Wednesday, 27 April 2016

OUGD406 - Studio Brief 02 - Evaluation

My final work had to be printed using a traditional print method. I had already experimented with mono printing and letterpress, so I decided straight away that I would use screen-printing, as I had never done that before. I decided it would be good for my own practice to push for a method I had not used before.

In order to ensure that I printed my piece on time I had to work around the timings of the print room. The traditional print room's opening time varies and is open to the whole of the college. There aren’t enough screens for everyone to screen print, so I had to reserve a screen in advance so that I could prepare it for my prints. It also takes a day to prepare the screen and expose a design into it so I had to ensure I worked efficiently to get my final print finished on time for the deadline. I made sure I went to every tutorial and induction as well to ensure that I knew where everything was in the traditional print room.

I have developed a preference to specific typefaces and feel that this is showing through in my designs. I have found that all of my work compliments each other piece. This is making my work I produce personal to me. Printing onto acetate is a method I have never used before and I have taken advantage of that in my designs and produced a window and used the clear stock in my design. This has allowed me to keep my colouring simple but still have an engaging composition. I produced a lot of research into current bank note designs and production methods that would inform my own decisions, to ensure it stays in context with current bank notes. The variety of ideas I put down on paper allowed me to produce a quality design and experiment with as many varieties as possible.

I wanted to produce a bank note that would celebrate New Zealand's move away from the image of the British Empire. It is currently undergoing the discussion of changing its flag and moving away from this image. New Zealand would have to go through an identity change and remove any symbol of the old empire, which would involve redesigning the bank notes. My designs have developed well into an identity statement. I have looked into using the national colours and icons of New Zealand and included them into my design.

My design was very particular and took a lot of time to be produced perfectly. It is quite complex and took a while to print a perfect print, lining up the design under the screen. The intricate patterns made it difficult to produce and I had to place a lot of care and attention into them. The final product looks great on acetate and I am really pleased with how it has turned out. I was worried that the design would be too simple because of its minimal use of colour, however the transparent design is intriguing. The ink however has gone pale when dried, so if I were to produce my prints again, I would look into inks that would keep their bright block colour.


I really enjoyed developing my skills in screen printing, as this was a technique I had never done before, I found it interesting and useful to develop my skill through trial and error. I think my design is very successful and looks fantastic after being screen-printed. Producing a screen print has prevented it from not being to simple. On the screen my design didn't look as though it would be engaging but I feel both my bank notes are successful. 

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