ISSU presentation

issu presentation

Reflective Practice

Beginning the context of practice module I had little understanding of the effect theoretical practice could have on design, of course I understood that research is vital in order to produce an informed piece of design although I hadn’t previously looked in depth theoretically before starting the practical side of a brief.  I became aware as the course progressed on how theoretical research can change and shape a design in to a new, more advanced and informed piece of work.I found  the depth of research challenging, beginning the course I wasn’t aware of how much theoretical research was needed and I feel as if I didn’t go as in depth as I could of done, however having learnt this as the course proceeded, I feel confident that in the next module I can begin research with a clear understanding of what is needed in order to produce the most well thought-out design.

Carrying out research and producing a design based on a subject I’m interested and feel passionate about; body image, really engaged me throughout the course of the module.  Following on to the next module I will continue to base theoretical research on subjects I am interested in as I feel as if I create my best designs when I feel like they have a purpose and are tackling issues people face today. In addition to this, in the next module I feel it will be beneficial to gain opinions on the designs during the development process from the people who are part of the target audience the design is being produced for rather than just opinions from other students and tutors.

The final outcome I produced derived from the theoretical research I carried out beforehand. I ensured I chose a brand which had core values apposing against the mainstream ideas of beauty I discussed in the previous essays. The brief I wrote, specifically aimed to create a print which celebrated more than one form of beauty, I chose to tackle the brief by looking back at the theoretical research I conducted. From the image analysis and triangulation essays it became apparent that a specific type of body was projected to consumers, a slim, toned, in proportion body with no signs of cellulite or stretch marks.

Stemming from this realisation came the final design outcome, the design intends to show all bodies as equal. As the Monki brand is specifically for women, and from the research essays mainly focusing around women I chose to utilise a feature of the female body (breasts) which so often comes under scrutiny of the male gaze but present it in a way that isn’t sexualised, and isn’t about comparison between women rather the print intends to communicate to the female viewer a message of acceptance, and celebration no matter the physical appearance.

We, as women in today’s society, are expected to aspire be the mainstreams definition of beauty perhaps it’s down to us supposedly being ‘the most narcissistic, individualistic and self-absorbed generation in recorded history.’ (Stephanie Pappas, 2016) however I’ve come to believe that it’s taught from a young age due to the toys young girls play with. This is where the inspiration of adding elements of a Barbie figure to the print design came from, a saw Barbie as a symbol for the mainstream ideal; blond, tall, slim, long hair, smiling, and thought it would be an effective element of juxtaposition and bring an element of humour to the print. And so the design was created, digitally illustrating a print which resembles a variety of real breasts; ones with stretch marks, ones which are odd, ones with uneven colouring, both big and small in block tones of purple and pink (in keeping with the Monki brand colour scheme), with elements of an image of a Barbie doll within them in order to communicate that aspiring to be like a Barbie doll (a metaphor for the mainstream definition of beauty) is not realistic, and people are aware it isn’t realistic, real is imperfections and individuality. The brief could have been approached in a number of ways, one idea I had as I was finishing the design for this project was to create a print using photographs of women to show a diverse range of bodies, however I feel like the illustration approach I took to the brief was the most appropriate for a print design as it’s adaptable for the different platforms the brief specified the print would need to be appropriate for.

The theoretical research I carried out throughout the module was not only beneficial in terms of creating an informed piece of design, but I also found the research interesting which pushed me to want to research more.  The Victoria Secret ‘perfect body’ campaign was a source of inspiration for the design, as the campaign features a row of eight women all with very similar body shapes, and they’re being labelled as ‘perfect’. This narrow view is something that my print hoped to not only challenge but diminish, showing a variety of women not eight women with the same unrealistic proportions.

Completing a brief centred around a subject I’m interested in engaged me both practically and theoretically, more so than having a brief stemming from I subject I had no prior interest or awareness of.  For this reason I’ve decided to begin the next module with the theme of misogyny. 

1000 word reflective practice planning

End of module evaluation

During this module, I have come to realise that I need to improve my time management, I put off doing the research side of things as it didn’t seem as engaging as the practical side of the project; I bean by trying to do the practical work however I quickly realised that the research side is there for a reason, and without it I was producing uninformed designs, ones that weren’t appropriate for the brief. I believe the way I can improve on this is to do the work as soon as I get it, not put it off for a week, and then another week and so on, because it will build up rapidly leaving me to complete it whilst feeling stressed.

