Koorosh Norooziexternal positioning

I have a real passion for typography and this is reflected in much of the work I create. I believe that typography is the most significant thing in a piece of design and therefore I always make sure I carefully consider typefaces and how they can be used to communicate an idea.

My other areas of interest are in branding, commercial design, logo design and print. I like much of my work to be simpled and refined as I feel this is the most successful way of communicating to an audience.

Despite this however, sometimes I enjoy experimenting with print and the unpredictability of it. Letterpress and lino printing in particular are a major part of my practice and the whole process that is undertaken to achieve the final outcome is enthralling and satisfying for me.

The way in which I work and the work I carry out has changed and adapted over the last few years and will continue to change after graduation. This Venn diagram shows the work I did in my first two years, along with the work I do now and how I see myself working in the future.

The work I did in the first two years was very much dominated by my independent work. I experimented a lot with typography (including making my own typeface), print, photography and set a lot of my own briefs and restrictions. I also did a small amount of freelance work including the PaperCo competition brief and leaflets for a client which

overlapped with my independent work. At this point I hadn’t done any kind of work placements or internships and wasn’t working anywhere in the industry. This was a major gap which I had to fill.

If you compare that Venn diagram to the diagram of how I work now, you can see there is a major increase in the amount of freelance work I do and there is now a small amount of industry/job work in my practice. The increase in the amount of freelance work I do is down to the fact that I now do competition briefs such as the RSA and ISTD ones, in addition to some freelance designs for a client I know. The industry work comes from the work placement I did during the summer at a golf company creating leaflets, letterheads and business cards.

In terms of where I see myself in the future, I would like my job to be the major part of my practice, but I would also like to do a small amount of my own independent work focusing on my interests along with a bit of freelancing on the side. I would like to be working for a relatively small company who specialise in branding, commercial work and design for print, such as Branch or FIJ Design. I think it is important for me to keep an element of independent work so that I can keep my identity as a designer and experiment with concepts and ideas that I might not neccesarily be able to in my job.

This portfolio shows how I have, and will continue to, position myself externally in the design industry.

introduction

independent

Freelance

Industry/job

Then now

future

analysis of my work

The Rag Factory exhibition at the end of year two gave me my first opportunity to get my work out in the industry and make contacts.

I was given the chance to display a couple of my letterpress prints that I had been experimenting with that semester as part of my independent practice.

The whole process of letterpress print is something that I find extremely enjoyable and fun to experiment with. These were my first real attempts at letterpress printing and the interesting and varied outcomes really encouraged me to continue with print.

I first became interested in print and letterpress print in particular at the beginning of the second year when I came across some of Graham Bignell’s work. This led me to visit his studio in London where I spoke to him about the letterpress process and started really becoming interested in doing some

of my own prints. Unfortunately, he was very busy at the time so the opportunity to do some work at his studio was not there, although I would still like to do some work at his studio in the future.

The Reverting to Type exhibition at Bignell’s studio a few months later really inspired me and gave me lots of the ideas for my own prints.

At the time, I made these prints just as a form of experimentation into a technique that I had been wanting to explore for a while. When I realised I could show them in an external exhibition, it made me think about pushing it further and adding a context, a purpose for my prints.

The content for these prints were inspired by some of the work that I had seen at the Reverting to Type exhibition in which overused phrases or clichés were used to great effect. These phrases I had found online and thought they were quite intriguing and thought-provoking.

rag factory

The Rag Factory exhibition was my first real opportunity to get my work out into the industry and initially, I was just pleased and excited that my work was being shown to an external audience.

I was slightly under prepared for the exhibition in the sense that the letterpress prints I had created were my first real experiments with the process and I hadn’t really considered the purpose or audience of them.

Nevertheless, the exhibition was a success and I sold six prints to Sally Mackerell from Start Creative Limited and this was not only a

surprise to me, but made realise the opportunites I could have in selling my work.

What this also made me realise however, was that I wasn’t really prepared when it came to speaking to someone from the industry. I was unsure of what to say and didn’t have any business cards that I could give out for contact. This got me thinking about creating an identity for myself including business cards but also made me think about memorising some kind of speech or sentence that I could say that really informs people about my interests and reflects my passions.

rag factory

Following on from my success at The Rag Factory at the end of the second year, I went into the summer feeling the need to get myself out in the industry and gain some essential experience.

I put together a portfolio of work and emailed around to a number of design agencies I had identified who I thought suited my style and would benefit from having me there. I received feedback from some companies saying they didn’t have any opportunities and others didn’t reply, however I did manage to secure a placement at the company my Uncle works for.

It wasn’t the design agency that I had been looking for, but it was a good chance to do some creative work for a company and gain some important experience from it.

The company is called PBDS which

is a broadcasting and digital media solutions company based in West London, but it also works with the Playgolf group. Playgolf is a subsidiary of Wescom Group which is an international company which specialise in the leisure and media sectors.

