Background

Baseline Shift is a real job that involves a group of students collaborating to organise weekly lectures given by professional designers during autumn and summer term. These talks enable students of the Typography and Graphic Communication department to gain insight into the design industry and potential career options after graduation. The team held multiple responsibilities such as hosting lectures, writing blogs, and creating weekly printed material and social media posts for students of the department to be reminded about the upcoming guest lectures.

Baseline Shift 2022/23

During the Summer holidays of first year, this Real Job was announced for students in my year group to become involved with the Baseline Shift team. From reading the description I was adamant on joining the team. Having the opportunity to network with designers in the industry and working alongside my cohort were the main reasons I wanted to join the team; hoping the experience would enhance my skills that would become applicable once I graduated. At the start, I was introduced to my team leaders comprising of Sara Nogueira Pérez and Adam Powell, and students in my cohort, Mia Bryan, and Habibah Begum.

After becoming acquainted, we began organising everyone’s primary role as part of the team, which lead me to take responsibility for blog posts and copywriting. This role played to my strengths, hoping to show the team that I could keep quality in all written aspects of the job. During the summer holidays it was my responsibility to produce a new logo for Baseline shift. After Habibah’s choice of the typeface Montserrat, I created a design that reflects InDesign’s Baseline shift function icon, replacing it with the team’s name. This was our brand identity throughout my time as a member of the team.

This first year of baseline shift encouraged me to engage with my team and being responsible for the roles I performed weekly. Blog writing was the main responsibility I had throughout second and third year, ensuring that blogs could be posted weekly. However, this was not always the case, as coursework and deadlines would collide with my role on the team, resulting in some blogs being posted later than expected. Managing to allocate time to this real job was the largest struggle during this period, as second year work began taking priority of my time. On occasions, the team would help me to write the blog posts by providing notes that could be used later for the blog development. Performing mine and other’s distributed roles allowed me to experience range of tasks that are applicable to designing in the industry. Working every week on this real job was very rewarding, being able to see the fruits of my labour each week through successful lectures with professional designers.

The job allowed me to develop a range of skills that I would not normally say I was confident with. Designing the Baseline Shift logo and writing weekly blogs helped me to further develop my ability to take criticism and continuing to pursue the best results for my work. The hosting role was intimidating for me before engaging with it later in my experience, this was because public speaking in front of a lecture theatre was out of my comfort zone. However, with preparation and support from the team I was able to become more comfortable with public speaking for in-person and online lectures. Receiving feedback for how we performed and the quality of the lectures was always a supportive reminder that the team benefitted the learning of all students.

Baseline Shift 2023/24

Becoming one of the leaders of Baseline Shift was exciting for me, as it was now my opportunity to see whether I could efficiently lead a team. Becoming leaders in third year meant that two second years would join the team to aid in Baseline Shift consistently performing tasks each week without hinderances. Tilly Dobson and Amber Jones joined the team in the summer of 2023, helping us throughout our final year on the team.

One of the most valuable ideologies I learnt was that building a rapport with team members is a main component to whether the job runs smoothy each week, with members needing to communicate effectively to ensure the future lectures happen successfully. Because the team managed to bond quickly, working with deadlines became less stressful as communication was easy. But, on several occasions members would forget to remind the team of other commitments and issues that would affect job roles and planned events. To overcome this, the team would construct new schedules to adapt to these slight hinderances, which in the end enabled the team to remain stable whilst organising the weekly lectures.

I have many favourite guest speakers, but one of my personal favourite guests was Malcolm Garret during my first year of Baseline Shift. Being an icon for graphic design in the music industry, I was amazed to hear about Malcolm’s experiences and thinking behind his wide array of design work. After the talks I would frequently chat to the speakers about their careers, hearing the guests share similar interests and providing me with insight into the design industry. Having the opportunity to talk to professional designers is always a beneficial experience, especially when this opportunity happens every week with designers from different career paths and design jobs. In addition, this allowed me to gain connections on LinkedIn which has become valuable to me when searching for potential jobs after graduation.

