When i was five years old...: Visual Research Folder:

My research was mainly carried out online through looking at websites/blogs. These include FFFFOUND, Fubiz, The Bechance Network, Yay Every Day, Booooooom! & Make Something Cool Everyday. Since I started my BA in illustration it's become a habit to check such websites on a daily/weekly basis. Other than keeping me up to date with whats going on in the world of contemporary illustration, I find this gives me a huge amount of inspiration for whatever i'm working on! Over the several weeks of this project I found myself constantly adding more and more research to my blog, the research carried out gave me a great deal of inspiration and helped with the creation of my own work. I would particularity recommend the blog 'FFFFOUND' to and artist of designer as it showcases such a wide variety of works (Not all contemporary).

One of the most inspirational artist's I researched was Brock Davis, he created a new image everyday for a whole year! His works sits between graphic design, illustration and photography. The versatility of materials used along side the outcome different of styles is amazing, he often brings a touch of humour into his pieces as well, which I feel really adds to them.

Here are some of my favourites from 'Make Something Cool Everyday' project:

Another contemporary artist I researched was the 21 year old designer Khristian Mendoza, his ideas are normally very simplistic but he pulles them off perfectly. His work consists of a mix of typography, photography and use of geometric shapes. Hes has a great eye for composition. His 'Transparency' paper cuttings project was particularly inspirational to my own development.

Some of his best work:

I also looked at some more historical designers such as David Carson, i've been familiar with his work for a number of years. He was seen as a revolution within the world of graphic design. I recently watched one of his lectures online which I found extremely interesting. I also looked at his book 'The End of Print' and some of his spreads from 'Ray Gun' magazine.

Some of Carsons work:

Another less contemporary designer I looked at was Paul Rand, who I only recently discovered (he was recommended in a previous tutorial). He has a very bold and coulourfull style which sits nicely along side a fairly playful way of working with text and symbols.

Some examples of Paul Rands work: