OUGD301: Rationale (initial)

What do you want to do and why? An overarching statement of the direction of your own design practice, areas of interest and what this will allow you to explore……. AND WHY?

My enthusiasm and strength surrounds print based design and I aim to utilise this module as a means to develop an increased awareness centred upon the use of hands-on processes such as silkscreen printing, letter-press, woodblock type and hand-stitched binding methods.

As a summative statement, I would suggest that my overarching aims are to produce informed pieces of conceptually aware type driven design with intent to develop a professional print based portfolio acknowledging screen based design on occasion.

Given industry feedback acquired thus far it has emerged as advisable that I focus on developing my other key interests in layout and publishing. I aim to address this through working on publication based projects that may have a more commercial edge as to make myself more employable to design agencies and studios.

One discipline that I feel is lacking at present is that of branding and corporate identity. Given that this is the focus of my dissertation I aim to engage with one or two hard-nosed branding briefs this module (and year) to give my design portfolio a rounded depth and greater sense of direction.

Lastly, to elaborate on my desire for the handmade I have also always had the intention to illustrate more; all-be-it through a simple use of pen and ink and/or vector based graphics. As my practice has developed over the duration of this course (and throughout the typography module in particular) my interest in this has more specifically been guided toward illustrating typefaces outright, as well as ‘type as image’. Needless to say, this is a final element that I intend to weave amongst my other design based interests through the conceptual development to each given brief.