Twelve Northern Guides

Craig Oldham of Manchesters 'The Chase' (www.thechase.co.uk) and his now infamous '12 in 12' presentation & handout have gained alot of notoriety amidst industry professionals, education faculty and students alike. Having finally soaked it all up around a week ago, whilst being entertained by his casually honest, yet descriptive writing style, I found myself worrying less about my creative capabilities and instead, pondering over my social networking skills.

This was only given more solidity when Ady Bibby, Creative Director of True North (www.thisistruenorth.co.uk) came to present to 2nd & 3rd year graphics students at our college. Ady, having been a former student there, gave a presentation which was extremely insightful; and in doing so, clarified the points associated with Craigs views on beginning a career in Graphic Design.

Whilst both companies (Ady having been a former Chase employee himself) are at the peak of responsibility for creativity in the north of England, removing the cliche that London is the place to be as a young up-and-coming Designer, they both retain a modesty and sincerity that seems to be a calming voice of reason to me. 

I am aware that i am still to find my true strengths within the next year, but knowing that honing an understanding and ability to work creatively as a team member, is just as important as technical ability, brings a little comfort to the woes of facing unemployment regardless of the standard of my degree, It's time to disregard my nights locked in a room working towards a first, and focus more of my time into scouring design week to know who is who and what they're working on!

The Energy of Art

A while back I ventured over to Liverpool to the F.A.C.T facility, where Factory Records legend, Peter Saville, had launched a collaborative exhibition with Andy McCluskey (of OMD) & Hari Haralambous, one of the most successful 'video artists' of today. This exhibit highlights the aforementioned shift in the way in which galleries handle the inception of technological art installations.

It would be easy to venture into the space, presuming that the artifacts, (a series of ambient digital films, fragmented audio broadcasts and most relevantly; electronic boards, fields and elements which required human interaction to work) each individual aspects of the installation, were separate standalone works of art.

It was when you took a step back, that the realisation washed over you, it wasn't as simple as that, For the most part, the 'energy suite' required the collaborative interaction of more than one person, using the electrical fields within our combined bodies, to power, direct or activate the reactions in the physical elements; for example, I spent a good ten minutes sharing a grip on a wooden steering wheel, tapping different parts of my girlfriends arm, which generated different synthesized tones; we had become the instrument, and as such, were the ones being watched by people moving through the gallery.

It became even more apparent when you entered the fragmented orchestra installation, a maze of speakers hung by chains from the ceiling, each of them rotating freely and occasionally spitting out radio static in an ever shifting manner, It was only when you made out other figures weaving between the chains from the darkness of the room, that the space unveiled it's true purpose.

The most important piece for me though, was in the projected space downstairs, quite simply a darkened room sat with a 50ft projection of fluxuating television static, you were handed large white framed glasses as you entered the space and whilst no-one seemed to manage more than around ten minutes in there, the purpose came in seeing the light bouncing off those sitting in the reclined sofa in the centre of the room, offering a more than poignant commmentary on the vegetation of contemporary society living their lives through their television sets.

Technoledgements!

Whilst my previous entry (Is it a warning?) may have touched on the subject of technology within art, I feel I need to upload something more accurate than a fear stricken SOS call from the depths of my paranoia.

I could go into a lengthy essay about the relevance of digital reproduction through tools such as adobe's software packages, or the painterly accuracy of wacoms hardware, but as these things are all commonplace nowadays, it almost seems strange that someone would still purchase a paintbrush.

Yet I find myself faltering between the ease of use, publication and production of digital media, and the romance, skill and effort that goes into letterpress, hand rendered illustrations or artworks and the dying use of celluloid for capturing film.

I've said before, I'm a fan of rehashing the feel and look of that which has gone by, but the gaps between what we consider 'retro' or as the coined phrase would have it 'lo-fi'. 

The fact that we have lo-fi, as a major movement within a digital world should speak volumes about the need for technique and craftsmanship without the aid of technology.

Yet within digital arts there are new vehicles which turn technology and art into an immersive experience, for the past number of years, the advancements in computer graphics alone has been astonishing, and it's now commonplace to see a games console beside the television in any household. 

But these machines, and their 'graphics engines' are being utilised for something more than just interactive gaming, as Jonathan Leggett highlighted in Dazed (ref; vol.2 issue 70).

