tranlucie

[tranlucie]

Slunce / SUN

vychází a zapadá  každý den, když oči otevírám a zavírám Květiny 

každý den rozkvétají a v noci se choulí a usínají

Hvězdy

každý večer s Večernicí se pomalu rozsvěcují  na nebi 

A při Jitřence kdy ještě oči stále mhouříme pomalu blednou

Vstáváme Je další den..

Další den Kdy člověku něco schází

Rána která na srdci bolí

Tma v duši ve které hvězdy nevychází 

A svět Svět se stále točí  A Slunce! 

To stále svítí A hvězdy také A ta bolest a ta prázdnota

Ve mně ječí.

Ale svět.  Svět se stále točí. A točí. A točí... 

[tranlucie]

The flyer, front page

THE FINAL PITCH

Continuing to write about the brief that collaborates with graphic designers and illustrators, the University of Derby with the Derby museums and gallery. To remind you of the brief, you can take a look at this post. As illustrators (beginners), we do not have much skill with graphic programmes or printing since we create illustrations in an old-fashioned way. 

INTRODUCTION

We are students of the Illustration course at the University of Derby who collaborates with the Derby Museum and Gallery institution. In our second year, in the module Illustration: Connections, we were given a brief that unites the Derby museum’s collections.

The first part of the brief was to create a proposal for the given section of the museum. 

Our allocated space was a mummy’s collection on the second floor of the museums’ building.

The first thing that we focused on was to decide for which age group we are going to aim. We agreed on the childs’ age because mummies are, in general, something mysterious, and they arouse curiosity much more when you are younger. 

We decided to create a playful brochure for children in a cat sarcophagus shape that contains a wordplay for children, information about the exhibition and the map. The booklet is placed at the museum entrance in a cardboard in the mummy cats’ shape. 

Furthermore, we also considered an educational part that is an essential part of the museum idea, and we created an educational trail through the museum. 

The second problem was dealing with the collection’s visibility since it is a tiny room where the mummies are. The educational trail can solve the issue with visibility because it takes you little by little through the whole museum to the mummy’s room. 

Following this idea, we created cardboard that would, besides children, attract the attention of others. 

The second part was to create individual artwork for the deck chair. Considering how to attract people to the museum and the empty chair’s visual side and use, each of us made a unique pattern for the deck chair. The design is united by the colour palette and the symbol of the cat. 

We chose a cat as the main character of our proposal because cats are revered in Egypt, and in history, they were considered an object of reverence, fertility and wealth.

THE BOOKLET/FLYER

My part was to create a flyer that would include a wordplay, a small piece of information about the exhibition and the museum following the quiz. There is also a blank space for children to play with the medium of paper. They can draw their Mummyty design that will be exhibited in the museum. There is a page with a space to write comments about the exhibit, what can be improved and what they liked the most. 

(Back of the flyer)

It is a three pages folding booklet in the shape of a cat's sarcophagus. The first page is designed simply with a cat’s head and a simple design of the sarcophagus body. On this page I put on the left corner a mummyty cat that invites a visitor to follow her through the museum. On the right corner is Derby Museum’s logo. The second page contains information about the exhibit and the word search. On this page, you can find again a mummyty who is encouraging you to continue.

On the third page, we can find the quiz following the information on the previous page. The mummyty cat hides a hint. The correct answers are written at the end of the page. 

The back of the flyer is for the reminders and comments, for children’s design of their mummyty.

THE DECK CHAIR

My deck chair design shows a cheeky mummyty cat that encourages you to come and sit with her. The bandages that are around you are creating the effect of being wrapped. The colourful bondage above the cat is in the Derby museum’s colours. In the left corner, there is a Derby museum’s mockup. The apricot-golden background symbolizes a characteristic colour of Egypt, sand, pyramids, sarcophagus. 

[tranlucie]

DESIGN CONNECTIONS - EVENT

Debbie Longridge organised the event for the design connections module. The design connections event welcomed various artists, from illustrators to graphic designers and other creative design industries.

