Drawing for the character design

I was given the task to draw the people that the items would be concerning in the piece, as a group we decided on what, likely people would purchase the items and in so giving a reason why they bought the  item. We discussed this as a group as to what type of a style of drawing I would do, and which would fit the best in the time frame we were given. I chose to do a simple line drawing, even though its not my particular style of illustration I felt that it would the most effective when displaying the work, with typography and photography on the same sheet.

Digital Zine Narrative Ideas

As I mentioned beforehand we had looked at the idea of adding a narrative or story to the work, we looked at the objects in unison to try and cage a story together, and look at connections between them and possibly the various ways in which someone might actually purchase the items. We chose to mind map a wide variety of ideas and on talking to the tutors and we each other we finally developed a comprehensive zine that would flow through.

Zine Ideas
1 old crazy woman
2 various people buying items
3 stoner or drug addict on a acid trip
4 burglar who likes random items
5 old woman hoarder
6 a old man who has nothing
7 secret society, that each item is their emblem
8 gang tags

We chose to do the various people buying the items in the NQ as we felt that it was too hard to fit one person to each item and in this scenario we were able to still keep a idea of individuality but create a piece with more unison.

Development into a digital Zine

After creating the original zine that was purely based on a hand made aesthetic we were sent the task to develop the work into a digital format and look at ways in which would make the piece paginate properly and look more designer and graphical within its approach. As a team the same as before we chose to look at the ways in which we could develop the piece and how we could make the work more professional, rather than sticking with the collage designs. We spoke on the ways in which we could compile the work to make it look effective, we however felt as a group that it was more useful to create a theme to work from then compile a idea and give unison later on indesign which would work better in the long haul.
We quickly came up with the idea of using a narrative within are work, as it way something that was being pushed through are development stages, and in addition to this as a team we felt it would be useful to add to give a story and a more meaningful response to the work.

Construction of the Zine and Reflection points

We did not construct the Zine in the day workshop to a way in which we wanted to, due to problems with printing, we therefore went back and added a textured cover to the zine that was in a different paper stock and paginate the piece properly. Due to when we presented the zine on the day we had failed to properly paginate the piece and create a proper booklet. This made me realize after going back and fixing the piece, the subtle ways in which to make the design look better and also properly paginate the piece, which is something I had never done before within my design work.

The actual zine itself works well I feel from showing the images and concept of the work, from the way in which we wanted the zine to reflect the people that bought the items. I feel that in not using computers this accentuation this way of working. However I feel that it could possibly given more unison when put together digitally, or by restricting the colour pallet we used as a group this in turn may make it more designer.

My own page in the Zine

I wanted to explain the reasoning to my own page in the Zine. I chose to use the remote as the inspiration within my work as I liked the graphic element to the work. I initially set upon scanning in the remote on the photocopier to see the various tones and effects that could be achieved, I explored this, in various tones. I also did the same for the hand image, in addition to this changing the size and scale of the piece. I liked the hand imagery within my work as I felt that the waves and lines around the hands reminded me of television waves that were depicted in 1950's America. After scanning in the pieces I therefore laid them across the page in a wide variety of layouts to see what would flow best. I felt that this layout gave a good flow to the work and gave white space around the image which is something that I like within my work.

Zine Day Ideas and Completed Zine

After having a small presentation by the members of Owt creative we therefore set upon creating are own zine, in which to present are work in. We came up with various ideas and different formats in which to keep are work in unison and look like a cohesive piece of work but still reflect the different styles we had as a group. We therefore set upon having each member of the group have their own double page spread in the zine, but however going in the order that they purchased the items. In doing so it expressed peoples styles and how they want to present their work, and making each piece unique, which is what I have always found appealing when looking through books. In order to keep the pages cohesive we chose to use the one pound sticker that were on the items that me and Ellen purchased in the vintage store and place them, on each of the  double page spreads to giving a subtle hint of unison to the pages. We later applied a pound coin to the front of the cover with the pound sticker across the Queens face giving reference to Jamie Reid. In addition to this it gave the work a more abstract feel and made the piece more interesting in my opinion.