Leggett highlights the works of Mavros' Nodes a 'modder' who uses game engines as a foundation with which to create environments out of the structures and mapping systems used in mainstream computer games such as half-life.

Removing the gameplay element and turning these virtual environments that gestate and manipulate in flux and form as you move within them and interact with their aura as such. Some of these creations are truly bizarre, whilst some are completely engaging sensory experiences (check out moddb.com for examples)

It makes me wonder if we will reach a point where digital art no longer needs a gallery or space with which to exhibit within, rather creating an architectural or sculptural digital form which *is* as much the gallery, as it is the artwork

Is it a warning?

As I'm sure you've noticed by now, my notions on the suspicious foundations to the broadcast imagery we soak up in the dim blue light of our television sets isn't one of absolute fondness, I will admit to something seen as inspiration blasphemy by the tutors at my previous college... I don't own a television!

I know, it seems bizarre doesn't it? And this is something that really shouldn't be an issue, yet in my lack of ownership, I appear to have made a social, even political choice regarding the delivery of information (realistically, I just don't find enough on worth watching that would equate to me spending that much money just because it's 'normal')

It shouldn't be shocking to hear that someone doesn't own a television, Yet any time I have informed anyone of this in the past, the look of fear on their face castrates me as a human and puts me in the ditch with whatever was disposed of in area 51.

My tutors argument was that I could have no understanding, no perception, no grasp upon advertising without a television set; my defense was that not owning a television ensured that my room was the one place in the world I could actually *escape* advertising for a moment of solemnity. 

Now, Obviously I use the internet, I can filter what I see and when, and this 'control' is what is important to me, I don't mean to offer sanctimonious critique upon others, but I can't think of anything less appealing to me, than to base my weekly timetable around the tv guide.

However, I don't underestimate the importance of CRT & LCD burning into our retinas when necessary, unfortunately, like all technology, the initial purpose is diluted and twisted in flux and form as it ages. Technology and those which interact, constantly demand upgrades, yearn for something which is smaller, better, faster, stronger, cheaper or more aesthetically pleasing.

I'm not going to get into another long winded 'rant' on product lust and the contemporary desire to constantly have something just a smidgen better than what you caught a glimpse of through your neighbours window last saturday as you watered the lawn.

I am however becoming increasingly worried about the shift in context of that which is being broadcast. In recent years, there has been an insurgence of motion pictures which feature an entertaining 90 minute replication of the end of the world, be it through natural disaster, infection or nuclear war.

The issue is, when these movies are reviewed on television, or in printed media, they are championed for their social commentary, the issues they highlight within society today, and this contextual referencing; whilst accurate, is terrifying.

When advancements in digital media, CGI animation and effects leads onto apocalyptic fantasy which makes millions selling to those which for the most part still don't see fit to act in accordance against the future we are facing, Should we be worried that in the face of danger we won't rally together and unite as one race... rather watch in disbelief as we gorge on popcorn?

Okay, a little exaggerated with the popcorn, but the point still stands, the line between fiction and reality is constantly blurred in the minds of society, and especially youth, who are now raised on a steady diet of armageddon focused movies and video games.

Is there a point where our ability as artists, to create something so beautifully realistic and convincing, becomes impossible to decipher as fiction from fact?

A lesson in communication...

I've always been a fan of 'treating' myself to something nice any time I come into money, Of late I feel that I've not treated myself enough, so as a cure, I decided to reminisce a little regarding a previous present I bought myself.

Truth be told, Having read 'The Spectacle of The Other' and the afforementioned 'Heroes and Villains' segment within, I hoped to use said present to find further information on the representation of the african-american within advertising. (as the present contains a hefty section on activism; in particular, dealing with such representation during the socio-political changes in 1960's America and the demeaning/stereotypical image of black america prior to this shift)

However, whilst scouring through Jan Nederveen Pieterse writings on representations of otherness (ref; white on black, images of africa and blacks in western popular culture) I remembered something that this present contained, that brought me on somewhat of an adventure whilst reading.

At this point I feel I should both inform you of, and highly recommend you buy yourself this present, as it is a fantasticly entertaining and insightful resource which I somehow overlook from time to time during research. 

Design Writing Research: Writing On Graphic Design (by Ellen Lupton & Abbot Miller) 

This book takes you on a journey through design in a beautifully published book, falling apart through derridas deconstruction and bending, flexing and reforming through laws of type, modern hieroglyphics and a seriously indepth collection of mini-essays transcending the history of graphic design in America 1829-1993.

