0UGD402 STUDIO BRIEF 2 - SELF-BRANDING RESEARCH

To gain ideas for my own self branding brief, I decided to look at existing self branding projects, to get an idea of the types of styles and techniques that have been employed.

LUKE THORNHILL

This logo is very bold and eye catching, and although bright pink creates the detail in this logo, the fluorescent yellow background stops it from appearing feminine. The bright colours make it extremely eye catching, and it's simplicity and angular lines create a sleek and modern look. The shape that contains the designers name is held within a speech bubble kind of design, only it looks a little like the message windows you see on phones when you send a text to someone. This is a link to the digital and electronic world we live in, suggesting that this designer is very good with the digital sign of designing. The left bottom corner has been cut off at an angle, and the title is in fitting with this cut off, as the "T" has a chunk taken out of it, following the same line as the outline. This creates a quirky little feature in the design that is very subtle, yet allows the text to fit much more nicely within the frame.

These are some other products that Luke Thornhill has designed for his self-branding project. The simplicity of his logo is carried through onto these products, with different colour-ways being used for different products, for example the business cards are each a different colour. These colours that he has chosen work well together as a collection, as they all have the same bright and contemporary qualities. I like the phrase "stay awesome!" in the corner of the envelope, as it is a little something different, however it could be perceived as being a little cheesy, especially if the contents of the letter were of a negative tone.

ALEX BOREN

This is a really interesting resolution to self branding, as instead of the traditional business cards, envelopes and website design examples, this designer has produced a "Graphic Resume" detailing his skills and specialties. This design has kind of an old fashioned feel to it due to the typeface choice of the title, and the slightly yellowed stock this has been printed onto, and the sepia style photograph of the designer himself. However this is contrasted against the almost chemical appearance of the information on the sheet, with percentages of how much they have mastered each skill, from both graphic design and illustration, constructed in kind of a chart format. There are also percentage circles to the right of his photograph stating how professional he feels he each with different design softwares, with dotted lines connecting them to different parts of the body. This is a really interesting design, as the old fashioned style for the photographs and stock is contrasted so nicely with the modern, sleek lines of the content, and the bright colours used for the diagrams. It makes the designer appear like a traditional man, but with the know-how of modern technology. I think producing a similar kind of Graphic Resume for this self-branding brief would be really interesting, and an excellent way of summing myself up simply, as it is a different kind of product that you would immediately think to produce.

MIKAYLA OWLE

This self-branding logo design is another very bold design similar to that of Luke Thornhill. It applies the same two colour colour scheme and a bold, vector based design. The colours work very well together, being of contrasting shades, and again although a bright pink colour has been applied for the main logo, the turquoise background makes this design look less feminine and more sleek and professional. I think it is effective how this logo consists of a separate logo and name of the designer, rather than mixing the two together, as it allows the logo to be taken and used as a pattern for other products, without replicating the name of the designer over and over as well, as this could appear as promoting your name too broadly.

This shows how the logo itself has been created, with a combination of both initials from the designers name merged together to create a symbol which is simple and sleek.

This symbol has been multiplied several times to create a pattern that has been applied to the back of a business card. This gives potential clients a chance to see some of the designers work without even having to go in search of it, which would make them more likely to search them out online if they like the design on the business card.

SYLVIA PLATS

This shows the self-branding design on some sort of publication or letter, with the simple almost nautical style logo on the plain front, and then the bright and colourful floral design on the back, or so this is how I've perceived it. I think it is really interesting to have a very clear front to show your information or text in as clear a light as possible, but to then turn over and be bombarded with pattern. It is shocking but in a positive way, and will therefore make your client remember you.

This is a close up of the deign, which is complex and full of colour, but with more of a blue theme to make the logo itself. I like how the flowers in this design overlap over the text, as it makes the letters look as though they are within the jungle, the foliage popped out around the letters.

I feel as though this research into existing self branding project has been very useful to me, as it has shown me that a lot of graphic design logos are sleek and often produced on programmes such as Illustrator of InDesign, to showcase their ability to use such programmes, as it is essential to be able to use these softwares to be a graphic designer. Perhaps there is room for something a little more practical to be used as a logo, but still combined with these softwares so that prospective clients don't get the perception that you don't know how to use Illustrator of Photoshop for example, as this would be a major reason not to employ you. I'd quite like to create a Graphic Resume as this is a slightly different way of showcasing your logo and highlighting all of your skills. A resume is also extremely important when applying for jobs, as this is how employers know how qualified you are, however this resume also must look aesthetically appealing and project your skills, so that the content of the resume is backed up by the design of it. I have discovered through this research that I like the idea of creating a pattern to be used on my products, perhaps using the logo or a completely different design which still fits in the style of my logo. I think that this will make my designs appear more colourful and fun, as this is the kind of person I am, and will also allow me to apply this pattern to the backs of products, making them less plain and simple, more unique.