PROCESS BOOK SEMESTER ONE, GRAPHIC DESIGN, OCAD 2013 ROMANY ROWELL
PROCESS BOOK SEMESTER ONE, GRAPHIC DESIGN, OCAD 2013 ROMANY ROWELL
PROCESS BOOK In this book I will show the process work I did in Graphic Design in the fall semester 2013 whilst on exchange at OCAD U. I am presenting two projects: a city poster and an analogue clock design.
TABLE OF CONTENTS 07
PROJECT 1 - CITY POSTER
08 Research 14 Visuals 16 Wordmark 22 Compositions 32 Final 37
PROJECT 2 - ANALOGUE CLOCK
38 Research 46 Visuals 50 Logo 52 Compositions 58 Final 61
CONCLUSION
63
COLOPHON
PROCESS WORK - 7
8 - PROCESS WORK
The brief asks us to design a poster for a city of our choice with the title being the name of the city; the secondary text be included in the poster is to be a phrase of your choice; tertiary text to explain some further details bout the city. There is a lot of emphasis on researching the characteristics of the city, the people, the colours, textures and food which will be a stimulus to create a series of patters and textures based on this visual information.
City Poster / PROCESS WORK - 9
Introduction
PROJECT ONE / CITY POSTER
Research
RESEARCH / LJUBLJANA The first stage of this project involves extensive research in order to develop a true understanding of the ‘feel’ of the city. Through analyzing photography of my own and found imagery I noticed the vibrant colors and dynamic street culture that Ljubljana has. The city, which is situated in Eastern Europe, strives to preserve its traditions, with its cobbled streets and old architecture. A lot of Europe has been tainted by capitalism whereas Ljubljana is still untouched by stereotypical Western influences. I want to capture the vibrancy of the street culture whilst preserving the authentic nature of the city. Ljubljana is a city that most people don’t know about so the poster will reveal its hidden treats whilst not shouting at the audience, in order to preserve its secrecy.
10 - PROCESS WORK/ City Poster
Research City Poster /PROCESS WORK - 11
Research
RESEARCH / TEXTURES After the initial brainstorming I explored the patterns associated with Ljubljana and responded by creating my own textures. Ljubljana’s architecture is Baroque with a lot of Art Nouveau influences which is very elite and bourgeois. This element of the city attracts middle class, wealthy people, and does not often attract young travelers, like me. However when I was there I found it was more free and liberal than my initial preconception. Through mark making I started to create textures that took the rigid constraints of the traditional patterns but loosened them up.Â
12 - PROCESS WORK / City Poster
Research City Poster / PROCESS WORK - 13
Research
RESEARCH / DRAWINGS
After creating a variety of textures I explored abstract drawings in order to express the vibrant feel of the city and the movement within the markets and streets.
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Research City Poster / PROCESS WORK - 15
Visuals
VISUALS After initial research into textures and drawings I looked into combining the different parts of my research. I want to express the explosion of culture that exists in Ljubljana.
16 - PROCESS WORK / City Poster
Visuals City Poster / PROCESS WORK - 17
Wordmark
WORDMARK The initial brainstorming of the wordmark was just to get a feel for the city through letters and movement. Slovenia has soviet roots which has an obvious history being regimented and strict. I wanted to keep part of this within the wordmark whilst also expressing the free nature of the city streets that is also being explored in the textures. I then researched into a variety of fonts which have elements of baroque, soviet feel but also flowing as well.
18 - PROCESS WORK / City Poster
Ljubljana.
Ljubljana
Ljubljana Ljubljana Ljubljana
Ljubljana City Poster / PROCESS WORK - 19
Wordmark
Ljubljana
Wordmark
After choosing the font called ‘Ljubljana’, I wanted to recreate it so it was less ‘soviet’ but still keeping the controlled nature of the letters. I explored altering the contrast of the strokes and changing the placement of the letters to create movement between the characters. Here is a step by step of my alterations to the original font. *‘Ljubljana’ is a trademark of Glyphobet.
20 - PROCESS WORK / City Poster
Wordmark
I then explored using the textures from before with the type to create depth in the wordmark. However I think because of the contrast in thick and thins the patterned overlay makes it a bit illegible. The wordmark is strongest and most effective with a block color.