Now that the shamless promotion is out of the way, I'll get to the point. We were briefed recently on a brief which requires us to come up with a new form of communication or a new way of communicating something interesting, it was this which led me back to this book and one of the articles within.

Lupton & Miller take you on a typographic journey through the evolution of written language, as each new revelation is unveiled regarding the phases our written language originated from, the content changes size, shape, case and constantly shifts in form.

The point of this bizarrely lucid writing style has a strength to it that visually communicates something with as much power and emphasis as an image, yet remains as body copy throughout. This essay (Period Styles - A Punctuated History) has something magical about it, not only in the method in which it explains, but the content mentioned as it does so.

I for one did not know that our 'punctuation' stems from a time when few but the rich could read nor write, and those talented enough to do so were appointed as scribes to royalty, it was in the deliverance of these documents that . - ' figures would dictate the tone in which the words should be spoken

. commanding a low-tone

- commanding a mid-tone

' commanding a high-tone

Something we take for granted nowadays, especially in a time where the degradation of written language is at an all time high, with the allowance of urban-slang and 'txtspk' in some schools across the country, I personally see this as a devolution of language, rather than an inclusion of advancement in communication.

So when I am approaching the communication brief, it is already, and will be important to me to consider these origins, the importance of tone, delivery, punctuation and silence in conversation, written or spoken, is one which gives us our voice, or means of conveying emotion and personality.

Yet here we are with repetitive strain injury in our hands due to 'talking' with our fingertips for the majority of our day, rather than with our vocal chords.

Feranimal

Gilles Deleuze and Pierre-Félix Guattari developed the notion of 'becoming animal' whilst the connotations of feral upbringing and psychiatric/sociopathic degradation may explain the animalistic traits of the human psyche surfacing, the concept of becoming animal has been one which has been adopted and adhered to by occultists and their extremist philosophy.

But where does this lead us, It's hard not to feed the science vs. religion fire within the realisation that our 'instincts' are animalistic and carnal, desire in itself is something that is bred from, or as a result of passions. 

Whilst reading some of Gilles Deleuze' writing online, This became something of a fixation to me, in trying to uncover the role of nature within art, i must admit, I was led to his work by a friend of mine who noticed I had been reading Franz Kafka and the article in question ('the body, the meat and the spirit:becoming animal' by Gilles Deleuze) refers to Das Schwert "the sword" from The Diaries of Franz Kafka.

I was perplexed by the writing, and it led me to thinking about our reactions, emotional and physical; and the animalistic traits of each.

We are on the whole, an emotional race, whilst for the most part, purely reactant & occasionally volatile, but what is it about our nature that causes these reactions? As I have mentioned in an earlier post the cost of 24/7 culture and constant streams of media and advertising available at our fingertips, has led to dysfunctions and syndromes within our society which can only be as a result of the urgency and immediacy with which we demand information.

This could be our evolution, a transcendence of sorts, adaptation into what we are to become, or it could be subliminal poison; (I am aware at this point, my negative and cynical opinions of advertising may hinder my ability to persue a career in such a field, but truth be told, I've little interest in advertising, apart from on a psychological level. Colour psychology and appeal to demographics via style, content and copy are more interesting to me than actually creating the advertisement itself) However, We still react to these things in animalistic manners, albeit more docile.

So what is it about media which causes us to react with anger, lust, hunger or other instinctual behaviors? Could it be that the advertising industry have such a grasp on the human mind that we can have strings pulled and cut in accordance with what best suits a product, or is our expectation of the subliminal and that between the lines, causing us to look past the sinister tactics that are being broadcast to us on a daily basis?

If we learnt to advertise through propaganda, were taught to understand through curriculum & study by man-made ever shifting 'facts', conditioned by upbringings and social acceptability then we are all expected to react in the same way, It just leaves me wondering that if we were brought up without any of these constructs, as a 'feral' being, would we be as inhumane as we're led to believe? Or would we infact be less corrupt than we're becoming.

Arrr Matey!

The RSA website has a fascinating lecture on the virtues of piracy by former pirate radio dj Matt Mason, having watched this in college, I found myself going back time after time and rewatching the lecture, along with the other fantastic lectures available on thersa.org. 

