This blog contains critical analysis of all sorts of media that I find inspirational; as part of a summer project for my graphic design uni course. Enjoy!
When I read the brief for the summer project i.e. keeping this creative blog, I was not looking forward to it. Keeping a blog or any kind of diary is not something I have done for a long time, and I thought I would have to pretend to be inspired by things in order to post enough entries. However, I have actually really enjoyed the project having found it intellectually and creatively stimulating, and I can see myself continuing to add to “Laura’s Creative Inspiration”, even after the deadline has passed.
Writing this blog has made me realise how much I enjoy analysing things, especially design, and the advantageous and disadvantageous effects it can have. Looking down the ‘labels’ list for my blog posts, advertising is the category that contains more posts than any other, and I think this is strongly reflective of my interest in advertising, what makes it work, and most importantly why. One of the entries I enjoyed writing the most was the post about the Museum of Brands, Packaging, and Advertising. I visited the museum purely in the interest of this summer project, but in hindsight I’m glad I had the excuse to go as I thoroughly enjoyed my trip there, spending over two hours looking at the fantastic collection of artefacts, some of which date back to over a century ago. What really struck me, as I walked through the ‘decades’, was the extent to which packaging design and product advertising has changed in just over a century, and it fascinates me to wonder what advertising and branding will look like, say, fifty years from now.
What the future holds for advertising could be extraordinary. Another post that really got me thinking was the entry on CBS Outdoor digital advertising and the London Underground. The amount of digital information a human being must process in a day must be vast, but we are so used to it now that we don’t even think about it until we suddenly don’t have access to it, or if it springs up in a new situation, turning another aspect of our daily lives electronic. Marketing of products has come such a long way even in my lifetime; some of the ideas that companies and brands have come up with for their products – for example, the Toyota IQ typeface – are so unique and clever that I sometimes wonder how anyone managed to come up with something like that, something that just works.
I was also really inspired by the websites that I wrote about in the blog. Company websites are clearly present to provide a way of informing customers about the product(s) and/ or service(s) that they provide, but also they are a form of self-promotion in themselves. Nowadays, with programmes such as Flash which allows animation and interaction, it is not just about what a website is saying, but just as importantly how it gets the message across to potential clients and consumers. Is their message memorable? Will written information alone be enough to convince somebody to buy their product / service?
I did not write much on my blog about things that did not inspire me, but from what I did write, I think I have discovered why these things in question failed to interest me, and I have made a link between that material and the work that I really do appreciate. After my visit to the St Ives Tate, I came away feeling dissatisfied about what I had seen, but also guilty, and angry for not feeling inspired by the gallery’s contents. In my entry about the Tate, I have said that I think this is down to the fact that I did not understand much of the modern art there, and found it hard to appreciate as I did not know the meaning behind it, or why it had been created. Comparing this modern art to the advertising I have written about, there is a distinct difference. The modern art in the St Ives Tate had no explanation, no clear message, and thus I gained no understanding of the work. Good advertising however, always conveys the intended message very clearly, but also usually in a very striking, humorous or clever way. I always feel satisfied when looking at great advertising, getting the feeling: “I wish I had come up with that”, and conveying information in such a way is something that I strive to achieve. I hope that one day someone will say the same thing about my work!
Looking back on this set of creative reviews, I have come away feeling that I would like to look more into the effect that advertising can have. I want to look at how it affects people emotionally, how it affects their buying habits and to what extent it can affect brand loyalty. Take for example, iPod advertising. Have Apple ever done a bad iPod advert? Their posters are simple yet eye catching, bright and full of energy; their TV adverts always feature a contemporary pop song that leaves one in a cheerful mood; their email updates always leave one with a desperate desire for the latest product. I want to know how Apple, and other companies alike, ensure that their advertising consistently works, and how as a brand it has managed to get the world to call all mp3 players iPods, whether they are or not.
I plan to look into brand identity for my dissertation, researching how brands have developed over the last decade and what has caused them to do so. Has the purpose of brand identity changed? And if so, why? I also plan to look at advertising for my independent project, as I feel this is my main area of interest and equally where my strengths lie. I would like to create a piece of advertising to try and combat a serious world issue, for example the need to conserve energy resources and therefore recycle, as I feel that the future of upcoming generations lies in our hands, and we should be using the strength of advertising to help fight these growing problems.
Everybody has a favourite childhood book, or at least a select few that they remember with fond nostalgia. Mine include 'Peepo!', "The Tiger Who Came To Tea' and 'The Hungry Caterpillar' to name just a few, but another of my very favourites is 'The Greedy Zebra', possibly a lesser known tale but equally as good. Looking back on it now from a design perspective, I wonder if I really had been interested on the effect that design has from such a young age!
The book tells the story of how all animals got their coats, and explains that one day a whole load of different fabric appears in a cave in the jungle. The pictures in the book show that all the jungle animals used to be a white-ish grey colour, and whoever was fastest to the cave determined who would get the nicest coat. The zebra in the story was very greedy, and kept stopping to eat along his way to the cave. Ultimately, he was the last animal to reach the cave, where there was only one tiny piece of black fabric left. The zebra pulls it on nevertheless but because he is so fat from all the eating, the fabric splits in a zig zag fashion, and this is how the greedy zebra got his stripes!