City Poster / PROCESS WORK - 21
Final Wordmark
My final wordmark reflects the movement of the Slovenian lifestyle whilst still retaining its serious soviet history. The contrast in strokes give it a more scripted feel which is also replicated in the flow of the letters. The visuals textures I have already explored are free, therefore if the wordmark was obtain a similar feel the two elements would be competing and would not compliment each other well. The combination of natural imagery and this wordwark will portray a the diverse elements associated with Ljubljana’s culture. 22 - PROCESS WORK / City Poster
Final Wordmark City Poster / PROCESS WORK - 23
Compositions
COMPOSITIONS I reviewed some of the initial visual sketches I had done and focused on one style I felt reflected the feel of the city I wanted to portray. I want to incorporate the traditional baroque style with the freedom that the street culture has. The elite upper class culture is still a strong part of Ljubljana’s history so I want these elements to still play a part in my designs. However, the dynamism of the street festivals are what excites me about the city and attract young travelers. The baroque patterns represent the history of the city and show the stability of its heritage and in the design i have chosen to push forward these elements are subtle and hidden beneath the vibrancy of dance in the street festivals. The baroque patterns are being dispersed to show this elite culture breaking free and a new liberal culture emerging.
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PROCESS WORK - 25
Compositions
The first few compositions I created demonstrate a magical expression of the city with the focus on the cathedral and mythical dragon which is important in the city’s history. The angelic colours and subtle textures are beautiful and show the secret side to the city.
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Compositions City Poster / PROCESS WORK - 27
Compositions
COLOUR PALETTE The colour scheme that I have focused on is very calming and mystical which on reflection does not feel like Ljubljana to me. Using blues and purples demonstrate elegance and peace however I want the colors to be fiery. The dynamism of the textures is not being complimented with the current colours.
28 - PROCESS WORK / City Poster
Compositions
I looked back to some of my original research to fully explore the colours of the city. The reds and oranges are more prominent colours as they show heat and energy. These are the elements of the city I want to express in my poster. I will explore more compositions using these colours.
City Poster / PROCESS WORK - 29
Compositions 30 - PROCESS WORK / City Poster
Compositions City Poster / PROCESS WORK - 31
Compositions
The composition of the text and visuals is vital in order for the poster to be effective. The colours and the imagery are successful in creating a dynamic expression of the city as well as keeping the subtly of the drawings. I spent a lot of time exploring scale and position of the type as the title, secondary and tertiary text has to work in conjunction with one another.
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PROCESS WORK - 33
Final Design
My final poster is a well balanced design where all three pieces of text are placed on a vertical and horizontal axis in sync with the lines of the visuals. The geometry of the buildings helped me to create a grid that I work with to successfully place the text. The tertiary text worked best immersed in the imagery where it feels part of the buildings. This supports my original idea to create a poster expressing Ljubljana as ‘Europe’s best kept secret’. the contrast of the colours and use of black give an impression that you are looking deep into the soul of the city.
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Final Design City Poster / PROCESS WORK - 35
38 - PROCESS WORK / Analogue Clock
The brief asks us to design an clock face that is linked to a human activity or a profession of our choice. We must research visual symbols and imagery appropriate to the chosen subject and use elemental shapes to distinguish the clock hierarchy (dial markings and hands). The choices of subject should be based on an analogy to time and visuals should reflect this concept. The name of the clock must have dual references to time and the subject of human activity and we must create a logo. The clock should be designed to work as an overlay for the basic analog clock and the logo should be integrated with the final product. Analogue Clock / PROCESS WORK - 39
Introduction
PROJECT TWO / ANALOGUE CLOCK
Research
RESEARCH / BAKER The profession I chose is a baker which initially sparked a variety of visuals in my mind prior to brainstorming. Baking is an traditional profession with a lot of history and there is a definite association with time in order to make the perfect loaf of bread or cake. I did a lot of research into cooking utensils as well as the chemistry that happens in the oven. The baker has an important task to kneed the bread the right amount of time as well as timing the baking effectively. I knew that when we got this brief designing for a circle would be more difficult so I wanted to have as much research as possible aid my understanding of a baker and its association to time.
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Research Analogue Clock / PROCESS WORK - 41
Research 42 - PROCESS WORK / Analogue Clock
Research Analogue Clock / PROCESS WORK - 43
Research
RESEARCH / BREAD The first concept I explored was the rustic earthy feel that I associated with more traditional baking. Old baking ovens have an authentic look that mass production ovens do not. The art of home made baking creates random shapes of bread giving it an authentic feel. The brown warm colours remind me of country walks and natural textures. Bread has many different rough textures which are interesting to exploring visually. The chemistry that happens inside the oven that creates dough in to bread is hard to understand and just watching the rising of bread is comforting to watch. The process of making bread is interesting as you have all these ingredients that come together with the element of heat to create a new product.
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Research
RESEARCH / CAKES The second concept I explored was the decorative approach to baking cakes and delicacies. In this area of baking there is a focus on the aesthetic value of the end product so the colours and ornate decorations are very important. There is often a guilt associated with eating these treats so often the baking has the task of enticing the audience into the treats. In comparison with the rustic nature of bread baking I think baking cakes has less of a direct association with time. The focus is on the end product so the process in between is less important. I want to focus on the process of baking as this is the most time consuming part.
