1. Identify 10 things that you have learned about yourself as an individual and as a learner. These should reflect your personal development and individual journey since the start of the programme.
2. Identify 10 things that you have learned about yourself as a designer. These should reflect your growing awareness of your own interests within graphic design as a subject, discipline and profession.
10 Things I Have Learnt About Myself
1. Internet Banking.
Since starting university I have found online banking one of the most useful resources. As a student it can be very easy to spend money without keeping track of where and when its been spent. I find online banking especially useful for monitoring my weekly food shop costs as its a very easy way to compare each week against the other. Although I sometimes used this before university, I am now able to fully appreciate its benefits.
2. Prioritising spending
Before coming to university I completely underestimated the cost of living. Although I was reasonably independent I didn't need to consider buying food for myself. When I first started doing my own food shop I was far more generous with spending. For example I would buy a more expensive brand over the value range in Morrison's as they were home comforts. However, over my time here so far I have become much more sensible and realistic on what I need as opposed to what I prefer. I am aware that I have become less inclined to spend large amounts on novelties.
3. Cooking
Although I have not improved much since I left home I have become better at cooking. During the first few weeks of university I lived mainly off cheese toasties, microwave meals and toast. Unsurprisingly, this wasn't too appealing after a while so I began making slightly more adventurous meals. One of my new personal favourites is stir-fry. I love how quick it is, yet healthy at the same time. One difficulty I still have is attempting to eat healthily. It can be expensive to but fresh meat, fish and vegetables so I try to be realistic and have maybe one or two fresh meals a week. Beans and cheese on toast is never a disappointment!
4. Looking after the flat
My flat isn't always the cleanest as we often have people over and sometimes don't stay on top of cleaning. I really underestimated how quickly the flat could get so messy. When I went home for christmas I was much more aware of how much my family cleaned up after me. I never thought I was a particularly messy person but since moving into a flat where no one nags to clean up I would sometimes get behind on it. However I now make sure I stay on top of my washing and occasionally encourage the flat to help me. Its surprisingly therapeutic! I always feel more satisfied when the area I'm living in is clean and organised so this is something I want to maintain.
5. Meeting new people
I was really excited but obviously anxious about meeting new people completely on my own. This is the first time in years that I have lived away from all of my family and close friends. As I arrived slightly late I couldn't help thinking everyone would already know each other and that I'd find it really difficult to get involved. Of course this wasn't necessary, everyone was really welcoming and it didn't take long to feel settled. I've not been here long and I have already met a load of great people!
6. Finding a balance between working hard and allowing time to relax
I often get over-tired or run down from working for long periods of time. This causes my work to feel more like a chore than a learning, enjoyable task. I've learned that sometimes it can be more effective to go out and surround myself with friends to completely take my mind off of work for a while. This sometimes means I am further behind, however I feel more motivated and therefore work more efficiently.
7. Finding my way around a new city
I have always been useless with directions. This made it difficult to remember my way around leeds to begin with. Although there is still a large part I haven't been to yet, I feel a lot more confident about where I am and where I want to be. As many of my friends are 2nd years, they are living in houses in various areas of Leeds which are quite far from my accommodation. I have got lost endless times trying to find them but each time I become more familiar with landmarks to help me remember.
8. Appreciation for Northern prices
As a Londoner I had become used to the expensive lifestyle of living there. I am still sometimes shocked at how good the value of certain things in Leeds are. I found it difficult to adapt back to my old lifestyle in London as I was constantly comparing the high differences in prices for thing such as travel.
9. Confidence
Starting a degree has definitely encouraged me to feel more confident about who I am. I have met some great people with similar interests to me, new and old. This has definitely helped me generally in developing as a person. Whereas in the beginning I felt overwhelmed by all the new change, I now mange to find ways to make the change into a positive.
10. Coping with the weather in Leeds
I was constantly warned about how cold it gets up north but being me I was naive and learned the hard way! I have fallen over plenty of times in the rain, snow and wind but finally feel ready for any extreme weather. For example I now know uggs and snow DO NOT mix.
10 Things I Have Learned About Myself As a Designer
1. Group work
Working in a group can be challenging at times, but it can also produce a really strong outcome even in a short space of time. Before starting this degree I had rarely been part of many group projects. On my foundation, the work we were required to do was mostly independent. There are many benefits of working in a group, such as the ability to produce more ideas more effectively and also balance tasks in an efficient manner to achieve a range of strong, consistent outcomes.
2. Adobe Illustrator
I had never really used Illustrator before, it was a programme which I always wanted to learn more about. During our first module we were given two very useful introductory tutorials into Illustrator where I was able to learn the basics. During a brief where we were required to produce an alphabet using Illustrator I was able to experiment further with these new skills. I really enjoy using Illustrator.
3. Blogging
Before starting at LCA, I was unfamiliar with blogging academically. Over time I have become more used to remembering to document all of my work and ensure I blog everything. At times I find it difficult to stay up to date but when I do I can really see the benefits. Blogging is a good systematic way of representing who you are and how you want to be seen as a designer.
4. Typography
During the first module we focused mainly on type and its many functions. I love typography so really enjoyed learning more about it. During a task where we had to generate a typeface for a person I learned a lot about expressing characteristics within a typeface. Similarly when we were asked to work with a certain word, in my case 'boom' I gained a wide range of knowledge.
5. Colour Theory
When we were first introduced to colour theory I thought I'd never get my head around it. It seemed heavily scientific - not one of my strong subjects. However through a series of sessions involving different studies into colour theory I now have a much clearer understanding. I now have a lot more appreciation for the importance of colour within good design.
6. Modernism vs. Postmodernism
During a seminar on modernism where we looked at modernist design I began to realise that I much prefer modernist art to postmodernist. I agree that design should be structured, organised and neat. In my opinion, modernist art appears more elegant, sophisticated and justified than postmodernist. Rules are important within design, they give more sense of concept and reason.
7. Making mistakes
One of the best ways to learn is to make mistakes. It can sometimes be intimidating or daunting to get something wrong. I have learnt to overcome this more during each crit and feedback session I take part in. Many of my best refined and most successful ideas have been the ones which have been developed based on constructive criticism. I have come to realise that crits are sometimes the most useful stage of a development process. They allow for people to speak freely and share honest opinions. Sometimes negative feedback is more useful as it allows for an idea to be reconsidered in a new, more effective manner.
8. Graphic Design vs Fine Art
Another seminar which I found engaging was one where we were asked to define the differences between Graphic Design and Fine Art. I gained a greater understanding for what it is I love about design. The association between fine art and high culture means that graphic design is not given its full justice as an art. I have sometimes found it difficult to understand the concepts between various fine art pieces. This is probably because it is almost a complete opposite to my interests as a designer.
9. Less is more.
I sometimes used to feel that more work = a better outcome. As a slow worker I found this sometimes made me feel inadequate with certain work I produced. Through feedback sessions I began to realise this wasn't always the case. Some of the ideas I produced in half an hour as opposed to three days would sometimes generate a better response. Usually work seems to be more effective if one idea is refined to its best potential rather than multiple ideas attempting to do the same. One of my favourite outcomes was a poster design for racial equality. I was really pleased with my feed back.
10. The Quick Brown Fox Jumps Over The Lazy Dog
I now know that the statement above is the only sentence which includes every letter of the alphabet.
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