Iain Budgen

Independent Practice

Active Research

When asked to think about my current practice, the core themes that was apparent was the confusion and hiding of messages. This series of images is in direct response to that, creating a isometric question mark and disguesing its shape and form. More importantly I wanted one image to directly sum up my work.

Core themes

Pastel ShadesGeometricsSocial conciousnessConfusion The isometric viewpoint is somewhat inspired by Mirai Mizue’s isometric animation video.

What do I represent?

This video was made in response to the 2nd brief. I didn’t feel like I wanted to do anything stop motion or with film and instead dabbled with flash again. I wanted something that conveyed a message about my work, hense the song choice (Shuffle on a dream - Little Dragon). The concept of this video is that the words reflect people, originally in wire frame form but then hide the identity with consumerism. They eventually try and revert back to their orginal form, but when they go back they are not the same as before. As to whether this video was successful, I think it is mixed, the visuals do not create a lasting impression and the messaged is lost with the flashing images. Had I had known the brief would be extended to two weeks I would have made it far more elaborate with full flowing animation and fleshing out the message a little more. I also think if I had skills to create this video in a different program other than flash the result would have been very different.A large inspiration was the Hype Williams directed ‘All of the Lights,’ video with its flashing text. and the colour scheme with geometric framworks owe credit to ‘Marvin Gaye and Chardonnay,’ also directed by Hype Williams.

Right - The original cast of letters created before the video. Collectively they all work quite well apart from the R, which in hindsight looks too fleshed out by comparison. Also possible oolour tweaks with the D possibly becoming pink.

Video work

Example screenshots of the video.Invidually the images stand out.

My last works had a strong focus on colour, with a colour scheme shunning black for pastel shades.. After looking at my old work I stripped back colour to the basic primary colours. They are all made with basic lettershapes, following a typeface I made a few years prior. This was the basis for the construction of these pieces. For intial simplicity it uses the RYB colour model as op-posed to CMYK or RGB to make the thought behind them instantly recognisable. The work is certainly vibrant, and hides the messaege of the pictures behind it. By limiting the colour scheme however it feels like there is only so much scope for invention and creativity, it comes across very primiatave.

Left - Love 2Below - Primary LoveBottom Left - HateAcross- Revenge

Basis of colour for active research partly inspired by Pard Morrison

Colour exploration

Thinking about how art and design can be considered time-less, I worked against this, looking at making something relevant and possibly even fashionable. Coming across this palette was a good basis to continue my work. I find it an interesting theory that essentially design can be retooled with the seasons to remain fashionable, no matter how iconic the image. The ‘revenge’ image (right), takes on a more mature tone when retooled in a different scheme. This idea of remixing and retooling an old piece has been inspired by not only the music world, but also by a forum memb er who remixed my old work. It showed me that work can be reintruptted in a different way.

Unless stated, the rest of the portfolio uses this colour scheme in an attempt to create consistency.

With this piece, I think it completely changes the tone, making it softer, even romantic.

Colour exploration

All the images previous all acontain a message, whilst this next series focuses on simple and repetitive pattern. I feel like this actually takes away from an interesting aspect of my work, and for that reason I revert back to becoming more cryptic. The colour again changes the perception of the images.

Above - Mmmm & Reflection RAcross - A pattern (Not using seasonal colours).

Colour exploration

This is to show my old process, and how I want-ed to do something with more purpose. Here in photoshop I would write what I intend to say.

Then I would pixelate it through the effects on photoshop, gener-ally fiddling around with the settings until I found something I liked, but with no real thought behind it.

The import into illustra-tor and live trace it, again messing with the settings until I found something pleasing. Statement (Right) was created using this pro-cess. But there is only so far it can be taken.

Design practice

An attempt to try and make something a little more substantial. This was not an inspired by anything but instead just to formulate an idea. Using a gridded system it is that simple. This was created working on the 8x8 gird on illustrator. It was the easiest way to create something tangible and believable in a short amount of time.As can be seen with the first draft, it was literally what was put down with little thought and consideration.The trouble is is that it does not seem interesting or particualry pleasing on the eye. Maybe it is the shape, there is a little variation and when looked at properly, it is difficult to read.The second version was a revised edition of the first, trying to mix up the shapes somewhat. The vowels are also a darker shade to try and differentiate be-tween the two. As a font it makes it a tad more effec-tive but only as an illustrative font. I don’t think it could work any other way.

Bottom Left - I speak with tongue 4Bottom Right - I speak with tongue 2

Just two attempts to see how it would function as a font. It looks kind of clumpy and unstructured.

Cryptic font creation

ab

xwvu

tsrqponmlk

jihgfedc

zy

This was two botched attempts to try and refine and develop my previous statement. The reasons they were largely aban-doned was because they were not very engaging image wise and looked almost arkward. The second typeface had a little more structure, built around illustrators grid system, no line could be more than three squares long. The trouble was with letters such as K or V, it would have meant breaking such a code. Strangely people have engaged with the first two version far more than the braille version. My braille typeface (Right) has been far more successful. Although a quick search online has shown it has been done before [2], I have yet to find an example that is not dot based. This is a digitalised version intending to confuse but with a ba-sic knowledge of braille should be easily understandable. In some ways this goes back on my basic premise to make it cryptic. For that reason alone it is better for me to create a new typeface from scratch.

