Agencies

In this post I am going to be looking into some design agencies, but more graphic design agencies as that is my specialisation. I am going to comment briefly about two design agencies that I spoke about on my last post and look into some more smaller local design agencies. I am then going to look a bit wider a field to design agencies internationally.

A design agency is basically a group of designers who are employed because of their style, which is fitting to the particular agency. These designers can also be freelance workers who just work on behalf of the agency. If you are approached, employed or represented by a design agency then they will want you for your style, which will more than likely be the same/similar to that of their agency.

I am going to briefly remind you of two design agencies from Newcastle called 'El Roboto' and 'Dirty Hands Co'. These are just small design agencies that are quite new to the world of agencies, but after visiting their design space it made me realise how much I would like to work in an agency like they do. The three guys from 'Dirty Hands Co' were all doing freelance work or working for other companies before they decided to come together and form the agency. They knew that they wanted to move into an area where they had a bit more of creative freedom, so hat better way to do that than create your own agency that has its own style, and people approach you to work for them because of your style.

Now looking at other smaller design agencies, I have come across one called 'Urban Giants Design'. They specialise in Branding, Logo Design and Graphic Design and are located in Durham, which is just down the road from where I am located. Their main idea is to help your business grow and to help you 'become a giant'. A quote on their website says, "Our job is to use our experience, knowledge and creative skills to intelligently connect your business, service or product with your clients efficiently and effectively".

Urban Giants Design Logo [1]

I have looked into their portfolio and some of the work they have produced, to which I am quite impressed. One project that I liked was that produced for the 'East Durham Business Service'. I really liked how they made the apprenticeship part look fun, bright and colourful. This would make it more engaging for the target audience. I really like the representations of working people and how the information is clearly displayed and easy to read.

East Durham Business Service Design [2]

East Durham Business Service Apprenticeships Banner [3]

I then looked at a small publishing company called 'Nobrow'. They are quite new having only been established in 2008. They are based in London, however they are an ever growing agency which has recently spread across to France. In France they had great success with their first ever French titled book. The book was called 'Hilda et le Geant de la Nuit', which received widespread approval in the press, and has even made a television appearance.

'Nobrow' Logo [4]

I am going to look at the work I like by Nobrow.

London Deco Cover [5]

Elcaf Poster Design [6]

The Burgermat Show Design [7]

Penguin Print [8]

Nobrow currently has 36 artists in their workforce, but I would believe that is will be gradually ever growing, like their agency. One of the artists that I like the work of is called 'Jeremie Fischer', who is a French designer based in Paris. I believe it would be great to work for an agency that is not from your originating country, or the place in which you work. I would love to have my own home studio but work for an agency in countries such as America or Australia.

Now to look at a larger agency. This agency is called 'Big Active' and they specialise in 'art direction, graphic design and the representation of leading image-makers'. Their client base is hugel to which they have worked on album covers for Michael Jackson, Lana Del Ray and London Grammar.

Michael Jackson Album Cover [9]

Lana Del Ray Album Cover [10]

London Grammar Album Cover [11]

I like the fact that this agency has a large and well known client base, which I would love to work with big music stars, such as Chase & Status, Nero, Snow Patrol and many more. However in saying that I do believe that it would be much more fun to work with the smaller agencies as I believe that they have much more creative freedom. As the larger agencies are more likely to have a particular style that is suited to them.

Kate Moross

Kate Moross is a 26 year old London Based creative, who is also the director of 'Studio Moross'. She has already won many awards including the 'Creative Future Award' and 'YCN Professionals Award'. She likes the idea of being able to solve any problems with design, as in the end that is our job. Even though I would like to class being a designer as more of a hobby, due to the enjoyment I get from creating. Not so long ago Kate linked up with 'Innocent Smoothies' and created a video called 'Where do great ideas come from?', where she spoke about how she became a well known designer and how she approaches design.

I have looked at some of her client base, and it features the likes of Sam Smith, which is amazing. She also created a cover for 'The Guardian Guide' that featured 'Disclosure'on the front, which I really like. Kate Moross seems to be able to do any form of design, from Editorial to Moving Image to Illustration. I would one day like to say that I can out my hand to any type of design, no matter how big the challenge. Kate Moross is very inspirational and I see her as one of my idols as she has become so successful at such a young age.

