Thanks again to all who presented their design boards on time recently. I'll put a set of quick low res photo refs to the boards below in this post in alphabetical order. Each should eventually have a short summary of the person's aims with their work next to the ref images too.
Quick comments by students at time of work submission:
" ... as an aspiring children’s book illustrator it was great to work on such a project because I have learned a lot about children and how the brain works. I have also learned how important the research and testing is before creating the final design"
" I have really enjoyed working on this brief.."
" I have learned so much... it was definitely worth the time to learn and I will take what I have learned into future projects.."
"I feel that this project has really taught me a lot because before I hadn’t much, if any experience with designing books/e-books for children. I now believe that I can design more items related to children confidently and happily."
"I have also learnt to appreciate what children can and cant understand, which as an adult you don’t always realise, especially when you don’t spend time around children.."
"The children book design greatly expanded my understanding about graphic design itself and about the children book design as a genre of illustration. By studying design I gained visual perception and practical experience about the children as an audience and it is because of really good structured lectures, clear explanation and useful, interesting practical tasks."
Student design boards submitted:
(Click on an image to view it in detail/quickly scroll through the set)
James Campbell
Presently waiting on wording here.
Emily Cato
1) 'The Hungry Caterpillar' by Eric Carle - not only is the book a popular children's favorite, but also the textures used in the book I felt that they would link quite nicely to the interactive element I have implemented in my designs, as you just want to reach out and touch them.
2) I feel that my final designs are effective because they convey the game activities, and also, I believe that having the textured hexagon with the text inside really emphasizes the texts message.
3) Acrylic paints and finger painting techniques in order to replicate the target audience in a possible art class.
Harry Cato
What ‘Key’ research references/findings inspired your final designs & why are these important/of interest?
The Charlie and Lola series had to be my most favourite book series as a child, so it was this that I wanted to draw my inspiration from. The mixed media elements are what really stand out to me, this handmade look feel is very distinctive, this is what I aimed to recreate in my page designs.
Why are your final designs for your cover, spreads and 3D element effective?
I feel that the design and content help to engage the audience, the 3D glasses provided a fun personalized make, so all of the outcomes will be unique.
What considerations with materials have you used and why?
Because of my influences I decided to go for a sketchbook feel, the biro drawings help contribute to this as they are representation of a doodle often in the back of a child’s sketchbook.
Kirsty Dea
1. What ‘Key’ research references/findings inspired your final designs & why are these important/of interest?
The key reference and findings for me with this module was going on Association of illustrators and found a style i liked and adapted to create my own unique way of working. Also the research with the few facts that i found about bees helped me to learn a lot about them and the world.
2. Why are your final designs for your cover, spreads and 3D element effective?
I think that these designs are element effective because the designs are child friendly and playful at the same time which i think would attract the children's attention. The design is also simple but different from your everyday pieces of work which i think children would be fascinated to look and say, 'WOW this drawing is amazing' is a comment i got from a 10yr old i know so i think it would have a good impact.
3. What considerations with materials have you used and why?
I took into consideration a few of the materials and artist research trying to combine the two together to create something neither of them have done before. Children i know liked my work and wanted me to do more.
Liam Fitzgerald
1. The main points for me were other children's books, specifically books like Peter Rabbit because of how the animals looked human like and I wanted to try and portray this in bees too. Also when considering the board game idea, I found an old snail race board game to be inspirational because I played it myself in the past and found it very engaging.
2. They are effective because they are bright and colourful whilst maintaining some subtlety and a uniform look throughout. The story is easy to understand and combines story telling with factual elements. The board game has a high level of interactivity with cut out pieces and dice.
3. I printed all the sheets onto A4 to simulate a common book size and I combined hand drawn imagery with digital imagery for a contrasted look. Everything is made form paper like the board game and the dice to allow for less use of materials and easy to find tools to build the elements of the 3D artefact.
Ieva Gudonyte
1. What 'Key' research references/findings inspired your final design and why are these important/of interest?
My ' Key' research for the final project was my.. not endless
curiosity to know more about the natural world as it took from the
subject matter of the project itself. I just know that the life time is
to short and there is so a lot unknown, might be 'bad'
do not be on time with the wold's progress :). Most important
inspiration came from my big interest in the science, especially in the
medicine and from my personal experience using very 'smart' product
Royal Jelly what it helped me a lot and till know it might
be useful for people recovering after hard illness, operations and/or
to boost immunity system. There is first 'inspiration'. Second, might be
my inspirations from looking at particular designers/illustrators, who
used design elements, how they arranged balance
and harmony to find narrative voice and a personal style.(Wildsmith,
Wihnoutka, Jack Tackler, Lithuanian Lina Zutaute).
2. Why are you final designs for your cover, spreads and 3D element effective?
I have chosen to combine my own personal statement with computer
graphic programmes and it is was effective in way that I have
'refreshed' my old AdobeInDesing 8 version skills till 22 version, what
has got the University of Worcester :). I would say it
is good start to develop graphic design skill with narrative
illustrative voice as it gets more opportunity in the professional
developement.
3. What considerations with materials have you used and why?
I have used for the first steps paintings, but it not well with the
project because of it details, then I swaped to line drawing and
watercolours pencils what I have used. And then I saw that the board
game is very diffficutl tu make by these ttechneques.