Zine Day Tutorial

¾ of Owt Creative

In today’s workshop for unit x we got taught about how to create are very own zine. Zine is a word that I have only really learnt since coming to Manchester as before hand in college or school it was never mentioned. I have since being in Manchester really loved that style of work and presentation in which seems a lot more personal and hands on it also gives a lot more freedom to artists to explore themes that they themselves are interested in and may not be able to create if they were working in a corporate environment.

In doing the zine work shop we got shown a variety of different zines from the people in Owt creative, from a variety of different concepts, narrative and also a wide variety of peculiar layouts and themes that make the publications more unique and original . The work of Owt creative is something that has inspired me since coming to MMU due to most of the publications have a very wide spectrum for the artists to work within, which is commonly a word or phrase in addition to this the actual content of the zine in which is usually a wide mix of various different styles and media which make the publication more appealing rather than being purely in one type of format, which after a while may make the publication repetitive and monotonous.

Are group set about are publication with the theme of getting items in the northern quarter for a pound, which was something we were interested in. We therefore in the zine chose to focus on the pages and which the randomness of the items set about making the pages as unique and as different as we could to chose a wide variety of work and more importantly are own style and the reason for choosing the item. Most of the work on the day was produced by using a cut and stick method in addition to this using the photocopier to make the piece a actual book from photocopying the work. When making the book we realised that the pages may look very disjointed so as a final touch we added the one pound sticker to make the piece look like it was in unison and had a common theme running through itself even how abstract it may be.

On doing the zine tutorial, it made me look at how I could produce my own work in a similar fashion and how I could possibly create my own books at a low cost to give to clients as a way of making more of a impact and adding a sense of personality. It also for my university work made me look at different forms of formatting my work to make my work better presented and more unique rather than just being simply a series printout. I would like to push the zine culture in other format from using a wide range of different materials, from the likes of digital design tools and also possibly the laser cutter. Even though the zine may not be of the best quality, it was however a unique experience in which I would want to refine and perfect later on.

Plan Of Action

After creating the initial concept of the plan we chose to meet up in the NQ too explore what we could get for a pound, and see where in the NQ was good for this to be used for inspiration and possible layout ideas. We choose to browse around the NQ initially too see what would be the most obscure items that we could find. We later thought that many of the objects were not that obscure and however could be found at any junk store. We therefore decided to change the concept to find a wide variety of items that would work in a drastic contradiction to each other, put however it would be personal to that person and make them interested in the design process.

the chosen items were;
Charlotte-lucky dip
Myself-vintage remote
Ellen-vinyl cd
Sabika-tags
Claire-necklace
Chadwick-books

I personally chose the remote because i could initially see a layout or page design when I picked it. I also loved the vintage feel and how the graphics could respond to the piece.
After choosing the pieces that night we chose to write a small extract of text to go with the piece as we were told beforehand that we would not be able to use the computers, we also in addition to this photographed the pieces to be used for development.
the written extract- i bought this remote from a random vintage shop in the NQ. I noticed it between the random vinyls and old kids toys. I chose it because I liked the old style and think I had one similar for the tv when i was younger. Even though it didn't come with batteries and a back, for a pound you can't really complain

First Zine Mind Mapping Stage and 3concept ideas

After the research we have collected as a individual we were later put into a group of 6 in order to create a zine on something that we were interested within concerning the NQ.
To start this as a group we firstly got all our research together and mind mapped every possible thing that was of interest of us and what we would be possible in the time to use as inspiration.
Out of all the different the ideas and thoughts we had at a initial stage we later developed the thoughts more extensively too see which ones we could push further and which would be could be left behind due to there was not enough content to carry them on. We split up these thoughts on different sheets from ones that concern history, art, music or possibly fashion.