The Guardian Guide - Disclosure Feature [12]

I would like to see myself working for a smaller agency when I move on from University. However I would hope to get myself into a position like Kate Moross as she has done very well in her career so far, so only better things can be to come. I would like to get a good client base where they talk about the work I produce positively. I would like to be represented by an agency as well as be freelance as the agency will provide work for me and I can also go out and find work myself. The more work I produce, the more likely I am to be noticed by more potential clients. I would like to be perceived as a young and talented designer that stretches possibilities of design. I don's want to be recognised as being just your standard graphic designer, I want to be known as being the one who creates something fun, interesting and that is successful. I really like the work of Kate Moross and how fun it is, I want to create work like that, but with my own style. When it comes to the idea of working on projects yourself or as part of a team, I wouldn't min doing either. Working alone will help me to create work of my style, or working as art of a team you can have feedback from other creatives, so they are both beneficial. Now when it comes to winning commissions I would like previously produced work to help potential clients decide if they would like for me to create them something. I would also like to meet the people face to face as this will help you to understand the client much easier. Also meeting face to face will help when it comes down to the negotiation of pricing for the job.

Image Reference:
[1]http://www.urbangiants.co.uk/homepage.html
[2]http://www.urbangiants.co.uk/portfolio-view.html/17/
[3]http://www.urbangiants.co.uk/portfolio-view.html/17/
[4]http://www.nobrow.net/14348
[5]http://www.nobrow.net/14753
[6]http://www.nobrow.net/10288
[7]http://www.nobrow.net/12628
[8]http://www.nobrow.net/10250
[9]http://www.bigactive.com/art-direction-and-design
[10]http://www.bigactive.com/art-direction-and-design
[11]http://www.bigactive.com/art-direction-and-design
[12]http://www.katemoross.com/

Industry Structure

Design Houses
Within the industry there is many of design houses. These are basically small groups of designers that are more than likely to have the same type or a very similar style. I am going to look into more of the Graphic Design side of the Industry within design houses. One Design House I have found is called 'Graphical House', who are located in Glasgow. On their website the description of their studio is, "Located in a shop unit within the heart of Glasgow's creative quarter. the Merchant City, our studio is both an exhibition space and 'goldfish bowl' for passers by."

Image of 'Graphical House' Studio [1]

If you get employed by a design house and you have your own individual style, you will probably have a style similar to the design house. You will have to work within their style and work on briefs from clients within the studio, either on your own, or with other designers within the studio. You may also have to externally work on briefs. All of the briefs and work you complete will be managed by the design director.

I also went on an educational visit to Newcastle, in which we visited 2 other small design houses (however they ca also be recognised as agencies). The first design house was called 'El Roboto'. This design house was located up many flights of stairs, and in a small studio space. The description on their website is, "[el-roh-bot-oh] a creative agency that provides, brand, print and digital design solutions for lovely people all over the United Kingdom and Europe." I really liked their design studio, it looked very fun and relaxing. Although I am very sure there is busy and stressful days. They had a load of design books, cool toys and image over the walls. This is a good way to have design inspiration around you, incase you have a mental block. One thing I really like is their logo, it is very modern and simplistic, which is the style I most prefer.

El-Roboto Logo [2]

I looked at some of the work produced by 'El Roboto' in which this one piece stood out to me and I really liked it. It is a design called 'sweeteas' which is a brand that offers favourable childhood sweets, in the form of a hot drink. Below is the packaging for the lemon sherbet flavour. I love the simplicity of the design and how effective the logo and colours are in the old sweet shop theme.

'Sweeteas' Packaging Design [3]

The second design house that we visited, just so happened to be a couple of floors above that of the 'El Roboto' studio. This design house was called 'Dirty Hands Co', and is very new in the world of design as it was only established in early 2014. However in saying they are very new, the 3 founders all have been designing from when they were at university, One is a mainly a web designer, the other is an illustrator and the final one is a graphic designer. Together with their different backgrounds, I believe they make up a very good design house. I liked the plain and simple laid back feel of their small studio, with the old dark wooden tables. I especially liked the fact that they had a young dog with them in the studio, now that is how I would like to be working in the future. There is no bigger/commercial companies that allow a dog in the workplace. When asked about the name and how they came up with it, they said, "It relates to how we get very hand on involved with some of the projects we complete, such as 'dAt bAr' where we created the whole interior artwork, menus, and so on". Below is their typographic based logo which I really like along with another image of 'dAt bAr' to show you an example of their very impressive work.

