1-2 Introduction Into A ‘Brand Me’ Story SUMMER RESEARCH PART 1 (3-20) SUMMER RESEARCH PART 2 (21-28) Best Market Level For Me 25-28 29-30 Colour As A Tool and Am I A Synesthete? Colour Boards 31-34 35-40 Magazines Charles Jeffrey (43-46) Matty Bovan (47-52)THE BRANDS... Tim Walker (53-58) 61-62 My Brand - ‘The Concept of Orange’ Logo Developments 63-64 65-72 Primary Imagery and Developments Summary and What’s Next... 73-74 75-76 References and Image References
Childhood (7-10) Peer Reflection (15-16) Self-Reflection (19-20)
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In the following words and visuals of my work, I have composed my ‘Brand Me’ story, through personal reflection and researching my influences. This process has provided myself with a better understanding of who I am and what I stand for. In conjunction with my sketchbook, my summer research through primary and secondary sources, this has helped depict what aspects of my life have contributed to and made me who I am today. The importance of my childhood has led me to concede the real impact it has had on me. The drama I have faced so negatively needs a new light shone on this through a positive and colourful lens. I am not a washed-out tone anymore, I am a warmer hue, more inviting and vibrant. Acknowledging my skills and ability to story tell through the use of colour has proven that I am a creative and an aspiring change maker. Colour is more important to me than I thought, and I will be using it as a crucial tool in my final year. A further consideration and interrogation as to where I sit, what fits best and why is all part of my ‘Brand Me’ journey.
WHAT IS THE CONCEPT OF ME?
A time to consider who I am. A liberation for sure. A continuation of my own creative and personal story I am excited to show and tell. What does ‘Brand Me’ look like?
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o kick-start this module, over summer we were set questions that made us consider elements of ourselves that weren’t going to be the easiest of things to explore; for me anyway.
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My summer was overshadowed by the death of my dad. A man who suffered from alcoholic liver disease. A man who struggled with demons and someone who became harder to love the older I got. The significance of my childhood and my dad’s part in this has proven to have had a much harder-hitting impact than I originally thought.
Starting my summer research into who I was, encouraged me to be as raw as I could to get a bigger picture of what I was going to be working with. I didn’t want to varnish the truth because all I would be doing was lying to myself. This was an opportunity to maximise this period of time of really considering and interrogating myself. Not many people in the world will have the same chance to consider themselves like I have had to do. I now find my work more sentimental because of this and it has become even more personal to me. I’m not generic like I thought, I am far from that and am still adding to my own story every day.
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― BARBRA STREISAND 7
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or someone who completely blocked off their childhood for multiple reasons, mainly consisting of her parents’ broken marriage; exploring my childhood and the influence it’s had on me has truly opened up pandora’s box. A lot of my childhood revolved around the confusion surrounding my parents which for me, resulted in a lot of outbursts of anger. To my schoolteachers, I was a polite student, always wanting to get involved in activities, yet at home, I embodied a different girl. I was restricted with my toys, yet I had any toy a child could have wanted; my dad wouldn’t let me play often because it was “too messy”.
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I believe I am finding it hard to accept I’m growing up. I always say “oh to be a child again” which seems ironic considering I locked it away for so long. I do believe my childhood was a washed-out grey time of my life, it wasn’t the best and although my mum did everything, she could have done for me, the downfall of my parents’ marriage has had a significant impact on who I am as a person which I have now finally acknowledged.
I am nothing like my parents, I have certain traits from them both but nothing ever so comparative. I lose my temper like my dad, but I am rational, I am stronger, and I find better solutions. Within my work, it’s as if I am re-enacting this dramatic period from my childhood; youthful; chaotic, but through a richer and more colourful lens; positively above all. I further explored other areas of my childhood in depth more so in my sketchbook to help visualise who I was and who I am.
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believe that when you ask people to tell you what they think about something, they often tell you what they think you want to hear. Due to need to be as raw as I could from the aforementioned aims, I asked my nearest and dearest ten questions where they had to be strictly unfiltered in their responses. Only half of my story is what I think about myself, but what others had to say has helped me paint a picture with an appreciably more colourful outlook on myself.
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There were some recurring elements. I am mature, sociable; a social butterfly some may say if I’m comfortable around you, strong, warm, and loving with a big heart. Many noted my robustness with having to face situations alone such as the death of my dad; that I can stick up for myself as I am fight mode activated. I can easily be too kind to people which is a weakness of mine as I allow energy to be drained on people that don’t necessarily deserve it. The responses also highlighted that I was more creative than I thought, and they see me within a career that can reflect this.
Out of the responses I received regards to ‘What colour do you see me as?’, the answers showed warm hues, either oranges or yellows. They noted my outlook on myself has changed which is why I am utilising the colour orange to illustrate who I am. Some still drew attention to the fact I can get overwhelmed with the amount of pressure I place on myself, but this is only because I want to do well, and I am learning to be kinder to myself.
