Evaluation: Tryptik Fashion Branding

This brief was undoubtedly the most stressful of all my briefs.

Firstly, I was out of my comfort zone. I was doing branding, creating logos and applying them to a range of different products, working in black and white, working with a lot of text. All aspects of design that I feel I can work with, but don't feel at my most comfortable. The stress of this brief was certainly not helped by the fashion student herself.

I am aware we where told to set deadlines for our collaborations and we should be stern with our fashion students, but it's just not in my nature to be like that. Well, it wasn't in my nature. It is now. This brief has taught me that I will not get anywhere if I let people walk all over me. I need to be more forthright and tell people what I really think about certain things. Not once did I make it clear to my fashion student that I felt unappreciated and as if she was walking all over me. I realise now that the collaboration is over that I have had completely the wrong attitude. I needed to be more demanding and express my concerns. Nevertheless it is done with now, and it has certainly taught me that I need to be more vocal in the future.

I think for quite a few students on the graphic design course, the collaborative fashion branding brief was the most engaging and important brief of the entire three years. It's where they discovered a field of design that they love, something they might even consider exploring after graduation. As if everything fell into place and they had the perfect outlet for combing their love of type layout, branding and promotional product creation. This is not the case with me.

I would be lying if I said I did not enjoy the brief at all. I appreciate that it encouraged me to work in a way I would have previously ignored. I just felt stifled. I couldn't create products that where amazing because I didn't feel a connection to them. I didn't have a personal investment and in turn could not get excited about all the possibilities. Perhaps it is shallow of me to say this, and I should be driven by something more than my subject matter. But if I plan on achieving my goals of working within the entertainment industry then I can no longer come to creative compromises.

In hindsight I probably shouldn't have picked this brief. I should have told Samantha, the fashion student, that I had no interest in her collection and creating a brand for her. But you live and learn. And it is nice to know that I'm not a one trick pony. I can apply myself to other creative fields if necessary.