but Darren couldn't stress how important it was to show your working out, how you got to that final stage.

One thing i felt could be a major advantage was when Darren said he likes to experiment in different areas, he thinks everyone should learn all the skills as it gives you a broader range and can make it easier for briefs as you can introduce different aspects.

I enjoyed listening to some of the briefs they have done including Christies Charity, which they re-created a branding for them free of charge to help the charity and the Amir Khan Reebok work in which they created a branding for Amir Khan which he liked so much he looked into getting it embroidered onto his car seats.

Gill Blease

Gill Blease took a MMU foundation course then went on to do a fine art degree in Newcastle and was always encouraged by her fellow students and teachers at school this for her was the beginning. It took Gill 10-15 years to get to where she is now, which is a well established Illustrator and fine arts women. Gill also went to London after she completed her Newcastle course but found it a struggle and finally admitted defeat, where she then went to Japan she said she felt this helped her with design because the culture was a big influence.

Gill's main influences are-

• Japan
• Goya
• Paul Rand
• Graphic Design

Gill Blease explained to us how she collects images of everything and then collages them to create something new and spectacular, she explained that collecting things as simple as colour samples, cartoons, drawings, wrapping paper etc can help your imagination.

Gill felt that her learning really began when she got a job and actually started producing pieces, She has produced many pieces for Whitworth Gallery, Elle Magazine, Guardian and many more. She was very disappointed with Waitrose as they decided not to use her piece that she felt she had really captured what they were looking for but Waitrose felt that people would get it.

One thing about Gill is that she loves white space, which absolutely terrifies me she couldn't stress enough how happy it makes her as she feels her work sits better with white space and helps viewers. Gill prefers freelance to working for design companies and works from home. She has a website, which she says is crucial for self promotion although she feels she doesn't have to promote a great deal due to all the work she has already.

http://gillianblease.co.uk/

1,000 word response

"Compare and contrast the processes and practices of your two chosen practitioners. Upon this analysis what lessons could be applied to your own practice?

My two chosen practitioners that i feel i can relate my own practices to are Truth Design and Glorious, these two design agencies are completely different in style but both relate to me in individual ways.
Truth design presented a lecture that i attended, during the lecture i learnt alot about the company and there values. Truth design started with a partnership between two very down to earth people based in Manchester who enjoy the design industry and enjoy producing work for clients. The name Truth design came from there own values of wanting a company that only tell the truth they quoted " At the end of the day, we believe that if a brand is to succeed you must first be honest about it's weaknesses and turn them into strengths".(http://www.truth-design.co.uk/) I have noticed with Truth design that they focus alot on typography and experimenting with it, One font that stood out to me was Bad Angel, which has a Gothic style to it but is easy readable. The fonts they have created are DST, Sodium,Rub on and Nitrogen, which they use in there own work for clients. I feel Truth can relate to me through there font designs, i really enjoy experimenting with fonts and making new shapes from letters, to be able to create a full alphabet would be amazing and looking at some of Truth's examples really inspires me to pursue my developments.
Briefs that i felt i could relate to are Reebok, DST font, Bad Angel font, Great Northern Aid Trust, Christies and Ram.
Reebok brief was to create a brand identity for Amir Khan to support Reebok Boxing Range endorsed by him. Truth design solution was to develop a brand for Amir Khan, they took inspiration from the youth scenes for example music and fashion to create a visual language that could resonate with the target audience of 15-21 year old boys. The brand needed to be able to work with various media. Amir Khan was so pleased with the final product that he even looked into getting the logo embroidered onto the seats in his car, I found the final pieces very bold and well developed, which caught my eye. I feel i can relate my work to Truth through this brief as they have used very strong photography in there posters to help with the advertisements, I feel i use mainly strong imagery when designing promotional pieces because it helps to get the message across to the target audience and imagery is a very strong source if used correctly. I really like the contrast between the red font and the smokey dark imagery, which is something i have used and played around with on some of my previous pieces, i enjoy colour and what effects it can have for example the different moods and meanings it can create and then what clashes and looks hideous.
Another brief i found interesting was the Christies charity re-branding. Truth design created this piece free of charge as they felt they were helping a good cause with the charity to help them get noticed and promote their hard work. The reason i liked this brief was the fact that Truth had already recognised that Christies was a well known charity with the heart shape that everyone recognised them for, so they played around with the heart shape to create something even better but that people could still recognise as Christies. In my opinion if something already works don't destroy it just improve it and work with what you have, some of the best designs i have created have been developed from previous pieces that have needed updated.

My second design company is Glorious who are a multi award winning company based in Manchester and have been together for three and half years, there main focus is craft and production and base alot of their work on typography. Glorious are a identity specialist who are renowned for creative thinking and craft skills and we enjoy the challenge of problem solving.

I really liked the Red Dog Communication brief a marketing communications company, which required a piece of direct mail to launch the company, above all it had to be impactful and provoke a reaction from the recipient. Glorious solution was " in an age when political correctness seems to have gone barking mad, we designed a launch poster which, at first glance, carried a controversial line that really got people's hackles up, those who dug a little deeper appreciated the humour". (http://www.gloriouscreative.co.uk/) I loved this project and found the red dog identity really modern and fresh. Its fascinating how the designer can create something so big from there own everyday life as the designer had just got a new puppy and used the puppy as an idea but cartoonized it, its remarkable how are personal lives can effect the decisions and the designs we create in work. when i look at some of my past designs i see certain elements that had been effecting me in my designs and development and yet these pieces are some of my best.

Another brief is Roses Symposium aim is Every year, the Liverpool and Manchester design initiative hosts a design symposium before the Roses Design Awards. The theory is to create debate around current issues. Glorious has handled the design material for the past five years. The solutions was although the symposium was aimed at creative, it was a corporate event. They created a loose style - in contrast to the corporate nature of the event, it appealed to the target market. The poster is very hand rendered, which gives a more personal touch to the poster. I always think that the hand rough style works really well and gives a completely different approach it sometimes can look child like depending on the brief. I think that some designers can think to technical and try to give a polished finish to each piece and sometimes its to over done, i look at my work and try to take different approaches and try not to over do everything.

Both companies are very different and approach each brief in a different style. Truth Design is completely truthful in all there designs there process is very strict and they use alot of the existing work for example they use the fonts they created in all there designs where as Glorious don't have a pre-planned agenda and just start a fresh. Although the two companies have typography in common they attack it in different ways, Truth use computers and lecture sets to create there fonts, where as Glorious use everyday objects like masking tape. From my research and lectures i realise that Glorious are very experimental and loose with there designs, which is a fascinating quality, which can create some unique pieces, where as Truth are more strict and polished with there designs, which again is a brilliant quality as it shows professionalism to the clients. Both company's are unique in different ways but i feel i can relate myself to both of them through there different styles.