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I AM A MULTIFACETED BODY WHO IS INNOVATIVE AND IMAGINATIVE WITH AN OPEN MIND.
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After responding to the questions at the start of my summer research, I approached these in an analogue way in my sketchbook and combined it with my digital skills. It’s helped me strengthen the sentimental attachment I have to my work. I am a mixture of the two; analogue and digital. I don’t like to assign myself to one or the other. I am a maximalist who wants to envision the world through colour; make the best out of a bad situation, acknowledge the darker times, don’t shut them off; they can be liberating for you in the future.
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he second part of our summer research was to help reflect and develop further on what I had already learnt about myself in part I, how I see the world and why. In order to find the best taste, fit and direction for myself to follow and explore, it was important to question why I made these decisions. Responding to and selecting designers, photographers, and stylists etc. alongside choosing a market level, helped me in understanding which market area I would target myself. It has cemented the idea of the luxury designer market but with a more conceptual and visionary approach. Colour has been a prominent factor in my storytelling, and this will be continued throughout my final year.
Creative Direction and styling are areas I am further exploring as this could be a great career area for me in continuing to tell the stories of other brands.
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iscovering my market level was somewhat straightforward as I have focussed on high end designer luxury brands and the luxury market within my previous projects. I think understanding why I was the best fit for this area was more complex for me because I couldn’t just say ‘I like it’, I needed to understand the real reasons. As colour is something I adore, I believe I can have more freedom with this in the visionary levels of the market. The rich colours are often luxury. I can story tell through colour, something we often never consider is the importance of.
I find that commercial can be restrictive for me. In the higher end market levels, I feel I could thrive more. I can be more alternative. I am a storyteller channelling an inner creative director and stylist who wants to experiment with the digital realm. I want to unleash the creative side in me that was limited in my childhood. I have concluded I will be carrying out mindful practise rather than strategy, where my version of being sustainable or to tackle over consumption will be to build meaningful, long-lasting, and sentimental relationships for consumers.
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olour is key to me and my work. In my second year I acknowledged the importance of colour in storytelling. It’s something we don’t always think about. It’s so powerful that we can have physical reactions to the one’s we see and it’s part of our everyday lives. I am a maximalist, not a minimalist, so I believe I can use colour to convey this. I have researched some existing brands, stylists and photographers who have utilised colour in order to help tell their stories or who use it in effective ways that it leaves the viewer asking questions and depicting certain elements of an image. I aspire to make people feel what I am creating, whether that is something chaotic or more simplistic.
Synesthesia is a neurological condition in which information meant to stimulate one of your senses stimulates several of your senses. People who have Synesthesia are called synesthetes (Watson, 2018). It could be seeing or hearing a word and tasting food, hearing sounds, and seeing shapes or patterns. For me it’s seeing something and feeling colour, I see people and feel and associate a colour to them. The colours are just in my mind, never outside of my body. I find it strange, but I like to think of it as uniqueness. I will be storytelling through colour as I can feel and see it, which will reinforce the sentimentality to my work.
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ith my ever-growing interest in colour, I know I can be as abstract, free, and vibrant as I can when there are no restrictions. Obviously, I am still thinking about my colour palettes, much like a minimalist would have to do, but I truly believe I can exert this quality of myself through the use of rich colour and a dramatic approach. Much like the article ‘Fashion shows have changed. So have stylists’ (Cavanagh, 2019), it’s about creating entertainment and that’s why I want to attempt to have a theatrical atmosphere in what I create. Linking to me not being able to do much when I was younger at home, I feel now I can make as much (creative) ‘mess’ as I want to which informs my work.
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OP, LOVE and Hunger are magazines that I have looked into. All three of these are published bi-annually. They are heavily imagery based which is what I’m guilty of looking at when I first open a magazine. Especially with POP and LOVE, the editorial images lay in the heart of the magazine. They have a luxury feel to the physical magazine and are aimed at providing inspiration for creatives who are looking for visual ideas. My approach to starting any project is always looking at images and many of my favourite fashion images during my summer research came from POP.
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For me, I would love to be a part of the editorial team for a magazine company; stylist or creative director in having the ability to bring topics and stories to life; re-enacting these elements through fashion imagery. I want to be able to draw someone in who appreciates the image, that it can generate new ideas which is the reaction I have within myself when I heavily immerse myself into a magazine.
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Figure 1 - @hungermagazine Instagram (2021)
Figure 2 - @hungermagazine Instagram (2021)
Figure 3 - @hungermagazine Instagram (2021)
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harles Jeffrey is a Glaswegian designer, illustrator and radical creative where Charles Jeffrey Loverboy was born both a fashion label and cult club nigh, which worked in harmony (Somerset House, 2016). The brand encompasses diversity, self-identity and backs the LGTBQIA+ community with force.
