EVALUATION

I intend to continue developing the themes within this project for unit x, focusing my energy on producing a collection of vibrant, contemporary digital designs. During the Practice project, my drawing skills have developed vastly and unit x will give me the opportunity to further explore the possibilities that can be reached by combining a range of drawing qualities with photographic elements. I have not yet decided whether this collection be for an interiors or fashion context, but intend to explore the possibilities of both before making an informed decision as to which context the designs are best suited for.

From the Practice project, I have produced a refined collection of dynamic interior prints, showcasing my digital and drawing skills. As well as this I have demonstrated diversity and a broad interest in design by producing a collection of silk scarf designs alongside my major project. There is a range of methods and processes explored within each collection which I have gone on to evaluate and dissect which processes are more successful for my designer outcomes. I have researched into both interior and fashion accessory companies, identifying these as my target market and producing designs by similar means as the in house designers would there. My eccentric, yet sophisticated interior collection would fit successfully into an interiors company, with the potential to be printed onto silks and velvets to create a luxurious collection like those created by the in house designer’s at Designers Guild. My vibrant and energetic scarf collection would work successfully along side the interior collection at a company selling both fashion and furnishings.

EVALUATION AND FUTURE INTENTIONS

Working on minor and major project with different outcomes in mind has allowed me to experiment with design techniques and processes. Working in a multidisciplinary way, I have produced a contemporary and eclectic mix of prints for interiors, showcasing my skills in hand painting along with my digital ability to work in repeat. My minor project has allowed me the freedom to use photographic and textural elements, deigning for a digitally printed fashion outcome. I feel I have developed my skills in both digital and hand screen print during this project. Unit X will give me the give me the chance to challenge myself and progress my practice further by combining the two. Furthermore, Unit X will allow me the opportunity to elaborate on the elements within this collection, adding more depth to my theme through further research into traditional tribal lifestyles and textiles. I feel I haven't take the traditional African dying techniques to their limits and would like to experiment further with more natural dyes in unit X. I would also like to develop some of the ideas within this collection into potential fashion prints.

INTERIOR COLLECTION

My final refined collection of interior prints incorporate an exciting and unique combination of floral design with tribal mark making. It has been an important factor for me to make sure every designs is very different from the last, but tied together through the bold colour pallet. 

SILK SCARF COLLECTION

By manipulating and layering my drawings on photoshop, I've created a small collection of vibrant scarf designs. Experimenting with composition, I explored the idea of two sets of corners revealing different textures and colours; making the scarf multi-directional. The more spontaneous drawings I created for this collection became the most successful in the development stage. The quicker mark-makings i did in the initial drawing stages have made for the most energetic designs.

I wanted each scarf to incorporate very different elements, so no one scarf has a similar look to another. I ensured this through using a variety of drawing techniques and exploring a range of scales. in one of the designs; I have incorporated photographic elements. This has worked successful when transferred onto medium weight silk; adding vibrancy to the already saturated photographic imagery, giving the collection a contemporary feel.

I felt that working on this minor project for a fashion context has allowed me the opportunity to explore more experimental techniques of drawing and digital design that would have most likely been too loud to put into a repeat for interiors.

MARK MAKING

Thinking of ways in which to incorporate tribal imagery into my collections, I decided simple mark markings, like the ones painted onto the bodies of the Surma tribe in clay, would create a complementary contrast to the smooth, painterly floral designs I had been working with thus far. I used scraps of discarded wood with a variety of wet media to create a quick, vast range of marks which I could then take into Photoshop to create patterns and repeats with. This technique proved to be successful in creating the contrast I wanted. Moreover, this exercise has clarified to me that often, my faster, more spontaneous drawing are often the ones I chose to develop in the design process. Had these marks not been created so freely and in such an imprecise way, it is likely they would not have the same look of movement and energy.

DESIGN CENTRE CHELSEA HARBOUR

Researching into the design centre at Chelsea Harbour has been highly beneficial for me to discover the vast range of high end design companies working to the same context as myself. Many of the companies showcased in the design centre have been established for over a hundred years, yet are producing contemporary fabrics and printed designs alongside their signature pieces.