Another perk of joining the team was organising events in the department for when speakers would arrive for their scheduled talk. For example, with the arrival of the famous video game typographer Toshi Omagari, several typeface-making workshops had to be organised. Arranging rooms for the event was satisfying once completed as students engaged in the activities the team produced. A fond memory of mine was helping to setup an evening event that included arcade games and party games. Playing Mortal Kombat in the department was definitely a highlight for me!

Final thoughts

Being part of the Baseline Shift team was one of the best decisions I had made for my future whilst studying the Typography and Graphic Communication course. This real job is one of the most rewarding amongst the selection that is offered to students on the course. The range of roles that members undertake, along with the amazing designers you are able to contact and network with are only some of the benefits to being part of the Baseline Shift team. If I was asked whether partaking in this real job would be worth it, it would be a definite yes. Any student willing to give their time to help run Baseline Shift will find it useful to their future career. I would recommend this job to any student looking to develop their skills towards professional practice and other applicable knowledge gained from two years of experience on the team.

 

 

Background

The Old Windsor Carnival which is in its 61^st event is a thriving occasion that raises money for local charities and is known for bringing the community together. Each year comes a different theme, this year of 2023 the theme is Kings and Queens and is to be emphasised through the use of a carnival programme. The committee planned to print 2400 copies to share across the village of Old Windsor. The programme is the hub for sharing information and the schedule for the three-day event. The programme consists of a 50/50 split of adverts for local businesses and information around the carnival and its various events.

Restated Brief

From an extensive brief from the client, we aimed to create an inclusive cover design that is lively and eye-catching. The cover needs to depict the selected theme of ‘Kings and Queens’ in which the client has stated that they want the colour choices to be vibrant. So therefore, we aimed to implement this into the design. On top of this, to also design a sophisticated structure whereby a variety of advertisement sizes work on a fixed template alongside the editorial text ensuring an easy read for all audiences. Deliverables for this project consist of a printed events programme exhibiting an impactful cover.

Research and Ideation

With the theme of ‘Kings and Queens’ being prominent in the early stages of this project, the end product needed to convey this with aspects that all audiences would recognise. As it was being delivered to houses across Old Windsor and they actual event has activities for all ages, the target audience was extremely vast. Alongside the client we had various meetings into what can be exhibited on the covers. The obvious subject matter we spoke about was members of the Royal Family and previous kings and queens. We then ventured into the realm of kings and queens of the animal world as well as playing cards and chess pieces. Due to this list of potential ideas increasing every meeting we suggested to the client to produce a cover in a collage style as it can accommodate for all topics mentioned above. This would create a sense of community by combining contrasting imagery all in one place much like the carnival does for the community of Old Windsor. The list below was accumulated from these meetings:

• • Kings & Queens past and present
  • Crown
  • Sceptre
  • Sovereign’s orb
  • Coronation spoon
  • Chess pieces
  • Playing cards
  • King Cobra
  • King Penguin
  • King of the beasts – Lion
  • King of the birds – Eagle
  • Kingfisher
  • King Prawn
  • King Salmon
  • Queen Bee
  • Queen Snake
  • Queen Angelfish
  • Queen Alexandra’s Birdwing (largest butterfly in the world – 30cms wide!)
  • Queen Snapper
  • Queen Carola’s Parotia (bird of paradise)

Design Process

The Cover

As the cover will be the first thing our audience will see, this was a priority in the early stages of the project. We provided various different sketches around the subject matter in the list above. This was done to broaden our ideas and once receiving feedback from the carnival committee we were then able to refine these into a final cover concept.

 

 

 

With feedback from the committee, it was made apparent that they thought an all animal or mixed collage would be best suited for the current theme of the carnival. The animal covers were approached as a scrap-book collage and each animal had an effect of a sticker. This was done to easily identify each animal as well as keeping the illustration style the same for a cohesive look. This also provided the cover with varying yet vibrant colours which is something the committee wanted to see within the cover. See Figures 4. & 5.

