28 January 2011

Headingley Writing Sets

This project came from a year long exploration of experimental travel and that of personal and emotional map making. In this piece of work I wanted to explore the relationship with the environment around us and how we direct people in an unknown environment. I posed as a tourist in an area where I live; in doing this I asked the public directions in order to get to a certain place within the city. Directions can easily be given on a map, however in reality we rely on landmarks or mental images in order to navigate ourselves around the real world. I therefore decided to start experimenting with dissecting maps of the local area; cutting out the parts of the map that were given to me through word of mouth. I then included the said direction, embossed on a piece of writing paper within the set. In doing this I hoped to juggle the uses of cartography and spoken word. Questioning if both can work side by side. I felt by making a writing set out of the images and information I could create a product that was both personal to the people of the area; in that they would most probably understand the written directions and landmarks of the local area. As well as being informative to the people who receive the message or letter sent to them.

This piece of work also got shortlisted in the Graphic Design catergory for the Northern Design Competition 2010.





Berlin Underground Map

Maps...Maps...Maps...






Sketchbooky type work playing around with the composition of maps.

Deconstructed Book


Playing around with the deconstruction of a book...again as you can probably see I love maps!!!

A to B prints



prints related around the subject of getting from one place to another...

Lake District Print

Family Christmas Paper


Made some personalized Christmas paper for the family this year themed on our trip to Switzerland (screenprinted roll)

Lake District Poatcard Book

Postcard book made after the trip including etchings of some of the photographs and screenprinted words from Wordworth poems read while on the trip. Mapped themes also come into the screenprinted overlay as I sort of mentally mapped our walks with a pencil on paper throughout the day.






Lake District Trip












Some photographs taken in the lovely, but cold Lake District last April.

Bunting Books and Draw on my Bunting exercise






The Big Draw is an international event aimed at connecting people with their surroundings and the wider community. I collaborated on this project with photographer and designer Amy Catell. Leeds Metropolitan has been involved with the event for the last couple of years and this event attempted to encourage even the most un-artistic of people to casually draw something that was connected to the caption piece of bunting and add it to the line. Hopefully making a spectacle of even the smallest piece of work that would encourage anyone to draw. The pieces of bunting were designed and then screenprinted ready to be hung up!