Book structure

The above image displays the basic structure in which my book will maintain. As the book maintains a vast amount of acetate, I will be producing the book at an A5 scale. This would be much more cost effective for the consumer of the product, as a younger audience isn't is less likely to be able to afford an expensive product. 

Page layout

I then began to think of the basic page to page structure, and where the acetate and normal paper would slot in. I did this to ensure that I produce the booklet in the correct order. 

Page format

Thinking about the books basic format I developed some sketches suggesting how many pages the book would maintain. I found that if I disincluded the acetate overlays the final leaflet would have 18 pages, not including the front cover, and that if I did include the pages I would only have 4 pages in which to tell the stories. A factor in which is to be a likely problem if developing a minimal, uncrowded approach. As I am currently unaware of how to tackle this design problem, I will firstly begin to develop my book and see whether I need more than 4 pages in which to convey the information. 

Crit with Danny

After my crit with the second years I decided to ask Danny about some questions in which I would like to gather a greater understanding upon. 

As each page would have an acetate overlay there is no possible way in which to construct the book without using individual pieces rather than spreads. Due to this I was unsure what binding methods I could use, with danny suggesting that of a japanese fold or industrial clips. When researching industrial clips I found that they appeared much more suiting to that of a book in which has a similar context, and due to this I feel it would not work effectively with my celtic theme. As the japanese fold looks much more traditional I feel that this would definitely follow the book's concept further. I will also explore different ways in which to construct the book, focusing specifically on celtic tradition. 

As I would have an overlay of each page I was unsure whether this contributed to the page count, and thus I discussed this with Danny. He stated that it was my decision whether to include the overlays as pages  not. As I am currently unaware of how to tackle this I will complete some sketches displaying layouts in which would mimic these approaches. 

Crit with 2nd years

When discussing my ideas with the second years I found that some approaches may work more effectively than others. It was suggested that a half and half book would become repetitive due to the same imagery being involved. It was also suggested that this may also be difficult to construct as I would need two front covers, and blurbs. 

It was also suggested that a column approach may be extremely effective if completed in a modernist style, and that it really depended upon my target audience. As I had not yet thought of a target audience this gave me the realization that I must start focusing on who the book is for and what is its purpose.

It was discussed that an acetate overlay may be a strong approach in which to tackle the issues with language, as it clearly divided the two making each individual. I really liked this idea, and felt that it may give my book a mystical feel. As I have not yet printed on acetate this would be something in which I would like to explore with.

Bilingual book 3rd drawings

Thinking more in depth about the bilingual approach, I began to explore multiple ways in which the design may be tackled. I thought about splitting the book into two halves, having a book inside a book and also have separate columns for each language. I also considered developing two versions of the book, but I feel that this may become boring and repetitive. By developing a bilingual book it will also create a challenging aspect, and thus in turn making me a better designer. Factors I must also consider during the following design stages is how the books cover will represent the two languages, as well as the blurb. 

Bilingual sketches

In order to develop a book in which is both factual and aesthetically pleasing, I began looking at ways in which both english and welsh could coincide with one another effectively. I thought about the shape of the book, and whether a landscape or portrait approach would be most effective. I finally decided upon a portrait rectangular approach due to the book's factual nature. 

I also thought about ways in which the book may be bilingual, with the idea of a half and half book being prominent. During the following stages I will explore further with design and decide upon a finalised bilingual approach. 

Group response

I fed my concepts and drawings to the group whereby I got a response. As I was the first person to add my ideas to the group I felt that the feedback wasn't that critical as it had nothing to compare against, and thus once the others have fed back their designs I feel that I will have a greater knowledge upon where my initial concepts stand. 

Second drawings

As the main format of contacting my group was through a group chat, I decided to develop some more in depth drawings displaying my concept more clearly. I focused upon my favourite concepts expressed previously, with a much deeper insight into that of aesthetics. I focused upon the general layout of the designs, and how the designs could exhibit further concepts.

