FINAL END OF MODULE EVALUATION - PPP
Throughout this year, I have developed a number of skills regarding my personal professional practice. I feel that the main thing to be discussed is the confidence that I have gained in my own practice as well as being able to define who I am and who I am designing for. To begin with, I had a general idea of the type of design that I was interested in, however this was very broad, which is reflected in my choice of briefs at the start of the year. As I progressed and developed my briefs, the direction I wanted to head in became a lot clearer, and I was much more focused. This then allowed me to start approaching studios I was passionate about as my practice was much more defined in terms of wanting to work with personalised stationery, gifts and greetings and print. I am hoping that this will allow me to approach further studios after graduation with a clear sense of who I am, and being able to explain this in a professional manner. It is just a shame that I feel this happened quite late on in the module. In addition to the above, I feel that throughout this module I have improved upon my evaluative skills in terms of dissecting each stage of the development process. This has then allowed me to present my ideas in an organised way with focus on audience, context, purpose and environment.
This year, I have had the opportunity to visit a range of different studios, experiencing their professional and working environments. This has really helped me develop in terms of deciphering what type of studio I want to be in myself, and what area of design I want to be working with, giving me something to aspire to. These visits have been extremely beneficial. Elmwood in particular really opened my eyes to the possibilities that were out there. I was really shocked when I was picked to go and pitch my work to Steph and Chris, as this was really early on in the year when I wasn't really sure about my practice. Before the presentations, we were given the opportunity to take a look around the studio to see the working environment, where a vast array of creatives were hard at work. The atmosphere was very inspiring and the surroundings were extremely motivational. The pitch itself was quite casual and I felt confident in getting my concept across. It was great to get some feedback straight away, taking note on how I could build upon, expand and change my ideas. This experience really helped with my presentation skills, both in terms of speaking and visuals, which will become extremely useful when it comes to pitching my ideas to clients. Similar experiences to this include my involvements in a number of exhibitions this year. The talk in Design Manchester particularly stood out to me as it gave me the opportunity to listen to a talk by Kate Moross, who is extremely determined and motivated. She spoke in a way that really instilled self belief into you, making me want to reach my end goal.
In terms of strengths within this module, I am extremely pleased with my personal branding and identity. I feel that the use of hand drawn type has developed a personal and unique focal visual, taking on a playful and reflective aesthetic, that works effectively alongside examples of my prints, patterns and illustrations as a direct representation of both my design and my ambitions. A range of colours were used throughout that automatically connect to the type of design I am attracted to, focusing on pastel shades alongside contrasting elements. I therefore feel that I have successfully presented myself in a way that not only represents my practice, but also the type of design that interests me, offering a professional and unified range of branded products that could be handed out to potential clients.
A particular weakness within my PPP is that once I had organised a placement, I found that I had stopped getting in touch with studios. I feel that this has not helped me in terms of my practice, and gaining industry experience. Now that I am much more informed of the direction I am heading in, I will start getting in touch with creatives again. In addition to this, I feel that I could have expanded on the web elements of my design presence. Although my skills are limited in terms of digital design, I feel that I could have pushed this to create something slightly more exciting than my overall outcome. However, my website is still consistent with my print based branding.
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