The Elements A collection of material and thoughts gathered over the duration of the past twelve months that has helped define my personal design strategy and methodology.
Contents
Introduction
01
FIVE ELEMENTS
03
State of Mind
07
Creativity
21
Belief
49
Theory
57
Reality
68
Introduction
1
My final year at Leeds College of Art has helped me form my individual design strategy and methodology. It has shaped me as a designer. With a focus on branding and packaging I have in particular challenged and refined my working methods throughout my Context of Practice Module. The work and research undertaken in connection with my dissertation and practical piece had a major impact on me and opened my eyes to how I can produce work to the best of my ability. For my dissertation I questioned ‘Why do we choose certain brands over own brands? - Is the rise of supermarkets’ own brands changing our shopping habits?' I found that I could use theories and principles to analyse historical information. With a statistical approach I was able to draw elements of conclusions. From primary research of comparisons I could make assumptions and judgements. Together this gave me some answers. However, I was missing the real feeling and sense of why people do what they do. I realised there are some things you cannot read or see. You need to feel it, sense it and experience it to understand it. This has helped me identify the important elements that form my methodology.
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FIVE
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ELEMENTS
STATE OF MIND CREATIVITY BELIEF THEORY REALITY
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STATE OF MIND
CREATIVITY
BELIEF
THEORY
REALITY 5
My level of Creativity is driven by my State of Mind. My State of Mind is closely connected to my Beliefs. The seeds of my Beliefs were sown through my upbringing. Theories I have studied inform my work. I need to feel, sense, and experience a brand to understand it. I marry theories with Reality through the means of Empirical Studies. Through this process I can design. 6
STATE OF MIND
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BE HAPPY DO GREAT My level of Creativity is driven by my State of Mind. To work at my best, I need to be happy and organised.
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STATE OF MIND
HOW?
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Things outside of the world of graphic design that help my State of Mind.
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STATE OF MIND
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ROOTS
Reconnect with Nature, Family, Friends Walking along the beach in my home country regenerates my energy, blows away any problems and makes my mind start thinking creatively. After some days back home I have charged up my batteries and through relaxing, ideas come naturally to my head without thinking. Reconnecting with my roots makes me feel whole and secure. 12
STATE OF MIND
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CONTROL
Workspace I like to work from an organised and tidy space. When starting a new brief, I only have material relevant to that specific brief on my desk. I have positioned my desk next to the window in my study so that I can look out, rest my eyes and take in the beauty of the trees in my garden. This allows me short breaks without having to break off. Working in this manner makes me feel in control. 14
STATE OF MIND
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EXERCISE
Feel Good - Remain Confident Having previously in my life trained to be a fitness instructor, I know that exercise can lift your mood, reduce stress and anxiety. In addition it can boost the release of endorphins, which are my body’s feelgood chemicals and thereby result in an improved self-esteem. For me this is without a doubt the case. This is my medicine in life and keeps me feeling confident. My favourite is my Friday evening swim. Diving into the cool water and feeling the soothing, soft water surrounding me, washes away any concerns or worries of the week. There is a sense of being in my own world, not needing any equipment, just using nature's gift to move around.
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STATE OF MIND
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THINKING SPACE
Clearing my mind Ilkley Moor is on my doorstep and I walk there regularly. The unspoilt nature is good for thinking, getting fresh ideas and putting things in perspective, allowing me to strip my ideas back to the simplest form. Walking and fresh air gives me headspace when I am stuck and stops me from getting stressed.
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STATE OF MIND
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CREATIVITY PILLS
The Power of Branding I have an old jam jar in my study which I have branded 'Creativity Pills'. Although what is inside the jar in reality might not be ‘Creativity Pills’, they have magic powers for my mind.
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CREATIVITY
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My level of Creativity is driven my by State of Mind. It is also influenced by advice that I draw from experts in the field.