The majority of the work that I had to undertake was for the golf company Playgolf, although I did create designs for both PBDS and Wescom Group.

Wescom Group and PBDS are quite serious and formal companies and therefore the work that I had to produce had to reflect this. Whereas, Playgolf is more informal and uses a less serious approach to encourage people of all ages to play golf. The work I had to carry out was all commercial and suited the kind of area of design that I would be looking to get in to after graduation.

work placement

VIP INVITATION

27th September 2011

Leatherhead Golf Club has over a 100 years’ worth of heritage and is set in Surrey’s fi nest mature parkland. Now under the new ownership of Playgolf World; Leatherhead Golf Club is to set to be biggest story in the South. You are cordially invited to fi nd out what everyone is talking about and play the picturesque course.

Itinerary

9.00 Registration and buffet breakfast10.30 Shotgun start15.30 3 course lunchPaul Way former Ryder Cup winner will be our guestThe full format of the day will follow

R.S.V.P to Tim Lowe: tim@lgc-golf.co.uk

Kingston Road, Leatherhead, Surrey KT22 0EETel : 01372 843 966 Fax : 01372 842 241

The was a direct mail leaflet I designed for Playgolf. It was sent out to VIP guests of Leatherhead Golf Club inviting them to a special event.

I was given quite a bit of freedom in the main designing of this leaflet, but I had to make sure it reflected Playgolf ’s ethos and also appealed to the target audience.

The target audience was predominantly males over the age of 40 who play golf so I felt my design had to have a classic and traditional design, but also with an element of simplicity and refinement that reflects my style of work.

I think the design works well to fulfill its purpose and although I was given the imagery and logos to use,

everything else was designed and formatted by me.

In terms of the way in which I worked, I was given the briefing and what kind of thing was expected, and then I went about creating a few different designs to report back with and whichever one was favoured most, I tweaked and perfected. I always made sure I gave my opinion as to which design I felt worked as I wanted to keep my identity as a designer. I still wanted my work to reflect my personal style of strong typography, simplicity and a sense of refinement.

This is the kind of commercial work that I could see myself doing in the future and appeals to the way in which I like to work.

work placement

These business card and letterhead designs are a couple of other projects I did during my work placement.

The Wescom Group designs were fairly basic designs which didn’t give me much freedom to experiment with. The company were quite sure of what they wanted in terms of style, placement and layouts and although I was creative with the watermarked logo, I didn’t feel like my identity as a designer was put across in this design. However, I still put everything together, formatted everything and perfected the designs.

The Playgolf designs were much more enjoyable for me to create. Playgolf is not as formal as Wescom Group and there was more freedom in the designs, which meant I could be more creative.

I think the business cards in particular work really well, with the logo dominating the front and orange box to tie in with the logo colours. I was still restricted in some senses, as they wanted certain

typefaces used, and other parts of the design were changed slightly to their request and not neccesarily to my pleasure. But this was my first real experience in dealing with clients and it made me realise that sometimes sacrifices have to be made to please the client.

This element of restriction in my creative flair is something that I didn’t particular enjoy in this work placement. Sometimes I felt the work I was producing was getting tweaked and changed to a point where I wasn’t happy with it and felt my identity was being lost.

It made me consider about the kind of job role I would be looking for a bit more and if I really wanted to lose some of my identity doing fairly mundane, commercial work.

Although a little frustrating at times, the work placement gave me a great experience working with clients and made me realise that sacrifices have to be made sometimes. Ultimately, I came out of this experience still wanting to do a commercial work but maybe not just solely this kind of work.

work placement

Westgate House, West GateEaling, London. W5 1YY. UKTel +44 (0)20 8601 4550Fax +44 (0)20 8601 4559www.wescomgroup.commail@wescomgroup.com

With compliments

Westgate House, West Gate, Ealing, London. W5 1YY. UK

Tel +44 (0)20 8601 4550 Fax +44 (0)20 8601 4559

www.wescomgroup.com mail@wescomgroup.com

Registered Address: Fairman Davis, Crown House, 72 Hammersmith Road, Kensington, London, W14 8TH.

Company registration No: 5399724 VAT registration No: xxxxxxxxx

Playgolf Bournemouth · Riverside Avenue · Bournemouth · Dorset

BH7 7ES · United Kingdom · +44 (0) 1202 436 436

Registered Offi ce Address – Playgolf Bournemouth Limited, Fairman Law House, Park Terrace, Worcester Park, Surrey KT4 7JZRegistered in England No. 05598931 VAT Registration No. 946172117

www.playgolfworld.comanyone can.

Playgolf Bournemouth Riverside Avenue · Bournemouth · Dorset · BH7 7ES · UK · +44 (0) 1202 436 436 play@playgolfbournemouth.com Tg

anyone can.

