Palmhive Fabric Samples

Recently I reached out to a Smart Textiles company about receiving fabric samples of their range. Luckily they sent me a large selection of their textiles and I feel that all of these fabrics relate very well to my current concept, they bring in the sports element which I wanted and the colours are inspiring.

Accidental Glitch

After downloading the newest version of Photoshop, my Mac began to glitch, for what reason I do not know. At first I found this frustrating and annoying however when I reviewed the glitches I felt that this was something that happened accidental but effected my work in a positive way. It has allowed me to re-assess my concept, and add new aspects towards it.

Slow Shutter Experiment

As I have been finding it difficult to draw using paints and pencils, I have taken to finding new ways in which to draw and express myself. Using a torch and a slow shutter speed I tried to create geometric shapes using the light trails. As I felt that the geometric shapes were not as angular as I wanted, I started to use more expressive shapes and strokes. I feel that this process has worked well and has translated well into my digital work.

Week 3

At the beginning of the week I concentrated a lot on the idea of concrete, I experimented with layered concrete on top of fabrics and also within containers, making mini structures. During these experiments I came to realise that it was the aestethic of the concrete that I was most attracted to, majorly the colour of the concrete once it was dry. I feel that at this stage I do not want to continue with the concrete experimentations as I can't see the idea developing any further, however would like to use the colour of the concrete within my colour palette further in this unit.

I have further been developing my visual research and have been inspired by an upcoming trend from WGSN, the trend is from SS16 'Visceral'. I do not want to reiterate this trend, however I want to use aspects from it and further develop these aspects in my own interpretation. As I have been looking into 3D printing, the idea of using '3D Prints' has inspired me. I have been developing some of my drawings using the 3D tool bar on Photoshop. This is something I have enjoyed and would like to develop further. However when I downloaded this feature it seemed to glitch a lot, this is something I felt added greater qualities to the drawings, giving the designs a 'phosphoric' glow. This could further link to my research into wearable technology and smart textiles. A feature which I feel lends itself well to these ideas is Thermo-Reactive textiles, however in keeping with the sports origins of my ideas, using mesh inspired fabrics to add a heightened sense of dimension to the trend.

Practice: Week 2

This week I have been experimenting with the idea of 'Encasing', to develop this thought I have began to trap items in concrete, using the textures and shapes this created as the basis for visual inspiration. To further develop this idea I would like to create the concrete pieces on a larger scale, using the concrete as a platform for other pieces of work I may create. Although this was something I concentrated on highly this week, I have also been trying to develop my drawing skills, this is something I lack confidence in and lacks attention most in my work. I took to tearing apart old pieces of technology such as hair dryers and lamps, and using the wires and inner structures as the starting points for my drawing. Research has also been a key part of my work this week as Rianna Phillips gave me a book which links to my concept perfectly. Concentrating on contacting companies specialising in fabric technology in the hopes to receive samples has been something in which I have also concentrated on, thus far I have not received any materials but shall persevere. This upcoming week I would like to look further into fabric technology and really create a solid foundation for my concept,

Degree Show Review 2014

Jessica Beardmore

As I have a keen interest in trend forecasting and art direction, Jess' work stood out to me immediately. The clean, clinical lines used throughout the work was inspiring and fresh. Something that I would like to aim towards in my own work, such as Jessica, is to establish my brand. This is something Jessica has worked extremely hard towards and has executed well and is also something I feel is important as having a self brand awareness after my degree will serve me well. Particularly eye catching was Jessica's labels, showing that she has paid attention to every aspect of her work, something I would like to explore myself. Her strengths, like my own, are her use of layout and presentation, this is something that has inspired me in creating my concept for my final year. Her presentation style is minimal, which is personally to my taste, however in third year I would like to explore colour more in depth.

Bethany Smedley

When exploring Bethany's work at the Degree Show, something that particularly caught my eye was her use and exploration of media. Her work is very expressive and is directly inspired from her drawings, something in which I find hard to do. Bethany has used the print room to transfer foils to fabrics and create prints. Although I do not enjoy the print room as much as digital print, Bethany has inspired me to experiment in third year with new techniques. Bethany has also focused on trend forecasting throughout her work but has focused a lot more on her fashion imagery and styling abilities. My own styling abilities need to be improved as I plan to create a look book and need it to be as strong as possible.

