Introduction to my creative world

For a start...

As I am starting my first proper blog I guess it will be a right thing to introduce myself first.

My name is Edyta Lowicka-Thorpe and I'm 26 years old. I come from Poland and I have always been very passionate about art. That is the reason I have chosen Degree in Graphic Design as a direction field for my future career. It would be an open door full of opportunities for enjoyable work experience I could make after achieving the course. Graphic design is an increasingly diverse subject which covers a multitude of creative activities. It is not limited and it is one of the most important and influential of the creative industries.

In 2008 I arrived to London for the first time planning on some work experience and have some well deserved rest, (after I completed my education prior university), actively by exploring the city. However my little holiday adventure soon became a big decision for a gap year and then for a permanent settlement in the UK. I truly enjoyed my first proper job in Nando's restaurant where I made a lot of lovely international friends. I have had a fantastic time doing some extra work at an international English pub and being part of wedding services at Hampton Court Palace. I visited all over and through the capital city and it was an amazing feeling having such an easy access to the numerous art objects, centres and galleries.

 My life went on a different stage after I got a great opportunity to work for Goldman Sachs cafeteria in The City. Through Baxter Storey - my catering company - I have got the chance to do a professional courses and achieve some qualifications in Hospitality Supervision and Leadership.

That workplace situated just opposite the beautiful St Paul's Cathedral enriched me in a lot of new experiences. I have worked in a few different positions and in all three Goldman Sachs units. I was especially keen on working for the coffee station(trained in making real Italian style drinks). That is where my personal life also brought me a few big and magical surprises. I found love and got married. Currently I am the most happy wife and full time mum of an amazing three years old little boy, Oskar. However I still believe that fact of making family does not need to stop you on anything. I would like to get as much from life as I can. I have never found enough time to continue my education. I realized I can still follow my dream and complete it...


I have successfully completed my first year of studies for BA (HONS) Graphic Design and I am currently starting my second year. I hope that creating this online journal will help me go through finding my own special working philosophy, to become a competitive professional and bring valuable advances to my future career.
  
My reasons for doing a degree at the Colchester School of Art 


A lot of personal life events and a pinch of lacking self-motivation held in time finalisation of my portfolio which I could present with an application for graphic design studies. I have always wanted to study either art, photography or literature and graphic design combines some of all these aspects which makes it a perfect choice.
The main reason for doing the degree is future career; working with passion, pleasure and satisfaction in financially successful profession. It is also about an opportunity to make a difference, to appear somehow in the creative world, creating things that people would use and enjoy. However the most important in life for me is my family. Especially since having my own little one I had in mind an option of working between home and office. I think working in the field of design gives a good chance of this being possible.



Who do you think you are as a designer?


I am still totally open to most of graphic design areas. I aim to discover and explore them deeper so I can then decide in which part of it I feel most comfortable and happy.
I am especially passionate about photography in all kinds (what I mention on every possible occasion) and typography. I think my love for typography has started at the point of discovering methods of work by Alan Kitching. Appearance of this particular designer took place in the content of my essay last year. I was analysing his personal philosophy and it became very inspirational. Unfortunately attempt to contact him was unsuccessful. As I have tried to persuade in that essay I think handmade, traditional 'arty' approach is currently really trendy and it's an important way of working process as much in graphic design as in the whole creative industry.
I really enjoy this traditionalism in art and design such as drawing, painting, print making and generally using physical forms in my approach to the projects.
Although as much as being creatively active I am also keen on digital platform and design software. I feel like I still have a lot to learn to be able to use its full potential and I am going to do my best in this direction. It surely gives great opportunities and I am aware it is essential in contemporary world. I find progress of technology since the end of the twentieth century truly amazing. Internet and overall recent smartphones technology are fantastic tools for verbal and visual communication and a great platform for international presentations and profiles. Digitalisation and social media matter for most professionals.

I would like to taste working in advertising and publishing. I hope that is where my studies in HE will lead me. At the moment I am sure that web designing is definitely not for me. I am also thinking of getting into photography in more professional manner. I would surely enjoy creating book covers and packaging. I like working with diversity of materials. This reflects on my chosen options for support modules this year (Photography for Packaging and Bookworks with printmaking).



Am I confident with technologies and methods presented last year?


I am quite confident with all traditional techniques I have used last year. I would like to find as much time as I can to practice and extend them, especially skills for analogue and digital photography. I still don't feel very confident with the software and I will definitely revisit and practice it on all projects/briefs through the second year.



Why not?!


There is actually no need to wait with some things and monotonous planning to do them tomorrow, next year etc. After and during the first organisational lecture I had to reconsider this simple question: 'Why not?' about going into creative industry/placements. I thought to myself 'Definitely not this year. I am already a mother, wife and a student so there is just no space for some additional work..' However it isn't an obvious and satisfactory answer for myself. So I changed my mind and thought I could give it a go, if the good chance comes, and even if it's for charity. My son has started attending a preschool on more regular bases so I think I could be able to find a bit of time for extra little experience. 