FOR YOUTH SAKES E R V I C E S F O R Y O U N G P E O P L E

P R O V I D E D B Y Y O U N G P E O P L EFOR YOUTH SAKES E R V I C E S F O R Y O U N G P E O P L E

P R O V I D E D B Y Y O U N G P E O P L E

FOR YOUTH SAKES E R V I C E S F O R Y O U N G P E O P L E

P R O V I D E D B Y Y O U N G P E O P L E

During the summer as well as my work placement I also did a few other pieces of work for a friend of mine who runs a lot of sports and youth events.

I was asked by him to come up with a logo for his youth company and he asked for something quite fun and informal that would appeal to the younger generation.

I came up with a number of different designs and then showed him the best ones and then we narrowed it down to the one which we both think worked best. I had quite a strong influence in terms of the final design as I often feel there is one design which is best.

I took a good piece of advice from a visit to This is Real Art, which is that why which pitch a few different designs and ideas when one idea is always going to be the strongest. I started applying this ethos with this project and pushed my client towards the logo which I felt was the strongest.

The main logo is in purple and I used an informal and playful typeface for the main part of the logo which I feel appeals to the target audience. I also mocked up the logo in different colours to show how the logo could change slightly depending on where it was being displayed. I was aware that the logo would feature on the website as well as on promotional material such as t-shirts, leaflets and posters and wanted to show different colour schemes that could be adopted.

This freelance work is something that I enjoy doing and these kind of small scale projects allow me to be creative and come out of my comfort zone in terms of experimenting with typefaces and particular styles that I might not normally work with.

Freelance projects are something that I would like to continue doing alongside working within a design company when I graduate.

freelance work

A major source of my inspiration has been Anthony Burrill. His woodblock prints in particular have inspired me both in terms of the content and the form of the print.

Burrill’s woodblock printed posters were something that I first discovered last year when I first star ted to use letterpress and are still a major part of my research and reference now and for this project. His powerful phrases, strong typography and simplicity in his work emulates the work that I like to produce. There is an up-beat feeling and an element persuasiveness about his work that I am fond of.

When I created my letterpress prints for The Rag Factory, in terms of layout and design they were very experimental, Burrill got me thinking about using colour and made me consider the layout of

typography more carefully.

The way in which Burrill works is of interest to me as well. He is known in the design world for his innovative collaborations with friends and fellow artists, designers, print-makers and film-makers. This allows him to be free to be creative and fun with his work and create designs which interest him and not lose his identity doing repetative work for a company.

Whilst, I would like to work for a company doing branding, and quite commercial design, I would like to keep working on print-based work and would consider selling my work like Burrill or collaborating with other designers. This would allow me to keep working and experimenting with an interest of mine, print, but at the same time earn most of my money working for a design company.

Inspiration

These letterpress prints were initially just part of my independent practice experimenting with some ideas and layouts, but after I realised the chance to sell them at Handmade and Bound in November, I started thinking about the content more carefully.

The content came from my brainstorms and mind maps that I created from some research into the content. Whilst researching phrases in the weeks before this, I came across I really useful website called Etsy which sold, amongst many other things, letterpress prints. It features a wide range of prints ranging in style, colour, layout, typefaces and content and became a useful tool for me.

There wasn’t a particular theme across these prints, but I wanted phrases that were interesting and funny so that people would see them at the fair and be attracted and drawn to them. I was aiming for them to be sold so I didn’t want phrases that people wouldn’t relate to or find boring.

Much like The Rag Factory exhibition at the end of last year, Handmade and Bound gave me the opportunity to show my work externally, away from just tutors and classmates. This time however, the presence of people from the design industry was greater and I wanted to show as much of my printed work as possible.

Handmade & bound

With Handmade and Bound still in mind, I decided to come away from the A3 poster format that I had been printing on and try making something for a different function.

These prints were very much influenced by the work of Anthony Burrill that I have previously showed. The tall, condensed typeface printed black onto brightly coloured card is something that works really well.

Initially these cards were just an experimentation for Handmade and Bound however after the good

results that came out, I thought of the idea that I could use the ‘hello’ cards to send as a direct mail piece to agencies when applying for a job.

On my visit to This Is Real Art they said that sending something in the post makes a job application much more personal and makes you stand out from the rest. Therefore if I sent out letterpressed cards to companies when applying, this personal touch which could make all the difference.

Handmade & bound

I had created some lino prints for my independent practice so decided to try and sell them at Handmade and Bound. Lino printing is something I have done in the past and the varied outcomes and results that it produces can be very interesting. Not to mention the fact that you can be free and inventive when carving it out.

Again, like letterpress, I find the

process of creating the print is just as rewarding as the final outcome. The fact that no two prints are the same, gives each piece a sense of individuality and originality.