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Visuals
VISUALS The first stage of visualizing my initial concept involved collecting the images I had an layering and combining images to see what elements worked together and which did not.
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Visuals Analogue Clock / PROCESS WORK - 49
Visuals 50 - PROCESS WORK / Analogue Clock
Visuals Analogue Clock / PROCESS WORK - 51
LOGO Logo
The logo for my clock had to relate to time as well as the profession I chose; a baker. I wanted to focus on the chemistry that happens in the oven with the yeast and heat. ‘Rise and fall’ is a perfect expression of this as well as relating to the rise and fall of the sun, i.e. time. I wanted to look at making a graphic feature of the ampersand so looked at some existing logos but felt the simpler the easier to read . I explored a variety of San Serifs and Serif fonts and these are a few of the more successful experiments. I did not chose one logo to use as it is best to see which fonts suit the visuals I have.
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rise & fall
rise & fall
rise & fall
RISE & FALL
Logo
rise & fall
rise & fall
rise
&fall Analogue Clock / PROCESS WORK - 53
Compositions
COMPOSITIONS The composition of image and text in a circle was always going to be more challenging than a regular poster size. I selected one of my most successful designs and took it further by exploring scale, contrast and placement of the logo. The things I want to highlight about a baker is the heat within the oven and the activity that occurs within the bread. This links well to the concept of time and the bakers need to understand the time in which the yeast needs to rise and fall. The timing in the oven is vital and the heat is what controls your timing so I think the visuals of heat could be quite different to what you would initially associate with bread which is more rustic and organic like some of my research boards. The reason I decided against this approach is because there are a lot of homemade visuals that are popular at the moment so I wanted to do something different.
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PROCESS WORK - 55
Compositions
e & fall ris
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Compositions
rise & fall
Analogue Clock / PROCESS WORK - 57
Compositions
The placement of the logo is a critical part of the process as it must be incorporated into the visuals and not feel like an afterthought. As there is a lot going on in the visuals I felt the logo should be understated and not shouting to compete with the imagery. The lighter colour seemed to stand out too much and I want to blend with the darker tones of the image. 58 - PROCESS WORK / Analogue Clock
Compositions Analogue Clock / PROCESS WORK - 59
Final Design
My final design successfully reflects the heat and chemistry which happens when bread is baked. I have used textures of yeast and bubbles to give the impression of yeast rising. The red and yellow colours make you feel you are almost inside the oven. I have also used the fire to demonstrate how traditional baking is, before bread was mass produced, so you get a feel for the home made essence that is behind real bread making. The dials of a modern oven are what I have used to represent time. I didn’t want to place the numbers in the exact place as a clock so they are staggered within the circle so you get more depth as you look through the oven. The logo is placed within the circle to mirror the circular motion of the oven dial. I chose Avenir 85 heavy as my final font because it is simple which compliments the busy layered back ground.
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Final Design Analogue Clock / PROCESS WORK - 61
CONCLUSION The city poster project I found initially quite challenging as it is hard to visualize the essence of a city. However, once I opened my mind i felt comfortable exploring textures and expressive visuals that have a less literal representation of the city. This project gave me an opportunity to hone in on my Photoshop skills by exploring different effects between hand drawn elements and photography. One aspect of this project I found difficult was incorporating the wordmark and text with the imagery. I did so many variations, changing scale, weight and position to see what looked most balanced. I am most pleased with my research for this project as I did thorough research into the city and a lot of visuals before focusing on one.s
The analogue clock project was difficult to get my head round as there seemed to be no actual use for the clock. The conceptual element was actually the focal part which meant I could be very open with it rather than to have to think about the clock working practically. I applied what I had learned in the first project to my process in this project and was able to come up with an efficient work flow with some successful visuals. The balance of composition in this project i found easier to work with because of the size as it was 10” by 10” it is easier to visualize before printing. I am most please with this final outcome as the execution fully reflects my ideation process and is clean and well balanced composition.
Conclusion / PROCESS WORK - 63
COLOPHON Type /
Main Titles Chapter Titles Body Text Running Footers
Avenir Regular. 42 pt Avenir 55 Roman. 24 pt Avenir 35 Light. 9 pt Avenir 35 Light. 8 pt.
References / Google Images Pinterest Flickr Wikipedia Personal Photography Software / Adobe Photoshop Adobe InDesign Adobe Illustrator Printed /
Print Zone 191 Dundas W Toronto, ON M5G 1C7, Canada
Book layout, design, graphics and finishing by Romany Rowell
Colophon / PROCESS WORK - 65