The relevance of Masons words are shockingly accurate, highlighting the positive benefits of piracy in the digital age, whilst we are bombarded with ridiculously patronising advertisements in our movie theatres and dvd players about piracy being a crime and how watching a single dvd you got for cheap off some bloke in the pub makes you worse than the krays.

Mason illuminates, with both wit and intellect, the fact that without piracy we'd lack in progression, without the likes of the napster fiasco around 5 years ago now, we'd never have ended up with an indisposable resource like apples itunes & itunes store. 

The change in the record industry alone due to the demands of internet downloading are catastrophic, we have 'download charts' now and whilst some may worry about the demise of the actual, due to the rise in the virtual, it actually breeds new opportunity in design. 

Graphic designers are through this, given the opportunity to make more lavish, luxurious and appealing packaging/printed media for containing cd/dvd products, take a stroll around your local hmv and just look at how many cd cases are now beautifully printed and multi-folded works of standalone art (have a browse for sigur ros cd's and you'll see what I mean)

So I have to ask, Without the ability to download single tracks, movies or other media, would we still be purchasing them over the counter as fervently as we once were? 

To answer this, I'll refer to the old soft drinks campaign from years back 'image is nothing, thirst is everything', the relevance of that campaign is dead, despite the recession, despite our pocket change becoming equivalent to gold nuggets to us all during current economic times, I believe that now, Image is everything, Thirst is mandatory.

In 'other' words..

Having studied the 'heroes and villains' reading (The Spectacle Of The Other, Bathes), It raised a very important message about the power of words, both within literal and subliminal meaning. Barthes' argument that 'the caption selects out one of the many possible meanings from an image, and anchors it with words. The 'meaning' of the photograph, then, does not lie exclusively in the image, but n the conjunction of image and text.'

The relevance of this is astounding, not only as a revelation to the power of typography and body copy within the interpretation of image, but to control of mass thought via the anchored connotations within public media.

If you were to visit an art gallery, and instead of finding a captivating piece which stopped you in your tracks and left you staring, seeking meaning, defragmenting the image and it's reasoning, you found the same image, with type printed ontop of it explaining every aspect of it's meaning, would you then be able to think of it as anything else?

It could be easy to argue that you would take another step back, considering the relevance of the type to the image, whether it was an honest or an ironic sentiment, but the meaning of the art would be shifted again.

Yet in media publications, these words are taken as gospel, tabloid and gossip press thrive upon their pun-riddled body copy as much as they do their latest image of a celebrity flashing underwear as they exit a limo.

I do not consider myself above anyone, nor do I feel that an understanding of the power behind such words makes me less succeptable to their direction, but with the accessibility and freedom of webzines and relatively cheap publication costs nowadays, surely anyone has the power now, to influence the opinions of those which thrive upon the latest hot topic to discuss during a coffee break?

Give a dog a bone...

I'm not quite sure how this happened, but with the issue of a new stationary brief, I somehow wound up with another dog related subject (which has me questioning how many members of the curriculum actually compete regularly in Crufts). I was to come up with a brand identity & stationary package for a dog groomer, now, like every 'designer' the initial ideas that come to you are usually the most obvious, and easily disposed of.

Mine.. mine were just verging on bizarre. Take for example the fact that in the first few days of this brief I was referring back to demographic research & dog related product lines from the dogood campaign. (In archive under 'do a little good') Somewhere between that logical step, and coming up with my concept, I found myself sitting in the middle of sketches of yorkshire terriers with combs as 'moustaches', electric shavers with dogs tails, kennels with grooming brushes coming out of them, and god forbid, a large soapy ball of something with a dogs face in the middle of it.

We've always been taught to put everything down on paper, so I had, and in shame I wanted nothing more than to set light to it and revel in the glorious flames of ensuring that no-one would ever see such hideous ideas. Anyone can suffer from creative block, at any time, and it can be extremely stressful and downright irritating at the best of times, in this instance however, it was this inability to do as I was telling myself, that bore the concept.

Disobedience; In disobedience there is a refusal to adhere to what is expected. This revelation made me realise that I was taking 'grooming' far too literally, and that instead of focusing on showdogs, I should focus on behavioral grooming, Creating a company which dealt with disobedience or undomesticated dogs in a friendly yet effective manner. Woof, became this fictitious company and in their manifesto set out to train and 'condition' dogs without punishment & reward schemes, but through using revolutionary 'clicker training'

So the idea was a serious one, but the demographic was still the same, pet-lovers, and more important 'dog people' (not really sure why we're supposed to have preference over cats and dogs, I like both of them, not a fan of sheep though, creepy little buggers) I had to appeal to my market on a friendly and humorous level, whilst still conveying the ethos behind the company. 