My favourite thing about childhood stories like this is the idea behind the story; in this book the original interpretation by the author for how animals are coloured and patterned in the way that they are. The illustrations are great, too, and really capture the overall tone of the story!
"The Enneagram: Understanding Yourself and the Others In Your Life", is a book by Helen Palmer that my aunt Julia introduced me to. My aunt is one of those people who loves self-understanding, analysing personality types and just generally trying to make sense on oneself and those that surround them.
The word 'enneagram' is described in a dictionary as follows: 'a system of spiritual psychology based on an ancient Sufi typology of nine personality types or primary roles with the recognition of one's type tantamount to a spiritual awakening'. Essentially, there are thought to be 9 main personality types in the world, and everybody is supposed to be able to fit one of the types, more than any other type. The book aims to help people by trying to get them to figure out which type they are most like, and the reasons for why they might be as they are. The book explains how different personality types react in different ways, to different situations and towards different people. It also explains what certain personality types' generalised strengths are, what their weaknesses are, what they aspire to be and what they fear most. It is a very interesting book, and from having read parts on the different personality types I did feel as though I could associate myself to one of the types more than the others. It was helpful towards self-understanding, especially at the time that I read it, as for people my age many of us are still finding out who we are, and who we want to be.
The difficulty I have with the book though is the way it does seem to pigeon-hole people. The sheer number of people in this world, and the fact that there are only 9 different types of personality does seem to be fairly ridiculous, and it takes away the idea that each person in the world is said to be unique.
However, pigeon-holing aside, I think overall the book could be very useful, especially for going into a career where one is dealing with many different people and having to communicate effectively. Understanding the different personality types and finding out effective ways of dealing with the different types would, in my opinion, prove to be beneficial to both parties in a professional / working environment. I have not read the whole of the book before, but I think I will make it a personal aim to try and read it within the next year!
Leeds has a huge array of historical and beautiful buildings in and around the city, but by far my favourite has to be the Corn Exchange. Apparently Leeds Corn Exchange is now only one of 3 corn exchanges in the UK that "still operates in its traditional capacity as a centre for trade". Designed by Cuthbert Broderick, an architect from Hull that also designed Leeds Town Hall, the Corn Exchange was completed in 1864, and stands proudly in the heart of the city centre as a cultural icon, much like the Parkinson Building.
In the '80s the Corn Exchange turned into a shopping centre and opened for trade in 1990. A shopping centre is how I remember seeing the corn exchange for the first time, but it has now closed as a mall - aside from a few upmarket boutiques - and now the entire ground level is devoted to the restaurant 'Anthony's Piazza', and I feel that the space is much more aptly used in this way. The interior of the building is so beautiful, and for some reason reminds me of an old fashioned cruise liner like, for example, the Titanic. I think this may be due to the roof, and also the fact that it is a very open area. I can imagine that hiring out the Corn Exchange would make for a fantastic party or wedding reception, I would love to see it fulfil that kind of function!
Before the conversion to a shopping mall in the '80s, there was discussion of the building being turned into an area for other functions, on of which was a concert hall - much like the Royal Albert Hall. Who knows, maybe in a decade or so the building will be converted again and we could be sitting inside listening to orchestra symphonies instead of having coffee!
Folding bikes seem to be all the rage at the moment, attracting commuting businessmen and women all over the UK not to mention other budding bicyclists! One bike in particular seems to have caught the attention of many - The Contortionist. Designed by 24 year old Dominic Hargreaves, who graduated from the Royal College of Art, The Contortionist has a unique selling point - the fact that all its components can be folded to fit to the circumference of the 26 inch wheel. Mr Hargreaves hopes that the bike will soon go on the market for around £400. The Contortionist has also been shortlisted for the James Dyson award for international design. Good luck to Dominic!
Philippe Starck is a French product designer and is one of the most famous designers in the New Design style. He designs a huge range of products ranging from high tech and industrial objects to bathroom furniture and clothes! He has won numerous awards including Designer of the Year, the Grand Prix for Industrial Design and the Design Oscar.
'Design for Life' is a BBC tv programme on Monday nights at 9pm on BBC2. It was set up by Philippe Starck as he believes there hasn't been a design revolution since Terence Conran in the 60s, and he is looking for a new designer that will revolutionise design as we know it today. A huge number of people applied to be on the show, and Starck whittled the number down to 12 students whose futures the show will follow throughout the series. Starck will send the weakest students home as and when he feels necessary, and at the end of the series one student will be awarded a 6 month placement at his design agency.
This sounds like a great programme to watch, I loved the Apprentice, and this seems like the Apprentice for product designers! I think it'll be really interesting not only from a design point of view, but also because a revolutionary product of our futures may evolve in the weeks this show is on!
You can view Philippe Starck's website here, and watch 'Design for Life' on BBC2 at 9pm on Mondays.
"Whatever you're into, Oxjam is your chance to fight poverty with music". I think this is a great campaign that Oxfam have come up with; it was set up in 2006 and since then has raised over £1 million to help fight poverty around the world! I think that when charities branch out like this and expand their opportunities for raising money, it makes the charity much more appealing, especially to a younger market. After these gigs as well it is likely that people who attended will develop brand loyalty and donate their unwanted clothes to Oxfam rather than other charity shops. It's all about brand awareness! Especially when the aim is helping a good cause!