For the content I picked up on an interest of mine, football, and in particular, Manchester United. I took a particular line from a song of theirs and printed it. It wasn’t a theme that I had used before for any other prints

but had personal meaning to me.

I realised that in terms of selling to an audience, this particular print would only appeal to a small audience in terms of content, but I felt that the style and character of the prints could attract people to it; not to mention the fact that showing it meant I was again externalising my work.

Handmade & bound

These are some more prints that I made as part of my independent practice and decided to sell them at Handmade and Bound.

The use of brightly coloured paper is something that I have experimented with and found that whilst it can be highly effective, it depends on the colour of the ink used. I tried using red ink on blue paper for example on a couple of prints and the contrast of colours doesn’t work.

However, black ink on any of the coloured papers works much more effectively and conveys a stronger message.

The content came from a theme I was exploring as part of my independent work, which was ‘pub talk.’ I felt this kind of theme would appeal to a wider audience at the fair compared with the prints I made relating to football chants. I again went with a strong emphasis on my interest, typography, as I feel that this is the best

way of communicating a piece of design.

These prints were around A5 in size and looking back I could have maybe experimented with size more and taken more consideration in the use for these prints. For example, I could have made some kind of zine or book of printed material, with some kind of theme running throughout. This could have made them more appealing to people at the fair.

Handmade & bound

I submitted my letterpress prints and lino prints for Handmade and Bound and they were put up for sale at our UCA stool. Unfortunately, due to the amount of work that was submitted my work was rotated on display and didn’t sell.

However, I still took a lot of positives from the fair. Firstly, my work was still shown to lots of people from the industry and general public and I was able to see which pieces were more successful.

It also made me think about content more and having a purpose for the prints. Making prints less personal to me and instead picking some kind of theme could make them appeal more to my audience. I have to also consider my audience more and think about the exact audience I am

aiming for and what would attract them to my work.

This was the second time I exhibited some of my prints and I have found it a useful way of not only externalising my work but seeing how people respond to it.

I would like to continue to work with print and create pieces that could be exhibited or sold at fairs. However, it is something that I would like to do independently on the side of a main job in a design company, much like I showed at the beginning in my Venn diagram. It would be something that I do out of the enjoyment and pleasure I get out of print-making as it gets me away from the computer and enables me to learn about typography through handmade craft.

Handmade & bound

One of the ways in which I have developed my work to contain more freelance work, is by doing more external, competition briefs. I had previously entered the PaperCo brief and really enjoyed it so decided to enter two this year.

I chose brief A: Social Mail, from the RSA student briefs which gave me the task of making a set of stamps to ‘celebrate and encourage the art of letter writing.’

As with any brief I get, my first task is always research. I started looking at books, stamp collections, websites and books and picked out a number of innovative designs which appealed to me and my design style. Typography and simplicity are always key elements of the way in which I

work and I wanted to reflect this when working on this brief. Consequently, much of my research consists of stamp designs that have a strong emphasis on typography and are simple and refined.

I particularly like the postage stamps in the top left-hand corner which are purely typographic. They come from a designer called Neil Martin who created them in answer to a Royal Mail brief about energy consumption. The simplicity of the design works well and the prominence of the typography communicates successfully.

This gave me an idea of doing a set of designs which are purely typography-based as that could be the best method of fulfilling the brief.

rsa stampsResearch

As the brief was asking me to create a series of six stamps that work individually and as a set, much of my research focused on examples of sets of stamps. These sets often have re-occuring themes or styles that make them work together.

This research started making me think about what method I could use to create the stamps. For example, I could create something digital with typography, or a series of photographs, or simple drawings or even something print-based like I did with my letterpress prints.

I am not particularly fond of photography, but these designs of iconic, London landmarks such as the routemaster bus or telephone

box look really powerful and effective on simple white backgrounds. It made me consider photography as an option.

This stamp brief was a new challenge for me because it gave me a different kind of design problem. Usually I design to larger formats such as A3 or A4 for example, but this time I was creating a design for a small stamp. This meant I had to consider not only what kind of design works best in terms of fulfulling the brief, but also what design is going to be legible and communicate best at such a small scale. I had to think about the size and clarity of both text and image in my design.

rsa stampsResearch

One thing that is important in the way in which I work is the need for brainstorming and sketches. After my research I just write down any ideas or thoughts that come into my head and develop them from there.

I draw fairly small-scale sketches of my ideas which I think could work to get a rough idea of how they could look. I find this an important method of dealing with a brief.

An idea I came up with for the RSA brief is to create a series of stamps featuring items that are associated with letter sending such as pens, paper and letterboxes. I thought

they could be represented through either really simple drawings or photographs with the imagery alone communicating the idea.

Another idea that I considered was a purely typographic set of stamps featuring words or phrases that would entice people to send letters. The typeface would have to clear and concise so that even on a small scale, the stamps would still communicate the idea.