Dirty Hands Co Logo [4]

dAt bAr Design [5]

dAt bAr Interior [6]

Our group went on to visit 'dAt bAr' later on in the day. Which I though it looked fantastic. All of the work was created mainly by the 3 members of the design house, with a little bit of outside help. The bar has a very laid back and fun feel and offers some very nice but strong beers and ales.

All of the design houses I have looked at seem to focus their work towards a younger audience because the work they produce seems very appealing to myself. So far I have not come across a design house that does not look very appealing, they all look interesting, fun and the type of place I would like to work within.

Freelance
Freelance is just working for yourself, you being your own boss and finding/managing all the work yourself. It can be a hard route to begin with as you need to build up a strong portfolio for yourself and get your work out there in order for clients to contact you. When you are freelance more than often you will acquire an agent who will help you to find work by acting as a sort of a 'middle man'. Although you will get more work through using an agent, it will more than likely be work you don't really want to complete, you will have strict deadlines to meet and the agent/agency takes on average 35% of all of your earnings. But remember that any work is better than having no work. If you don't find work through an agent/agency and want to go it alone. Remember that there is a legal structure. You will have to set up tax payments for the money you earn through your own work, forgetting to do this could ruin you as you will end up being in a lot of debt, and that's no good for starting your career. Also when you get work in, pricing jobs appropriately is very important. You need to know what work you are producing and how long you have to produce the work. Work out how much you want to earn per hour/per day/per week. For example if you are asked to produce a poster for someone and they give you 3 days to complete it, and say they will pay £60, You know that this will not be very cost effective as it will mean you only earning £20 per day. That type of work should be completed within one or 2 days to be cost effective for yourself. You must also know what to ask for from the client, such as any particular things they want within the design. Like specific colours, typefaces, logos, how they want the work submitting to them, etc. As a freelancer you will need to be highly motivated in order to go out and find work, if you have no motivation to get up and design, then freelance is not the choice for you. As a freelancer it is important to get yourself known, so creating business cards, postcards or little pieces of design that you can send out in little self promotion packs can be helpful.

One freelance designer I have come across is called 'Bryan Kidd', who is located in Brighton. He has been a freelance designer for the last 15 years and has worked on many projects. One project he produced which caught my eye was the 'Brighton Digital Festival'. I really liked the logo and branding which he created.

Brighton Digital Festival Logo [7]

Brighton Digital Festival Banner [8]

Networks
Networks are basically people who you interact with to exchange information and help develop professional/social contacts. It is important when networking that you make yourself fully available to your clients. If you have good clients that love your work, keep them happy. If you keep them happy then they are likely to network you further, by telling their friends, who may contact you for work, and if they are happy they will tell their friends, and so on. It is also important to mix amongst fellow designers. You's will all be able to help each other, for example if a photographer needs some help with something graphic design based or vice versa, then a network is established and you are supporting and introducing yourself to new markets. Although you can help other markets, remember to support your own, in my case I would be supporting graphic designers. Use any opportunity to expand your network, as a bigger network can never be bad. A creative CV is another must to get your network started. They don't want your plain old black type on some white paper, let your creativity loose, show them what you are made of. This will be your first foot onto the networking ladder.

Creative CV Example [9]

Collaboration
Collaboration is another part of networking which I have touched on slightly already. It can be helpful to collaborate as you can share ideas, give each other tips/hints and share each others styles. Below is a collaboration by 'Thibaut Malet' & 'Zics' of a piece called 'Wooden Spray Cans'. 'Malet' is a product designer, who created the woodwork sculptures of the paint cans, and 'Zics' is a graphic designer/illustrator who created the typography.

Paint Spray Cans Collaboration Project [10]

Exhibitions
Exhibitions are an ever-growing side to the industry with people selling their work. Some artists devote all of their life and work to creating exhibitions. The good thing about exhibitions is that the people who are wanting to buy your artwork can buy the original pieces. On top of selling the original pieces of artwork, the creator can also sell prints of the work on top of that to make more money. However buyers like the idea that the artwork is solely going to be theirs. On top of that, as the artwork is the original it can be seen as a limited edition piece. Exhibitions come in all different sizes, you can have exhibitions that focus onto certain areas of the industry such as graphic design or illustration. Artists also create installations at galleries, such as one I visited recently at the 'Baltic' in Gateshead. It was by an artist called 'Daniel Buren' and was called 'Catch as catch can: works in situ'. In this exhibition none of the work was for sale, he was just commissioned to create the installation and talk about where his ideas came from. You will be able to see that Buren has used lighted artwork in the areas of exhibition space with no windows, and he has used sunlight to create an in situ/moving artwork within the exhibition space on the top floor. All of his work was fantastic and without seeing that exhibition I wouldn't of known of his existence. Which proves how having exhibitions is a way to get yourself known to new people and even possible commissions.

