Studio Brief 01 - Evaluation

The art direction of each of the booklet’s covers are the weak link in an overall focused design of the publication. The covers do not replicate a production quality of a professional level, the use of the single colours do not effectively communicate a representation of the culture in each booklet, only the association, and the colours themselves are light and airy which in turn shifts the tone of voice from being mature.

Rather than representing each area through singular colours, it would have been more appropriate to use cloths that incorporate motifs of the culture and rather than using screen print to illustrate the titles, stickers could have been used to create a more professional look for the publication. Being in the UK however, there is a very limited access to textiles that will relate to Singaporean culture. The use of screen print relates to the handmade processes that have been used throughout the publications design. However, if it does not produce a suitable quality, then an alternative solution should have been found. Better time management would have allowed for more experimentation to be done in order to produce a better finish than the final outcome.

The hand made processes used predominantly in the publication does not lend itself to a production on a commercial scale. The hand done design elements such as the embossing, binding, screen printing and wood working lengthens the time it takes to produce each publication and will subsequently increase the price due to man hours required to physically create the publication. This makes the publication a niche product and as such won't turn a large profit when intended to be produced in limited numbers. Throughout the brief, there was a lack of commercial considerations. The publication was produced to its full potential of it ideas without much thought of how this could be done commercially. This is an important aspect to consider as designing in the real world, commercial considerations determine the longevity of the publications run and the affordability for its target audience. 
 
What is effective is the composition of the layout and design techniques used in the content. Learning from the mistakes of past editorial briefs, the layout design in this publication has been fully considered in creating a cohesive, uniform and effortless reading experience. By using the same layout sequence in each booklet, it ensures that the photography of the shophouses become the paramount feature whilst the layout design goes unnoticed. The type size although small is appropriate to the size of the publication and the change to Baskerville effectively changed the tone of voice to one that is more appropriate to its audience and how the content of the publication should be communicated. It’s this level of consideration that is lacking in the cover design which in turn becomes a weak link in the overall look. This lack of consideration also highlights the mismanagement of planning. More aspects of the publication’s design should have been simultaneously developed rather than treating each one on its own. This would hopefully ensure that each aspect of the design works with each other.

On a positive note, a lot of new processes were used in the publication’s production. Embossing, spot varnishing, wood working and cloth bound covers. This represents a step forward in terms of the breadth of my graphic design practice. Having more experience in these fields will allow for more creative ideas and knowledge on the limitations of whats possible. This project also highlights how the briefs should be bent to align with my own interests within graphic design. This is so I can start to create a portfolio of work that represents my interests in design as best it can. For example the publication could have taken on a more typographic direction, which was not considered surprisingly during the idea generation. There was a fixation on the idea that because of the publications content and the idea to put Singapore in another perspective, the publication had to gravitate towards tourists and a lifestyle audience. When alternatively there a form of type design publication could have been produced. Therefore before generating ideas in solving the briefs problem, there is some merit in identifying the audience first and then basing the solution from there.