PUBLIC EVENT RESEARCH

Above are my initial research photographs, generally looking at different posters that have been created for beer festivals and things that are generally related to my topic. I then wanted to do some more focused research and after talking to Ben I thought it was best to look into Armin Hoffann. I like his use of space and circles. The circle was the sort of shape I wanted to use for the collective aspect of my design because I believe that Circles are like a community as a whole in one big circle which I think links nicely to my project.

    

EXHIBITION BRANDING INITIAL IDEAS

For this brief we were put in a group to create an idea and develop a presentation for the concept, identity, branding and promotional aspects for the Leeds Public Spaces exhibition. 

Whilst working alongside my group we looked into the different aspects of traditional print whilst also looking at Leeds Central Library itself alongside it. We decided that the best thing for us to do was to focus on the traditional print methods and to use these into different aspects of the promotional things we produce such as screen printing for the flyers. We also decided we could incorporate simple shapes into each of the different designs. We thought that the best way to start this project was to all develop our own aspect of the branding based on the use of the simple shapes and what the best way to utilise the colleges facilities. We then spoke about what the best typeface would be to use in this project and if we are to use the letterpress then there was only a limited number of types to choose from so we chose Caslon for the title text and Univers light for the body text.

In relation to the name for the exhibition to initially thought of using the date of the first event and the last event but it could be hard to reference them and it wouldn't fully relate to the exhibition as a whole. We then went into depth research into what would be best and we decided then to experiment with the german translations of english words. the reason behind this was because the first ever printing press was invented by Johannes Gutenberg from Germany. As a group we experimented with different translations like ink (tinte) space (platz) and room (raum). We then picked Raum as it related most to the exhibition title because it is all about the public spaces.

PUBLIC EVENT INITIAL IDEAS

My initial ideas were all based around 'The Club Collective'  which is the group of members who volunteer elected by a wider membership. Because we had to make the poster a celebratory event I thought 'The Club Collective' was quite an impressive thing to celebrate about within the festival. 

I though of using a couple of the beers that were listed to be at the beer festival and use either the letters of the beer or just the name of the beer to create visual representation of the beer. I would then make the visuals into one collective thing as a whole thus representing 'The Club Collective'. 

PUBLIC EVENTS IN LEEDS

For my event I chose to do a vegan beer festival held at Wharf Chambers in Leeds. It is held every year around the 19-20th of September. Located down on The Calls near the back of The Corn Exchange, Wharf Chambers is a bit of an events hotspot, hosting live music, independent film screenings, club nights, clothing events and artistic instillations. This Leeds art gallery, music venue and bar is a members only club which specially selects its performance artists and art displays, meaning that only the best will make it to this venue. With their beer festival, they’re putting the spotlight on breweries all over Yorkshire, with over twenty five different beers and ciders from across the region. Something that caught my attention when I was researching this event was that they have values for 'The Club Collective'.


They also have strong values alongside a Safer Space agreement which helps the club stay safe and run smoothly. 

I looked on their facebook page to find all the necessary details. With a list of the beers that will be at the festival.

Below is the last poster they had to celebrate the event.

FINAL DESIGN EVALUATION

Overall I feel the final cover for To Kill a Mockingbird worked well as it was the concept out of all my designs. In court Atticus tries to prove Tom Robinson as innocent as assaulting Mayella by implicating her father as the assaulter. The typeface used for the main body of text is Charter because I was trying to represent the sort of text that would be used in the official documents used in the courtroom. And the worn black leather is a representation of the cover of the bible that would also be used in the courtroom. I think my design is successful due to the simple nature of design which allows the viewer to focus on the concept behind the cover. I think the use of the white space behind the fence and the monochrome used also allows the viewer to focus on the concept and the text that is there. I prefer the monochrome than when I used colour as I believe that it also represents the racism issues that are portrayed in the book. 

5 COVER FEEDBACK

I felt this crit was very useful for me as it clarified which design was best and how I could improve it to make it ready for the competition submission. With my first design it was said that because of how the bird is situated there is too much space on the right hand side. I noticed this because if you were just looking at it as just the front cover then because the heading is also on the left hand side there is too much going on on the left and too much space on the right. 

The second design was said to be better in relation to the layout and proportions however it was said in both the first second and the fourth that the images of the mockingbird and the noose were a bit too obvious and not really what the brief wanted as it was something original. However they liked my fence design and thought that it was a good representation. 

The concept of my fourth design was said to be good but they believed it could have been executed a bit better as the character of Boo Radley most likely doesn't really look like that. I agreed with this but it is quite hard to make a shadow a good representation of someone. 

My final design was the one my peers thought was best because the idea of having the bible as the background was the most simplistic design without being too obvious, I was also told that it was the nicest looking because of how it was uncomplicated with an interesting concept behind it. However I was told that the noose was not a necessary object in this design as it doesn't really relate to the rest of the concept which I think is correct now looking back on it so I need to make a couple of changes. 

BOOK COVER DESIGNS

For my first cover design I have Boo Raldey's figure coming out of the dark and into the light due to Boo being merely a source of childhood superstition at the start of the book. Throughout the book he then gradually becomes increasingly real to Jem and Scout because the purity of his heart rules his interaction with the children despite the pain he has suffered showing that he is one of the books most important mockingbirds. I thought this could be away to stay away from having a simple mockingbird design on the front. 

