This project presented the brief of developing an industry relevant document which acts as a prepress handbook for graphic designers, using a consistent design identity and informative content to educate and connect with the target audience.
In developing this publication, I presented a proposal containing the visual identity and specifications relating to how to final product would look, from specialty finishes to grid layout. For the purpose of being a guide, the experience I was designing had to be accessible, legible and unambiguous. After all, a guide’s purpose is to inform and educate rather quickly. At the same time, as a graphic designer myself, I felt it appropriate to make it beautiful all the same, in the form of a coffee table book that can be left out for quick reference without cluttering the space it resides.
Combining minimalism with beautiful, colourful textures and patterns, the design for this project was inspired by art galleries. As a designer, it was important to me that the guide was not only functional but also visually distinct. I wanted people to feel excited to open it and discover the pages inside without being too distracted from the valuable content alongside.
It is hard to get started with any project, and though it’s cliche to say just do it, it’s important to remember that ideas should be crazy and experimented with before they’re refined. In this project I learned not to get caught up on imperfection, as I had with my disatisfaction for the design proposal document, but instead trust that the process would help refine the ideas I was trying to convey. A lot of time gets wasted making things perfect when they’re likely to be changed down the line anyway.
Provided more time, I would have made the publication larger in page numbers to pack more value and substance into the book, as the content only really scratches the surface. In addition, I had at the time wanted to experiment with adding augmented reality interaction with the pages to create an innovative and exciting experience and would still be really interested to develop it further for each page.