When gathering thoughts surrounding the place name approach, I felt that places within Leeds may be a good starting point. As the exhibition will be in Leeds, and the consumers of the exhibit will be from Leeds or surrounding areas, I felt that this would be a good way in which to gather contextuality. I also believe that this may be another way in which to persuade the general public to participate within the exhibit, as it is obvious to suggest that they are patriotic about the city in which they live.

Other concepts in which I enjoyed were that of a board game invite, as this would allow the design company in which they are given to participate in a mini game, thus making the concept of fun money becoming more apparent. I also feel that this would be a design aspect in which the consumer would keep due to its strong design nature, and thus I feel that this would be much more effective than a standard leaflet.

During the following design stage, I will show these drawings to my group gathering feedback, and analysing their concepts.

First drawings

Looking at my research I began to develop some initial concepts in which I noted, I did this in order to separate strong and weak ideas. 

I began to think about how artwork may be displayed within the exhibit, and how the monopoly theme could infiltrate this. Key concepts in which I felt to be strong were that of displaying the walls as place cards, naming the streets specifically to fit with the theme. Another of my favourite ideas was to place life size counters across the exhibit. These pieces would then be transferable as the consumer would be able to move them, and take photos of them. A factor I feel important to get the exhibit noticed.

I developed a quick response to that of invites, focusing upon the basic structure of the board game. Working closely with my research I explored multiple ways in which this may be approached. With unconventional methods, such as a dice format being explored. I found the designs in which mimicked the board game felt most satisfying due to the intertextual reference you gather from them, relating to the fun aspect of money.

Monopoly Pieces

When looking at the counter available it became apparent to me that all the objects can be bought, a factor in which embeds concept into these pieces. If I were to display them within the buildings aesthetic the most obvious pieces would be highlighted rather than say a cat. In turn embeding the sentiment that all things can be bought. 

exhibition invite

As I am focusing upon board game designs, I feel that an approach in which opens would be extremely effective. If the design involved an connecting envelope it may also be much more environmentally friendly. In order to suggest durability a strong stock must be used, a factor in which would be costly if multiple were produced, and thus this design would only be targeted at design studios. The general aesthetic is extremely interesting and would be much more effective than a basic flyer in which would inevitably be put in the bin.

The above design is an artform in itself and thus may be displayed within a creative studio. The general aesthetic is interesting as it initially creates an enigma as the consumer is unaware of its purpose. This may also be effectively expressed through the form of monopoly. 

As I don't want the monopoly aspect to completely overthrow the artwork present within the design I could explore minimal ways in which to involve the designs aspects, this may also be effective in its own right, as minimal design can be extremely impactful.

Basic monopoly

As there are so many variations of the Monopoly board game I decided to research the standard game, in order to gather a basic structure. As the original is American this may be a factor in which I should consider as any money signs present should be converted to £'s. This also applies to the place names, as to create contextuality with leeds maybe they should be iconic places. Another approach being that artists names may be used, although this may suggest to the public that their work is being exhibited. A third approach may be to give each individual whose work is exhibited a colour, although as there are 120 individual pieces this may become extremely complex. I will explore  with this during the design stage.

Monopoly facts

1. The Monopoly game is based on Atlantic City, New Jersey.

2. Charles Darrow first developed the Monopoly game in 1933.

3. Charles Darrow is from Philadelphia.

4. The original game was made from materials from Darrow’s own home. A piece of oilcloth covered the board and the cards were handwritten.

5. The original houses and hotels were made from wooden molding scraps.

6. The original Monopoly die-cast tokens were inspired by Darrow’s nieces who recommended metal charms from charm bracelets be used.

7. The original game included 10 metal tokens including iron, purse, lantern, race car, thimble, shoe, top hat, battleship, cannon and a rocking horse.

8. The Monopoly 80th Anniversary Edition game features one iconic token from each of its eight decades including the bathtub, locomotive, money bag, cat, cannon, cavalry, and MONOPOLY World Championships trophy.

