OUGD 504 End Of Module Evaluation

OUGD 504 End Of Module Evaluation

This has been one of the most challenging modules to date. I believe this is because of the combination of self-discipline, technical ability, design skills and solid research needed to complete it. In this evaluation I aim to outline; skills I have developed, strengths and weaknesses of work and methods used, finishing with some things I will do differently next time.

The most important part of this module has been learning the basics of HTML, CSS and web design. Knowledge of these two systems will probably be one of the most important skill sets I have ever developed. Carrying on with this development will continue for the rest of the course and beyond, but for now I am extremely happy to have grasped the basics and developed two working websites. Having worked on web design for only a few months now I have realised it is not half as difficult, or boring, as I thought it was before. If anything I really do enjoy sitting down and working out how to solve problems and improve the website, which has been  total surprise to me.  I have also, once again, worked with screen-print and continued to grow skills in this method of printing, especially in terms of printing with half-tone gradients, something I have never done before. This was a result of multiple failures, usually resulting in ink bleeding out definition in the images. Fixing this problem has been a huge step forward in my screen printing abilities and technique.

My strengths during this project have been centred in the development of my web-design skills, a subject which I took to much better than I personally expected. I was also happy with my creative responses and unusual solutions to tasks and problems, for example for the ISTD brief I created a website aimed at typography students and enthusiasts which could be used as a tool or for a bit of satirical humour. The brief was very open and could have been interpreted in a rather bland and uninteresting way, but I created something that I thought was genuinely useful as well as funny. I have also displayed a strength in presentation skills, although my slides and structure may need some more development I have developed the ability to stand in-front of the larger group and explain my work without breaking up or missing our informations, which is something I have had major problems with in the past. I put this down to having more confidence in my own work.

All of my weaknesses in this module have grown out of poor time management. Having total control over my own project management for the first time ever on this module has been a huge shock to my system, having realised how poorly I can manage myself without guidance. I have also realised how little I am able to work from home. This caused a huge backlog of work after the Christmas break, leading to de-motivation as I came to terms with how behind I was. Luckily I was able to sort myself out but I do worry that this work was too little too late.

Things I will do differently:
- Time management. I started out organised and ended the module organised but this was broken up by the Christmas break which saw me totally loose control of my work ethic and drive. Next module I need to get myself a diary and stick to it.

- Start with research. One of my main problems with developing a proper project and gaining full marks comes from not starting with research. I tend to come up with an idea and dive straight into it, then follow up with research. This often means that I stick to topics that I already understand of have a relationship with. This project was a little different because I realised halfway through that I was way out of my depth and I needed to simplify the idea, a direct result of not starting of research.

- Blog a post every day, If I manage to blog my work every day, working my blog like a daily diary instead of a weekly one I will be able to stay on top of blog posts. At the moment I tend to finish an aspect of a project and then blogs about it. This new regime should also allow me to do work even when I don't have too, if I have a day off I could blog about inspiration or contextual stuff for example.

- Blog exhibition visits and everyday graphic design I come across. I have realised that I have been to two gallery exhibitions of designers work during the course of this module and I have blogged neither of them. I need to stop considering the research element of these projects as a purely pintrest based pursuit.