This evolved into a range of stationary based on aspects of the dogs features, using the 'dog eared' pages, tongue envelope, and verbal puns such as the 'woof compliments' slip. 

The business card, as the first point of contact for most people, was an elasticated pull out of a dog that constantly snapped back inside the card, mimicking the dogs disobedience in doing what the owner is asking of it. (when the card is brought to Woof, the corner is cut off, freeing the elastic and removing the dog, which effectively highlights their ability to fix the problem.)

Inspired..

Whilst my previous comments regarding 4designers in London remain intact, I've found myself pondering further upon one thing said, almost in passing, by Frances Jackson, which since leaving London has been resonating within my ears. Especially regarding the critical thinking we're expected to adhere to as honours students.

Frances commented on her inspiration and motivations, informing us that she personally doesn't take influence or notion from the works of other noted designers/artists around her, rather taking inspiration from where it appears naturally.

Despite my opinion of her work ethics, and the quality produced by herself and her partners, Her mentioning of this has really struck a chord within me.

We're expected to draw upon influence, and seek out new forms of reference, And the curriculum (which is essentially our canon of learning anyway) has ways and means set in place for which we can acheive that, however, I don't consider myself an art historian, whilst others in my class may be well read, or have astonishing knowledge of the movements within art over the years, I personally do not.

I can appreciate the work of others, and within both the art world, and the graphics industry, there are things which appeal to me, and things which anger me. But if I am completely honest, I don't feel that I take influence from the great designers of our time, or the revered artists of their time.

A photographer recently mentioned in one of her blog entrys, about work ethos, and the importance of knowing where your work comes from, emotional or practical response.

Having read this entry, and applied the thinking to myself, I find it hard not to believe myself to be an 'emotional designer', not because I find attachment or moral code driving my motivation, but because every piece of work I do, I feel has to have reason, has to have it's own life.

I'm not against paying homage, I'm all for retroscopic vision and recurrent trends, it makes the understanding of appeal easier to translate. I do however, feel that I'd much rather follow my heart and head when creating work, rather than working towards the style of those which I admire.

War of the Roses II

As a follow on from the sticker campaign, and to better spread the awareness of the new words to be entering the OED this year, we thought about ways of accessing the publics vocabulary. Firstly disposing of the obvious vocabulary based options, such as Balderdash & Piffle, QI and Countdown, and instead focusing on the infectious shows which in turn cause viewers to pick up slogans, or parody those within.

Whilst I personally disregard big brother as having much worth (okay, the first show was a valid experiment into social interaction and the effects of 'cabin fever', but since then it's just been a hideous display of the stereotypes of society being thrust together for the sake of entertainment; albeit in watching their degradation into something vaguely resembling cretinous) I couldn't challenge it's worth as the most effective vehicle to carry the concept.

Essentially, we would put forth the selection of new words (bahookie, aerobicised, crunk & celebutante) in the style of a 'task' in which a housemate would have to use the words and subliminally influence the other housemates, rewarding his triumphs by adding money to their weekly food budget each time a word was used by someone other than himself. 

In theory, the conversations, situations & frustrations that would arise from the misunderstandings and misconceptions of these words would lead to memorable moments within the show; which in turn would become quotable phrases by the general public, thus spreading awareness and usage as the brief requires.

Red Carpet Branding

As I mentioned in an earlier entry, The sweeping fad for use of Helvetica in branding a number of years back, was one which gave companies an identity of simplicity, accessibility and cleanliness. 

So if the subliminal power of branding is so effective, is it really any wonder that the brand itself becomes a celebrity?

Having read the 'first things first' manifesto, and further reading on it's effectiveness within the 'obey the giant' campaign, it was clear that we, as a people, crave establishment, identity that can be purchased that says as much about our consumer choices, as it does about our socio-political status.

Whilst the current 'buy-in' may be marketed via simplistic visuals and bespoke, pseudo-handmade finishes, this cult of the brand has become more of an inspiration within the art world. Paying homage to collaborative works between Man Ray and Duchamp.