Then it come AdobeIndesing programe using, where was not so strong, but
it gave me a good 'kick' and a lot nice ideas for the future..
Connor Hourihane
Presently waiting on wording.
Loraine Mallon
1. The key research references that influenced my final designs came from children's illustrated books, such as 'We're on a Bear Hunt' by Helen Oxenbury and 'Dogger' by Shirley Hughes. I like illustrated, hand drawn images and my final designs reflect this style. I am also interested in hand lettering and I have used this throughout my final design.
2. My final designs together with the 3D element are effective because they follow a theme and are consistent. They are informative, colourful, fun and would appeal to the younger children studying Key Stage Two.
3. Because I wanted to convey a hand rendered illustrated style, I used ink, watercolour and pan pastels to achieve this effect. I also used some collage elements to add interest and flexibility to the design.
Paulina Mazelik
1. In my designs I incorporated a lot of bright and pastels colours because I have researched that colours can increase memory power and enhance academic performance. I wanted the children to have fun while they learn this is why I made the bees in a cartoonish style and gave them funny expressions and personalities.
2. I think that my designs could be effective because as I mentioned above the colours are very important to children and can affect their learning and mood. I used energizing colours like yellow or colours that are found in nature like green and blue. Mixed all together they could be very pleasant to the eye and have a positive effect on health and the brain.
3. The process of making my designs involved sketching everything traditionally with pencils. Then scanning it in onto the computer and colouring it in in Photoshop.
Kassie Nordstromm
1. For visual references, I was inspired by illustrated bee-themed
book covers, especially the ones that used a mix of photography and
other media. For example, I was looking at "Honey bees: Letters from
the Hive" by Stephen Buchmann. I also noticed
in a lot of the books I was looking at, there was a single design aspect
that was carried out throughout the book, and I thought this was a
great way to make the work cohesive.
2. I think my final designs are effective because it's very
cohesive throughout the project. It's also simple, yet bold, so it
stands out. The information is easy to read for the age group, yet
informative.
3. I used photos and artwork in Adobe programs for the final
design. I wanted to branch out a bit and strengthen my skills with
digital media. It took a lot more time than drawing would have taken
me, but I think it was worth it in the end. I usually
get disappointed how my hand-drawn work looks on screen, so I figured
this would be a good alternative. Photographs that are used in collage
are easily recognised, so that helps the reader interpret the work a bit
faster.
Liz Page
1) My key influences were children’s working books such as CGP books and Bitesize as well as the illustration style of Beatrix Potter and Eric Carle for detailed animal study and bright colours on plain backgrounds.
2) I feel my final designs are effective because it’s visually striking with bright colours on white backgrounds, informative and relatively easy to read and follow.
3) My 3D object is an origami bee. For this I created a yellow square on the page to be printed out but it would be fine to print on standard printer paper to make it easier to fold as compared to card, which would be too stiff.
Margarett Passos
1. What ‘Key’ research references/findings inspired your final designs & why are these important/of interest?
A: The main points that influenced my final designs were the ways that children learn. I incorporated tasks that suit their needs, and the amount of text in every page is balanced with the the rest of the composition.
2. Why are your final designs for your cover, spreads and 3D element effective?
A: Both elements were made with the audience in mind. The "types of bees" has a stamp based designed with basic colors and the "queen bee" design has a friendly character that is approachable.
3. What considerations with materials have you used and why?
In my design I used stamping because I remember doing it when I was younger and by talking with my peers and lecturer, we all agreed it was something that always appeals to children and the illustration style is different from what is usually use, so I believed it would be a good challenge.
April Warr
1. What ‘Key’ research references/findings inspired your final designs & why are these important/of interest?
The work that I produced was inspired by the artist Oliver Jeffers. Majority of his work is inbetween realistic and cartoon, but not of the obvious sort as they have some human relevance.
Also with his use of bold, saturated colours he is able to capture the depth in a scene without it being overly detailed.
2. Why are your final designs for your cover, spreads and 3D element effective?
The out the cover, spreads and the activity sheet I was able to keep a simple theme running through out by using the same characters and colour scheme to tie it in the spring and summer vibe.
Another theme I stuck with was the use of the outside as bees are all workers and work between two different seasons, by keeping this theme through out I was able to provide the right information in an illustrative manner.
3. What considerations with materials have you used and why?
The main materials I have use in my final pieces are watercolour on thick cartridge paper, this meant I was able to create in depth illustrations, meaning I was able to produce high quality scans to put into photoshop and in design without losing an detail or colour.
Grace Wyld
1) Eric Carle was a huge inspiration for me during this project. I have always found his work fascinating & thought this would be a brilliant chance to take inspiration from him.
Collage has played a huge role in my work & I feel it has really given it something extra than simply being block colour. I chose collage not only because of the inspiration from Carle but also because I felt that it was something which children could really relate to.
2) I feel they are effective as I have used bright, bold colours which attracts the eye. I also feel that it is easy to read so it makes it obvious what the e-book will be about.
3) When creating my 3D aspect I needed to come up with an idea which could be printed on normal printer paper as some people don’t have other types paper at home. With this in mind I decided to make a “Beekeepers Hive money box” as for that I could simple use a box net which didn’t require thicker paper.