To be honest, I did not know many of the speakers as I do not have a wide range of knowledge about the British art scene. I do remember one of the speakers, Keith Cox from Bloc digital.

Keith formed Bloc in 2000. With a wealth of experience in technical illustration and programme management in the ever-evolving digital sector, he’s grown the company into one of the UK’s leading immersive digital technology studios, delivering cutting-edge digital visualisation, harnessing augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), web and mobile applications for global clients.

During the speak event, we asked a variety of questions. We were asking about the importance of CVs, portfolios, and the industry world experience. 

It was an exciting experience to have a chance to ask experienced people in the art field about crucial things.

[tranlucie]

Derby museum design sprint

An essential part of our Illustration connections module is a collaboration of the University of Derby with Derby museums and gallery. It means that we (illustrators) were in a group with graphic designers from the University of Derby, which is the first point of this brief. In the future, we will be working with different people from various fields, and we need to understand the collaboration between us. 

The second point of this collaboration is that we will have an opportunity to work with the significant institution in Derby.

Our brief was to raise the awareness of the museum, attract people to the exhibitions and discuss the value of the museum. 

The Derby museum promoted a great video, and virtual tour as the brief was due to COVID-19 online. The video discussed what has been a part of the exhibition.

THE VALUE OF THE MUSEUM

For me, the value of the museum these days are, in general, the value of the past. Not many people are aware of how history (past) influences our lives. The museums, books, and history should teach us and remind us of the great and the bad times and why horrible things were happening. We can learn from our mistakes. Even these days, we can see some of those mistakes repeating. Museums should also show us how life was before. It is a medium of educating. It is also something that can bring the culture closer to us. It is a necessary medium in our lives, I believe. 

Our allocated space in the Derby museum was the Mummies exhibition. Unfortunately, three people from our group did not attend, so we work as illustrators to

[tranlucie]

(Let’s ignore the fact that I was super lazy to translate the CV.)

HOW COMPLICATED THE CVs CAN BE?

One of the essential parts of a successful career for the artist is to have a progressive portfolio and CV. The portfolio shows your creative side, your inner voice; it stands out for your style. But is it enough to just have a creative portfolio?

The first thing that employer will look at is your CV. Debbie Longridge from the University of Derby career centre showed us how to create a great CV.

When I was about 20, I created my first CV, which was not good at all. There was no summary in the headline, lots of unnecessary information, no photo, and a horrible layout. The CV was for a part-time job in the café, so they did not pay too much attention to how it looked like and the only information that was enough for them was that I was working in a renomé café before.

Lots of my part-time jobs did not need the CV. They were all from people I knew.

Three years later, which is now, I got an opportunity to get an internship in the CZECHDESIGN agency. It is a group of artists, designers, fans of art, architecture, and design who keep an eye on the Czech design scene (and in the world). It is one of the most appreciate sites in Czechia to work for. And they were looking for internships.

I looked at my horrible CV, and I knew I have to make it shorter. The old CV got three pages. Now it got one and a half with the heading and a professional photo. I reduced the information and hobbies sections. I reckon that the best advice was from my good friend who is quite good at writing CVs and she told me that I should write mainly about my studies as I am primarily a student and not a full-time employee. I thought that I have to write about my work achievements, write in detail what I was precisely doing, etc.

In the end, they chose me for the internship, which made me happy. During the CV workshop, Debbie told us few tips that I already knew. But I realised some of the mistakes in the heading, which I changed and improved now. Also, I realised that the UK CV’s are pretty different from ours. Ours are very simple with a brief to summarise and with more contact information. But I may be mistaken because we were in this workshop supposed to look at some CVs and chose the best one. Unfortunately, it was hard for me because I did not like any of them.

In conclusion, spending your time (I spent the whole afternoon creating mine, and it paid off) working on the CV is essential as working on your portfolio. Give your best in it!

