Graphic: Music Poster
You are to generate a music poster for a gig/concert or new album to recap learning of the design principles and creating a folio to show each step of the design process. The focus here is an introduction of exploring music posters, media exploration in order to show the conventions of a poster.
Purpose (What is being assessed)
Have a look at the students examples by going to the top menu labeled Yr10 > 10 Design > Graphic: Music Poster > Student Examples. (This task used to be a CD cover and has since changed to a poster)
Purpose (What is being assessed)
- Documentation of creative visual thinking and/or problem-solving processes. (Evidenced through a complete design process) PA3
- Knowledge of core visual arts concepts, forms, styles, and conventions. (Evidenced through your folio and poster) KU1
- Analysis and interpretation of works of art or design from different contexts. (Evidenced through annotations) AR1
- Use of visual arts language to interpret and respond to works and their contexts. (Evidenced through annotations) AR2
- Research existing posters. You may wish to include other inspirational imagery to refer to when designing your poster.
- Annotate the images collected to specifically state why you chose these designs. Use design language. Eg. You think the colour scheme is effective, not just that you like the design
- Idea generation. Create quick thumbnail sketches to create design roughs. At this stage quantity of ideas is important!
- Annotate the ideas in order to evaluate your initial designs. Which designs will you work further on and why?
- Idea refinement. Refine your chosen design/s to improve
- Create a final design that is neatly presented and shows craftsmanship
- Evaluation of design
- Present your work in the order listed here and label each page. (Work can be digital or hardcopy)
Order:
- Research
- Idea Generation
- Idea Refinement
- Final Design
- Evaluation
Have a look at the students examples by going to the top menu labeled Yr10 > 10 Design > Graphic: Music Poster > Student Examples. (This task used to be a CD cover and has since changed to a poster)
Step 1: Research
Find as many posters and music related imagery as you can. The choice of images should not be a random decision, but focused on what you like aesthetically or inspires you in some way.
You do not have to like everything about the image! You might only like an aspect of it, but you are keeping the image for a reason.
You may like to use Pinterest to collect and store your images. You can annotate the images on this application. This way you can make a new board for each task during the semester and have all of this step (research) in one place.
Find as many posters and music related imagery as you can. The choice of images should not be a random decision, but focused on what you like aesthetically or inspires you in some way.
You do not have to like everything about the image! You might only like an aspect of it, but you are keeping the image for a reason.
You may like to use Pinterest to collect and store your images. You can annotate the images on this application. This way you can make a new board for each task during the semester and have all of this step (research) in one place.
Below are some examples of posters I think are effective in some way. Remember when you do this, you don't have to like the music, just the presentation of the poster. This could be because of:
- aesthetics
- typography
- interest / novelty or quirk value
- cleverness
- ability to catch the eye / attention
In groups view these posters and write an annotation for each. Use a word bank to help you try to mention things like:
- colour scheme
- focal point
- composition (how everything is arranged to appear as a whole)
- typography
- mood
Keep this work!
You can never look at too many posters or design work. Looking at what others have done before is very informative and you learn a lot this way. If you are keen to learn about a subject within Art or Design it is good practise to look up images and take note of who made them. This will help you to better understand what you like in design works and assist you with developing your own style and aesthetic.
You can use imagery that isn't a poster design as well. You may look at the merchandise of the band, the costumes they wear and graphic designs on T-shirts, CD covers, posters and music clips.
Annotate
Annotation is simply the process of writing notes and labelling work so that it can be understood and to record your thoughts. You should be discussing what design decisions were made for your design roughs through analysis, interpretation and evaluation. This process is aimed at understanding which design ideas are more suitable for the function of the poster. The posters that you choose to continue with should be well considered before the refinement stage.
Make sure you understand the terms analysis and interpretation as you will need to apply these throughout the semester!
Analysis:
Is the process is breaking down and discussing the use of design elements and principles. It is the act of analysing the forms utilised in the work of Design. It is a close inspection of the designer's use of aspects such as colour, shape, line, mass, and space.
Interpretation:
Interpretation is about understanding how the design elements and principles create meaning, message and or mood in a design.