Looking at a different idea I then created a fence pattern on illustrator portraying the innocence of the children that is trying to be kept in by this fence. Here I was just playing around with colour and layout. When I was looking into the previous book cover designs I noticed a common colour choice was the orange which I think worked well so I tried that out. 

Then looked at adding on different colours and all the information on the back to make it more exciting and have more character. I chose this blue to contrast the orange and make it more interesting.

I then just played around with different colours and different layouts to see what would look the best for my design. Here I looked at adding the aspect of the yin and yang to the birds eye to represent the coexistence of good and evil.

My last experimentation was looking at using the bible that was used in the court as the background - I used worn black leather look to show what the bible would usually look like then a fingerprint to show that you have to swear on the bible to tell the truth. 

THUMBNAIL SKETCHES & INITIAL IDEAS

INITIAL IDEAS

I wanted to play around with the idea of their swing and the  idea of the noose and I think they go nicely hand in hand. Another aspect was the pattern of the fence. It was the innocence of the children trying to be kept in by the fence but also when Jems trousers are caught on the fence. Another aspect was the coexistence of good and evil which I could represent by the ying yang. 

I want to also create one book cover design to have Boo Radley as the main aspect. At the beginning of the book Boo was the source of childhood superstition and throughout the book he becomes increasingly real to them so I thought I could play around with that idea.  

TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD RESEARCH

In to Kill a Mockingbird, author Harper Lee uses memorable characters to explore civil rights and racism in the segregated Southern United States of the 1930's. Told through the eyes of Scout Finch, you learn about her father Atticus, an attorney who hopelessly strives to prove the innocence of a black man unjustly accused of raper. Boo Radley is a mysterious neighbour who saves Scout and her brother Jem from being killed.  

Scout Finch -  The narrator and protagonist of the story. Jean Louise “Scout” Finch lives with her father, Atticus, her brother, Jem, and their black cook, Calpurnia, in Maycomb. She is intelligent and, by the standards of her time and place, a tomboy. Scout has a combative streak and a basic faith in the goodness of the people in her community. As the novel progresses, this faith is tested by the hatred and prejudice that emerge during Tom Robinson’s trial. Scout eventually develops a more grown-up perspective that enables her to appreciate human goodness without ignoring human evil.

Atticus Finch -  Scout and Jem’s father, a lawyer in Maycomb descended from an old local family. A widower with a dry sense of humor, Atticus has instilled in his children his strong sense of morality and justice. He is one of the few residents of Maycomb committed to racial equality. When he agrees to defend Tom Robinson, a black man charged with raping a white woman, he exposes himself and his family to the anger of the white community. With his strongly held convictions, wisdom, and empathy, Atticus functions as the novel’s moral backbone.

Jem Finch -  Scout’s brother and constant playmate at the beginning of the story. Jeremy Atticus “Jem” Finch is something of a typical American boy, refusing to back down from dares and fantasizing about playing football. Four years older than Scout, he gradually separates himself from her games, but he remains her close companion and protector throughout the novel. Jem moves into adolescence during the story, and his ideals are shaken badly by the evil and injustice that he perceives during the trial of Tom Robinson.

Arthur “Boo” Radley -  A recluse who never sets foot outside his house, Boo dominates the imaginations of Jem, Scout, and Dill. He is a powerful symbol of goodness swathed in an initial shroud of creepiness, leaving little presents for Scout and Jem and emerging at an opportune moment to save the children. An intelligent child emotionally damaged by his cruel father, Boo provides an example of the threat that evil poses to innocence and goodness. He is one of the novel’s “mockingbirds,” a good person injured by the evil of mankind.

Bob Ewell -  A drunken, mostly unemployed member of Maycomb’s poorest family. In his knowingly wrongful accusation that Tom Robinson raped his daughter, Ewell represents the dark side of the South: ignorance, poverty, squalor, and hate-filled racial prejudice.

Charles Baker “Dill” Harris -  Jem and Scout’s summer neighbor and friend. Dill is a diminutive, confident boy with an active imagination. He becomes fascinated with Boo Radley and represents the perspective of childhood innocence throughout the novel.

Miss Maudie Atkinson -  The Finches’ neighbor, a sharp-tongued widow, and an old friend of the family. Miss Maudie is almost the same age as Atticus’s younger brother, Jack. She shares Atticus’s passion for justice and is the children’s best friend among Maycomb’s adults.

BOOK COVER ANALYSIS

I think the monochrome on this cover works well as it gives it a sense of depth.

The simplistic use of the swing that represents the swing in the book is very simple and well shown.

I think this book cover has more meaning behind it, to me it portrays the content of the book and is looking at the issues of racism.

This cover is clever as where the swing that the children would play on would be is a noose, i think it is quite a playful cover as it is showing the sign of the noose which represents someone dying. 

I think that all of the book covers above are very well produced. I like the use of simplistic colours and how even if the type saying the title was not there you could still easily tell what the book would be. The mockingbird is a key theme in the majority of these covers that is being portrayed.