One week project: Research

Here we share some examples of the first Year 1 creative thinking project – research. A change in this year’s studio practice means students now have extra time to work with up until the crit as they are presenting digitally. So the time-demanding printing, trimming and mounting processes could be swapped for further image searching. However, this extra time was handed over to Google Images in the main, consequently reducing the quality and impact of ideas through the selection of inappropriate and misleading imagery.

The internet is a powerful tool, but must be viewed as that; not a visually literate interpreter.

SQUARE

The above example forms a pleasing set, but requires development, simplification and sourcing of new images.

Yellow

Another visually appealing set. All images have been manipulated to enhance the meaning. But do all selections convey the idea of yellow? This set is on the right tracks but again requires development.

Language

Staff agreed the ideas for language shown above were interesting: bad language, ancient language, foreign language, comic language, tactile language, computer language, sign language and musical language. Eight strong ideas that with further exploration can be improved as a set visually.

Bear

Another good set of ideas: chocolate bear, cartoon bear, teddy bear, financial bear, celestial bear, military bear, rare bear and human bear. But another set of ideas which can be much improved with choice and sourcing of imagery.

Square

Finally, a mention for the above response to square. Staff thought the use of a QR code (or eight in fact) could take the viewer to each individual response.