Thinking more of my future specialism...    

Tue, 6th Oct 2015
lecture and seminar by Barry Hurd


Roundheads vs. Cavaliers

Today during the presentation our group had a debate regarding designer's style using confrontation of two camps from English Civil War period: Roundheads and Cavaliers.
First, presented as Helvetica type was simple, distinctive and clean, a bit geometrical and suggested the idea of minimalism. The second one was shown as a word typed with Galdi Italic font (here in Georgia Italic font), suggesting maximalism, not as functional, but more ornamental and playful.

In my opinion the solution lays in coexisting both in graphic design practice, depending on the project. I partly agree with the maxim 'Less is more'. In some cases simplicity is very interesting, it forces thinking, it's powerful. However sometimes amazing ornamentation and detail bring exactly the same results while simple minimalist solution could seem a bit empty in meaning and appearance. I think a lot depends on what sort of audience the project is mainly aimed.

Besides of all the above, I think I would fit more in the Cavaliers camp. Their metaphorical theory represents the fundaments on most of my work. I try to complicate it first, before I realise that more simple approach and reduction of particular parts makes it a better outcome. For some briefs I see how important it is to shift the idea of stereotypical thinking that more is better (because philosophically it shows more effort put into something). Sometimes analyse and rethinking the concept can lead to more successful results and simplicity becomes the answer.



Politics and the Graphic Designer

Mon, 5th Oct 2015
lecture and seminar by Sean O'Dell


I agree that artists and designers, as part of intellectual class, hold incredible power within society. They can make a difference. They can influence on their audience in particular way and create a strong political or philosophical connection through drawings, posters, leaflets, newspaper publications or comics. It works through the use of visual metaphor or clever implement of semiotics (language of signs/symbols) or satyr (dark humour, poking funny) that everyone can understand within particular environment. Most of the time satirist graphics work in isolation with text/word.

I was never so much into politics and usually news about politicians were rather annoying. I never really liked to hear this sort of news. However I really care about my country, I am deeply connected with the history of my country and I feel responsible for it. I think voting should truly be an obligation of every citizen even if the decision of who could be a right group of people to put on duty isn't always easy. However again I have to say I see quite a change in myself about it. Especially for last couple of years I really started to be more interested of what's happening in the world, reading a bit more about it, while before I was not very keen on watching any news. And even more positively I think the new president in Poland may make a difference what encourages me to get more involved. I would like to extend my political knowledge. There are numerous society issues I have certain opinions of and I would happily work to promote them. I think I also understand much more since started my independent adult life experience in the UK.

I really appreciate the work of designers and artists expressing their opinions about government or electors. However this topic isn't for me... I am more interested with social or environmental parts, for instance: globalisation, consumerism, ethical issues, environment, cultures etc. I am not interested in satyr or caricature of politics.

Today I particularly liked the first slide from Sean's presentation titled 'Politics and the Graphic Designer. A pre-election guide.' showing liberal democrats and conservative party opposition as a car with two fronts (two directions sawed together) and a person standing next to it saying 'Good luck with that'. I think it was really clever solution. I also liked Leslie Gilbert Illingworth's work from Cold War period with leaders of Western Europe frightening each other of pressing button activating a nuclear weapon which would give no winners.

 

Above as an example of polish graphics one of work by Andrzej Krauze, Press Intrusion. I thought it was really interesting, incredibly easy to read and very clean piece of illustration. I have also looked through more of work by Leslie Gilbert Illingworth. I really enjoyed it so I inserted some examples underneath.

 

 

 

 

 

  Wikipedia and British Cartoon Archive (cartoons.ac.uk)

Andrzej Krauze (born 7 March 1947) is a Polish-born British cartoonist, illustrator, caricaturist, painter, poster designer and satirist noted for his allegorical, fabulous, symbolic and sometimes scary imagery, as well as his reliance on black ink, bold lines and cross-hatching. His illustrations have been a regular fixture in the British national daily newspaper The Guardian since 1989, and he has also contributed to the English-language newspapers and magazines The New York Times, The Sunday Telegraph, The Times, International Herald Tribune, New Scientist, The Independent on Sunday, The Bookseller, New Statesman, Modern Painters, Campaign, The Listener and New Society. He won the Victoria and Albert Museum Award for Illustration in 1996 and the Ranan Lurie Political Cartoon Award in 2003.

 

Leslie Gilbert Illingworth (2 September 1902 - 20 December 1979) was a Welsh political cartoonist best known for his work for the Daily Mail and for becoming the chief cartoonist at the British satirical periodical Punch.


Wikipedia