At this stage it was just a case of getting some ideas and concepts together and experimenting with what would work best.

rsa stampsideas/sketches

One of my ideas I decided to experiment with was the idea of creating a series of photographic stamps showing things related to sending a letter.

I thought that I could entice people into sending letters by showing warm, appealing photos of the objects. The photos had to be quite strong and powerful as they would have to communicate the message on their own without text.

I did a couple of shoots and experimented with different angles and lighting to make the images seem more dramatic and

thought-provoking. I think the black and white images work slightly better then the colour ones as they seem to add more character and originality.

At this point, this was just one idea that I wanted to try out as I thought photography could work well. I was also looking to create some stamps using text only to see which medium was more effective.

Photography isn’t a major part of my work, but is something I have done a lot of in the past and I will continue to use in my work in the future as it can be very powerful.

rsa stampsphotographs

These are two sets of mock-ups for the RSA stamp Social Mail brief.

I haven’t decided on a final design yet but these show progression on how I have worked towards achieving a final outcome.

After taking the photographs I previously mentioned, I selected the images which I felt worked best and were the most enticing. I then edited them to fit within the restrictions of a stamp.

I chose the 41x30mm stamp size as I felt the rectangular shape allowed a good amount of space for the photographs to fit.

I first used the black and white photos and made the Queens head red to stand out from the rest of the imagery; a design element I came across in my research. I think they work quite well but I wasn’t sure if they were warm and personal enough.

I then tried to add warmer shades and tints, such as reds and oranges to the photos to make them seem more inviting. I think they work slightly better in terms of fulfilling the brief but I still intend to work on them some more to get them right. I have thought about using text on them to really communicate the concept better.

rsa stampsmock-ups

Personal

Warm

Friendly

Thoughtful

Special

Initimate

Personal

Warm

Friendly

Thoughtful

Special

Initimate

Here I explored the idea of using purely typography based content for the design of my stamps.

I brainstormed words that could be associated with letter writing, things that could celebrate and encourage letter writing. Words such as ‘personal’ or ‘intimate’ that could appeal to both young and new generations of stamp collectors.

The brief states that it wants an ‘innovative response that goes beyond conventional treatments and styles’ and some of my earlier research had shown some recent innovative designs based on the prominence of strong typography.

I chose a nice, clean, Gill Sans Light Italic typeface that is clear and precise yet still elegant. The colour scheme came from a colour wheel in my research that showed warm colour shades. I wanted warm and inviting colours that would stand out even on a small scale.

My only real concerns with this design was if the writing is legible enough from a long distance and if the words alone communicate the message well enough.

I tried to solve one of these issues by adding some simple imagery of letters to add some clarity, but at this point I am still working on improving this design.

rsa stampsmock-ups

A way in which I have developed my freelance work is through more competition briefs. In addition to the RSA one, I have also been working on one for the International Society of Typographic Designers.

I chose to focus specifically on a typographic brief because typography is one of my real passions and interests in design and I felt it would be a good chance to demonstrate my skills. It would also mean at the end of it I would have a strong typographic piece of design to show employers.

I chose the ‘putting on a fresh face’ brief which challenges students to refresh the visual identity of the brand through a solid idea that communicates well and is mainly typographic based.

I star ted by researching the ISTD and exactly what they do, their views and the way in which they present themselves as a society. I looked at their existing brand and logo and star ted brainstorming and sketching any ideas that came into my head.

The main aim of the society is to ‘inform, create and inspire interest and typographic communication to the widest possible audience,’ so when refreshing the identity of the ISTD I knew I had to appeal to a wide audience of people.

I sketched out some initial ideas and thought about the idea of bringing the brand into the modern era with a creation of a mobile app. It’s is an idea I am working on and considering how it could work but would be a good way of refreshing the brand.

istd ideas & research

istdistd istd

istd istd istd

istd istd istd

These are some logo experiments for the ISTD ‘putting on a fresh face’ brief. The briefs’ aim is to refresh the visual identity of the society and this includes the logo. At this point I am still at a experimental stage of working but these ideas show my progression on the brief.

After some research, ideas and sketches, I decided to experiment a little with the existing logo to see if I could make it more interesting and enticing. I was thinking of the idea of just revising the existing logo slightly to see if I could create more of an impact with it.

I have tried out a few different

typefaces including Gill Sans and Helvetica and feel that getting the typeface right will be the most important part of the logo. The brief is a typographic brief and is meant to demonstrate my typographic skills so I will spend some more time continuing to experiment with this aspect of the brief until I feel the outcome is as good as it can be.

When re-designing the logo I am considering where the logo will be displayed and in what context. For example, on the website, journels or newletters, this is so I can make sure the refreshing of the visual identity will communicate across all these forms of media.

istdexperiments

istd istd

istd istd

istdistd

International Society of Typographic Directors

istdistdistdistd

These are some further logo experiments for the ISTD brief.