One of the latest effective motions within this 'branderlust' fixation is Francesco Vezzoli (ref: dazed 70) his collaborative works with seminal movie director Roman Polanski, casting a-listers Natalie Portman & Michelle Williams, features a product, A bottle of perfume entitled 'greed' marketed as a luxurious fragrance. 

But the product doesn't exist, there is no perfume, there is no product, the marketing itself has become the art.

With an accompanying media campaign (which I personally feel has been put together with the amount of refinement I wasn't even proud of as a 1st year HND student) and a short film acting as a viral accomplice to the campaign, It could be forgiven for mistaking this product as the next 'must have' item for the prada lapping elite.

Nevertheless, This highlights something very important within contemporary society. If we're disposing of the canon, and opening our minds to the relevance of works such as those of the hirsts and banksys of this world, Do we need a shift from the traditionalist ways of gallery openings and high-culture gatherings?

In a world where even our advertising is shifting from printed press, into viral, interactive and motion-based media (just take a trip into any london/new york tube station and see how all the posterboards are being replaced with lcd flatscreens) has art lost touch with the masses through the accessibility of the internet and downloadable media?

The romance of a gallery will always be there, But now it feels like the spaces, regardless of the content, are museum. Preservatives of that within, rather than something to relish in themselves.

We have been taught to crave instant results, we have come to expect accessibility on-the-spot, and sure, we have bred new dysfunctions in impatience and mental disorders, with our new found acceptances of bi-polar conditions and ADD/ADHD, But this is evolution right?

We're changing, As a result of the world we have built for ourselves, The product has become the idol, The craving has become the motivation, Even the self professed non-materialistic people, try their hardest to purchase the sleekest new look in minimal chic.

War of the Roses I

The Roses Advertising Awards is one of the more notorious design competitions in the UK, It offers a choice of briefs, set by some of the countries most elite design studios, offering prizes with both financial and professional gain, placement schemes and even chances to have your work on display at some of the countries leading design museums. So as you can expect, it was rather daunting going in for this knowing the competition would be of such a high calibre.

Having chosen to tackle the Oxford English Dictionary - New Words brief, around a fortnight was spent alone buried amidst spider diagrams and sketchbooks, playing every meaning of every new word on the current list off against one another; then furthermore the associations with each of those words. After my key finding in the Marks & Spencers campaign (in archive under 'Cheap Luxury') research was to play an important part in conceptualising for this brief.

So the decision was made, two separate solutions chosen and both to be produced and submitted as a joint/complimentary campaign. The first was 'ambience' a series of stickers showing some of the new words, which would be placed in public restrooms, seating areas, gymnasiums & bars (wherever each phrase was relevant). The chosen words were 'Celebutante' - meaning 'new celebrity', 'Bahookie' - meaning 'backside', 'Aerobicised' - meaning 'toned' & 'Crunk' - meaning 'Crazy Drunk'.

With the stickers produced and put into their environments, The theory was in the response of curiousity due to repeated exposure, In essence, By subliminally flooding the memory with continuous exposure to these stickers in public places, You would eventually question their meaning, taking a closer look and noticing the URL which directs you to the OED's website, and the explanation/meaning of these 'new words'

2 Designers (of worth anyway)

Having returned from the 4Designers conference in London, I was a little bemused by some of the speakers, scrap that, I can completely dismiss two of them altogether.

Shaugnessy was the one with the most promise, His presentation was the one I was looking forward too most, But the second he took the stage, My senses were dulled completely.. Yes, This man may have produced some work that has been respected and revered by other design greats, but my god are his inter-personal skills dire.

I don't want to be too critical, His presentation contained alot of information, but it was alot of the same information, repeated cyclically in five to ten minute intervals, And for someone held in such high position in the world of design, it was honestly one of the least aesthetically pleasing things I have ever seen.. well, asides from the european study tours logo, but that was just a gut wrenching combination of typographic faux-pas and clashing neon colour.

On the other hand, Frances Jacksons' presentation was actually enjoyable, She addressed the room well and had a more commanding presence amidst the room but her work was just.. well, dire to be honest. For someone who seemed to be aggressively ecological about her approach to design, the majority of her work contained contradictory media. 

Having motioned towards a more sustainable, less wastage design ethos myself of late, I found her rationale behind one of her most 'egolocially sound' solutions astonishing, lest we not mention the use of excessive printed media and colour schemes which are amongst the hardest to de-ink thus resulting in more landfill pollution and chemical disposal.

Now, The saving grace...

