Cardiff Met Blog 2018/19
Wednesday 16th – Independent Study
After the feedback from yesterday I decided to trial development of both the existing logo and a new version.
Adding it with the type I decided to play around with the sizing and the white space between the letters and the image. Resulting in a more professional logo that fits in more with the theme on unison.
Tuesday 15th October – Interim Critique Presentation
The feedback given was very helpful and progressive – making me want to change and adapt further. Through having a well thought out idea everyone was able to grasp the concept and made me think about wanting to really dive into the meaning to progress. The conversation lead to the name changed to ‘Elegance “IN” Concrete’, instead of using “of.” This should put more emphasis of having the exhibition show that these products can go “in” a home as well as being more eloquent and rolling off the tongue.
Moving forward the logo needs to be perfected by adjusting the white space of the hexagon and making sure they are ‘uniform’ and over all experimentation with the curvatures, thickness and placements.
With the posters I had sort of hit a stump and wasn’t a huge fan of them as they all fell into the background. The group decided the use of colours and opaque almost took away from the styling of the concrete and i should make the texture the main focal point.
Few days beginning 10th October – Printed exhibition ephemera – Poster/ Booklet
For the posters I wanted to keep to the minimalistic style through adding a white opaque screen to a bold concrete layer – which all came from a from unsplash. I continued to use the hexagon shape not just for the cohesiveness but as a symbol. The hexagon is meant to be the strongest shape known, which is much like concrete – both the strongest within their field being man made. To add to this I will need information telling the viewers where and when to go.
Throughout this project we are asked to break away from ‘the normal’ and mainstream ideas. So I decided to create a one sheet paper with folds to make the faces. One side of the sheet will have information within the exhibition whilst the other has details around the exhibition, such as where it is, what times you can see it or the creators information and facts behind why concrete is chosen.
However the brief asks for a 8 page booklet and the aesthetics for this would not be best suited for the style. I will have to discuss with my tutors to see how I can go bout doing this.
Using InDesign I created a mock up of the booklet with a clear grip system linking the free images in. I used the same typeface as the logo – Prohibition – for the bold word ‘CONCRETE’ and an oblique version for the page headings. From trying many different fonts for the body copy, the best match was Oswald.
On the back spread I created a map of the area of a local smaller gallery. This was created out of concrete blocks but I am not happy with the finish so I might have one image cut up instead of multiple for a more professional aesthetic. For a Welsh exhibition I added bilingual texts out of respect and fitting in with the gallery itself.
Week beginning 7th October – Research and logo development
To begin with I wanted a clear idea of what was out there already. This includes concrete manufactures and interior designs that use concrete as their main product. When searching I found a number of companies that used concrete as a word within their businesses names, such as a dance company and a french radio station. This makes me think that the material has a large impact on contemporary ideations.
Doing very fast speed sketches I managed a few nice ideas such as my own type of concrete in a box as well as using existing type to make a box like shape from the type. I used the cut out idea on the “C” so that it looks like a block/ house is the silhouette. All of which led me onto creating more symbols with the lines built up to make a block building or the thin lined square to make almost a floor plan.
My favourite design is the hexagon layered and cut into the shape of a “C.” I paired this with the typeface – Prohibition – so that it can be easily recognised. The symbol shows the continuous lines and unity of concrete and the thickness changing represents that you can add and add to concrete but overall it is one material.
Week of the 7th October – Initial Research
At first I looked into the styling of how an exhibition goes about their branding. This gave me a clear picture of what is expected. They use engaging colours and is very contemporary with logos printed on everything. Moving forward I will need a versatile logo that can be easily recognised and easily placed on a lot of items.
One thing that I was very unsure about is the way to move forward. This small bit of research allowed me to see the minimalist style that I’ve always wanted to explore. I like the subtile textures and free flowing movement designs. I also looked over some interior companies and found the magazine called Elle Decoration where they provide “stylish and sophisticated contemporary homes” within the UK.
Wednesday 9th October – Group tutorials
In a group of five with only one tutor this was a key opportunity to get a more personal grasp on where I want my essay to go. We discussed the broader aspects of constellation, such as the simplistic idea of philosophical meanings to where one thing or an object is never just as it seems. This idea links back to the theory that everything is never pure as everything always has an interpretation.
We moved on to discuss the ways in which we can move forward on our own. The tutor has a great way of describing a dinner party with 12 people and myself being the host. As the host can only take a conversation so far our job is to listen and investigate the hot topics that arise in conversations. This should build a mood, themes and a narrative which is supported by the statements investigated. The tutor was clear that although he wanted others theories, his main focus was our opinions. As the name of this years constellation was critique he wanted us to make judgements – or our interpretations – backed up with those hot topics of references.
Next we discussed how we go about finding these 12 sources. This could be through artists and their work, ted talks and school of life websites or met search with a main idea. We all wanted to find things that link to our own practise that led me to think about design spaces that are out in public which uses more senses than just the sight. An example would be an outside exhibition space with sounds or an advert with sound. The idea of a store front and how they attract people in, such as the sweetie store that puffs out flavoured fog to entice people in.
Tuesday 8th of Sept – Group Critique
This mini tutorial helped in clarifying my ideas being that concrete is same whether it is the largest dam in china to a minimalist plant pot within a house.
One thing to take forward is to go into depth with the name being elegance of concrete and how that links to the exhibition. Thinking in depth concrete is usually thought as a brutalist and regimented material but my thought is bringing it onto a happier free flowing material and change peoples views on it.
However I need to look into who is the creators behind the exhibition. A way I want to go with this is a concrete company wanting to show off their product so combines with a contemporary interior design company. This should help me with my logo ideation and the final things to place in the applications.
Furthermore, I have not decided whether to go corporal with the designs or a happier/ lighter hearted style. But I have decided on a minimalistic style with the use of a concrete texture.