After creating some visuals of how a revision of the existing logo might look, I started creating designs for a total refreshing of the identity.

The brief states that there would have to be strong supporting material to show reasoning for a new logo. So I am aware that if I did decide to go ahead and totally re-design the logo, I would have to have a good idea to support it.

An idea I had is to create a new logo and identity for the society that makes it more appealing and relevent in modern society. This would include a new visual indentity that would work alongside websites such as Twitter and

Facebook and an introduction of a mobile App. The logo would therefore have to be more innovative and exciting but also represent a strong typography element that would help to inform, inspire and create interest in typography across a range of audiences.

These are initial ideas that I am developing but are a good platform to start with and enable me to see what kind of typefaces, layouts and colour schemes communicate best. I am continuing to develop this brief so that at the end of it I will have a strong typographic piece of work that demonstrates my skills to potential employers.

istdexperiments

As I showed in my Venn diagram at the start of my portfolio, in the future I see myself working for an agency full-time, doing a small amount of freelancing on the side and then practicing some of my own independent projects.

I have researched into the kind of company I would like to work for and narrowed it down to agencies which specialise in branding, commercial design, logo design, design for print and signage. I have also research a couple of letterpress studios as I would like to have an option of possibly working in a letterpress studio doing collaboration work and one-off designs.

The reason why I want to go into these areas of design, is that I enjoy creating quite commercial work and designs for print such as business cards, leaflets and posters. My work experience enabled me to create this kind of work for a real client and was something that was highly beneficial in shaping a path for my future. I also have a passion for typography and I would be able to

demonstrate my typography skills in this kind of work.

I have created this piece of information graphics as a way of showing in a clear, concise way, specific examples of agencies and what areas of my interest they fulfill.

You can see from the information graphics that most of the companies work in the same kind of areas and although some might have different ways of working, or have slightly more emphasis on a specific area, they all appeal to me.

The agencies that I have researched are all relatively small design agencies in London as this is where I see myself working. I feel that by starting out in a relatively small agency, I will be able to learn from other designers and develop my skills more.

The only problem with working in a small agency is that positions and vacancies won’t come up very often so it is vital that when they do, I have a portfolio of work that stands out from the crowd and appeals to the agency I apply to.

Industry research on companies

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industry research - my areas of interest & the companies that I have indentified

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BranchBelieve that the key to good design and communication is simplicity.

Services include identities, branding & strategy, design for print, web, art direction and advertising.

Clients range from small start up businesses to multinational companies.

Small team of 7 people.

RequirementsStrong, interesting pieces of work with an emphasis on branding, indentity and simplicity. Strong typography work.

BCMHGraphic design company specialising in visual communications and creative strategies for brands.

Clients include record companies, PR agencies, luxury hotels, property developers, fashion labels, furniture brands, architects, galleries and cultural institutions.

They work with them to create incisive approaches for commercial communications and brand development.

RequirementsFocus on branding and creative answers to briefs. Thinking a bit differently to create a creative solution. Strong use of typography.

Further research on companies I would like to work for, what areas they specialise in and what kind of skills/knowledge I would require.

LollipopDesign agency that offer a complete graphic design service dedicated to making your ideas come to life with distinct and effective communications.

Team consists of both agency professionals and design consumers giving them the unique experience to understand your business needs while delivering inspired designs.

Their motto is “We design to help you make money”.

RequirementsCommercial work, examples of identity, advertising work. Demonstration of creative work.

400400 is a leading London based branding and design consultancy dedicated to delivering strategic and creative solutions that stand out from the crowd.

They are a specialist team of intelligent creatives with bags of experience, a natural inquisitiveness and a passion for fi nding the best possible solutions to the most challenging questions.

RequirementsWork which shows innovative solutions to design problems. Work that stands out from the crowd.

BlackfoxBlackfox Media is a full-service creative design agency.

A small team with BIG ideas. Size and location mean that they are able to give clients the attention they deserve at very competitive rates.

Set out to understand your business in order to create marketing solutions that are not only stunning but also incredibly effective.

RequirementsCommercial, branding work which is original and shows attention to detail.

Richard P ChapmanA team-based consultancy offering high-quality design that identifi es and works for the end-user fi rst and foremost.

Clients are hugely wide-ranging and include diverse industries.

A small team of just four designers.

RequirementsStrong typography and branding pieces of work demonstrating qualities that I could bring and my own unique style.

A Fish in the SeaAn experienced graphic, logo and web design company.

An innovative graphic design, web site design and logo design company.

RequirementsExamples of logo design, branding and commercial-style work.

Logo Designs WorksA small company with years of experience creating logo designs and web designs for small businesses, consultants, universities, restaurants, retailers and even the US government.