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CREATIVITY
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THERE ARE NO RULES
Sir John Hegarty The founding Creative Partner of Bartle Bogle Hegarty (BBH), one of the world’s most awarded advertising agencies. ‘Creativity isn’t an occupation. It’s a preoccupation. It invents, perfects and defines our world. It explains and entertains us.’ I agree with this. I don’t think being creative is something you can learn or study. You either have it or not and if you do, I am certain you can learn to push it further and further. On the other hand I believe you can learn to design. I am of the opinion that having the gift of being creative and learn to use this skill through design makes for the best designers. I want to be part of inventing and defining our world. I keep referring to his book ‘Hegarty on Creativity - There Are No Rules’ and use his advice again and again to pick myself up and push myself that bit further in my creativity. 24
CREATIVITY
Hegarty On Creativity - There Are No Rules’ 10 Selected Pieces of Advice
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O1 FEAR NOT A researcher at our advertising agency once asked me a seemingly simple yet very complex question: What does it take to be creative? I replied that we are all creative and that’s what makes humans so interesting: We all come up with ideas. Question answered. Or, so I thought, until my colleague responded: But you earn your living by it, so what do you have that makes that possible? I was a little taken aback by this reply as I hadn’t really considered that side of things before. I live by instinct and instinct has always driven me to follow my creative beliefs. But that’s not much of an answer. So, I took a step back and thought about what I’ve done and what I admire most about what other people have done, and I realized that there is one thing I value above all else. What does it take to be creative? Fearlessness. Being brave is something I am pushing myself to do increasingly. Getting out of my box and go for bigger ideas. 26
O2 SIMPLE TRUTHS Whatever you’re creating, simplicity is the ultimate goal. The power of reduction, as we say in advertising, means taking a complex thought and reducing it down to a simple, powerful message. At the foundation of any great idea is the truth, the most powerful force in creativity. Anyone who wants to create has to find their voice, their truth. At its most basic level, if you don’t believe in what your doing, why should anyone else? Finding your own truth and expressing it imaginatively is the skill you must develop, and very often keeping it simple will show you the way. I endeavoured to take that route when I proposed a re brand of an Indian sports shoe brand called Sparx. I stripped it right back, used few words and opted for a simple colour scheme and powerful images to let the audience engage with the brand in their own way. My outcome consisted of a new design for a shoe box without lid. instead it slides into a perfectly fit bag transforming it to a box with a shoulder string of shoe laces. This minimises the amount of packaging and symbolises the brand merging with its audience to form a united world. A range of posters and a look book was also produced. 27
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O3 HEAD VS HEART Stop thinking, Start feeling. Creativity is an intellectual process, but it is also one driven by the heart. When I’m asked, When do you do your best thinking? My answer is always, When I am not thinking. That’s why a brainstorming session is a complete and utter waste of time for the truly creative person. The idea that, say at ten o’clock on Thursday morning, you can attend a meeting and suddenly be creative is ridiculous. Creativity does’n't work like that. I totally agree with Hegarty on this. I cannot be creative on command. This is where my need to feel, sense and experience a brand come in. Hegarty quotes Irish Writer James Stephens -dies help me work with that, as will be explained in a chapter later on.
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What the heart knows today 32
The head will know tomorrow...
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......... True, no more joint brainstorming sessions, please. I freeze. 34
O4 ZAG
‘Where’s the picture of the jeans?! Levi Strauss exclaimed when looking at the poster Hegarty’s company, BHH, came up with to launch a campaign for black denim in 1982. “We needed to make clear: You will be different. You won’t be one of the crowd. You won’t be one of the flock.’ - was Hegarty’s answer.
eht ni gnikool yB ,noitcerid etisoppo
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you might just find something new.
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O5 TELL A STORY If the idea is the foundation of the creative process, then the story is the vehicle that delivers it, making it memorable and provocative.
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In my re branding of Simple skincare’s Teenage Range I focussed on introducing a lifestyle feel to the brand. This advert is designed to tell a story of the brand, Simple Young Skin does more than cover a need, it wants to be part of your life and make it fun.
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O6 WHY? The greatest creative people are great precisely because they hold on to a childlike simplicity and urge to question everything. This is sometimes referred to as creative ignorance, not just the rejection of accepted practices but a complete ignorance of them. It’s the creatives who challenge accepted ways of thinking, consciously or unconsciously, that end up make the very best work.
