Evaluation

In conclusion I feel this project has been a lot more successful then my practise unit, this could be due to the time frame because I had less time to complete this unit and I believe that I work better under pressure. I also felt more comfortable in my practise touching on my unique style in the last unit and moving it forward to a more professional level on this unit. Also having a final product to exhibit at the degree show spurred me on to create the best quality trend/ inspiration magazine I could. However the difference between my magazine and others is that I want to address the narrow specifications of trend books within the fashion world and open them up to the other areas of the arts. Inspiration can come from anywhere and I want to highlight this in my Magazine, as one does not know what could influence an artist and a trend book could prove vital in the conception of an idea. This has meant my context is open to a wider audience then I first thought, being open to all creative minds and how they choose to translate my magazine to inspire their own designs. As the finish line of our degree draws near we have had a strong emphasis on an outward facing approach which is something I am glad to have been considering and has actually changed slightly over the duration of the year. I never thought I would want to go down the path of the creative side of branding but after research and this project I feel I could work really well in this particular profession. Presentation like all the units is key however in this unit it is extra special because what we present to the outside world at the degree show could land us a job in the future, therefore there is added pressure in making it look impeccable. This is something I am going to develop during the time we have between our hand in and the degree show. I am also going to look into creating a website which I have already started researching, as well as an online portfolio as the majority of my work is done on the computer and can be exhibited successfully on an online platform. I have really enjoyed this unit and I am sad that, like my degree, it is coming to an end.  

Branding

Branding is something that I have started to consider a lot more as this project is about presenting ourselves to the outside world. In order to promote HUMANOID to the outside world and develop my brand I considered making promotional post cards which could be shown at the degree show. I ordered two types of postcard, one with my female model on the front and one with my male including all of my details on the back. These were very successful as I chose very strong images to go on the front. However they were very expensive and so I need to consider whether it will be cost effective for the degree show to have both postcards and business cards if they are providing the same function. 

However it was good to see my image on a different scale and on a different type of paper. Branding is an avenue I have been researching for outside opportunities, Branding is such a huge party of society today and the design process that accompanies a brand is key. Therefore I researched London based branding companies largely based within food packaging companies that have illustrative and photographic qualities to their brands. I have sent the top ten a hand written letter asking for work experience this summer. I have also applied for a design internship at SpeakMedia UK, which is a company that specialises in branding content.

However I have not taken editorial magazines out of the picture all together as I would love to work for an editorial magazine such as Wonderland, LOVE and Interview magazine. 

However there is a lot more freelance in magazines as they get photographers in for certain shoots, therefore I feel there is more stability within a branding company. I want to keep both of these options open so I have invited two contacts to the degree show, one being head of production at Conde Nast and the other being a specialised printer based in London that works for branding and editorial magazines. Hopefully they will both come and see the potential I have to either get work experience or refer me to someone who could.

Front Cover

The front cover is such a key element to the overall look to a magazine it is what first catches the viewer’s eye and entices them to buy it and read on. I wanted my cover to really stand out, I had seen on a number of magazines they had their name foiled in gold on the front cover and I thought this would really draw the viewers eye in as it had done with me. We have an emboss press at University, however if you want a particular size and font you have to order it from a casting company in Liverpool. This company were amazing and did an incredible job and delivered it the next day. When I tried out the emboss plate on a variety of different papers I found it came out the best in a thicker glossier paper, it looked so professionally done and so sleek on the page. Throughout this whole process I found the remnants of the gold foil so intriguing as it has the name reverse embossed. 

When I posted this image on my instagram account HUMANOIDTREND, it got the most positive feedback. Due to this image attracting a lot more attention then the other I thought I should use this on my cover and have the other embossed on the reverse side of the page. 

Going through the whole process of the cover made me want to consider my brand a lot more as this embossing process was stamping my brand on different surfaces. It is something to consider when making my business cards for the degree show as I feel the reverse emboss could work well with that as well. It really draws ones eye into the title of the magazine. I have created all the different layouts in my magazine and it has come to 15 spreads and a front and back cover. However due to the size I could not get it printed at University so I needed to print it at ‘repo graphics’ which worked well as the quality of the paper and printing was impeccable. However they missed out two of the blank pages in my book so when I came to bind it the whole order of the book was thrown out of sync, as a result I am going to have to show it in spread format for my hand in and get it printed again for degree show.

Anatomy

The anatomy section of the Magazine is an area I have not really touched on yet. I wanted to use this opportunity to show my illustrative skills and draw my own bionic bodies that can be contrasted with the photographs. Also I could edit them into the photographs to make the models look like they are developing into the ‘HUMANOID’. 

