I have always been interested in history and enjoy looking at the role of graphic design throughout different periods. Periods of conflict, particularly interest me, and the Cold War is a period that fascinates me the most. The obvious topic to write about of this period is propaganda, however I felt that this had been done far too much. Propaganda is the biggest role of graphic design during this period that is focused upon so I wanted to look into a new topic and discover something new.
I attended every scheduled session during this module, which greatly benefited my own work and helped me when I was producing my essay. I did struggle with writing my essay however, and found it difficult to keep to the draft hand in date. I find that I struggle with writing tasks, especially tasks of that size. Before having a tutorial that helped find sources to use as research on my essay, I struggled with where to start. I think this is down to being out of practice and not used to writing essays. This period of history fascinates me and is my favourite period of history. This project has been very personal to me because history is an interest of mine and I enjoy bringing it into my work wherever I can.
I have conducted lots of research and used a large variety of sources in my essay, which has allowed me to produce a solid argument and back myself up with opinions from professionals. Using a variety of historical sources and sources that document examples of graphic design from this period has allowed me to determine my response to the question well and develop my argument. I produced a variety of digital ideas throughout the course of the practical exploration but no physical sketches, which I think is what my work is lacking.
My idea is that graphic design was another battleground between the two super powers during the Cold War, causing the tension between the two to rise. This graphic design took many forms including propaganda, product design and packaging for household goods. The American way of life encouraged consumerism and I have argued it is this graphic design that encouraged such a way of life. To try and prove my theory I have redesigned and re-branded a household product, using the same design process and techniques from the period. My argument is strongly backed up by my sources and my body of practical work proves that a consumer would have a stronger connection with a product, if it’s packaging held a more sophisticated tone of voice.
The re-brand itself hasn’t developed very far, however I feel this is because I produced enough research to make informed design decisions from the beginning and my initial ideas were strong enough to make small developments to finish off my designs. I produced a lot of research looking into the trends of packaging design from the 1950’s and in contemporary packaging that informed my design decisions. This has made my designs current and will hold a strong position in the market. I have taken care in mocking up my designs and producing the final design in full size. I am very pleased with the end result which was possible by looking into current tea packaging and using this to plan a net and produce it solidly. Many people felt that the use of white space was a little too strong so if I were to do the re-brand again I would experiment more with the use of a little less white and use a little more colour to balance it out. However I am very pleased with the end result and feel that it is a product that I would want to buy into. The final production went well and the construction is solid.
I really enjoyed the production of my packaging as this is an area of graphic design that really interests me and I would want to push further into a career direction. I think my packaging is hugely successful and suits the market well, especially after the PG Tips re-brand. I feel that my essay is strong as a result of my interest in historical periods. I am really happy with the way it went and found it fascinating to look into a subject that is a bit different from the typical area of graphic design often looked into in this particular period.
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