Martin Grothmaak was the first person to take centre stage, and nervously so, but for someone staring into the blinding spotlight above a room full of people waiting to be told trade secrets and leave the room full of inspiration and passion, His nerves and concerns about his english second language were easily dismissed as he fluidly wandered through a presentation of some of the most refined and delicate design work I have ever seen.

His stage presence became altogether cool and as more of his work came up on screen I just found myself salivating over the tiniest treatments he, and his partners had applied to mainly typographic based work, making them luxurious and sophisticated works of art in themselves.

As Grothmaak led, and the other two aforementioned designers dragged it into a downward spiral from therein, I wasn't looking forward to Andrew Shoben's presentation, and perhaps thats what made it so special...

Honestly, Asides from the likes of Sir Ken Robinson and those which have graced the theatres of the RSA, no-one has ever captivated me so much in a lecture, From the end of Shobens first paragraph I was in absolute adoration of the man, I actually found myself wishing he'd just been on stage the whole time, well.. maybe with a Grothmaak sized interval.

Whilst Shoben isn't technically a 'graphic designer' more of an installation and 'interactive' artist, his words, his work and his attitude just flooded off the stage and washed over everyone in the room, I honestly can't convey the feeling, But if you were to imagine someone with as much passion, wit and talent as you'd like to have, making an entire theatre full of young, pretentious 'design elite' minds laugh and gasp and leave smiling and dying to do work with some 'worth' you'd almost be close.

I am cynical, I was born that way, but this time.. I couldn't find anything negative to say, I am impressed, I have been since and greyworld has now made it to my daily bookmarks list, eagerly awaiting my next fix of Shobens witty, yet wise words.

What does it even mean?!

'idiotbred', as I'm sure you've figured out by now, is the moniker under which I do the majority of my design work; the freelance work anyway, college work is just plain old Dave Kennedy due to whatever atrocious ownership laws are in place during our educational contract.

Why idiotbred?

Well.. Have you ever been walking around your town, desperate to do something and everyone else seems to be going about their daily mission of getting in your way at every opportunity? Or the sheer obnoxiousness and arrogance of the general public just seems to be attracted to you as if you're some attention magnet for the socially inept? 

Thats how idiotbred was born, initially starting as a joke between a friend and I, to discreetly refer to anyone who, to the best of our knowledge, was the spawn of a long line of morons. Harsh isn't it! It became a bit of a coffee shop catchphrase to us and over time, an identity.

Green with economy...

Within design, Fashion is everything, Trends perpetuate the motion of creativity within society. A few years ago Helvetica swept the nation, With hundreds of companys seeking modernisation and rebranding, Helvetica became the new black and every reputable (read; ruthless multinational) company wore it with pride, persuing an image of simplicity and accessibility through the subliminality of branding.

Nowadays, it's a different matter, with 'state of the nation' television pushing the thought processes of the masses into exhausting concern regarding what we eat, where we eat it, and the ethics behind it's production. The realisation that we're mere parasites destroying a world that has kept us alive for longer than we can remember has become the new badge of virtue for companies (which for the most part are lacking in just that)

However, Due to this demand for ethical produce and sustainable resources, Numerous creative companies are springing up across the globe, noteable, 57 design in Brisbane, who have been at the forefront of the sustainable design movement, both in their dramatic thesis and the creation and publication of one of the most downloaded 'widgets' of all time 'the sustainable graphic design widget'

This widget informs the ethical minded designers (or those with the ability to sell pre-packaged morals to companies who have questionable ones already) of the causes and concerns of print and press methods used everyday, addressing issues with de-inking, pollution and chemical disposal and suggesting sustainable alternatives in bonding agents, dying pigments and materials.

But this is the issue, While there are ethical options out there, Some companies see portrayal of the image as more viable than an actual transition to a more ecologically sound option.

McDonalds, A company that has forever been in question regarding the ethics and morals expected from society in present day, combated the needs in past years, by launching an 'angus' line, and selling 'fresh fruit' and 'healthier choice' products, Giving the consumer the option to eat healthy, and more importantly, giving them the image of an ethically aware company.

This time round, They've done it again, Playing up to the image of sustainability, Without actually making the commitment, The new packaging line looks letterpressed, it looks like it has the texture of recycled materials, and it appears to be ethically sound and as morally savvy as the likes of Apples packaging and product lines.