Design terms to use
Word Bank:
Annotation is simply the process of writing notes and labelling work so that it can be understood and to record your thoughts. You should be discussing what design decisions were made for your design roughs through analysis, interpretation and evaluation. This process is aimed at understanding which design ideas are more suitable for the function of the poster. The posters that you choose to continue with should be well considered before the refinement stage.
Make sure you understand the terms analysis and interpretation as you will need to apply these throughout the semester!
Analysis:
Is the process is breaking down and discussing the use of design elements and principles. It is the act of analysing the forms utilised in the work of Design. It is a close inspection of the designer's use of aspects such as colour, shape, line, mass, and space.
Interpretation:
Interpretation is about understanding how the design elements and principles create meaning, message and or mood in a design.
Design terms to use
Word Bank:
Use these descriptive words below to help you to describe how the design elements and principles have been used.
Step 2: Idea Generation
Choose a genre of music, a band or a style of poster to direct your planning.
Create quick thumbnail drawings of ideas for a poster. The emphasis here is on quick drawings as you want to get a lot of ideas drawn in a short amount of time. Don't worry about how you will make it yet. Come up with an idea and discuss with me potential ways of creating. Tracing and the use of photos will help you make designs later that you might think you can't do now- keep your mind open!
Trace imagery to help you speed things up if needed.
You need to stretch your imagination and creative ability to come up with as many ideas as possible. In these design roughs / thumbnail sketches consider the design principles learnt in Year 9:
- Composition and Layout
- Typography
- Balance / Visual weight - symmetrical, asymmetrical, radial, crystallographic
- Emphasis / Contrast
- Proportion / Scale
- Movement / Rhythm
- Repetition / pattern
- Unity / Discord
- Variety
Notice:
- The treble clef in the first rough has been cropped and the words match the form
- The second rough has strong use of positive and negative space
- In the third, a layout is considered with a diagonal heading. Words are represented by lines to reduce time spent.
- Notice how none of these posters look the same. They all contain different layouts.
Credit: https://bezmo.deviantart.com/
Notice:
- The first rough uses a bass clef to frame the title
- In the fifth rough, bold typography is the focus
Notice:
- The second rough shows typography that matches the graceful movement of the dancer.
- The fourth rough displays a series of circles that overlap each other with potential for experimenting further with values and colour combinations.
- In the fifth rough typography has been integrated in to the image.
Notice:
- The radial compositions for multiple roughs, but done in different ways.
Your design roughs don't need to be perfect. The above image is a good example as it shows how you can get an idea down quickly without spending too much time. The thought should go into the composition and the suitability of the design - the details and making it 'look good' comes later.
Annotate Design Roughs
Make labels, notes and dot points to show your design thinking in this process.
Evaluation:
Evaluation is the judgement of how successful or unsuccessful a design work is. When evaluating, it is not about whether you like or dislike, but rather, do the design elements and principles come together successfully to create an aesthetic, functional and or meaningful design work.
Annotate Design Roughs
Make labels, notes and dot points to show your design thinking in this process.
- Again, analyse and interpret.
Analysis is the use of Design elements and principles.
Interpretation is the use of elements and principles in order to create meaning. - You will also need to evaluate your work.
Evaluation:
Evaluation is the judgement of how successful or unsuccessful a design work is. When evaluating, it is not about whether you like or dislike, but rather, do the design elements and principles come together successfully to create an aesthetic, functional and or meaningful design work.
Step 3: Idea Refinement
Once you have evaluated your design roughs you should understand which parts of the posters work and don't work in terms of layout. In this stage you are not making new ideas, but rather putting your design ideas together by choosing the best components. You will also experiment with the layout, size or scale, the colour scheme and type.
In this stage you may also experiment with medium if it is suitable for your design idea. For example you may wish to create a textured background. You could use many mediums to achieve this. You may wish to experiment with type and experimenting with a range of creative lettering. Make sure you keep all experiments to include in your folio.
Step 4: Final Design
The design should not change much here, only tweaks to small details. In this stage you should be focused on creating a high quality finish. You can use any medium, although it is a suggestion to use a medium you have tested or worked with before.
Eg.