 

 

 

With these covers and from feedback from both committee and supervisors, this imagery did not directly link to the theme of ‘Kings and Queens’ and more linked to a theme relating to just animals. As a result of this information the committee favoured the concept of a mix between animals and royal paraphernalia.

 

This cover included the right imagery but did not reach the objective of being vibrant and colourful. This meant going back over the illustrations of each element and manipulating the colours to stand out more. It also heavily emphasised the Royal family and royal paraphernalia over what the committee wanted to see. This being more of a mixture of aspects that could represent the theme of ‘Kings and Queens’. See Figure 6.

 

 

The final cover seen in Figure 7. depicted the right amount of elements from the list both us and the clients came up with in our meetings. The clients felt this option was what they wanted to achieve with vibrant colours, recognisable elements relating to the theme and links to the village of Old Windsor. These links being the three crowns which is a statue positioned on entry to the village.

 

Pages and Their Contents

The inside pages of content were an extremely challenging component to this project due to multiple stakeholders sending content through via different formats. Each committee member is tasked with gathering information for different segments of the three-day event which meant dealing with multiple points of contacts. On top of this, information received had many inconsistencies in which needed to be mended. With lots of information coming in through different formats a well-structured document with fixed styles was needed to manage the content. With this project, content was still being sent the day before the print deadline, so the use of grids and paragraph styles made it easier to implement the content and pages throughout the programme remained consistent. Figure 8. shows the 2-column grid used for body copy throughout the programme. Light rules were also implemented to help assist in the navigation between pages which can be seen in Figure 9.

 

 

 

Using paragraph styles ensured that the hierarchy was easily established and navigation was simple. This is something we wanted to focus on within the content of the programme as feedback from the committee about previous years mentioned that legibility and loose text made it difficult for readers to take in the information especially for the large elderly population in Old Windsor.

 

Advertisements

Adverts play a huge role within this programme as the money made from organisations submitting adverts is what pays for the production of the 2400 copies. As companies were paying large sums of money for their space in the magazine it was essential to have a format in place to ensure the adverts were equally treated depending on how much they paid. Below is the template used for the adverts throughout the programme as well as an example of how this looked. Smaller organisations such as local businesses who purchased smaller advert spaces sent across files that did not fit within this template. With permission we were able to create our own versions which included the same content but was more malleable to the advert template.

 

 

 

Reflection

This project helped with an array of different elements into the professional world of graphic design and more specifically editorial design. One thing that was extremely beneficial was understanding the importance of a well structured document. Due to information being sent the day before the print deadline, a well structured document meant that we were able to manage this efficiently under the pressure of a tight deadline. This project also helped in developing communication skills with clients and setting realistic expectations for both parties involved. This made communication easier and created a scenario in which potentially letting down the client was not an option. Speaking with printers also helped in understanding what is needed in order for the printing process to move efficiently.

Background

Huntercombe Prison have worked alongside Reading University’s typography students to create communication materials for the prisoners for many projects. Huntercombe is a Category C, foreign national deportation prison for adult males in Oxfordshire. The client wanted to improve the attitudes towards violence and make the inmates aware of the consequences in a clear, structured way that would be understandable even for inmates with poorer linguistic abilities. In order to ensure this, we collaborated with two English Language students from Reading.

Brief

The brief for this project was to create an A0 printed poster on violence reduction which would replace an existing board of text heavy information that is regularly dismissed. The poster would aim to educate inmates on the importance of avoiding and resisting violence. Principally by explaining the consequences of committing such offences and provide information on who they can speak to in the prison for support or help.

Communication

All communication to the prison was done through Suzanne Portch, a teacher for the University’s Linguistics department who had previously worked at Huntercombe Prison. Suzanne supported us with the design of the poster and was readily available to answer any questions as communication to the prison is very slow. We also conversed with our supervisor about design and typographic features, though he admitted that most feedback about the suitability and content had to be done by the prison staff.

