WHAT IS GRAPHIC DESIGN?

What Is Graphic Design?

The obvious answer would be that graphic design is the design of graphics! But what is graphics? The phrase ‘visual communication’ is used a lot, and the idea of using imagery to solve a problem. When you think graphic design, you think all aspects of visual mediums. Theres illustration, photography, typography, moving image, and so on. Graphic designers are constantly described as people who use visual sources to help brand and sell an idea, advertising to the public. Graphic designers are known as being problem solvers and people who use imagery only if it is needed for its overall purpose. The colour, the layout, even the font has to all fit in correctly in order for a good piece of graphic design to work. However, looking into what graphic design is all about, it is still hard to pinpoint what exactly graphic design can solely be labelled as being, even more so it is hard to label any type of visual as just the one form of art, whether that be graphic design, illustration, fine art, and so on. The context in which the visual is in plays a big part in determining its visual state. A fire exit sign placed above a door is merely a piece of graphic design, telling you plain and clearly its purpose. However, place that fire exit sign in a modern art gallery above a toilet and it becomes fine art. There is the debate that fine art has no overall meaning but is free to interpretation, and that fine art is merely for the sake of art and is not intended to make money off of it. But in the world that we live in today it is hard to agree with such a statement, and even so with the impression that all graphic designers are business minded who are out working to get money. There are all types of people out there, in all types of circumstances, who would class themselves as graphic designers. So back to the original question of what is graphic design? Once again we think visual communication, a piece made to solve a problem and have a clear meaning. Fore if the meaning is not clear then surely it isn’t a good piece of graphic design. Or is it? The nike swoosh symbolizes victory, speed, elegance and even greek mythology. You wouldn’t get all those interpretations just by looking at the logo, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t a great piece of graphic design. So it is evident that a clear meaning is not always relevant in the thinking of what graphic design is. What about this idea of problem solving? many things manmade in this world are created to solve a problem. It is in our human nature to always improve on what is already available, because as humans we are never satisfied. Even the most unimportant thing created by man was created to solve a problem, however small that problem may be. The problem does not have to be so big as solving world hunger, for example. But as small as solving the problem of what to do on your weekday off? Therefore, it is correct to say all things created in this world were created to solve a problem. Now, as for graphic design having to be visual, does that necessarily have to be true. Many times it has been evident that a graphic design project was successful due to the spoken words added to a visual. Take away the visual and that graphic design piece could still be successful as its own. There has been times where music has been used for a graphic design piece, which ticks the two boxes of giving out a message and having reason behind it. Saying that graphic design doesn’t have to be visual is a hard thing to grasp however, but going back to it needing to be visual doesn't mean it has to be on a canvas of some type of monitor screen. If you ask yourself what out there is most effective in visual communication, is it not right to think humans ourselves are. As humans, our actions are constantly visual, and actions are always created for purpose and reason, even if that purpose is as small as wanting to scratch your nose due to an itch. So with that in mind, are we not graphic designs ourselves? Can not all living things be classed as pieces of graphic design? Looking more into this, the idea of not only living things being graphic designs, but just about anything created by man to be graphic design. Everything we create is created for purpose and meaning and with reason. A brick is created to build and is designed to attract those wanting to build as it sends the message out as being a strong, compact, reliable material. An earring is designed to make the wearer stand out, and feel attractive, which in turn attracts the seX they intend to attract. All these things follow the laws of what makes graphic designs a piece of graphic design. So overall it is so hard to state what graphic design is, and can’t merely be done through the use of imagery, whether it be illustrated, moving image, typography, or so on. The subject is so broad and at the same time so unclear that it is hard to give a clear definition. The idea of it being visual communication is of course, completely true, but there are so many ways you can take that definition and head into all types of angles of theory with it. Overall, the idea of communication seems to be the clear necessity in wanting to define graphic design, but to class something as not communicating is a very hard thing to say for people interpret and communicate with things in different ways all the time.