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O7 PHILOSOPHY Creativity = ‘The Expression of Self’ The greatest creative practitioners put a little bit of themselves into their work. Their beliefs, concerns and ambitions. .....Ultimately if you don’t have a guiding philosophy underpinning your thinking and work then what you produce won’t touch people. It can’t. And that’s the most important task of any piece of creativity. I am not sure I could phrase my philosophy completely as yet. However, I do have parameters that I try to incorporate when appropriate in my work. I am certain that I put part of me in my work, I believe my work does reflect me and my beliefs. Things that are important to me, are to keep my designs as simple as possible and to introduce as much natural aesthetics as possible.
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It's Christmas A self initiated brief to design a range of Christmas cards of four different designs and propose a box set suitable for retail environment. I enjoyed it so much that I ended up making two ranges, one with laser cut designs to be sold as individual cards and one using screen print and packed in box sets of four. Every part of this brief and the designs created for it, has a part of me in it. This represents my beliefs in that I think we should embrace the beauty of the natural things we have around us, I concern myself with reasons for and meanings of designs.
O8 GOOD IS THE ENEMY OF GREAT More often than not coming up with a great idea is a roller coaster ride of thoughts with no logical progression. You lurch from the interesting to the absurd to the good then back again to the absurd. Take a step back from what feels good and ask: But is it great? Your brain is saying surely this is great. But your heart knows it isn’t. Getting good is hard enough, but given half the chance good will stop you from getting to great. I am feeling this roller coaster when I am in the process of coming up with concepts and designs. It takes me to places I have been before, to new places and is starting to push me to riskier places. I have learned from our crits and working in the studio, that bouncing ideas off other people and asking for feedback helps organise my thoughts and ideas - AND good just isn’t good enough.
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O9 REFLECTION Snap judgement and rapid decisions often lead to poor work. The ability to stand back from your thinking and give it what we call ‘the overnight test’ is essential’ Unfortunately we live in a world today that too often doesn’t allow this. I know that doing this benefits my resolutions. Although I might not have time for the 'overnight test' I make sure I go out of the room and do something else even for a short while or go for a walk if there is time. Upon return my brain has reset and I look at my work with fresh eyes.
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10 FUN Painting a picture, writing a story, composing a song, whatever creative activity you pursue, you’ll be the one in charge. Where do you want to go with that story? Who’s in it? Who falls in love? Who dies? How does it end? You decide. There are no limits to one’s imagination. Even when you find yourself working for a client who keeps saying no to your ideas. In that case it is just up to you to convince that person your vision is worth it. What ever you are doing, whatever difficulties you’re encountering, remember how lucky you are and be sure to have fun.
HUMOR IS THE ANTIDOTE TO AUTHORITY I could not agree more.
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An example from a set of posters designed as part of a brief to brand a typographically themed restaurant. In order to introduce a relaxed and engaging atmosphere I introduced a playful tone of voice.
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BELIEF Massimo Vignelli (1931-2014) An extract from Massimo Vignelli’s book, The Vignelli Canon. Design is one - it is not many different ones. The discipline of design is one and can be applied to many different subjects, regardless of style. Design discipline is above and beyond any style. All style requires discipline in order to be expressed. Very often people think that design is a particular discipline, a creative process with its own rules controlling the consistency of its out put toward its objective in the most direct and expressive way. Throughout my life I have hunted opportunities to diversify my design practice; from glass to metal, from wood to pottery to plastics, from printing to packaging, from furniture to interiors, from clothing to costumes, from exhibitions to stage design and more. Everything was, and still is, a tempting challenge to test the interaction between intuition and knowledge, between passion and curiosity, between desire and success.
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Design is One 50
BELIEF Massimo Vignelli and his wife Lella Vignelli have made a big impact on all forms of design. Their designs are represented in the form of books, corporate identities, product design, furniture, environmental graphic design, interior design, type design, graphic design, packaging, their own garments, and transportation graphics. The New York Subway map from 1970 being just one of their great achievements. As Vignelli says ‘If we need something and we can’t find it, then we design it.’ He characterises their process as ‘design is one’ – which means that if you can design one thing, you can design everything. The methodology is the same no matter what the content.