Yet, it still uses the same materials, the same processes and the same medium as before, So this raises the question... Do we actually care? Is something appearing to be ethical enough for us to buy into.

Apparently so, On the whole, We won't make a difference, But we will purchase things that tell onlookers that we have, Portraying an image of ethics is whats important to us, And if we can pay a few pence extra for something that makes us appear to be wholesome and ethically sound, By god will we do it.

12 x 35 = Expense

One of the requirements of second year of study at art college, is participation in 'live' and competition briefs, The first of which we encountered was the National Business Calendar Awards, as this was my second large brief, and the outcome for the conceptual book brief had come together so well, I decided that there was no sense in restricting myself with regards the outcome. Instead, I would go as over the top, outrageous and just plain crazy as I could.

Scale! Scale is everything, What I hate about 'business calendars' is their measly little to-do lists, the little clusters of post it sized, date riddled paper gradually fraying and becoming no use apart from as emergency coasters throughout the space of a year. The lack of impact alone in these creations is even less engaging than the executive toys you find in bargain bins and argos catalogues, magical stainless steel balls on wires, test tube birds that peck infinitely and stress balls shaped like a malformed breast.

I couldn't bring myself to make something which would get lost amidst a clutter of digestive crumbs and crumpled faxes, I had to do something that would become the focus of the entire room, something interactive which encouraged use and utilised the calendar structure as an image first, and a calendar second.. It was in this that I rediscovered a little tool I was fond of some years back when it came to creating aerosol free graffiti.. The Rasturbator!

Homokaasu.org's now cult tool allows you to transform even the smallest of images, into an infinitely scaleable collection of vector dots, similar to the halftone look of Lichtensteins seminal pop art imagery, printing each segment out on individual pages from any old domestic printer, and with a little putting together, creating epic visual statements only restricted by patience and imagination.

So this was it, I was going to effectively turn an entire wall of an office space into an ever-changing work of art. Using stock photography and chroma colour theory together to find images with colours best suited to the time of year. The calender would be 7 individual booklets across, by 5 booklets down, and would be hung on a wall as a grid system, each booklet pinning to the next. Over the space of a year, the user would have the ability to either keep a 'wallpaper' per month by tearing off perforated tabs, or use the cascading reveal style by tearing off a whole page a day, unveiling a new image over the space of a month.

Artography?

Surely, The difference between documentary photography, and artistic photography, lies purely in the composition? An appropriation of another work, photographed in such a way that it abstracts the image, would essentially become a valid work of art in itself, no? 

That abstraction, is a result of another persons vision, and whilst the subject matter of the image is the same, another persons vision on the flux, form or meaning of the original has as much validity as the original. Is art not essentially defined by the response to the work anyway?

Do a little good...

Another of the enclosed works within Co-Respondence, was a task set to market & brand a product, which would be given out randomly, I was unfortunate enough to receive dog food, and not just any old product at that, but dog food for the contemporary consumer market; those which are image concious, ethically sound & into purchaseable identity.. you literally are what you eat. 

I began thinking about the simplicity behind the design of contemporary brands, the likes of innocent & apples current brand identity (ref; new greener macbook tv campaign/packaging ethos) portray an image of honesty, simplicity and even naivety through their almost childlike logotypes and packaging design. This 'innocence' gives them a personal feel in a multi-national world, and thus, a step ahead of more traditional brands which are seen as mass produced and unfavourable.

So the identity had to be minima, it needed to be fun, and whilst the product itself needed to appeal to the nature of the dog lover, the imagery had to appeal to those who define their social status through what they purchase. In disposing of comedic initial concepts such as 'barkleys' and 'skinny bitch', I went with 'dogood; which just came about from scribbling 'dog food' on a scrap of paper when my head was at melting point.

The brand image instantly came together, it was to become a dog food which was as beneficial for the pet, as it was for the owner, and offered a humorous delivery in the fact that it didn't take itself too seriously. Whilst walking past a local pound shop, the g in 'bargain' just jumped out at me.. I'm sure you'll know of the 'gnu' logo with it's horned accents (featured in The Art Of Looking Sideways, Phaidon Publishing).

This became my inspiration, the swooshing descender of the g (later appropriately discovered to be baskerville.. spooky) looked just like a dogs tail curling, and with a little tweaking, the accent on the g was perfect as a lop-ear. The plan was set into action from there in, The g would act as a standalong mascot for the company, whilst the branding & packaging would be clean and simple.