MIRRORS

For this project I wanted to focus on the fact that I have lived in so many places and what memories I've had in each one.


RESEARCH...


Since I have moved so much, it is difficult to keep sentimental things with me with every move, but my Mum has always took around with us her box of photographs.


FIRST ATTEMPT...


With rolling with the idea of incorporating my Mum's photos with this project, I chose a photo from each home to represent my memories from there... and added captions to help make the memories more clear.

I really liked this outcome but some of the images just doesn't help in reflecting my memories of some of the places, and this could be down to the fact that there isn't a photo that truly represents my time there.

MORE RESEARCH...


I began looking at how houses are portrayed by estate agents and began doing that for my own homes, but with a twist.


The descriptions would represent the memories I have had in the houses and the price would represent how much I value that house.

MORE ON THIS IDEA...

FINAL OUTCOME...

DISASTER WAITING TO HAPPEN

BE WARNED:

Monsters have been spotted riding our London Underground Trains!

RESEARCH...

THE IDEA...

Monsters have been spotted riding the underground and we must be aware of what to do once one is potted. Using 'Neighbourhood Watch' as a guide in making my booklet, I showed how people can help in capturing these monsters, in three easy steps. The booklet also includes images of monsters that have been seen already and a Monster Help Point/ Alarm.

THE BOOKLET...

BRAND NEW

The project basically asks for us to create something completely original, but it's so hard because firstly what is original nowadays??

There are those that think everything we do is original because we are all original ourselves. Therefore anything I do, you can do exactly the same and it will still be original because it's from you, rather then me. But if we are all original... Don't that make us all the same??

Original ideas that have been created already... The light bulb. That's just an idea inspired from light from the sun so that isn't original. The telephone. That's just like sending letters but it's instant and through sound rather then writing right?

So is nothing original??

There are those that think there is nothing you can think of that has never been thought of before. But that can't be true because there has to be the very first of everything.

R.J. Nath says...

"I don't think originality is dead...

I think it's dieing, and we're killing it."

You can't say a brand new idea is impossible to create because brand new ideas are all around us. But being original is very hard. We create things from inspiration and evolving and changing ideas that already exist. We appropriate and expand on ideas that work, adjusting what isn't successful. This could be down to the fact that as humans in today's society, we already have everything we need to live a 'happy' life. But contradicting, as humans we are never happy and therefore keep trying to improve on what we already have.

Saying that brand new ideas exist can only be relevant only once a brand new idea is actually created.

How can you say that it is impossible to create something that hasn't been created yet?

"People can't think for themselves these days. Everyone rely's on others to make decisions for them."

"You can always think of something original. I just think our minds are getting dead."

Businesses exist to fulfil human needs. The idea of fulfilling human needs is as old as human-needs themselves. The ways of doing so are just old. Social networking, for example, might be a new twist on the idea of helping people make and keep friends, but it's still fulfilling the human needs of friendship, something which thousands of other businesses do too.

Everyone will be presenting new ideas I guess, so presenting a new idea will no longer be new... So does that mean me not presenting one is original and new in a way.

CIRCUS OF SOUND

RESEARCH...


When listening to the circus of sound collection it was obvious to see that each song had it's own individual characteristics. With the music playing I began to research and look into different styles of album covers. I also started looking into such things in which the music reminded me of and what I felt it represented.

IDEA...

Each song on the album is very original, and choosing one font to represent all of them would be difficult. So instead I wanted to look into how each song can be represented through the sound-waves they create and patterns that occur.

FIRST ATTEMPT...

The best way to represent each individual song I decided was to characterise the song name and artist into the shapes of it's soundwaves. Here I used Impact font, to help portray solid equalizer bars.

SECOND ATTEMPT...

It was clear to see that my first attempt wasn't successful, as the expression of soundwaves became unclear for some covers, as well as the titles and artists of some covers being unclear also. After playing around a little more with the idea I decided to spread the text across the front and back of the cover, change the font to a more clearer Helvetica type, and represent soundwaves in the most common of forms.