9. Darrow attempted to sell the Monopoly game to Parker Brothers, but was initially rejected for “52 fundamental errors” that included the game’s length, theme and complexity.

10. Darrow first manufactured and sold the Monopoly game in local Philadelphia department stores.

11. Following the local success of the Monopoly game, Parker Brothers reconsidered their initial rejection and negotiated the rights to market the game.

12. Monopoly was first manufactured and sold in 1935 by Parkers Brothers in the U.S. and Waddington’s in the UK.

13. The Monopoly brand’s official birthday is March 19, 1935, when Parker Brothers acquired the rights for the game from Charles Darrow.

14. The longest game played upside down lasted 36 hours.

15. The Monopoly game is currently published in 47 languages and sold in 114 countries.

16. More than 1 billion people have played the Monopoly game worldwide.

17. The city of London was the first licensed Monopoly game.

18. To make the game relevant to British consumers, the names of the properties were changed to well known streets in London. This is a practice that continues today whenever the Monopoly game is introduced to a new country.

19. Within a year of the Monopoly game’s release in the U.S., 35,000 copies of the game were being made each week.

20. The original Monopoly game sold for about $2.

21. The Monopoly game is subtitled “The Fast-Dealing Property Trading Game.”

22. The current standard Monopoly game includes eight tokens: Battleship, top hat, Scottie dog, race car, thimble, boot, cat, and wheelbarrow.

23. More than 20 different tokens have made their way into the game, including an elephant, purse, and a bag of money.

24. There are 40 spaces on the Monopoly board and 28 properties (22 colored streets, four railroads, and two utility spaces).

25. There are three chance spaces, three community chest spaces, a luxury tax space, and an income tax space on the Monopoly board.

26. There are four corner spaces on a standard Monopoly board: "Go," jail/just visiting, free parking, and go to jail.

27. There are 32 houses and 12 hotels in the standard Monopoly game.

28. The standard Monopoly game has 28 title deed cards, 16 chance cards, and 16 community chest cards.

29. Some of the chance and community chest cards have been updated throughout time. The “Grand Opera Opening” card no longer exists.

30. Of the 16 community chest cards in the Monopoly game, 10 will give players cash.

mindmaps

Looking closely at the research gathered I developed a mind map outlining ideas and ways in which monopoly may be represented throughout the exhibition. Ideas I specifically liked were involving an invite in which was built upon of the monopoly game board. I also began to think about wayfinding and how a monopoly style map could be put in place.

I thought about further factors I would like to consider surrounding the design, including social media, and how maybe a hashtag could allow the exhibition to have an online presence. I also thought about an introduction wall, and thank you sign, two factors in which I personally feel critical to exhibition design. 

monopoly initial ideas

research-monopoly

As I was given the topic area of monopoly I began some initial research surrounding products in which are already available, in order to gather design influence. 

As monopoly is an internationally recognised game it is obvious to assume that design studios in which we will invite to the exhibit will already have a knowledge of the game and thus this will create an intertextual reference.  

Having invites such as magnets allows the design to be frequently seen, as the designers would be exposed to the design every time they open the fridge. They are much more likely to keep designs in which they feel enrich their studios more so this must be a factor in which to consider. 

As the monopoly colours are somewhat iconic to the game, this may be a factor in which I would involve within the design. Although stating this follow a more basic colour scheme was be derived as the current involves far too many colours to be involved within the exhibitions design.

Monopoly notes are easily transferable to multiple design aspects and thus it would allow continuity. 

As monopoly may be considered somewhat tacky, I feel that approach like the above may be a much more effective response. Maybe a black and white monopoly set could be explored in order to suggest maturity within the bank. 

An example of how diverse the concept of monopoly can be.

Initials feelings surrounding the group

To begin with I felt that our group was somewhat quieter to that of others, as we had not necessarily had a long term conversation with people in our group previously. In an attempt to discourage this I felt myself and Katie taking the form of a leadership role, correlating ideas onto the mindmap. During the initial session I felt that a general awkwardness was present but this was illuminated within the second as I felt a conscious effort was made to talk to others during the normal working day. With other members being highly involved within the second session, I felt that a leadership role was not present as we all discussed factors together. I felt that this was much greater than having an individual lead group, as it allows a wider range of important to be correlated.