Focus on logo design and web design.

RequirementsStrong examples of logo design, and some knowledge of web design would make me more desirable.

Four Letter WordSmall agency which deals with Rebranding, Corporate identity, Corporate literature, Brand development, Property marketing, Interior design, Restaurant branding Website and multi-media.

RequirementsShow a good sense of communication in design, clear examples of branding and refi ned pieces of design. Attention to detail in typography.

Cog DesignA team working with clients in the cultural sector, creating stunning, engaging, intelligent design that inspires audiences, provokes action and delivers results.

Branding, print, brochures, identity are its main focus.

RequirementsThought-provoking, inspiring design that communicates. Work that is a little bit different.

KD WebBranding, logos, design for print, web design. Focus is on web design.

RequirementsSome knowledge and work in web design specifi cally and branding.

AcuityPrimarily a family of close knit designers. Skills range extensively across website design, graphic design, logo design, illustration and marketing; enabling them to more than satisfy clients with a range of design requirements.

RequirementsShow my qualities. Typography, simplicity, refi ned designs. They have designers with different strengths.

DogstarFor over 15 years now, they have been solving communication challenges for commercial, non-profi t and public sector organisations. Work includes: strategic counsel and branding, to graphic design, advertising and marketing campaigns, even internal communications and digital media.

RequirementsEye for detail, passion for design, range of design skills, ideas as well as design skills, strong typographic skills.

To The PointSimplicity in design, concise, clear way of working. Suits the way in which I work. Team of 14 with a focus on branding & indentity.

RequirementsTalented designer with a range of skills. Focus on simplicity and refi nement to appeal to the way in which they work.

Logo Design LondonDesign agency based in London focusing on logo design, as well as branding.

Experienced agency creating commercial design.

RequirementsExamples of logo design and branding. Would have to show innovative, effective logos and state what qualities in terms of logo design I could bring.

New North PressLetterpress studio creating individual, original designs ranging from business cards, to posters and banners.

Small studio run by Graham Bignell.

RequirementsUnlikely to be any full-time positions, but could be the chance to do collaborations or one-off pieces. Would have to show a passion and interest for typography and examples of my previous prints. s

This is another piece of information graphics showing my research into the kind of design agencies I would like to work for, but this time it shows in more detail what the agency specialise in, their way of working, and the kind of requirements needed for me.

What this piece of research shows that my previous one didn’t, is the particular gaps that I might have in my practice that I need to fill in in order to make myself more employable to these agencies.

For example, KD Web are an agency who work in branding, design for print and logos, but they

specialise in web design. Therefore if I wanted to really appeal to them and give myself the best possible chance of working for them, my portfolio should demonstrate and understanding of web design.

Web design is something that many of these agencies that I have identified work with in one way of another, and although not all these agencies will want an all round designer for everything, having a knowledge and understanding of web design will make myself more desirable. So web design is an area that I have recognised as a gap in my work that I need to fill.

further Industry research on

companies

As I previously mentioned, and as my research shows, I would be looking to work in a relatively small design agency which specialises in branding, commercial work, design for print and logo design.

I would like to take on a junior role in one of these agencies as opposed to a freelancer or anything else. The reason for this, is a full-time junior role would enable me to work closely alongside existing, more experienced designers who could teach me certain skills and help me develop as a designer. I would benefit from work day-to-day with a design team and this would be good motivation for me to work hard and become a more polished designer.

If I was to take on a freelance position in an agency where I just came and did one-off projects,

possibly something showing my typographic skills, it wouldn’t be as beneficial for me in terms of learning from other designers.

Small freelance projects for clients is something that I want to do, but I think it is important for me to work alongside a design team day-to-day in the first few years of my career in order to develop my skills.

Furthermore, after my work placement in the summer, I realised that sometimes work can become a little bit tedious and when a client kept coming back to me changing things, I felt like I was losing some of my identity as a designer. I think doing small, independent projects based on print and typography specifically, is something that I will continue to do in the future.

Industry research - kind of role

From my research, I realised that many of the agencies I have looked at are made up of a design team that have a variety of different skills.

For example, Branch design studio in London are made up of a team of six, and the skills and roles of each person are very different. There is Paul Ellerker at the top who is the managing director then there is a web designer, consultant and various others who specialise in a particular area of design, including a typographer.

Therefore, whilst I want to possess as many skills and qualities as possible, and fill in the gaps in my practice such as web design, I think it is important that I demonstrate my own style and what I can bring to an agency.

There are designers with different strengths in a lot of the agencies I have researched, so I need to make sure I show mine.

So when it comes to putting a portfolio together for showing the industry, I have to make sure it reflects my strengths in typography, simplicity and refinement in design. I must also make sure this work communicates well, as this is key when it comes to design.