(Oh, and a small point from Czechia-Vietnamese point: in the West, people are likely to boast and say things that are not true, for instance, about their experiences. My good friend went to Canada a few years ago, and she is an architect. She was so pure with her CV that no one wanted to employ her. When she finally got a job in an architect’s studio, she realised that she is the only one who knows how to work with the rendering programme, unlike her colleagues who said they are good at it.)

[tranlucie]

PAST BRIEF

Postcards of Marta Kubišová ( 6 inch x 4 inch, paper, marker, 2021) 

[tranlucie]

PAST BRIEF

(Visual smog: Before and after communism in Czechoslovakia, collage, markers, pencils, 2021)

[tranlucie]

PAST BRIEF: Fall of the communist regime

Our first brief with Saskia Cameron, our lecturer of the module Illustration Voice, was to choose the historical event and illustrate it.

I chose The Velvet revolution in 1989. The research of the event includes symbols, main characters, lyrics and quotes of the Velvet Revolution, architecture and life during the communist era, postcards in the ‚80s, my photos of Czech natureI tried to look into the life full of persecution, censorship, the monotonous life of people and architecture, into the propaganda that responds to the first and second outcome. 

The first outcome is censorship of one of the most famous book by Milan Kundera, The Joke. Milan Kundera was a censored writer and a critic of the regime who emigrated to France. In the book The Joke, there is a passage of the main character who angrily writes a postcard to the woman he loves to make her angry (as she was a supporter of the regime). In the postcard is written: „Optimism is the opium of humanity! A healthy spirit stinks of stupidity! Long live Trotsky!“ which is an insinuation of the regime. 

The second outcome follows the monotonous life of the people who looked alike. The regime did not allow people to differentiate. The ones who were different were automatically considered as an enemy of the regime. Also, in shop windows, you can see the regime‘s propaganda (slogans: KSSS, CSSR-SSSR, Russian signs..)The third outcome is the postcards of Marta Kubišová, the singer who sang the song Prayer for Marta on the 17th November 1989. The song was a symbol of hope and peace in the country during the Revolution and is sang every year to mark the Velvet Revolution‘s anniversary. In the illustration you can notice that Marta‘s hair are composed by the song lyrics. This outcome also follow-ups the second-brighter part of the second outcome, which shows how West changed the appearance of architecture, lifestyle and fashion.

The first postcard symbolises the first Czechoslovakian president, Václav Havel. He was the main character of the Velvet revolution in 1989. He is also a founder of Občanské Fórum (Civic Forum, a political movement that was supposed to unify the dissident forces in Czechoslovakia and overthrow the Communist regime.) His most famous quote is, “Truth and love will overcome lies and hatred.” The second postcard contains the symbols of freedom in Czechoslovakia after the fall of the communist regime. On the third postcard, we can see blue carnations that serve as a reminder of devotion and true love. Though red carnations were symbols of the regime, I believe that this is a beautiful metaphor for how “bad things” can turn into good ones.

(Censorship, A3 paper, markers, pencils) 

[tranlucie]

Formative review

The article for the 6th blog post is about the formative review of John Thackara’s manifesto summary. 

From my perspective, I take work on my blog as a website where people can get to know something more about art, design and architecture. I did not take the blog as a personal one to express my opinions or feelings. 

My personality is quite expressive, and I am easily irritated. At least that is what my parents always told me. I take things seriously, and I know that my opinions can be sharp. It may be the reason why I do not like to express and explain my attitude and thoughts. So like my blog, working on complicated and severe topic is challenging for me. How to balance my fierce temper and stay diplomatic? 

Okay then, let’s be me. Let’s turn this blog in a bit different way. 

What offended me was the phrase “the blog feel like a cut and paste of found material”. As everything I have written in the article is interpreted from my perspective, I would not say that it was “a cut and paste” because you have to process the information. The other thing, I would say, is that I do have an awareness of cities and the environment where people do live, and by this awareness, we can improve our living qualities.

And this is my attitude: I observe, think, change, I do not talk too much. 

The last thing is that I divided the blog post into two. My manifesto stands alone. I did not joint it with Thackara’s article. 

I wanted to make my blog more observant than personal.