Later in the day we had to choose 3 in which too pitch to the other groups and also are tutors in which one other people thought were the best to carry on. The three we choose were Cafe culture, the one pound challenge and categorizing graffiti

Cafe culture- we wanted to explore the different themes and concepts the cafes had and possibly create a type of scoring system for the cafes, from the tea, atmosphere and friendliness of the people. This was one that we put forward due to it was something that the NQ is known for it was also something that could be good to collect imagery from and create a good piece of design from.

The one pound challenge-this concept was the idea that we would go into the NQ and see what items we could get for a pound and possible design a piece of graphics relating to the item, i felt that this would be something that could be unique and more abstract compared to the other 2 concepts, it also let people show their individual style in response to the item they chose.

Categorizing Graffiti- this idea came from the idea of how graffiti pops up in different areas of the NQ, and some of it being very artistic however some being simple tags. we came up with the idea that we could possibly create a graffiti trail and categorize it by finding the artist, theme, spray paint used for example. This was the one we pushed forward as a group however we came to the realization that it may be too hard and not that unique a concept.

We however went for the One pound Challenge

Digital Research

After looking at the NQ website for research, I found that most of the research was generic and never really showed what people where expecting the NQ to be, from a place were art types go to express themselves, and being a more obscure place than what it is.
I chose to focus on different aspects of the NQ that were possibly more interesting to gain inspiration from, from the likes of news articles to what people think of the area itself and the more seedy side of the area. I looked at articles concerning drug culture in the NQ, the hipster olympics and random facts of the NQ which to gain inspiration from.

Digital Research For Restaurants/ Bars/Clubs/Shops and Cafes

After doing some hands of research I chose to look on line for digital research from the various types of  Restaurants/ Bars/Clubs/Shops and Cafes that are present in the area. I chose to do this digitally due to i wanted to have a clear imagery of the typefaces and interiors of the place to be used for referencing it also makes it easier than taking the photographs and possibly ending up with blurry photographs. I also chose in addition to this I looked at what was on in the area in the past to see how the area may have possibly changed and developed. In looking at the various areas of the NQ I noticed how the advertising of the place changed to suit each aspect of the NQ from the cafes and delis being more homely to the bars being more modern and business like. I did however try and collect hand on research for this but found very little I was trying to get restaurant menus, cutlery and anything they had with there logo on for inspiration however I could only really get two cafe menus

Zine and Flyers Research

I chose as well as taking pictures too collect a wide variety of Zines and leaflets or flyers that are on offer in and around the NQ to gain a wider perspective of what the NQ has on in around the area from pub nights to special events.  I also collected a wide variety of zines that display a wide selection of different styles from the fashion or music zones of Crack and Loud and quiet to also the more professional ones of twenty two and RWR. This will be a key inspiration to me as many of the up coming projects of in unit X will be based on the construction of Zines and different ways of too promote our exhibition at the end of Unit X

The Feeling of the Northern Quarter

Along with taking photographs, I also was interested in getting a feel for the area and the different style of people and shops that are there. Before going the Northern Quarter had been personified as this place  were everything goes and there is a lot of different personal styles that are about primarily that of the hipster fashion. I felt however that the place was not as abstract as people made out, you can clearly see a division from the style of people in the Arndale and how that area of Manchester is a lot busier than the Northern Quarter but most areas of cities are like that. I did not a slight difference in clothing styles but nothing however drastic. The only drastic change is that of it being more independent from the independent record shops, stores and restaurants.


I feel that the idea of what people perceive the NQ to be and what it actually is is something very different, and possibly something to explore later within my work.

The Northern Quarter Photography

After being told are area of interest would be that of the Northern Quarter I choose to initially take imagery across the place focusing on different aspects of the area, from the people, buildings and art in order to gain inspiration from. These are a selection of some of the best images taken because I like to use photography within my work as a contrast to type. I felt that by taking photographs of everything in that area I was not restricted by certain images that I could possibly gain inspiration from.