Digital experimenting

• The hand made type is extremely impactful and gives an interesting composition, tying in nicely with the main visual element
• I wanted to show this idea of being trapped in a bowl of water, referencing a gold fish alone in a bowl of water, a metaphor for the protagonist's struggles throughout the book.
• My other concept was this idea of a 'wall of water' with the protagonist being washed up by a vicious wave of judgement. 
• I am definitely happy with my outcomes as I think I have drifted away from the obvious and tried to think of the concepts with a hidden meaning but still captured that pivotal emotion present in the book.
• I'm also very happy with my progress on Illustrator and becoming a lot more comfortable with using it

Reflection #1

I have been working on designing a book cover for ‘Wonder’ for the Penguin student award. Ben recommended that I gave this brief a go as he felt it would fit my graphic aesthetic. Designing a book cover is something I haven’t really experimented with before but after reading half the book already, I am currently feeling extremely motivated by the project. I have truly immersed myself into the plot, analysing the book throughout and trying to find hidden meanings and motifs which I could make interesting imagery from. There is something really exciting about recreating an existing piece of work but putting your own spin on it, interpreting it in a way which is personal to you and your aesthetic.I have always enjoyed reading books as I tend to get so wrapped up in the storyline and engaged with the characters that my imagination goes a little crazy and takes me away on this incredibly visual journey. This is specifically what’s happening with ‘Wonder’. I am really enjoying creating imagery for it as I have so many ideas on trying to represent the book or capturing the real essence and core if what the book is about through imagery.

I am finding it difficult to balance my COP project with Extended practice however as the deadline for COP is fast approaching so feel i should probably invest more time in perfecting that before continuing with this one. Going into my Tutorial I was feeling confident with my extended practice work and motivation but not so much with my Cop.

Crit feedback:

• Keep creating work for wonder, continue with the development and sketching. Successful!
• Do what you do best. Make your own type
• Create a timetable so you find it easier to balance your time.
• Aim to finish the book before Christmas.
• Maybe start to look at graphic design projects?
• Think about your personal projects as side projects
• Look at the 'era of Disinformation' brief
• Gif for women empowerment

Going forward:

Reflecting on my crit and where I am at with this project, the best thing for me to do is to complete this book cover as soon as a I can and then over Christmas, start making a plan for future projects. I think I still want to continue with book cover designing is this is a project i feel very motivated by and really enjoy. I will definitely be attempting the other book ‘Norwegian Wood’ in the Penguin design competition and hopefully this will lead me onto more graphic design/book briefs. I also intend to use Illustrator a lot more, as I feel like if I were to potentially look into having a career in publishing, my skills on Illustrator will be hugely beneficial as it is something which employers look for.

Overall, I am feeling a little stressed about COP but the prospects of this module is actually keeping me going and excited. I look forward to really getting stuck in and making work which I am genuinely interested in doing after I graduate.






7x7 image

Statement of intent

Intent/tone of voice:

My work is predominantly striking and bold, with high contrast, strong use of negative space and colour. I have an intent of making statements with my work, a strong emphasis on aesthetic. I try and think what is beyond initially obvious, using metaphors and interesting compositions to provoke the viewer and make them stop and think.

Themes/Subjects:

I quite like research driven projects - a great opportunity to delve into the history and culture of the subject and create work which isn’t surface level. I have a knack of creating quick snappy ideas and concepts so feel my work fits with editorial illustration. I’m intrigued by using shapes and simplifying imagery into abstract form , playing around with colour and texture, and how this links with the conceptual side of things.

Audience/Context:

My work appeals to more of the older generation because I tend to deal with subjects which the older person would have less difficulty in understanding. However I do feel that my aesthetic has potential to appeal to more of the younger generation because of its simplicity and modern style, especially if I were to print them onto clothing for example. My work can be quite conceptual at times, with deep hidden meanings, allowing the audience to fully engage in the piece of work. I can see my work being used for editorial briefs,  and being applied to books, posters, clothing because of that strong visual element.

Goals and ambitions:

Start printing my work onto clothing. Enter more competitions. Create a website and instagram account. Continue with commissions. Experiment with screen printing as it fits well with my aesthetic. Start looking at placements and external opportunities. Look at designing book covers and experiment with applying my work to varying contexts within illustration.

Practical skills/media/format:

Screen printing, mono printing and lino. I see myself as a print maker. I like to use a combination of print and digital (Illustrator and Photoshop) using textures and layering techniques. Illustrator is something I have only used  briefly in the past and I really enjoyed it so I aim to experiment more with that.

Potential Content/ Outcomes:

Start exploring research driven projects

Look into political/social posters? Making a strong statement through design

Create more logo designs as this is something where my strengths lie

Look at the idea of designing book covers and inside illustrations - this is something I really enjoyed doing first year

Look at metaphors and how to use them, avoiding the obvious

Creating more simple imagery using minimal colours

Use more digital techniques as this is something which employers look for in the skills department

Maybe make some more gifs? Also something I really enjoyed first year - bringing my work to life through very simple tech

Who am I ?

Pointers:

• You do have a clear style. Keep working with simple imagery and minimal colours.
• Start looking at maybe graphic design projects? 
• Continue with the logo designing as that is where my strengths lie
• Separate your personal style with you more commercial style - you seem to enjoy using yourself as almost a canvas (which inspired your COP project) experiment with this - would be interesting to see a portfolio split directly down the middle to see two styles.

Summative Project Report

Final Animation - Toni Morrison

Toni Morrison animation from Jack Symons on Vimeo.

Reflective Report - Moving Images

For my animation, I had every intention of pushing myself and getting my figures from my print to actually walk along the screen. I knew this was going to be a challenge but if it worked, I knew it would be very effective.

What went well?

Scanning my drawings of the walking cycle into photoshop and editing them allowed me to select the images as a series and upload them into After effects

Getting my figures to walk! Although probably not the smoothest walk cycle, I was still happy that I managed to achieve it.

I used various textures for the figures to give off that old fuzzy TV effect and to convey they idea that they are moving by turning up the blur effect.

Each figure has a slightly different texture because i wanted to play around with depth - something which i think works quite well.

I think the figures slowly disappearing one by one is a good touch as it adds to the power and dominance of the blue figures as the black figures are slowly being engulfed by the human race.

Struggles?

I wasn't sure whether to have the black figures walking in the opposite direction or to just stand still. I tried with them walking but i felt like there was too much going on.

I had the figures standing in front of the blue figures which looked a little basic and the depth that i thought i had created with the textures, looked to have disintegrated. I allowed some of the blue figures to walk in front of the black figures which added to the depth and intensified the dominance of the blue figures.

The sound

I wanted just some simple 'walking sounds' - i experimented with listening to people walking in public with background sounds but i noticed that there was too much going on and it actually distracted me from the sound which was most important - the walking.

I wanted to combine two different walks, as the figures aren't walking in unison so there are some cross overs. This creates an uneasy atmosphere as there are is no real clear structured walking formation. It was relatively difficult to find a walking sound which actually corresponded with the walking visual simultaneously.   

Final printed Pictures