I first discovered an interest in Charles Jeffrey in the first lockdown, but it was his AW21 collection ‘Gloom’ that resonated on a personal level. It was about acknowledging the darker times as you can only remain positive for so long. For me, I had blocked out my childhood, but it has resurfaced through this research which I have been thankful for as I have learnt more about myself. I feel there is also an essence of drama within Jeffrey’s work, and colour can portray this. The brand is fluid and there are no rules on who can wear it. The drama comes from the styling, make-up and images released for each collection. I can feel the colours and meanings behind what the concept is.
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I am also drawn to the colours within Jeffrey’s work, I appreciate how he is drawn back to his Glaswegian heritage too. I feel he is successful in telling stories, but I wonder if he has a big enough consumer base. Earlier in March 2021, Jeffrey acquired investor ‘Tomorrow’ (Tamison O’Connor, 2021). They noted that they think Loverboy needs to be self-sufficient and the plan is to grow the label in offering more accessible price points. This will aid the longevity of the brand rather than peaking too early and becoming irrelevant. This may help target Gen-Z members who want to build relationships with luxury designer brands.
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atty Bovan was introduced to me in the early stages of interrogating my own personal brand and has since been an influence. It was his SS22 ‘Hypercraft’ film that showcased his collection. The flashing transitions from different shots reminded me of my short film I created in level 5. I loved the movement and tempo of the film. With Bovan deciding to go digital, it demonstrates how he is using alternative methods rather than traditional physical fashion shows.
He claims that he loves the ‘non-sterile practice’ in how he works with energy, creativity, desirability, and transparency (London Fashion Week - Matty Bovan, n.d.). For me, as I am a maximalist, I love the freedom you can have with whatever you can produce. I wasn’t able to do this in my childhood. His label is also unisex and where diversity and gender are an important conversation, he wants to be an inspiration.
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Community is imperative to his brand; he wants to engage his local community as he recognises that his generation needs to create a new template for businesses. What stood out to me was his billboard take over in Northern England. Part of the ‘Your Space or Mine’ project it promoted the creation of public artworks to reenergise neighbourhoods. The outcome can influence more appreciation for people and brands like Matty Bovan and it sets people to come together (Matty Bovan Takes Over Northern England Billboard Sites | SHOWstudio, 2021). There has been a communal zeitgeist that has consumed us recently in regard to the pandemic, everyone is so uncertain about the future and it’s people like Bovan that we need more of to inject some vibrancy and excitement back into our lives. Like Charles Jeffrey, we must embrace the gloom, but like Bovan, we must try to turn it around and be more inclusive and communal to one another and to ourselves.
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Figure 4 - Bayeux Tapestry Project for the V&A, (2019)
Figure 5 - Sandy Powell, W Magazine, (2019)
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ritish fashion photographer, Tim Walker has been someone who I have often referred to in my sketchbooks and work. Since visiting his Wonderful Things exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum in 2019, I have been fascinated by his work. I fully immersed myself into the pieces of work on display as it allowed us to be transported to another world.
He has a ‘love for fairy tales and a thirst for adventure’ (https:// w w w. t i m w a l k e r p h o t o g r a p h y. com/biography) where his success in reimagining and telling stories has landed him in the likes of magazine companies such as Vogue, Vanity Fair, W, LOVE, Another Man and i-D. The thing I love most is the proportions and distortions of his work; he is able to pick up and place the viewer straight into the portrait, capturing all 100% of their attention. The cleverness use of colour also attracts me as it brings the subject to life. He is able to push the boundaries of luxury fashion photography and his work is very recognisable. Walker photographed Charles Jeffrey’s SS21 collection ‘The Healing’ where he aided the execution of the project to its maximum during uncertain times. Two of my influences teaming up together fortifies the importance of collaboration in telling stories and getting ideas across.
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Figure 6 - Charles Jeffrey, Loverboy Lookbook, ‘The Healing’, (2020)
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Figure 7 - Charles Jeffrey, Loverboy Lookbook, ‘The Healing’, (2020)
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I loved understanding how the story of Alice in Wonderland has been re-imagined again and again and how infact, stories influence fashion and through fashion, we can continue to tell these stories. I valued this part of the exhibition as I am inspired by Tim Walker.
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hinking about my brand, I wanted to include a colour as this is important to me. People see me as orange or yellow colours. To the people I love and who know me well, I can radiate warm energy, I don’t believe I am a cold person, although we all have our days. The Concept of Orange is my brand me name. It underpins who I am, what I aspire to be, and where I seek my inspiration. It highlights the importance of colour to me. In my previous work, I it as a message for change, a warning perhaps; to accept it. For me I am orange. I have changed and transformed to someone different, more brighter, and putting 61 determined, themselves out there a little more.
