OUGD505 - Brief 02 - Reflection on Responsive

As part of responsive, I completed the D&AD Monotype brief, which asked me to produce a ‘call to arms’ campaign, promoting a cause/issue completely of my own choosing that I felt strongly about. The cause could be personal, local, national or global, which got me to think closely about products, their range and the distribution. The issues I explored for the Monotype brief were issues that I could have easily extended into this brief, however, I am really pleased I decided to pursue other concerns and areas of research. The topic of food waste is highly relevant currently and is something I have always been aware of and have strong opinions towards. I saw this brief as the perfect opportunity to explore these issues much further whilst exploring new territories within my own graphic design practice that I have developed an interest in throughout level 05.  

The Monotype brief prepared me well for 505 as it got me used to creating issue orientated design as well as thinking thoroughly about target audience and production methods. It also prepared me to think deeply and explore a product, its range and its distribution in a more critical way that ever before. I applied a lot of the skills, design and research processes I acquired throughout the responsive module to 505, which I feel put me at an advantage. 

I interpreted 505 brief 02 in quite a serious way from the beginning, because I realized that this would allow me to actually achieve something positive, rather than producing polished, aesthetically driven pieces of graphic design that have little ethical meaning. I knew from the start I wanted to make something with instant impact and relevance, rather than something that could come off as superficial. Usually, I like to approach briefs in a highly abstract  and conceptual way and think about how far away from the brief I can take myself. However, with this brief, I knew I wanted to produce a body of work that would have the potential to instigate very real, very positive social and environmental change., rather than something that designers would fall in love with for the sake of the design. I wanted to focus on a contemporary issue that I felt really needed addressing and that is why I chose to tackle issues associated with food waste.