Last night a group of us went along to an art and crafts event being held at the union. The posters advertising the event suggested that you were able to make cards and trinkets for Valentines Day, and as it was for the British Heart Foundation you had to donate a couple of your handmade designs.
However I was a little disappointed with the range of material available and instead of trinkets and cards we were only able to produce salt dough shapes and fabric pieces. I donated all the things I had created so hopefully they will help to raise money for the charity.
If I could suggest ways to improve future events I would provide more materials, examples of trinkets/ cards that could be created from the materials and a little information on the foundation so people could go away having more knowledge of the cause.
Today was our last talk from Mike Press, and for me it was his best one. It was really inspirational to learn about what Africa has experienced in the past and the positive attitude and hope they have about the future.
I often feel a little awkward when people ask me what I am studying as I usually get a reply, so what is graphic design? What kind of job are you going to get with that? Rarely do I get the same reaction as my sister, who does nursing, people always seem eager to learn more about what she does, and often treat it with greater relevance. However what today has shown is that design can get into all kinds of areas. Not only as Mike worked within the area of crime and anti terrorism he has taken design to Rwanda.
It was interesting to learn that art is not taught in these schools, with the focus being on Maths, English, Technology, etc. The students had never used mind maps or brain storms let alone worked in teams. Mike mentioned the importance of design within this context, if students aren't taught art how can they develop creative skills which will help them to visualise their ideas. At the time of his visit there were only 8 designers in Rwanda, which is rather surprising but moves are being made to hopefully increase these numbers in the future.
Since reading Mike's blog and discussing the lecture today I think it would be a great opportunity to visit Rwanda and bring art into communities.
Art and design has definately got its place in all fields, areas and countries across the world.
Yesterday I gave a short presentation to Good Creative. After a morning of waiting anxiously the 7 min talk went better than expected, and I came away feeling positive about my choice of design. The feedback I received from Good Creative was very helpful, they told me what they thought worked well and what areas are in need of improvement.
I had decided to stick with the name Kate's Potions and develop this concept further by creating characters, a bottle shape and logo all based on the brand name. It was no surprise to learn that Good Creative have discussed this name in some length, trying to decide whether it should be changed or not. I was pleased when they said I had handled the concept well.
They told me that I need to work on my logo a little more as at the moment it isn't connecting with the overall look of the product. However they looked at the original sketches and gave me some ideas to take forward.
Overall it was a really good experience, I was nervous at first but was instantly put at ease. Hopefully the next presentation will go as well :).
So after a stressful weekend I have finally completed my mood boards for Kate's Potions (thank god!) I have decided to keep the name 'Kate's Potions' so have therefore created a bottle and logo design that compliments this. The brand logo has been developed from a potion bottle label, using a similar shape and layout of type. I have also decided to use packaging that is shaped like a potion bottle so that it is appealing to children. Finally I have developed fruit characters which will be used as the main surface graphics, these will hopefully create a balance for parents and children.
Lets hope I get some constructive criticism, so that I can develop a successful identity.
Today we had another lecture from Mike Press, who spoke to us about our creative careers. During the course of his talk he informed us that there are more graphic design graduates than there are graphic design jobs, so as a graphic designer I was a little worried!
However he went on to discuss his research on the career paths that previous art and design graduates have taken, and I discovered that there isn't one set route into employment. Many people were unemployed for a year or so while they tried to set up their own business, some worked in jobs outwith their discipline such as insurance advisers or air hostesses. One woman even moved to Bermuda, 'gave birth' and wrote a book!
It was reassuring to learn about the wide range of jobs that are available to those with a creative degree and there are some areas that I can see myself working in in the future. We have been told previously that we will not have one job for life, but have several different ones perhaps working across several disciplines. Even though this prospect is kind of exciting, as someone who likes to be extra organised and likes nothing more than writing lists, I am going to have to try extra hard to follow Mike's advice - 'Don't plan your life.'