As a result, over the next few months I will be making sure I create work which represents me, my strengths and my style of working. This is because when it comes to selling myself to an agency, I don’t just want to say I have strong typographic skills for example, I want to have the work to support it.

Industry research -showing my skills

One thing I realised after The Rag Factory at the end of second year, was that I need some kind of indentity and form of contact as a designer. A way of promoting myself.

I came up with this logo for myself that gives me a brand that I can use on business cards, websites and any other material.

I wanted the logo to demonstrate me and the way in which I work. I like using strong typography with simplistic design elements and I this logo emulates this. I have used my initials in a simple typeface called Akko Pro Light which is a typeface that I am very fond of.

I have placed the initials in a black circle with a white, then black border on the outside to create a simple, yet effective logo. There is a precise and clean finish to the logo which demonstrates the kind of design I like to do.

I kept the logo black and white as I feel if I had added colour, some of the simplistic beauty of it would have been taken away.

I have also created some business cards that I intend to get printed so that I can hand it out at exhibitions and fairs and build up some contacts in the design industry.

My next step is to work towards making my own website where people can see the work I have done, contact me, and learn more about my practice.

These tools are important for me as they will allow employers to see my qualities and what I can bring to them. They could also help me to get commissioned to do the freelance work that I want to on the side of a full-time job.

my logo

KNKN

KN Koorosh NorooziGraphic Designer

07891621952kooroshnoroozi@hotmail.com

kooroshnoroozi.tumblr.com

I have indentified the areas of design that I would like to go into and realised that there has been one or two gaps in my work.

Over the last couple of years I have been attending various workshops in order to widen my skills and knowledge of design.

The letterpress induction workshop that I attended in January last year

was one of the most important for me. It enabled me to experiment with letterpress printing, a method of print that I had been keen to use for some time.

Letterpress printing allowed me to come away from digital design and approach typography in a much more hands-on way. I have learnt a lot about typesetting and letterforms my physically adjusting

the type, it has given me a greater understanding of typography. Also the characteristics you get from print are interesting and no two prints are ever the same, this is another quality that attracts me to letterpress.

In terms of helping me within the industry, letterpress has opened my mind up to doing more freelance work or projects, or even

collaborations with other letterpress printers. It is not something I would do solely, but would be something I could do in addition to a full-time job in a company. I would be doing it out of the enjoyment and fun I get out of it more than anything else.

workshops-letterpress

One of the things that I identified from my earlier research into the kind of companies I would like to work for, is that while I possess many of the skills required and have an interest in the kind of work they do, many of these companies deal with a fair amount of web design.

Web design is something that hadn’t really interested me at all before, but after realising a lot of companies will require some knowledge or experience of it, I have decided to try and widen my knowledge of it.

I have attended a couple of HTML workshops which whilst highly

confusing, it has helped me grasp a very basic understanding. I have only attended two, but it is a step in learning more about web design and I intend to do as much as I can over the coming months in preparation for finding a job.

Over the coming months I will continue to try and fill in the gaps in my practice, such as web design, and make myself more appealable to employers.

Also, as someone who works predominantly with typography and has a real passion for it, I will also be making sure I have the work that supports this view.

workshops-HTML

This portfolio shows the progress I have made in externally preparing myself for the design industry. I feel I have developed my skills and understanding of what is required and tried to fill in the gaps that I have in my practice.

I enjoyed displaying my letterpress prints in The Rag Factory exhibition and at Handmade and Bound and it was good to get my work shown to a wider audience that included people from the industry. Letterpress is something I will continue to experiment with because the physical process is fun and teaches me further about typography, but would be something that I do on the side of a full-time job in an agency.

The RSA and ISTD competition briefs are still ongoing and I will continue to develop the ideas and concepts. At the end of it I hope to have two great

projects that I will be able to show to potential employers, that demonstrate my typography and other design skills. The experience of working on external briefs also prepares for me the kind of briefs I will receive in the industry.

My research into the design industry has allowed me to indentify exactly what area of design I want to go into, what kind of companies work like this, what role I would require and what skills and work I would need to achieve this. I would like to work for a relatively small agency that specialises in branding, commercial work, design for print and logo design, and I feel that a full-time junior role would help me to develop my design skills.

I need to make sure I have a body of work that highlights my skills, particularly in typography, and I will continue to progress in this area.

I have also indentified certain gaps that I might need to fill, in particular the need to learn more about web design. I have attended a couple of HTML workshops in an attempt to do this, but will continue to develop this part of my practice in the future.

As I showed at the start with my Venn diagrams, currently much of my work is independent, overlapped with freelance and a small amount of industry work. However, in the future I want the majority of my practice to be industry-based, in the form of a job, with a small amount of independent work that allows me to experiment with typography and print, and a small amount of freelance work on the side. I think this portfolio shows how I am developing towards these targets and how I am positioning myself in the design industry.

summary/ from here onwards

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