It was suggested I should take combining my illustrative skills and photographic skills that I developed in my last project further as it was one of the most successful elements. I considered referring to the grey's anatomy book to push my illustrations further and make them more detailed. These illustrations were very effective as I was incorporating ligaments and muscle with mechanical elements such as constructing the spine with bolts along it. 

(grey's anatomy)

However once I put these illustrations in the layout they stood out because they were the only drawn feature so I decided to try to make them look as if they were x-ray images by editing and inverting them. This was very successful however they still lacked depth so I researched body printing by the artist David Hammons. 

(David Hammons)

This was an interesting avenue to look at however I did not want to create my own so I considered putting a background to each photograph so they were not hovering in the middle of blank page, this worked very well and gave the images the depth I wanted and helped integrate them in the layout. I also combined some of the illustrations with the models to make them look even more robotic, some were more successful then others. I have placed the most successful ones in the magazine.

Trend Book development

I did not want my magazine to be one-dimensional and be made up of just two photo shoots, I wanted the photo shoots to be the main feature but have elements to support it and create intrigue. That is why I want to consider chapters that would be made up of Texture, Architecture, Machinery and Anatomy. These three sections would break up and give order to the magazine and I believe Architecture images are key to the overall feel of the inspiration/trend book. An image that particularly stood out due to its success was of the lighting in a tunnel however I edited it to resemble a negative. It was suggested that this image was similar to Catherine Yass’ photography, she is renowned for doing no editing after her photographs are developed and only tampers with the modes on her camera to create the affects. I really like this effect and will try and replicate it with some of my other photographs.

                                                 

(Catherine Yass)

I am starting to consider the layout of the magazine and what images would work well together. Thinking if certain garments were used in one image and having them close up on the opposite page edited in an unusual way so it is not obvious to the viewer what they are looking at. 

In considering layouts I referred back to different fashion based magazines and how they layout fashion shoots and other elements. I also looked at magazines that I got the garments from particularly H&M's and TOPMAN magazine not only considering layout but elements that contribute to it such as type of paper, size of the paper and font. I have made the decision I want my magazine to be just bigger then A3 48cm by 68cm based on the size of a magazine I really liked and would draw in the viewer as most magazines are A4 size.

Art Direction

As Art Direction is my speciality I want to be the brains behind the amalgamation and the harmonious display of every element in my inspiration/trend book. I visualised a vast amount of my magazine being made up of a photo shoot styled in Sport Luxe whilst integrating my mechanical and futuristic themes. The model I selected was very petite with a very striking face with a strong jaw line that I thought would work well in the shoot. I originally wanted the location to be in a metal scrape yard, however I was prohibited to enter the yard let a lone have a photo shoot in it due to health and safety. Therefore I decided to have it on the roof top terrace at Manchester School of Art, which worked to my advantage due to the silver-matte backdrop and the black geometrical structured chairs reinforcing my futuristic theme. 

I researched certain poses I wanted my model to mimic and they were very successful. I wanted to make the overall style quite simple and predominantly use white, as I wasn’t sure if I wanted to displace anything onto the garments during the editing process. I kept her make up minimal and used white eyeliner and silver/gold eyeliner on her lips, which are both on trend. 

(Haunted Barque Editorial) 


Due to this shoot being so successful I wanted to do another one but with a male model to contrast with the female shoot and possibly edit them into each other’s shoots. I found a male model that I felt would complement and contrast with my female model. I used a similar look in this shoot mainly being influenced by Sport Luxe however bringing in some metallic items to accentuate the futuristic theme. The hardest part of the whole photo shoot process was selecting the images that I could move forward into my book and which ones would work well in a layout.

Creating HUMANOID

I wanted to develop my concept further therefore I created the title HUMANOID combining human and android, giving my concept life. In moving it forward I decided to seek inspiration from ‘pinterest’ to see what other magazines had done with futuristic spreads. Making my concept as current as possible, as I would like to end up with an inspiration/trend Magazine as my final outcome. I decided the current trend that I wanted to use as inspiration was Sport Luxe. It seems the fashion world has integrated sport brands such as Adidas and Nike into current fashion trends making them marketable for everyone. 

(pin interest Fashercise)

An element of the human body I believed I could focus on and make more futuristic is the face, experimenting with creating a mask or eye wear that reflected the viewer. Similar to Alexander MQueen eyewear from his 2012 collection.

(Alexander MQueen eye wear 2012)

In developing a mask/eyewear I experimented with tin foil on the face creating a mask by moulding the foil onto the face to get a feel of the features. I looked at the fine artist Dominic Wilcox because he created really interesting sculptures of an old model of his face with tin foil.Once again I feel my photo shoot of tin foil wrapped around the face of my model is more development for the project, because I think these images could later inform my photo shoots and make me consider using reflective surface.
(Dominic Wilcox)

(Dominic Wilcox)