[tranlucie]

Inspirational Karrie Fransman

The following week a new guest lecturer was Karrie Fransman, a comics creator. She told us about her journey as a comics creator and how she finds comics as an underrated medium in a creative industry. She explained that comics are not only DC or Marvel but many variations of cartoons you can create. 

The variations can be seen in her diverse career, from graphic novels to collaboration with her husband to create virtual reality comics. Her drawing style is varied as her work. You can notice that some of her jobs were utterly different from her previous ones. Karrie supports us in developing different types of techniques, so we can be more employable. She keeps this statement by telling us that she needs to improve her typography to add it to her skill list. 

For me, the most successful of Karrie’s work is the book Gender Swapped Fairy Tales. It is a collaboration with Jonathan Plackett. The story tells classical fairy tales that were told to children a hundred years. Yet Karrie thinks that gender is something that should be discussed. She said that fairy tales should make the audience to ask unconscious biases. 

(Image from https://genderswappedfairytales.com/)

“Under every rock, I found dozens of my own unconscious biases, wriggling like carwings under the exposure.” - The Guardian

Gender is also a topic that we discussed in the previous semester in the module Art and Theory. We were questioned how illustrators can tackle gender fluidity. And I think that Karrie’s work is an excellent example of how we can work with genders in our work. 

After the presentation, we were given another mini brief: to build our own character and use our knowledge about comics and ‘sequential narrative.’ It is actually a bit challenging for me as I am used to retelling true stories. Still, I believe that after Karrie’s talk, I feel more confident in comics. 

The talk was very inspiring and cheerful for me. With every talk like this, I am gaining a broader view of the illustrator’s job.

[tranlucie]

1) Final  2&3) colourless attemps 4) coloured badge 5) detailed sketches 6&7) playing with typo

[tranlucie]

Ian Cherry talk + mini brief

At the Uni of Derby, we got opportunities to have a guest lecturer’s talk. Recently we had a guest who was Ian Cherry, the former Graphic Design and Brand Manager at the Derby County Football Club. 

(image: Ian Cherry’s Umbro Third Kit Launch 2019/20)

His speech was exciting as he had previously designed for Real Madrid and Manchester United football clubs. I was amazed because my brother and I are Real Madrid fans, I remember when I was in Spain, and I was buying some of those fan shirts with Ian’s logo.

He also talked about job fields where creatives could engage. It is beneficial for us, students of illustration and graphic design, who were unsure where to go after university. He gave us a couple of pieces of advice. 

Some of them are: 

To be ourselves 

To listen and understand the client

To follow a brief and be brave 

After the speech, he gave us a small brief: 

‘Create a unique team badge for a club, featuring your original bespoke typography inspired by the activity, people or attitude of the club. These designs may be hand-drawn or digital.

 You might wish to represent an existing club, or you may wish to respond playfully to the idea of a fake club, an outrageous society, or a hybrid of two existing ones (Hell’s Angel- Girl Guides).’

At first, I was unsure about this brief because I have never looked into typography deeply before. But surprisingly, it went quite well, though I do not know what would Ian think about it. 

I decided to make a badge for my favourite sport, which is Aerial Silks. It is not exactly for a sports team, but I believe it doesn’t matter. I tried looking into the fabric, figures and shapes of badges, then thinking about incorporating these elements together.

I wanted to make the typography airy as the sport is and fluid as the fabric. I believe that figures draw out the silks’ potential, so there is a figure called ‘Franklin’. Over the badge is used as a brush tool that creates a feeling of the sky.

In the next post, I will show you some of my attemps + sketches. 

xx Lucie

[tranlucie]

Networking

Debbie Longridge on Networking: Talk about your networks and discuss introversion and extroversion as a topic. How do you feel about this issue?

Examine the idea of making design/ illustration connections online in week 6.

Discuss the global connections that you could make and map these for us.

Me and Networking

I was lucky that in my 15 I have met one very interested guy in interior design and architecture. He took me into the art and design universe, and I was helping him with designing interiors. His name is Joseph, and he was attending an Interior Design Atelier at Scholastika.