'I like design to be semantically correct, syntactically consistent, and pragmatically understandable. I like it to be visually powerful, interlectually elegant, and above all timeless.' Massimo Vignelli
BELIEF
This belief and way of thinking is something that I share to a great extent. Whilst I do not necessarily believe that you can be an expert on everything and would claim that a certain focus can be advantage, I do strongly believe that this is the natural way of thinking as a designer. It is the ability to create an opportunity through which a vision is made into a 'product' using a solid methodology. Believing in your own methodology provides the confidence to go ahead and design regardless of what it is. NescafĂŠ Azera Coffee Shot Dispenser. In a brief set by NescafĂŠ I took the opportunity to look beyond graphic design and introduce an element of product design. I came up with the idea of a coffee shot dispenser for barista style instant coffee, which can be filled up at home and taken to work and other places. By turning the top once it dispenses the equivalent of 2 tablespoon coffee. The concept behind it was to promote a new way of thinking of 'coffee on the go'. I designed the product on paper and made the prototype by laser cutting all the parts in acrylic and incorporated the metal rod from a pepper mill to facilitate the grinding action. 53
BELIEF
Capital North A brief set by DBA which focussed on the government's strategy to develop the North of England as a second economic capital in Britain to redress the economic balance across the country. A strategy which is called 'Northern Powerhouse'. We were asked to brand this area and were given the name Capital North to use. The four cities making up Capital North were briefed as Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds and Hull due to the route of the proposed HS3. As part of our group's proposed resolution, I came up with the idea of designing a sculpture out of our logo to be positioned in the city centre of each the four cities involved. I felt this would help to bring the idea to reality in the everyday life of people living in the area and create a sense of togetherness between the cities. I designed the sculpture on paper and decided the most viable way of make a prototype would be to laser cut the parts making up the logo in coloured acrylic and using copper rods to construct the shape of the sculpture. The 'N' for North in the logo can then be discovered when viewing from one certain point, bringing it all together. 55
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THEORIES
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Wally Olins (1930-2014) Co-founder of Wolff Olins and chairman of Saffron Brand Consultants. He was often referred to as the original master of branding with a lifelong career advising many of the world’s leading organisations in branding and identity. Some of his famous work includes persuading British Telecom in 1965 to re brand itself as BT and to adopt the logo of the ‘prancing piper’. The famous slogan; ‘The Future is Bright The Future is Orange’ as well as the London Olympics logo for 2012 are another two examples of his work.
‘The power of a brand derives from a cautious mixture of how it performs and what it stands for. When a brand gets the mix right, it makes us the people who buy, feel it adds something to the idea of ourselves.’
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THEORIES
A pivotal moment in my journey of learning about branding and identity came during my case study of Nike for my essay in my second year of studying graphic design. This was when I first became familiar with Olins. It was the moment I really began to understand the connection between a powerful brand and its audience. Dan Wieden’s ‘Just Do It’ campaign from 1988 created an enormous cultural impact and mass appeal and as I discovered through my case study, it was one the biggest ad ideas ever, destined to cut across all conceivable psycho/socio/ demographic lines. Extract from my essay below.
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THEORIES
A self initiated brief to develop a brand promoting products made from British Apples. My aim was to create an identity which would engage strongly with its audience. Focus was on transferring a feeling of buying British, supporting our orchards, appreciating natural ingredients, evoking a feeling of homemade produce. All helping to create a sense of doing something good for local suppliers and displaying values in a society which can help raise the idea of oneself.
THEORIES
Vance Packard (1914-1996) American journalist, social critic and best selling author. Vance Packard challenged consumerism through exposing of the hidden world of 'motivation research', the psychological technique that advertisers use to probe our minds in order to control our actions as consumers. From his book 'The Hidden Persuaders Eight Hidden Needs. 62
EMOTIONAL SECURITY REASSURANCE OF WORTH EGO GRATIFICATION CREATIVE OUTLETS LOVE OBJECTS SENSE OF POWER ROOTS IMMORTALITY 63
THEORIES
EMOTIONAL SECURITY A strive to achieve deep emotional security through comfort, happiness, secure homes and safety. Adverts often sell a dream of safety and comfort.
ASSURANCE OF WORTH We seek reassurance that we are added value and deserve our place in society. Adverts can play to this by promising that we are doing the right thing by buying products, saving the environment or helping others.
