OUGD502 - Studio Brief 2 - Interview with Nicholas Dixon

After reaching out through social media to Nicholas Dixon, I managed to schedule an interview with him in his studio. Meeting him face to face was so much more fluid and valuable than the previous Skype chat interview. We sat down with a beer and discussed all kinds of projects for around an hour ad he was extremely helpful and supportive of my practice, offering to put me in touch with even more artists and designers within the music industries for my publication.

His studio and his work was also amazing to see as he only conducts hand rendered designs however, they lend themselves so well to digital platforms. This has inspired me to possibly conduct some hand rendered work myself, his furniture pieces were something which I found incredibly unique.

Again, this recorded interview will be broken down into a creative review to embed into the second edition publications.

Vinyl Record Album Designs

OUGD502 - Abstract Documentary & It's Nice That - Paula Scher

http://www.itsnicethat.com/articles/paula-scher-unit-editions-publication-230317

A recent article on 'it's nice that' showcased an upcoming Unit Editions book on the graphic designer 'Paula Scher'. Due to my interests in Unit Editions, I decided to conduct further research into the designer and to my surprise I found a series of documentaries on Netflix, one of which included her as the main protagonist. The documentary was a great opportunity to see the life inside Pentagram and their process of working. Her work in particular was especially unique to me as much of her designs were hand rendered with paint on a canvas. One of her projects featured a collection of large scale map paintings which were heavily embedded with type. This shows how open graphics design is as a discipline and shows how important hand rendered techniques can be.

OUGD502 - Studio Brief 3 - Presentation

The final concept for the collective was to create an online platform which connects DJ's and music producers with designers and photographers etc... This platform would work using algorithms to match DJs to the appropriate designers based on their likes, taste in music, location etc... This would then provide contact details and links to designers portfolios and music artists sound clouds.

It is a shame that I could not participate in the presentation due to travelling to Australia however, I was instrumental in the development and conceptual design of the platform. I also helped to construct and plan the presentation. I do not feel that missing the presentation will hinder my development too much as I feel that my presentation skills have developed drastically over the past year. I have forced myself to participate in multiple presentations over the course of the year to develop my nerves in those situations.

OUGD502 - Studio Brief 3 - Platform Design

Once Sam had designed the logo, I used a collection of our artwork to create a digital concept for the login page of our website. This collective will be an interesting concept to pursue over the summer by possibly starting with a social media page, this could then develop into a working website.

OUGD502 - PPP Presentation & Reflection

My presentation skills over the last couple of months have been developing exponentially, this is highlighted with my latest end of module PPP presentation. It was much more free flowing and relaxed than any presentation which I have conducted before. This is down to my constant desire to push myself out of my comfort area in an attempt to expand and develop my practice. Last year, presentations were one of my most feared and nerve wracking experiences however, with frequent attempts being conducted recently, I am becoming much more relaxed within the situation.

OUGD502 - Studio Brief 3 - Dating Websites Research & Influence

The algorithm systems on dating websites was analysed to which we proposed a similar system could be implemented. Designers and DJs could put in likes, dislikes, areas of specialism, location, genre of music etc... and this could be used to match possible clients together.

OUGD502 - Studio Brief 3 - Sketches & Conceptual Design

The concept of the collective was to link together creative practitioners with people within the music industries. As all of our team members work within both industries, we saw this as a fitting solution to help progress our practice. It was determined that an online platform would be more appropriate than a printed solution because of the internets connectivity. People all over the world could be put in contact with each other very easily using the internet and systems could be put in place to like together online portfolios and personal website links. It also allows the user to upload digital files which can be changed or organised with ease.

OUGD502 - Studio Brief 3 - Life's a Pitch

For the start of this brief, I gathered all of the students in our class who work creatively within the music industries and proposed an idea which integrates design and a platform for music artists.

OUGD502 - Berlin - Architecture & Galleries

Whilst in Berlin, I found a heavy emphasis on architecture along with the many galleries I visited. The galleries included:

• Alte National Galerie
• Altes Museum
• Reichstag
• Bauhaus Archiv
• Brandenburg gate
• Holocaust Memorial

The most inspirational visit was probably the Reichstag, I have always been a huge fan of Norman Forster and it was amazing to see another piece of his work. It was also interesting to see the history behind the Reichstag and its affiliation with Hitler and the war.

The architectural design in Berlin was like nowhere I has seen before, all of its buildings were around the same height, never reaching above 5-6 stories. There were a few exceptions but the skyline was extremely flat making the city vast in diameter. The building design was very German, mixing slick modern design, classical aesthetics and brutalist architecture into a cultural concrete jungle. This contrast between aesthetic styles made for some intriguing contrast.

OUGD502 - Berlin - The Holocaust Memorial

OUGD502 - Bauhaus Archiv

The Bauhaus Archiv showcased the work which related to my practice most, much of the content can be related back to my context of practice module and essay on Modernist and Postmodernist design. One restriction however was that no photographs were allowed to be taken making it extremely hard to remember many of the pieces on display.

Possibly my favourite part of the exhibition was the gift shop as it had many functional pieces of design available to purchase. Many of these pieces were designed by famous artists and practitioners, it was great to see how design can be transferred into any format from a cutlery set to a pen or pencil.

The way finding system and typeface was also one of my personal favourites being as clean, concise and legible as possible.

OUGD502 - Foreign Typographic Language

Following on from the blog post OUGD502 - Eps51 Studio Visit, after the visit, I was constantly on the look out for new and interesting foreign type around Germany.

Some of the German glyphs and umlauts used in their language on road signs was fascinating. This could be a good starting point to start integrating these elements into my own typographic practice.