I enjoyed writing my own brief, creating a final outcome that was based on an issue I’m passionate about was very rewarding, I also felt that this allowed me to make the work more personal. In addition to this, learning in depth about the brand I was designing for and to have a set of restrictions (colour scheme and nature of design) was really interesting to work with.

 Gaining research about the target audience was really beneficial to my work as when creating the design I was keeping in mind the type of person who would use a product with the print on, or look through a website which featured the print. Having a clear understanding of the audience muse and their characteristics, what they do in their spare time and what they’re interested really informed the design and I believe it ensured that the design was appropriate and suited to the audience completely.  In future briefs, both given briefs and briefs I personally write, I will ensure that I have a clear idea of who this is for specifically, I believe researching the audience in detail will be beneficial to the design, and will also assist me during the design process.

This module has made me aware that I need to improve on my critical writing, I believe I have a tendency to write too much about one point rather than covering a number of points in a more concise way.  To improve on this I feel like my essay planning needs to be more structured, listing the points which I’m going to cover and ensuring I cover them all within the word count.

Reflecting on this module, I realise that I want to create work that challenges, discusses and raises awareness for issues I am passionate about, such as feminism, sexism, racism, homophobia, creating work that could possibly make a difference, or have an impact on even just one person is really motivating for me, and I believe continuing to produce designs that I enjoy creating revolving around current, important issues could really improve my practice and produce some exposure for my designs.

From the final print produced in this module, I am creating and selling a series of t shirts using variations of the print to push the message of celebrating all forms of beauty as it’s a message that needs pushing in today’s society, and hopefully I can make a small contribution to the change in todays attitudes.
Below is an image of the print on a t-shirt of one of the people who have already purchased one. 

Study Task 8

 The brief for the Monki print was as follows "Online clothing brand MONKI requires a print design which can be used as an element across online and in-store campaigns celebrating female beauty in all its forms. The print design will be a recurring motif that appears among various contexts within the brand for example online animations, print adverts, posters and merchandise". This print meets the criteria of the brief due to it's versatility an the nature of the design. The simple shapes mean that the design can be used in many forms, and the repeat pattern means that animations will be able to be created easily. The aim of the brief; to celebrate female beauty in all it's forms is met due to the versatility of female features shown. 

When creating the design, i ensured that it was a design which suited the Monki brand, looking at the Monki manifesto, and the colour schemes across the brands marketing; i believe the tone of the print along with the tones of the colour scheme are appropriate and fit the brand well, ensuring brand cohesion. 

As discussed in my first critical writing piece, Burchill makes the point that consumers, not producers were normalizing waif-like women, this print was designed with the intention of rebelling against this type of statement, with the aim of normalizing the normal, normalizing the odd, the large, the small and everything in between. 

Klausiskoming's designs influenced this print due to the mix media approach, by using a combination of image and digital illustration a contemporary and modern print has been created appropriate for Monki's 16-27 social media savvy audience, with the expectation that the Monki customer will express themselves through what they wear and the surge in the social media #bodyconfidence and #freethenipple hashtags, the nature of the print is on trend visually and conceptually. 

study task 7

Based off of the feedback i received i adapted the design to show a wider range of different female forms in order to communicate the brief successfully. 

I believe this layout works a lot more successfully than the previous, it looks more like a print rather than just a repeat of one singular thing. 

study task 7

Following peer feedback of the initial design prototypes, the third design was felt to be the most appropriate and the most original design. 
After explaining the nature of the print and the manifesto of the brand, option 3 was preferred due to its original take and element of humor.  

Peer feedback; "i really like the third design, it seems the most original and i like the way you've incorporated two different mediums within the design. The colour pallet works also, it still relates to the brand but it's not like the design is being forced to be that colour, it works naturally. I also like the way you've chosen one body part and decided to focus the print on that- it makes it more like a print design and less like an illustration design like your first prototype, however using one feature of a woman's body hasn't limited you as you kind of get that it's trying to show how theirs no wrong way to have a body. 
To move this design on i would create a few more variations of this design to really push the criteria you mentioned on the brief; of celebrating the female body in all it's forms, so i think you should show more than one form."

Study task 6

Here i have began the initial design stage for the Monki print.