At Scholastika, the lecturers were leading artists and designers in the Czech Republic. And so that in my 17, I started to attend a Fashion Design Atelier under the leadership of MgA. Alice Klouzká, PhD. Thanks to this opportunity, I got to know people from the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague, the Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design and other famous art universities. This was in my 17, a big thing.

After graduation, I hesitated between joint honours in the Czech language and literature + French philology and designing. It was tough because I attended 8 years a grammar school. Without any strong portfolio, I was not able to pass the entrance exam in Czechia. The entrance exams here are really hard. First of all, you need to pass with your portfolio. Then there is a knowledge exam about art history and design. And if you accomplish these two, you can go to ‘talent test’. That means you are 3-5 days in the atelier, and you are working on the briefs that lecturers give you.

In meanwhile, Scholastika became an accredited University for Graphic and Product Design. So I went there. I pass the exams, and I was there.

I would say that this was my starting point with networking. I got to know people from DolceVita magazine, photographers BoysPlayNice, recognized Czech designers and artists. And suddenly, I was surrounded by people not only from Prague academies but also from other universities.

When I think about networking, it makes me smile. Because thanks to my connections, I found an internship for my friend who studied Fashion Promotion in Milano. And so she helped me to get external work for a company with design furniture.

Extrovert or Introvert? For introverts, networking may be a bit tricky as we are mostly shy people. It is harder for us to speak to someone, especially when we know that something big may come. But I believe in a few rules that apply to both introverts and extroverts.

1)     You need to believe in your dreams

2)     Smile and be polite

3)     Know the questions you want to ask

4)     Think in the long-term

5)     Try to avoid small talk

6)     People often like when you compliment their work :-D

The first rule is written “to believe in your dreams” because I know that at first, it is hard to believe in yourself, your work, so the primal fuel has to be a dream that you believe in and you want to reach it. Other parts will slowly come during the time.

It is also worth to get to know people and their work when you want to approach them.

My friend is an extrovert, but she still has challenging times with networking. Because you always get nervous and I may be talking from the Czech point of view, it also depends on your experiences. You can have an excellent presentation of yourself. You can know tons of information about the person you are approaching, but nothing will replace experiences.

From my perspective, I believe that we all have the same starting position, no matter if you are an extroverted or introverted person. 😊

Global connections

Wow. So. It is a big piece of cake to get to know someone like REALLY famous.

I reckon that you must be really determined with approaching because only a few people will reply to you. My plan is to get to the design magazine and do interviews with people, haha, because it can be easier to approach people as an interviewer for magazines than a student.

To be honest, I don’t know who I would contact and why. It seems that it is in the future, and now I am focused on getting a place in one of these design magazines.

Currently, I am surrounded by architects whose ateliers are also world-wide known or at least foreign magazines talk about them. Does this count? :-D

(image: https://www.facebook.com/scholastikapraha)

[tranlucie]

Sustainability and complexity

(Illustration from http://thackara.com/place-bioregion/bottom-up-biodiversity/)

John Thackara is a British writer, public speaker and advisor. He is well-known for his sense of sustainability. With sustainability and John Thackara is connected to a project called 'Doors of Perception', which is, in simple terms, an eco-design conference that brought together grassroots innovators, educators, entrepreneurs and designers to build together a sustainable future for us. Each conference got its discussed theme. For example, in 1994, Smart Matter was about materials enhancing sustainability, comfort, and design together.

Two questions inspired Doors of Perception:

'We know what new technology can do, but what is it for?'

'How do we want to live?'

The first question is associated with Thackara's Manifesto #12, Articles of association between designers, human beings, and technology, published in 2007 in London. Manifesto #12 includes ten articles about the relationship between people and technology. 

(image from: http://cargocollective.com/) 

 Manifesto #12 demonstrates that creativity is within us, and technology (&devices) can help us develop it. Also, technology should have meaning, and we should not let technology get out of our hands. We are supposed to think about the impact of devices on nature by using them consciously. Furthermore, the manifesto reminds us that we should not simplify complex things we are likely to do due to technology innovations.