Hollie Davies

From the Degree Show I felt that Hollie's work most related to my own, her interest in trend forecasting, art direction and her extremely strong digital skills meant that I immediately gravitated to her work. Hollie's use of Displacement Mapping was executed to a very high standard, allowing me to realised that I would like to develop my own digital skills further. As although I know how to use the technique, my execution could be worked on. Hollie also has an expressive use of colour throughout her work, although I love colour, I can sometimes hold back in my work when using it. Hollie managed to create strong, clean, minimal work from expressive drawing and an extensive colour palette. I also appreciate her trend abilities, using the idea of 'Everyday Utopia' for inspiration allowed Hollie to gather an extensive research base for her trend, something I must think about in the future when creating my own concepts.

Evaluation of Unit X

Upon reflection of Unit X I believe that Alice, Grace and I have worked extremely well together. When I first found out that it would be another collaborative task, I was apprehensive, however as the three of us have very similar taste and a range of different strengths, we immediately clicked together. Working in a team has improved my communication skills and allowed me to step back from my work and edit it. The use of social media within the unit also allowed us to communicate on a regular basis with one another, using our Instagram page ‘@multipledivision’ and our Facebook group to post inspirational imagery, research or our own work to gain each others opinions. These have been valuable resources throughout Unit X and if I was ever to work collaboratively again I would revisit this way of working.

Throughout the unit I feel I have worked a lot differently to that of past projects. I have increased my experimentation skills, and my ability to produce a large quantity of quality driven work. This was important to the group as a whole as we aimed our trend book towards a higher end bracket, although we did not want to restrict the work to a particular art practice, we did experiment with adding imagery to the human form. Something that has been an important factor within this project is the vast range of creative media the group and I have used, this was slightly out of my personal comfort zone as I can tend to be lazy in my use of media. This has opened my eyes to the different possibilities outside of digital work, and that experimenting more can benefit my digital work in the long run.

Our final outcome from this project was an ‘inspirational outlet for creatives’, we took on board research from different trend books and were most taken by the concept of Bloom. We wanted the book to stimulate ideas and trends but not dictate them or restrict ideas. During the final weeks of the project I regret not putting together a layout early enough, thankfully as we had a great team who were always in uni, we managed to tackle our problems and over come them just as quickly as they appeared. Specifically when using InDesign we came across the most problems, this came from our lack of experience with the programme, in future projects and within my own time I would like to get to grips with InDesign as I feel it is a valuable tool when used correctly. Communication with reprographics was an oversight in reflection. We got caught up in the excitement of creating a tangible book that we did not convey the direction of each page, if I ever use this outlet to produce my work again I will allocate time for test prints and not rush the process.

The live brief opportunities have been prized prospects for me as I have been given the opportunity to work with the Volklore team. Sam relayed to me in our meeting that he chose me for my advanced Photoshop skills, and my ability to represent his brand to a high standard and understand his market level. I am excited to get started, as I will be constantly learning new skills, which is another reason to concentrate on InDesign more. The Rianna Phillips brief has also been a learning curve. It has taught me to balance my workload and manage my time appropriately. This has caused me to adjust my practice and has changed it for the better; working with Grace was fun, exciting and rather easy. We are great friends and this allowed us to tell each other straight to the point if we did not agree with one another, and to support and motivate one another. Grace is a much more relaxed character than myself, which had a calming effect on me, allowing more time to reflect on the work we produced. I am very pleased with the presentation we gave, everyone worked very hard and we would be very happy to work with Rianna if we were to be chosen.

Over all I have thoroughly enjoyed Unit X and will be sad not to be working with my group again. The unit has confirmed that in my third year I want to further investigate Art Direction, Styling and Trend Forecasting. I feel I have a natural ability to construct Lookbooks and display trend books to a high standard, the live briefs that I have taken part in throughout the unit have confirmed this for me. Also being in contact with Style Sight for a summer placement gave me confidence in my work which motivated me throughout.