256 px

The favicon was introduced as a visual shortcut for a brand or organisation’s website in the form of a 256 pixel (16 x 16) icon that could be inserted into the address bar of a web broswer. This trend of proportion then took a foothold with the advent of social media, and each site requiring a circle or square icon to represent each individual user. As a quirk of the digital world, the below screenshot shows how it can throw three different logos together, from three very different organisations. All are equally appropriate, but seen together it indicates the impact of the favicon and how its necessary reductionism has consequently impacted graphic design.

F, F, F.

F, F, F.

The Heinz Henri

Here we feature the first in a series of 2019 D&AD entries that didn’t quite make the grade. That said we feel that they are all of an excellent standard, are highly creative solutions and are great portfolio pieces for the students concerned.

This particular solution by 2nd year student Dylan Carr placed Heniz at the centre of every household table.

Click the image to play the film


Creative Conscience Awards 2019 - Update

This summer, UCLan students won gold, silver and bronze at the Creative Conscience Awards.

Seven students from our graphic design and advertising courses recieived awards, which celebrate projects that aim to improve local communities and inspire and help change people’s lives through ideas and design.

 

“There were so many passionate and touching projects submitted this year, all of which championed worthy causes that don’t often get spoken about in public.”

 

Graphic design student Dom Parsons won gold for a typeface he created for the Grenfell Tower campaigners and community. The design incorporated the structure of the building that tragically caught fire in June 2017 and the typeface was designed to create a unified voice for the two-year anniversary of the disaster.

Advertising students Ran Duan and Xuebing Liu won silver for their own touching project focusing on organ donation. They aimed to help start more conversations with children without scaring them. Teaming up with the NHS Organ Donation organisation and the Build a Bear Workshop, they reuse the hearts and eyes from old toy bears and use them for new toys.

Jay Austin and Gabe Aplando, final year graphic design students, earned their bronze prize for their project ‘Fence Fairies’; a typeface designed to be used on banners, picket signs and newspaper adverts in aid of the protests against fracking.

Jonathan Mount and Lucy Child also received bronze for their community project; ‘The Wood House’; a charity that reclaims and repurposes different types of wood whilst supporting vulnerable people. The design makes use of the organisation’s resources as well as aiding delivering their message.

Chrissy Levett, founder of Creative Conscience, said: “There were so many passionate and touching projects submitted this year, all of which championed worthy causes that don’t often get spoken about in public.”

Big thanks to Creative Conscience and we look forward to seeing you again next year.

Class of 2019

We’re starting to upload (file size depending!) 2019 final year projects and portfolios. We will continue uploading, but the below links offer great incite into the quality and quantity of work involved in External, Competition and Honours projects for current and future undergraduates.

Clicking the linked images will open a PDF on a new page.

Also, for the time-being, Angus is hosting a portfolio site as well.

D&AD New Blood Awards 2019 - Update

We’d just like to repeat our congratulations to all this year’s D&AD New Blood entrants and winners. The awards were presented by ex-Preston student Harriet Devoy who will spend this year as D&AD President alongside her role as Creative Director of Design, Marketing Communications at Apple EMEIA (Europe, Middle East, India and Africa).


adidas
2HRS TO 2020
Wood Pencil
- by Yi Zhang & Ariel Austris Tabaks


adidas
Pool
Yellow Pencil
- by Lucy Child & Francesca Hanley


Heinz
Heinz State
Wood Pencil
- by Angus Meikle


Monotype
Fence Fairies
Wood Pencil
- by Gabe Aplando & Jay Austin


The Times
Break the Cycle
Graphite Pencil
- by Brandon Thomas


Virgin
Virgin Favours the Brave
Wood Pencil
- by Angus Meikle & Dom Parsons


Also, congratulations to ex-student Jack Parker who won yellow, white and black pencils for his adidas entry.


Some Photos…

Smoke and Mirrors: The Psychology of Magic

Tutors often recommend the Wellcome Collection to anyone passing through, or more likely waiting at Euston. Just over the road from the station, the Wellcome Collection is a free museum and library that hosts free exhibitions and collections; as well as having a great cafe, shop, reading space and pristine water closets.

After this year’s New Blood, we went to the current exhibition – Smoke and Mirrors – which has a great range of objects on display. A video depicting a staunch defence of seances by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the box in which Debbie McGee was regularly cut in half in, a Manchester-made Spirit Horn; but also some beautiful examples of typography. Some hand-rendered, some set in woodtype and some bookplate. But all quite unexpected.

A few snaps that we took are below, but please pop in if you’re passing through.