Daniel Buren - Catch as catch can: works in situ [11]

Daniel Buren - Catch as catch can: works in situ [12]

Daniel Buren - Catch as catch can: works in situ [13]

Daniel Buren - Catch as catch can: works in situ [14]

Daniel Buren - Catch as catch can: works in situ [15]

Competitions
There are many competitions out there for you to enter, from being a beginner in the design world, to experienced/well known in the design world, there are plenty to choose from. Obviously some are going to be bigger than others. Bonuses of entering and winning competitions can get you National/International recognition, it opens up plenty of possibilities/new opportunities to advance yourself in the design world, you and your work will be exposed to a much wider audience which could be potential clients, your work is often exhibited or published creating more opportunities, and there is potential prize money for winning competitions (now that is just an added bonus). The best thing I believe to get from a competition is the exposure of yourself to others as this will help to get you noticed and bring in potential clients.

D&AD (Design & Art Direction)
The D&AD Awards recognise excellence in the design world. It is the toughest and most well known design award to win. Anybody can enter but that does come with a fee, in which the fee for entering goes towards the funding of D&AD and in the graphic design category, the fee can range from £105 - £170 for a single entry. The work is judged by 25 specialists which helps to expose your ideas to people who are top in their individual field. If you win then you will receive the D&AD pencil, a place within the annual, a membership for the annual and also a gold, silver and bronze pencil if you are the most awarded of the year. But don't forget more importantly than all of that, you will become a lot more known to people and bigger clients are likely to contact you for work. Winning competitions is always great exposure for yourself.

D&AD Logo [16]

Gold, Silver & Bronze D&AD Awards [17]

Design Week Award
Another award I have found that you can win is called the Design Week Award. This competition is funded and hosted within the United Kingdom, but recognises design work internationally. The award that is handed out changes each year, but always includes some sort of light to link with the light bulb in their logo. This is not as well known as D&AD, but remember any competition is worth entering and trying to win. I myself would love to win a competition, but I am yet to enter any of my work into one. I just need to believe in the work that I produce, and soon enough I will enter one.

Design Week Award [18]

Where do I want to fit into the industry
As you must be able to tell from reading the blog, the area I would most like to fit into the Industry, is in a Design House. I believe that you have more creative freedom when working within a design house, as if you worked more corporately then I believe your creative freedom would be tied down to what they wanted you to create. However as well as wanting to work within a Design House at some point in my career, I would also like to work in Advertising/Marketing as I find that part of the Graphic Design Industry very interesting. I would love to see another Designer working in an Advertising/Marketing role to see what life is like for them and to get an idea of what it could be like for myself.

Image References:
[1]http://www.graphicalhouse.co.uk/information
[2]http://design.el-roboto.co.uk/about_us/how_we_work/
[3]http://design.el-roboto.co.uk/articles/portfolio/branding/i/sweeteas/
[4]http://www.dirtyhandsco.com
[5]http;//www.dirtyhandsco.com/Dat-Bar
[6]http;//www.dirtyhandsco.com/Dat-Bar
[7]http://www.bryankidd.co.uk/portfolio/brighton-digital-festival/#.VHeFsYusVHw
[8]http://www.bryankidd.co.uk/portfolio/brighton-digital-festival/#.VHeFsYusVHw
[9]https://covunicareers.wordpress.com/2014/06/17/creative-cvs/
[10]https://www.behance.net/gallery/20997941/Wooden-spray-cans
[11]Own Image
[12]Own Image
[13]Own Image
[14]Own Image
[15]Own Image
[16]http://blog.making-pictures.co.uk/making-pictures-partner-with-dad-student-awards-for-photography/
[17]http://www.dandad.org/en/professional-awards/
[18]http://mra.co.uk/news/design-week-awards-mra-nominated

What is Plagiarism?