Visit to the Prison

On 30 January, we went on a trip to visit the prison to talk to the staff and inmates about what specifics they wanted from us. Upon our visit to the prison, both inmates and staff highlighted some features we needed to consider when designing the poster:

• No complex language can be used due to many of the inmates having very limited language skills.
• Inmates are not allowed to loiter in the corridors so therefore cannot stand and read the poster for a long duration of time.
• Prison staff mentioned avoiding colours and imagery of a stimulating nature.
• The inmates expressed a wish for the new design to be visually engaging as it is to replace the existing, boring notice board. This was made up of A4 sheets of white paper with large blocks of all-caps, black and red text.
• The correct prison specific terminology must be used.
• There must be an area of the poster not designed on, allocated for the staff to stick their own images on of people the inmates can turn to for help.

Development

After visiting the prison, the team discussed the angle we wanted the poster to take. The poster needed to explain to inmates how their violent actions have consequences, such as impacting time they are serving or having their privileges removed. However, we decided that the poster would aim to connect with the inmates on a more emotional level which would help them properly understand the consequences of violence in a more human context. During the visit one of the inmates had made a comment saying avoiding violence is a choice that every inmate can make. This decision not only has an effect on them, but their family too as visiting privileges could be removed, or more severe punishment may be implemented. We decided this is a really important message to convey, particularly as it was bought up by the inmates themselves. It was therefore decided that we use this concept of ‘choice’ to inspire the design and the direction we took not only visually but linguistically.

Both design students brainstormed and sketched out a few ideas and as we progressed made sure to compare and discuss our potential ideas. Together we decided on our two strongest ideas which we presented to the rest of the group [fig.1&2]. Ultimately we decided the signpost concept was more effective [fig.1]. Though this design does not directly illustrate violence, it focusses more on the idea discussed previously of the inmate having the ‘choice’ to take the correct path for them and their family. Though the second idea [fig.2] of the fist is more obviously linked to violence, the imagery has the potential to be inappropriate or even stimulating for some inmates. This could risk encouraging violent tendencies and having the opposite result to the purpose of the poster.

 

To combat the poor language skills of some inmate’s and the fact they cannot loiter, we tried to use as little text as possible, in the simplest terms. This was challenging however as we were required to use the correct terminology. Therefore, in order to aid understandability of more complex terms we experimented with the use of icons. We designed them as simply as possible, so they were easily recognisable yet conveyed a lot of meaning. As the poster is so big there was room for the icons to have some detail and still be clear. Meaning the finished icons were both useful and visually interesting. We experimented with colour pallets to see what worked best for the text and icons to be most legible. Eventually deciding on a background colour scheme representative of a sun setting, which was chosen due to the calming manner of the tones. The text is largely set in navy blue as this colour is dark enough to be legible but not too harsh against the background.

In a further effort to increase readability we had to carefully consider the typeface used. During research we looked at typefaces used for education purposes that are highly legible, created for children who are developing their language skills. We considered using one of these to improve the readability of text. However when testing these typefaces found they were too juvenile and considering the subject matter and the adult audience would be inappropriate. The font we used for the final design is a bold sans serif typeface called FatFrank Heavy. This font has a similar feel to the educational ones we researched as it is quite thick, rounded and clear, yet it is not childish.

Working with linguistics students presented some challenges as well as benefits. It was useful to have more people with ideas and to get feedback from, but their job was far simpler and at times felt unnecessary. However, it was good to get experience working with and organising a team of members from multiple disciplines. Particularly as we gained valuable skills in communication both with clients and team members who are not designers.

Final design

The poster aims to make the prisoners think twice before lashing out or getting involved with violence. We hope this will make them consider the consequences and result in a reduction of violence at Huntercombe. The use of colour and imagery will make the poster stand out from the dull prison walls meaning the information is more likely to be read and absorbed by the inmates. We placed A4 rectangles at the bottom of the poster where images of staff members can be stuck who can support the inmates in dealing with violence. Having these areas blank mean that the images can be easily changed so the poster does not go out of date so fast. In comparison to the existing notice board of text heavy sheets of information, this poster embodies that same information in an interesting, calm manner that is useful and understandable for the inmates.