About complexity Complexity is all around us and is closely connected to sustainability. For instance, public spaces and urbanism. How many times did you stop and thought of this bench here and not over there, is there enough green vegetation?

It may seem like a sure thing having this same bench under the same tree, and you may never think about it, but behind it is much more. Here are a few factors that can influence how the final form looks like:  - We all are using public space, and we are responsible for how it looks (rubbish, graffiti) - We can participate in negotiations with the municipality (you can have a vote on reducing parking places in public spaces and on increasing planting trees there) - How to maintain public space? E.g. retention basins that can retain rainwater that can be reused (watering, flushing) 

A great book about public spaces is Cities for People by Jan Gehl. (Image: https://theglobalgrid.org/)

See, public spaces do not seem like a big deal to arrange at first sight, but behind every building, art installation, bench, and even bushes in flowerpots have their meaning in the space.

I firmly believe that Thackara has many points in Manifesto #12 that we are likely to forget. We should remember them, especially when we put a more significant meaning to technologies than to ourselves. That means not relying only on devices but ourselves and thinking about the impact of waste from hi-tech, fashion and design industries on nature. People like to separate themselves from nature mistakenly, but we are a massive part of nature. As already mentioned, we are part of public spaces. 

(image from: http://humancities.eu/story/work-methodology-according-to-the-principles-of-jan-gehl/)

[tranlucie]

Is it a manifesto? Does it go to change anything? Does it make you more creative? Maybe no.

Maybe it is more life philosophy than the manifesto. Maybe it is not going to change the world and create a new art movement. But it can change your life. To stop for a moment and breathe. Observe for a while. Maybe save someone. Maybe save yourself.

You would probably say that these are the basics of a decent life, but you'd be surprised how many people can forget these things.

It is an endless circle that begins with you. To be kind and to love others, you need to be kind to yourself first. You have to know when you need to stop and stay still for a while. Appreciate every little thing about you. After that, you can start to help others.

And why is that?

Because you do not have endless energy to care about others, helping people is hard, it takes your energy, and sometimes you need to 'recharge' yourself.  And so you need to know yourself and rest. We are living in a busy world that we do not have a chance to stop and breathe. To look at the sky and realize how the world is big and how many things are out there.

My roots in this belief are from Buddhism, life experience and the peopleo who raised me. Mom is a Buddhist, and in the manner of her, I tend to help people a lot, to give at least that little I have. To love. My grandma was the same but without Buddhist beliefs. She was a very kind person. And I am trying to live the way she could be proud of me. At first, I was helping everyone literally.

'Is that bag heavy? I can carry it! Do you need money? I will give you some. Are you sad, you want to talk about it? I'm here for you, no matter what.'

But then I realized that I have no energy left for myself. That this kindness can tear you apart when you don't know where the boundaries are. And that I have to let myself rest and get to know myself.

And with this philosophy, 'manifesto' or whatever, I would like to remind you that you can take a break. Maybe to accept yourself. Maybe next time when you will see an old lady with heavy bags, you will have more energy, and you will help her (a few times they were looking at me like I want to steal their shopping :-D)

[tranlucie]

As many languages you know, as many times you are human

So that probably means that I got four full personalities and one mini Russian personality which is not going to be developed (maybe). Haha. I have always been surrounded by books, always in a different world, dreaming and wandering around that I did not realise it is time to grow up, that it is time to make a choice. THE choice of what I want to be. So here came a battle. Between words and pictures. Between writing and drawing. And so I am studying illustration in the UK and French philology in CZE. That sounds quite overwhelming. And it is. But it also shows me what I really want to do (do I? Why am I so indecisive). And that is probably linguistics. I could feel, during my first semester, that I have been putting away more effort into French than in illustration. And that I am so happy to analyse poems, to learn phonetics differences between different languages.  Let's take a look in what are my strengths and weaknesses (not surprising at all).

[tranlucie]