Placement // The Archipelago

Day 1

Mostly just talking through all the projects and getting printing explained to me, then making a list of Leeds printers who do vinyl for Zosia.

Day 2

Meeting, then went to Tall Boys beer market and measured the wall upstairs, with the fridge and the shop front - for an upcoming photography exhibition and for more plants to be dotted around.

Made mockups in illustrator from the measurements, so that work can be placed in the space to show how it will look.

Day 3

Sat in on discussions about projects and talked through some work, and worked on illustrator files of clipping masks of images used in Yorkshire Sculpture Triangle leaflets, for the pitch.

Day 4

Attended an important meeting at the Henry Moore Institute with 7 marketing people from the different venues included in the Yorkshire Sculpture Triangle. Mike and Zosia pitched the development of the leaflet ideas so far, and talked in detail about different variations and how they have developed the logo, as originally it wasn't quite working well. With a meeting of 10 people in total this was a new and valuable experience for me, to see what goes in in between the designing stages, and how to explain work to clients.

Looked through some past editorial design of The Archipelago back at the studio, to help with a lookbook I am creating for somebody on printed textiles.

Day 5

Today we had a meeting with Evolution print, where one of the sales team discussed with us the printing of work for the Hepworth membership scheme. It was interesting to find out the ins and outs and how complicated it can be to set something up for print and for a certain budget.

Talked about their experiences at past studios etccc..

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This experience so far has been really interesting and it feels positive to be a valued member of a studio. I have learnt many new things about the ins and outs of a business and how clients are dealt with etc.

Lord Whitney // Studio assisting

I received an email from Amy at Lord Whitney around a month after emailing them about any opportunities at their studio (which they had already replied to). They said they were fond of my work.

I agreed to help in the afternoon on friday, which was an interesting experience. It was good to be able to see their studio and to see what goes on behind the scenes and actually get involved. I was asked to paint some wooden furniture, sand down some furniture to make it look old, and spray paint some parasols. It was for an upcoming circus themed music video for Corinne Bailey Rae.

I had a chat with Amy when I got there about the concept for the video, then I spent the rest of the time painting and assisting. Before I left I asked some questions, like if they ever work abroad? Which they don't, but they'd like to. They mostly shoot up north and in London. I asked if they often work weekends, which they do, because very often the projects are very last minute by the time the producers have gotten to them.

Berlin trip & Hort studio visit

Visited Hort studio and talked about:

• how many people work in the studio
• working hours
• how many internship applicants they receive and the details of how long the process takes
• asked for advice about what to see in Berlin

We had a look around the studio and asked some more questions about what work was lying around.

I also visited many art galleries and interesting areas of Berlin.

Portfolio // Placement interview

I created a short portfolio for my interview with The Archipelago, including a range of work in different formats. I used a very simple layout and including small amounts of text that explain my work. 

I took some physical work aswell which is a lot more effective and realistic than a printed portfolio.

Work placement // Preparation

Archipelago's work:

• simple
• functional
• everyday
• a lot of publications and promotional for art and design sector
• interest in illustration and arty stuff - plants!

Work placement interview // The Archipelago

What I learnt about the studio:

• The Plant Room (a studio project) has opened a lot of doors for them, and has been beneficial in the long run. It has got them out in the public eye a lot more and attracted clients, which has given them a different kind of work on the side of the Archipelago as it's quite different.
• They are currently doing work for the Hepworth, which has a deadline at the end of April.
• Normally there are about 7-10 projects on the go, some may have gaps inbetween small tasks and take longer than others.
• There are a lot of layers to clients, they are working with some big arts organisations that have a lot of different people who need to see the work and confirm and discuss it before it can be finalised.
• They are in the fifth or sixth year of running the studio.
• Zosia is the studio/project manager and works from 10am - 2pm every day, where as Michael is the designer and works full days.
• They used to have the odd intern, but went off the idea and length of them and started to warm to the idea of short work placements, where students could come and learn about their studio and their design process.

I was asked to show my work, so I talked through about 5 different projects in brief detail. I got asked some questions about my hand rendered type that features in a lot of my work, as they like it - such as do I scan and live trace? What medium do I use?

After discussing my work a little, we talked about what set up I would be interested in, and I suggest two days a week, which would work really well for them too. This means I can juggle it with my college work efficiently. We have agreed to do a trial day on Tuesday April 12th - after which if we are all happy we can arrange to do more days.

I am pleased with how the meeting went, as they said they think I would fit in well with them. Hearing them talk in great detail about how their business works really opened my eyes to the industry and how clients are dealt with etc. Their studio is bright and pleasant with a lot of inspiring books and prints - somewhere I felt comfortable and excited by!

It's Nice That // Graduates advice on portfolios

http://www.itsnicethat.com/articles/graduates-advice-portfolios


Very useful article.