Cryptic font creation

An attempt to make a cryptic text, beginning with a gridded system and drawing simple lines. The squares were created to differentiate the vowels from the rest of the alphabet. The second and third fonts are a refinement, trying to create a more consistent typeface taking into account lettershapes and form. The variation in shape was to try and create something more appealling when put into sentences. In a way it is kind of an evolution of the brail typeface made previously. However, some of the letters are intentionally close so that only someone with a close knowl-edge of the type could understand it.

Cryptic typeface exploration

Taking further inspiration from different cultures, this is a look at the structure of words and how we read them. Firstly instead of the text reading left to right, the text above reads right to left. Although the text is already illegable, it is a further attempt to encrypt the text.The image to the right takes cues from Chinese writing, with text scrolling down the page. As it is, the vertical text works much better than the right to left reading. Per-sonally it is much more pleasing to the eye. Maybe it is the imagery of the text. Also I feel it is much more convincing as a font in the real world.

Word structure

Furthering a certain interest in oriental culture, I took the constru-cion and layout of their signs and made a graphic interprutation us-ing my own font with the structure of the text going from right to left. I also drew on rememberance of childhood game ‘Wipeout 2097,’ and how the signs were represented there. Deep down there is an element of futurism there, the lines and angles. To a point even the colours. The general aim was to create something that noone has seen before in the graphic design world at least. Looking at signs has made me come to the conclusion that this font could be different each time, the context and legiblity could be down to the user. So although it is a digital typeface, it could be entirely organic.

Futurism & beyond

Love is cursed by monogamy (Left) is further exploration of the theme although I feel it is less successful. Personally there is something about the angle that is off. That being said, the colour scheme as selected previ-ously really pays off. Finding a fresh scheme has been a constant chal-lenge and something that has a lot of time put into it.

Just another girl spring colour 3 (Right) was created using the Pa-tone spring shade colour scheme 2012 (Left). Personally creating a font as it is it makes it easier to have a restrictive pallette to work from. In some respects, it spurs on more creativity, as I don’t believe some of these images would have been created as well as they have with no limitations.

Negative colourDeconstructionismThe deconstructionist trend in art was to question and to violate every con-vention and structure of classic art, to decontextualize meaning, and to dis-card or distort all the recognizable elements of classic art, such as form and perspective in the visual arts, melody and harmony in the auditory arts, plot and character in novels and plays, and rhyme and meter in poetry. Instead, these were replaced with irony and self-awareness, as novels referred to themselves as works of fiction, and paintings labeled themselves as works of art.

This is based around my dislike of using black in my work and on the sug-gestion during my critique I went against my will and explored the use of simple black and white. One thing I do like is how the words seem to just be suspended in nothingness and the focus is on them. It draws away from the largely visual approach I employed before. My favourite here is ‘Fucked by greed2,’ (Far right) working on a spotlight look. I think it is really bold and makes good use of the darkness. I wanted to punish the viewer with more than just breaking the code, but with com-plete distortion of the text.

Left to right:

Put the lights onThrough the light 1&2Fucked by greed 1&2

Evaluation

When I finished my second year, I still did not feel like I had a sense of indentiy as to where my work was going, and where I would fit into the graphic design world. To a point, I still don’t know, but I feel like I am get-ting closer to that point.This year I have become much more disaplined in my approach, I am aware of what style of work I produce and understand how it can evolve and change into something new. It can be organic and develop as my influences and interests change.The heart of it is still the same, I want to make personal work that is visu-ally stimulating to a wider audience whilst hiding litle messages for my-self. Throughout this portfolio, I have given the names of each piece of work not because I have to, but because I want people to be aware that this was what I was thinking and feeling at the time of creation. Hopefully it would give you a greater insight into my journey to this point.On the subject of approach, my approach to research and acknowledge-ment of sources has greatly improved. It has taken a while, but I realise that even little things could influence my work, and I have to sometimes sit back and acknowledge that. There is no shame in being influenced by the wider world. I still can see there is gaps in my knowledge, screen printing for ex-ample, would be a natural course of development for my current work. Working with a different program other than flash would have greatly improved the quality of my film. I don’t care for flash anyway but a result from an alternative program could be something far more refined. Overall I am happy with this development of my work, and I am happy with where my FMP is going to go. I’m glad that all this work has helped me get to that point, but also with a decent body of work to boot.

Castoffs

--------------LOVEISN’T

LOYALTY--------------

General castoffs:

Top left to right - OXO 1 & 2, Love isn’t loyaltyMiddle - Boreage, Love a good mindfuck 1 & 2Bottom - Love a good mindfuck final 2, Love is noise & Your friend

www.iainbudgen.gdnm.org@iainbudgen

iainbudgen@googlemail.com