- Photoshop or Illustrator
- Tracing images (you don't need to rely on good drawing skills, tracing is valuable, esp. as a time saver!)
- Paint, watercolour or acrylic
- Ink
- Pencils and pens
- Charocal
- Collage (a great option for this task either by hand or on the computer.)
1. A textured paint background by
3. Take or find images of statues. 4. Use mask tool to select the statues and delete background (helps is background is white or free of detail.) 5. Insert on new layer on top of marbled background. 6. Insert text on new layer Pay attention to small detail the whole way through! |
Collage the elements together by hand. Scan into computer the finished image and insert text using Photoshop. |
Create a sketch which is as neat as possible in pen with no pencil lines.
Insert into Illustrator. Use the image trace tool and fix any inconsistencies. Or use the pen tool and trace each shape if not too complicated an image. Add fills to shape Add text Or Create a stencil and paint and insert into computer for text. |
Step 5: Evaluate
Write or organise an oral presentation with your teacher for a final evaluation.
Below is an example of an evaluation. Use the headings provided to structure your own writing. Delete these heading once you have finished so that it reads like a small essay.
The design terms have been highlighted to show you how often you should be trying to use design terms. Make sure you use the terms accurately and are not padding the work with terms that don't assist in meaning.
Include a word count for this step.
Step 5: Evaluate
Write or organise an oral presentation with your teacher for a final evaluation.
Below is an example of an evaluation. Use the headings provided to structure your own writing. Delete these heading once you have finished so that it reads like a small essay.
The design terms have been highlighted to show you how often you should be trying to use design terms. Make sure you use the terms accurately and are not padding the work with terms that don't assist in meaning.
Include a word count for this step.
Do the design elements and principles come together successfully to create an aesthetic, functional and or meaningful design work?
Evaluation of use of design elements and principles: In this poster the title 'Float' is prominent because of the large point size and because of the repetitive feathers cascading around it. With a delicate line weight, the title suits the meaning of the word (Interpretation). Evaluation of meaning: The poster's use of white negative space gives a clean, fresh mood. The purple creates wistful undertones that could be suited towards a music genre that is relaxing in tone, such as a slow jazz or folk music. Improvements: The subheading 'The Fluffy Feathers,' needs clarity as the typeface has become pixelated. This impedes function as the text is hard to read, especially from a distance. The position of the image could be better. Currently the feathers above the t don't align well. Another way to help with this awkward detail could be to lighten the value of the small feather to make it look as though the feathers are receding into the distance. With a few adjustments this poster could be quite successful as it has a soft aesthetic that works well in meaning. Word count: 175 |
Step 6: Presentation of all Work
It is important to make sure your folio work is presented well, displaying a clear progression of the design process. This is a chance to see if any work is missing, or there are holes in the process - go back and work on this section if there is.
In the senior years you are expected to create a task called the Folio, which is 40% of your overall grade. Get used to this process now as many students find it challenging when they get to Year 11 and 12.
You may present your work through digital or hardcopy.
If digital you must present as a PDF format, include a link to your Pinterest board. Your work should still present well with heading, images and annotations placed neatly, in order and with thought on each page.
If presenting work as a hardcopy. Your work should be inside a folder. You may need to trim tests, cut and paste work so that it flows as a document in the correct order and with headings.
Upload your Pinterest link to Daymap.
Present your work in the order listed here and create a title for each page:
It is important to make sure your folio work is presented well, displaying a clear progression of the design process. This is a chance to see if any work is missing, or there are holes in the process - go back and work on this section if there is.
In the senior years you are expected to create a task called the Folio, which is 40% of your overall grade. Get used to this process now as many students find it challenging when they get to Year 11 and 12.
You may present your work through digital or hardcopy.
If digital you must present as a PDF format, include a link to your Pinterest board. Your work should still present well with heading, images and annotations placed neatly, in order and with thought on each page.
If presenting work as a hardcopy. Your work should be inside a folder. You may need to trim tests, cut and paste work so that it flows as a document in the correct order and with headings.
Upload your Pinterest link to Daymap.
Present your work in the order listed here and create a title for each page:
- Research
- Idea Generation
- Idea Refinement
- Evaluation
- Final Design
- Bibliography