EGO GRATIFICATION Ego gratification is related to worth in that they are both about the sense of identity, however, this introduces a need for praise and our egos to be 'stroked'. Recognition at work for example or adverts can praise us for buying products or include praise of a sympathetic character with whom we identify.
CREATIVE OUTLETS Creating and making things can bring satisfaction and pleasure. The lack of creative opportunity in a job can lead to seeking creative opportunity elsewhere. Products with simple assembly process such as Lego can bring this pleasure. Adverts offer creativity when they sell objects where we can be creative from food ingredients to craft items and clothes.
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LOVE OBJECTS Both children and adults want to be loved and to love. If we do not have something or someone to love, we will buy or make something. Adverts can offer to take us back to our childhood with child-like personalities, and try sell us things we love or for our loved ones.
SENSE OF POWER Being in control can transfer a sense of ability to choose and sometimes power over others. This can give a sense of moving up the social order and feeling safer. Owning a big car or a big house can make us feel powerful. Adverts can use this to sell us a dream by showing us how buying a product will put us in charge.
ROOTS Our roots are a vital part of our sense of identity. Our family, nation, heritage are important for the feeling of who we are. Adverts can play on this by implying elements that evoke a familiar feeling and long lost sensation of belonging.
IMMORTALITY One of the biggest fears that we perhaps all share is the fear of death - or maybe just of becoming nothing. So we seek to create a meaning in our lives so that we may live beyond death. We also cheat ourselves by striving to look younger. Adverts can use this fear to create a desire for age-defying products or by using young people in adverts to help us believe that we are young too and steer our thought away from ceasing.
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THEORIES The Hidden Persuaders Eight Hidden Needs. Reading his book has introduced another level to my ability of analysing brands and unveiling their layers. It has opened my eyes further to the level of cynicism and manipulation that can take place in the world of advertising and branding. Throughout my dissertation and research I used this knowledge to look for traces and evidence of the hidden persuaders to help me analyse not only the brands I was researching but also what my sources were commenting on them. It has given me the tools to understand where I sit in my professional practice as a designer with a focus on branding and packaging. I have identified my borders and where my ethical values sit. I can use the information as a tool for analysing and subsequently inform my own design decisions in a way I feel comfortable with.
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In my case study of Heinz I looked at the first Beanz Meanz Heinz TV advert, I drew the analysis Heinz were playing on a connection between their brand and family home. The advert featured a young boy announcing his intentions of setting off to travel the world, but decides to post phone his journey, when his sister threatens to eat his beans. The Heinz slogan and the advert constructed takes on the notion of 'there is only one kind of baked beans and it is Heinz. Baked beans becomes synonymous with Heinz and Heinz becomes synonymous with home, family and roots. This sits within my comfort zone whereas the way I see a brand like Calvin Klein exploit the knowledge of our hidden persuaders does not. I feel this is a brand pushing borders to the extreme and exploiting almost all of the eight of hidden needs.
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REALITY
Empirical Studies I have discovered the importance of empirical studies when working in branding and packaging. It allows me to experience and sense a brand, feel what it does to me and observe what it does to other people. It helps me understand what it sets out to do. I used this for my dissertation and practical piece. It proved hugely helpful in my conclusion to the dissertation and helped me a long way in my design decision for my proposals of a new Tesco concept and re branding of their Tesco Everyday Value Range. Having identified the two players in the market enjoying growth of market share, Waitrose and Aldi, I did a case study on them both including empirical studies to really understand what made the same audience shop at both ends of the spectrum and see which brands they bought.
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FEEL IT SENSE IT EXPERIENCE IT UNDERSTAND IT 69
Empirical Study carried out in Aldi 70
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Empirical Study carried out in Waitrose 72
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Extracts from my dissertation and photos of the shopping bought during the studies. 75
New identity for Tesco and their Everyday Value Range. A point of uniqueness was introduced to their concept through introducing a Farmer's Market once a month in part of the car park. This would involve bringing local suppliers in to create more of a family feel and to give customers the transparency that research has suggested was missing and wanted. The new Tesco Everyday identity was carefully considered so that it would embrace and value people buying the range rather than make them look and feel as if they were buying the cheapest they can get.
My Five Elements My Methodology
STATE OF MIND
CREATIVITY
BELIEF
THEORY
REALITY