Colour is mainly based on personal ideas. There cannot be one universal meaning or symbol for colour, but there can be a multitude of these, as colour involves interpretation, much like artistic work, you want to leave people thinking. Orange has one of the strongest measurable physical effects of any colour. It’s what I have learnt about myself, I am more than I thought, stronger and determined than I realised. Something important stood out to me was the notion that we cannot ignore the colour orange, it’s vibrant, which may explain why people have such strong reactions to it. I feel like some people love it and some people loathe it and for me that’s what life consists of; not everyone in the world is going to like you.
In terms of future work, I will include the essence of embracing difficult times, accepting the drama in your life setting and reimagining it in a theatrical way. I want to create something for everyone, focusing on the needs of generations. We need to capture the eyes of tomorrow and who will that be? The Concept of Orange aims to be inclusive, delivering escapism, which is integrated into everyday life; re-applying colour to our daily make-up of decisions. There is no longer yes or no options, no black or white thinking, it is time for a richer, purposeful, and colourful way of living. Let’s embrace drama to bring excitement into everyday life and learn to appreciate the hard work of others who cater for us. Luxury is the way forward, however there is a long road ahead of how this will be delivered in order to save us.
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o summarise, I have learnt a lot about myself and the way this has impacted me. I have been able to create a personal brand direction for myself that will be the fundamental basis of my final major project, but also on a sentimental level. The next step is creating my 360 campaign which will be an overview of what I will be aiming to produce for my final major project. It will also introduce other brands that will be used for inspiration. Thinking about the future consumer, how can luxury designer brands become more accessible but still remain elite? What about the future of market levels below designer luxury? With my ability to create freely, in a more visionary way, I will then be able to influence market levels below by trickling down elements as well as bubbling up. I will continue to research the designer luxury market level, the future consumer, ways of communicating ideas whilst uniting an essence of community, drama, and colour and how I will plan to visually present my ideas and answers.
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Alice Cavanagh. (2019, October 7). The ever-expanding role of the fashion stylist | Vogue Business. https://www.
voguebusiness.com/fashion/stylists-fashion-week-ss20-katie-grand-melissa-levy-carlos-nazario-alexandra-
carl Jane. (2021, December). Read Lady Gaga’s Vogue Cover Interview In Full. | British Vogue. https://www.vogue.
co.uk/arts-and-lifestyle/article/lady-gaga-interview
Kathryn Watson. (2018, October 24). Synesthesia: Definition, Examples, Causes, Symptoms, and Treatment. Health
line. https://www.healthline.com/health/synesthesia
London Fashion Week—Matty Bovan. (n.d.). London Fashion Week. Retrieved 23 December 2021, from https://lon
donfashionweek.co.uk/designers/matty-bovan
Matty Bovan Takes Over Northern England Billboard Sites | SHOWstudio. (2021, September 7). https://www.showstudio.com/news/matty
bovan-takes-over-northern-england-billboard-sites
Somerset House. (2016, September 16). Charles Jeffrey. Somerset House. https://www.somersethouse.org.uk/residents/charles-jeffrey
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Tamison O’Connor. (2021, March 30). Tomorrow Acquires Stake in Charles Jeffrey Loverboy. The Business of Fashion. https://www.busi nessoffashion.com/articles/luxury/tomorrow-acquires-stake-in-charles-jeffrey-loverboy/
FIGURE 1 - Rankin. (2021). Paint Job [Photograph]. @hungermagazine Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/p/CXjDUs2Ba_I/ FIGURE 2 - Rankin. (2021). Zandra Rhodes. [Photograph]. @hungermagazine Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/p/CO0Ty44BYdN/ FIGURE 3 - Sitek. M. S. (2021). A little bit clowncore, a little bit Ziggy Stardust. [Photograph].@hungermagazine Instagram. https://www.
instagram.com/p/CP0sZ4yghb4/
FIGURE 4 - Walker. T. W. (2019). Bayeux Tapestry Project for the V&A. [Photograph]. Tim Walker - selected work. https://www.timwalk
erphotography.com
FIGURE 5 - Walker. T. W. (2019). Sandy Powell, W Magazine. [Photograph]. Tim Walker - selected work. https://www.timwalkerphotogra
phy.com
FIGURE 6 - Walker. T. W. (2020). Charles Jeffrey, Loverboy Lookbook, ‘The Healing’. [Photograph]. Tim Walker - selected work. https://
www.timwalkerphotography.com
FIGURE 7 - Walker. T. W. (2020). Charles Jeffrey, Loverboy Lookbook, ‘The Healing’. [Photograph]. Tim Walker - selected work. https://
www.timwalkerphotography.com
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HELEENA HOUSTON - 1918689 BRAND ME BOOK AD6605 - CONCEPT DIRECTION AND DEVELOPMENT