Self Branding (WIP)

 

Self Branding 

Creating a brand for yourself is one of the processes that may seem like the easiest task but in reality, it is one of the hardest things to think about. Sometimes the starting point is the hardest but when you find your way through the design process, it becomes easy and effortless.

 

When creating a brand yourself I believe that it has to relate to the type of design style you are specialising in. To start my self branding design process, I started by having a focus point. This helps me get my process and tasks in order. My branding process often shows illustrations but this time I decided that I would make it more abstract. I feel abstract design is a form of design that is often misinterpreted as art, but it is not art only that can be abstract.  Behind every artwork there is a story only the artist would understand. Only the seeker to seek would truly find these little meanings behind the process. Although there is an artistic expression in design, I believe design is not art. Rather there is art in design.

 

Design and art are 2 very different forms of expression. Although they are different both of these expressions have one similar thing, that is creative energy flowing through the process. Design often has a way to solve problems. Whereas art is just a form of expression of how the artist feels in that moment.  People often associate designing as sketching painting or photography, but a good design is often how you create solutions for problems (Modern Sculpture Artists, 2019). Designers often find a way to make life easy for the people of the society.

 

Good designs are always more functional whereas bad designs can be beautiful but the functionality of it might not be the best. I do understand both artists and designers are visual creators but the fine line that differentiates them is designers find solutions to make it easy to wear. Artists don't have to think about the functionality of an art piece that they're making.

 

In my self-branding I have abstractly arranged elements that represent the blooming process of my design journey. I believe that this abstract form also relates to the basic design principles such as using lines and shapes to build the characteristics of my logo. My logo also evokes questions in the audience’s mind as it is such a mysterious blend of shapes. I don't intend my logo to be something you can notice firsthand but as you understand. Through this branding process I want the people that plan to hire me to know that I have a professional side where I differentiate my hobbies and my designs. I intend to attract digital studio designers as this is the pathway I want to pursue after I graduate. I believe that they have the understanding to relate and have the curiosity to look further into my logo and to know what it means.

Designers are open minded people and they are often drawn to anything that will trigger their curiosity. I believe my abstract logo will attract these creative enthusiasts to be further interested in my works as it evokes the curiosity within them. I believe it gives them a chance to ask me what my logo means to me during an interview. This can be a conversation starter to further explain my design and why it is what it is

________________________________________________________________

Self Branding - Sketches 

This is the Sketches for me branding logo. I wanted my self-branding to have an abstract meaning to it yet display my name. I was a little lost as to what I was doing with my work so I decided to sketch. I was sketching everything that came to my mind. After this process only I narrowed down to things that I thought could work. And I moved to the digital space to further develop this idea.

_______________________________________________________________________

Self Branding - Designs

 

I used to just arrange elements in any order but once I learned how important the grid system really is, it comforted me. It helped me and guided me to place elements in a certain manner that every element compliments the corresponding one. I never felt lost in the process of designing and it made my design look very professional. I guess most young blooming designers try to avoid grid systems thinking it would be a hassle. When you really learn how it works, it just makes your job easy (Bradley, 2013).

 

This is the logo design for my personal identity. Previously I used an illustration for my personal identity which was not based on any grid system. It was illustrated purely out of instinct. I personally feel it could have been better if I paid attention to the importance of grid lines then. For that reason, I decided to redo my personal identity with a new logo following the grid lines. Although my previous design can still be part of my brand, I have decided to keep this new one as the main logo identity for myself. I have made this current design Typographic as I believe it is more mature when I have followed a proper way. I have placed my design in a square grid. The grid system is very important as it gives clarity for the viewers eyes. Not only that but grids help create consistency throughout the design which is a very important thing (Bradley, 2013).

_______________________________________________________________________

Design Elements

The design elements in my design have an abstract meaning to them. The shapes represent flowers and the lines represent branches. This symbolises how I have grown in the design industry. That it is always a blooming process. Many new buds through each project as I am constantly learning all the time. Each time I get on designing something new, I learn a little bit about how it’s done. With practice It has made it easier for me to work on the computer. Learning about design not only has inspired me to see the new possibilities but learning too. I have always been a creative enthusiast but learning how to play with the software on the computer has increased the possibilities of creating marvellous works.

 

Below shows design elements which will be used in my portfolio web design and elements associated with my branding process. These are also the sub elements for the logo. Furthermore, colours chosen for my branding are red, yellow, blue, pink and white. The first 3 colours are the basic colours which I believe is the most useful thing for a designer. Colour theory is key for a good design (Chapman, 2010). Pink represents my favorite colour. And the white creates contrasts between all the colours. These colours also reflect my personality as they are very welcoming colours. Although these are the basic colours, I have used a sort of pastel colour palette. Not the most vibrant of its kind.

 

 

_______________________________________________________________________

References

Modern Sculpture Artists, 2019. What is art and design? Art VS Design.. [Online]

Available at:< https://medium.com/@fansaiensunny/what-is-art-and-design-art-vs-design-abbc4afdaf15 > [Accessed 20 October 2020]

 

Chapman, C., 2010. Color Theory for Designers, Part 1: The Meaning of Color. [Online] Available at: < https://www.smashingmagazine.com/2010/01/color-theory-for-designers-part-1-the-meaning-of-color/ >[Accessed 26 October 2020]

Bradley, S., 2013. 4 Reasons Why You Should Design With A Grid. [Online] Available at:< https://vanseodesign.com/web-design/why-grids/#:~:text=Grids%20are%20a%20natural%20extension,add%20structure%20to%20a%20design.>[Accessed 28 October 2020].