Sanderson, established in 1860, is heavily influenced by original William Morris documents, but gives their collections a contemporary twist on floral repeats through their exciting colours and variation on scale.

OSBORNE AND LITTLE

Osborne and Little's Eden fabrics, designed by renowned fashion designer, Matthew Williamson incorporate brightly coloured animal prints and luxurious floral designs in a modern interpretation of Myths and Legends. Williamson, like Christian Lacroix, has predominantly worked as a fashion designer. However, both designers take a cross disciplinary approach to designing, proving that skills in design can be transferrable of a range of contexts. Both designers inspire me to pursue an open minded approach to design, often deciding what my designs are best suited for after they have been produced. 

DESIGNERS GUILD

Looking over my two collections, (accessories and interiors), I see both working effectively together in a high end company such as Designers Guild. Their Royal Collection incorporates rich, deep colours with an often botanical theme. Inspired by the interiors of the Royal residences, Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle, the elegant collection offers a decadent range of weaves and prints incorporating both traditional and digital texhniques.

As well as their in house designers, the company sells collections created by renowned fashion designers including Christian Lacroix, Ralph Lauren and William Yeoward. Lacroix' collections features a range of diverse and captivating designs reminiscent of his innovative, costume-like fashion designs . This is how I see my own interior collections working. While each design is very different from the last, they work together effectively, with similarities only in their colours.

Companies such as Designers Guild will often exhibit the designs in showrooms for customers to view and buy through interior designers, rather than having direct contact with the customers themselves.

 I see myself working as an in house designer in a high end interiors company such as designer's guild. I've developed a varied range of drawing techniques which I feel would be beneficial to a company producing eccentric, contemporary collections. 

DIGITAL DESIGN DEVELOPMENT

As my scarf designs are going to be digitally rather than hand printed, there's opportunity for experimentation with a range of colours and compositions though digital design. I have been keen to use my photography within my designs, but have felt that a digitally designed photographic print wouldn't be suited to my illustrative interior collection. Thus, I intend to use them in my scarf collection.  These designs are made of layers of photographs with drawings, using filters on photoshop to create translucent areas, revealing the image underneath. Rather than making two separate scarf designs out of these, I think they would work effectively on one scarf, manoeuvring on photoshop the different elements into different opposite corners, creating a multi directional square scarf.

Photographic elements are often used within garment. Erdem's S/S 2011 collection incorporates both photographic and hand painted layers of florals. The depth of colour and blurred distinction between which parts are photographic and which are drawing makes

LIVE BRIEF

 Humpties' live brief required students to design a new idea for their cylinder foot stool. I liked the idea of working to a circular shape as apposed to working in squares and rectangles thus far. Looking over their collection, I thought it important to produce a design that complimented their products. Although their brief stated that they were open to very different kinds of designs, I thought a graphic looking pattern inspired by my research into tribal body art would compliment their bold prints. However, looking over their foot-stools, I thought they were perhaps lacking in a more painterly texture. I used a batik dying technique to create samples with this effect to give Humpties a new element to their designs. I used simple finger painting to draw the circular pattern which I layered over the batik sample. I liked this idea of combining two basic techniques, used by the Omo Valley people themselves as a part of their every day lives.

The Humpties' live brief required each design to be put into a specific scale, fitting their cushion design. This required me to utilise my photoshop skills, using precise measurements so as to make sure my designs fitted the brief's criteria. This exercise, although challenging, has been highly influencial when designing for my own interiors project. In the past, I have often began designs for the the same collection on very different sized photoshop canvases. The process of doing this live brief has taught me to be more systematic when beginning the design process, making sure I am working to similar scales. It has also made me thing about what scale I want the motifs in my design to be when printed large scale at the  end of the project. This is an extremely important factor. as it communicates to my audience the scale that I intend the prints to be. When I print my final designs, they will all be to scale, with visualisations of my designs in situe, showing more of the repeat.