Plagiarism doesn’t immediately sound very serious, but if we replace the word ‘Plagiarism’ with such a word as ‘Stealing’, then it sound much more serious. Plagiarism is basically the theft of something which is not yours. In the design world plagiarism is a big deal and happens more often that it would first seem. There have been thousands of court cases over plagiarism, to which almost always the plagiarizer will lose. It is very easy to plagiarise without realising it, so it is very important that you can prove that your work is yours, and has come from all your ideas. Also make sure that any inspirations for your work are noted, as if you create something very similar to that of the artists work you were inspired by, then this will be seen as an act of plagiarism.

According to the ‘Oxford Dictionary’, Plagiarism means: “The Practice of taking someone else’s work or ideas and passing them off as one’s own”

(http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/plagiarism)

What Are The Different Types of Plagiarism?

There are many different types of plagiarism, some can be on purpose and some can be by mistake. According to ‘Plagiarism.org’, these are the 10 most common types of plagiarism:

10 Types of Plagiarism [1]

Remember that these are just the 10 main examples, there are many more so you need to be aware of these incase you begin to plagiarize yourself.

An Example of Plagiarism:

In the clothing industry, plagiarism is a huge issue. Almost everyday they are stealing ideas from each other, but it is companies such as ‘Forever 21’, ‘Urban Outfitters’ and ‘Primark’ who are plagiarizing other people’s work. One example I have found is a piece of clothing, which was originally designed by a company called ‘FATE’. Which the company ‘Forever 21’ very closely plagiarized the design. It can probably be seen as an example of a clone as ‘Forever 21’ are passing off the clothing shown below as their own.

The ‘FATE’ clothing is on the left and the ‘Forever 21’ clothing is on the right.

Clothing Comparison - youthoughtwewoldntnotice.com [2]

The website ‘youthoughtwewouldntnotice.com’ provides some great examples of plagiarism within the design world, you will be shocked at some of the things you see, especially in the larger companies that are shown to have plagiarised.

There is a big difference in creating something which is uniquely yours, and creating something which is similar to something else. It is better to use bits of other artists work to inspire that of your own. As you will have to create something of your own style. If you are unsure of what your style is, then you need to find it. As above, if you copy someone else's design, you are very unlikely to make it within the design industry. If you are found to plagiarise, your design career is basically over.

What is Homage?

Homage can be closely linked in with plagiarism, but it is a more accepted kind of plagiarism. According to the ‘Oxford Dictionary’, Homage means: “Special honor or respect shown publicly” (http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/homage)

To me, Homage can be when another artist uses the main idea of another artist’s piece of work, which is well known and recognized. So people who see the Homage work recognize that the work is not the original piece and the artist has not tried to copy someone else’s work. They also credit the original artist within their work. One example is the very well known painting, ’The Great Wave Off Kanagawa, by ‘Katsushika Hokusai’.

The Great Wave Off Kanagawa by Katsushika Hokusai [3]

This is one piece of artwork that has been produced in various different ways, but through homage as it is such a well-known piece of artwork. One example of homage I have found is a doorstop by a man called, ‘Clive Roddy’. In his description of the doorstep he says, “The design is both a functional doorstop and small wooden diorama that pays homage to the iconic image ‘the great wave off Kanagawa‘ by the Japanese artist Katsushika Hokusai.”

The Great Wave Off Kanagawa Door Stop [4]

‘Clive Ruddy’ has also produced a ring in homage to ‘The Great Wave Off Kanagawa’.

The Great Wave Off Kanagawa Ring [5]

The big question that often arises is, is this plagiarism? The answer would be no if the artist creating the work says that the work is not based on their own ideas and concepts, but using another artists ideas. To which they would have to ask the artist for permission to do so. Unless the artwork is very well known (Such as “The Great Wave off Kanagawa”) and the work created clearly is not an attempt of plagiarism.

How can I protect myself from plagiarism?

It is hard to say how to protect your work from plagiarism because it is so easy to have your work plagiarized. But there is such things in place as intellectual property rights, copyright laws and creative piracy protection. I myself am yet to experience any plagiarism of my own work, but that could be due to me not using social media/the internet to showcase my work. I must start doing this however, as I need to begin networking to begin my career in the design world.

Image References:
[1]http://www.plagiarism.org/plagiarism-101/types-of-plagiarism/
[2]http://youthoughtwewouldntnotice.com/blog3/page/5/
[3]http://www.metmuseum.org/collection/the-collection-online/search/45434
[4]http://www.cliveroddy.co.uk/shop/the-great-wave-off-kanagawa-wooden-doorstop
[5]http://www.cliveroddy.co.uk/shop/wave-ring