This first design is a print based off of different shaped and sized breasts. The inspiration for this design came from the limited or rather narrow view of female anatomy projected by the media. The design intends to bring a sense of inclusivity to the viewers, celebrating all shapes and sizes. The brief specifies that the design must be able to work as an element across online and in store campaigns, the composition of this design i believe works well for this criteria as singular elements of the design can be used and re-positioned as they need to be. 

This design is more literal in communicating a message of body inclusivity; the design aims to present a range of body types as equals. 

Taking inspiration from Monki’s straight to the point approach, the design isn’t subtle, it’s clear what it is that’s being communicated. 

The boldness of the design aims to show that no body should be hidden and shouldn’t be seen as a taboo. 

Although Monki uses predominantly pink tones, i thought it appropriate to include a variety of skin tones, to again communicate the manifesto of the brand and so I've done two variations; one more suited to the Monki brand and one more realistic colour toned design. 

The illustration style of this design could be compared to that of Sara Andressson due to the use of block colours, however the black line and the more simplistic style sets it apart. 

The inspiration behind this design is similar to the 1st initial design with the design hoping to celebrate the types of breasts not shown in the mainstream media; whether they be big, small, odd, dark, light, have stretch marks and pimples, in order to highlight the criteria of the brief of celebrating female beauty in all it’s forms. 

I decided to take a more humorous approach to this design, taking inspiration from ‘klausiskoming’ i used an image of a 1960’s barbie doll to create the print, along with block colours similar to the Monki brand. 

Barbie was used as a sort of parody element, using the doll who teaches young girls to aspire to unrealistic body expectations as a way to celebrate the types of bodies the media don’t teach people to aspire to.

Study task 6

Design ideas 

The print needs to be feminine in the sense that its for females, but not in a cliche way. Although the Monki colour scheme uses pink tones, i believe the nature of the design; revolving around feminine beauty in all forms will mean that the design isn’t overtly girly, rather the design will be contemporary and modern with the colour scheme acting as almost an element of humor as the brand is known for it’s open discussion and celebration of subjects such as female body hair, periods and masturbation which are often seen as taboos in today’s society. 

The design will ultimately be a jpeg file due to the fact that the print is going to be used by the brand on a number of various elements, due to this the materials the design is created in need to be able to be digitalised. 

study task 5

Relevant Visual Examples 

Here are some existing pieces of design which i will take inspiration from for the print design being created for Monki. As i will be creating a print which will be used as a reccuring motif throughout the brand, i thought it best to not only look at print designs, as this feels quite restrictive and predictable, rather i will look at illustrators and designers who i can take inspo from to create a print that isn't cliche, rather it's elements could act as individual designs. 

Above is a design by illustrator Sara Andreasson. Andreasson worked with monki recently to create a campaign based around female sexuality, addressing the taboo subject of female masturbation which was showcased on Monki's instagram. This design however was produced a few years ago as part of a t-shirt collaboration between the brand and the illustrator. The designs are bright and bold and address femininity as a powerful thing. I really admire the colours that have been used, they are, some would say, feminine colours, however the smooth, vectorised style of the illustrations do not make the overall piece overtly feminine, they visually make an impact due to the use of block colour. 

The next design i'll be taking inspiration from was created by london based illustrator who goes under the name 'klausiskoming'. The colour pallet of the designs is similar to the ones which Monki use, further to this to overall message of the piece is based around female power, the illustrators pieces often focus around sexuality in a playful way, not for the male gaze. 

The way the pieces have been created; a combination of collage and illustration is one which i think could work for the Monki print. 

The colours are feminine but the imagery is humorous, it creates what could be described as a parody of female sexuality,creating pieces with sexualised females on, and presenting them in a non sexualised way. 

The above piece was created by Brighton illustration student Alice Bloomfield. I really admire the quality of line in Bloomfield's work, i believe experimenting with taking an illustrative approach to the brief could work out well in communicating the message of celebrating female beauty through illustrating women of all different forms. Further to this i could combine the collage style of 'klausiskoming' with some illustrative elements also. 

This print by illustrator Steph Hope has a composition that i feel could work well for the Monki print. The way the illustrtions have been layerd and clustered is a compositional style which i believe could work for the Monki print, allowing many examples of female beauty to be presented in one frame.