Feedback

Once the poster was finished, we had hoped to go and visit the prison again to showcase the design and receive feedback from the staff and inmates. However, due to complications with COVID-19 we were unable to deliver it in person. Despite this we still received positive feedback from Suzanne who thought the emotional direction of the poster was thoughtful and more beneficial for the prisoners. In addition, the overall design succeeds in presenting violence in a calm manner and bringing an element of colour and life into the prison. The feedback implies that the poster will be effective in this way and benefit the prison in tackling violence. 

Conclusion

We found that working in a team of multiple disciplines was challenging at times, but it gave us the opportunity to learn communication skills and the importance of properly organising a team. We learnt that working with people other than designers means adjusting the design process slightly and being sure to articulate ideas and concepts as well as possible.

In terms of difficulties we faced when designing, tackling prison terminology was challenging, especially for programmes that are specific to Huntercombe. For this we communicated a lot with Suzanne, who had some knowledge of this, and the prison staff who were very helpful and ensured that the information on the poster is accurate. This element of the process was a good experience of designing within strict constraints, considering the appropriateness of all design elements and keeping good communication with the client.

We found that talking directly to the inmates was the most effective way to discover how the audience would respond to the poster. Male prisoners with limited language skills are an extremely niche audience to design for, meaning we had to consider things that other projects simply never present. By talking to the inmates, we learnt about prison life, the rules there, and how some inmates manage their mental health in an effort to avoid situations of violence and other offences. The group of inmates we worked with were of the highest level of education and comprehension who explained that they are more conscious of getting out of prison to see their family than committing any violent act. However, they explained that this is not the case for all prisoners and that is why this poster is so essential. This experience was extremely insightful and gave us an opportunity to design something that has the potential to educate and make difference to someone’s life. Encouraging and informing someone who has made mistakes to make good decisions and take steps for a better future.

Initial Ideas

Whenever I start a new project I like to look at ways that other people have gone about similar projects so i started off by looking on sites like pinterest to see how other people had designed stickers. However when I looked there wasn’t any stickers that were advertising anything similar to what i wanted so i had to experiment quite a bit by myself. I brainstormed a few ideas and the ones that I ended up going with follow,

Idea One

This was my initial idea for the sticker design. I’m not too sure what gave me the idea to make a sticker of a sunset at the beach for a typography and graphic design podcast but i dont think that it works as well as a sticker as either of the other designs do. I think there is too much going on in this design to be at such a small scale too. these are both things that i keep in mind for my future designs and I think that those ones the mistakes that I made in this designs are less apparent.

Idea Two

For this design I decided to go with a very generic image for the middle with circular text going around the outside. I think that this design looks a lot more like a sticker than the original design does and it is a lot better scaled for its use. I also used a lot less colours in this design, limiting myself to just two colours. I also decided to use a very boring sans serif font to make sure that it was legible because I knew that I was going to be putting it along a circular path.

Idea Three

For this design I decided to use a more abstract shape for the outline that I think would work well as a sticker as it is all composed of smooth curves. I was initially going to put the text filling out the whole sticker but I then decided on having a few more layers around the outside that I used a gradient to colour. For this design I decided to use a few more colours than i did for the last design but they all look quite similar because they are all different brightness of the same colour.

 

Software tutorials

I am going to explain the process to making the wavy text effect i used for my last sticker design idea. To begin i make a curvy shape using the pen tool that vaguely resembles the words that i want to fit into it. In this case i had a smaller word between two much longer words so i was going to end up with white space anyway. Once you have created your shape you then need to write out your text. I find the effect to look better when you use text that is too big for the space that you are trying to fill, like in this image.

This means that when you use the effect the space will be filled in much better. You then need to make sure that the shape is above the text so that the effect works. Finally to make your text fit into the shape that you want it to you need to select all of your text layers and the shape that you are trying to put the text in and then select Object > Envelope Distort > Make With Top Object. Then your text should fit itself into whatever shape you had selected. You can then edit the shape using the Direct Selection tool if there are any changes that you want to make to the shape.