3rd meeting

As in previous sessions the group had remained quiet, I decided to write some notes beforehand on topic areas I personally wanted to discuss with the group. This involved concepts such as monopoly money(as there is more monopoly money in the world than actual money), money from around the world and its presence within other cultures, a focus upon the queen (as she is on multiple banknotes across the world) and moneys impact upon the environment.

I felt that this session flowed much more than the previous due to the vast amounts of ideas people had correlated from their research. We discussed in depth colour schemes and what portrayed a corporal atmosphere, if this were a route in which we would follow. We also considered the financiers of the exhibition, first direct, and what they would like to see from the exhibition. As first direct are a digital bank this was highly influential as a basis of concepts. 

In order to develop further concepts I asked the team if they would like to do a word association exercise focusing upon money.I felt that this gave us the general basics of what we associate money as being. As negatives also appeared within this we would not involve them, as it is contradictory to the exhibition. Colour was a main factor in which was explored within this with colours such as green and gold being suggested. One concept I really liked from this was the idea of Jack and the beanstalk, as he payed using beans-a factor in which resembles money as its original form, the transferring of goods. Although I liked this idea, the general atmosphere surrounding it was not approved, and thus as this was a team effort I decided that this may not be a strong concept in which to follow.




Drawing from our original ideas, and ones correlated during the word association exercise we formed a mindmap of concepts in which to focus. From this we began to discuss each concept in depth focusing on positives and limitations. From this we then developed another list of 6 concepts, one for each of the team to focus upon during easter. Mine being that of monopoly.

2nd meeting

As a large proportion of the time spent on this project will be over half term we decided it would be important to develop a contract in which expresses the times in which we will meet and also contact details.At this point we had decided upon focusing primarily on an origami theme, looking at money as an art form, and thus gave one another roles in which to focus upon during half term.

As John came to discuss the project with us, he suggested that we had not yet correlated enough ideas in which to decide upon one distinct idea, and that we should focus upon being as ambiguous as possible.  Due to this we then decided to depart and conduct some research which we would then feedback to one another within our next meeting.

First meeting

During the first meeting with the group we discussed initial concepts and had a quick overview surrounding the deliverables in which we would like to express. The main concepts in which were approved involved that of money as an art form and also a spy theme. We discussed design aspects in which we will tackle including a bespoke typeface, wayfinding, invites, posters, colour schemes and the general aesthetic. 

Initial research-exhibit

In order to gather a greater insight into exhibition design, I decided to conduct some research on some ambiguous exhibitions. As the winning group have aid from tutors surrounding design considerations, I feel that our initial ideas should be as ambiguous as possible.

The sentiment of involving an introduction wall within the exhibit is one I would like to mimic. Not only does this give the consumer a greater insight into the exhibit but it also expresses a relaxed, friendly atmosphere from the offset. The multiple mediums present express a personal approach, as the mediums seem to be part of an individual's personal collection. This is definitely a factor I will consider and bring forth to the group in the next discussion. 

These exhibits explore multiple ways in which to display art. The way in which the pieces are exhibited may even be considered an artform itself. Two approaches can be taken from this: that the layout distracts from the work forcing its concept to become weaker, or that the exhibits aesthetic contributes to the general atmosphere and thus makes the experience far more memorable. These will be factors in which I will discuss with my group.

Hanging work allows for a contemporary way in which art may be expressed. A turnstile approach may become a factor in which distracts other consumers from the art, so a standard placed piece would be much more effective. 

The idea of placing light behind the designs may be a factor in which would work with the concept of money. Due to the watermark aspect in which is involved within banknotes.

I like the idea of a feedback wall, and maybe this aspect could be a way in which feedback is expressed. 

Another interpretation to that of an induction wall, this approach uses a timeline. This may also be a factor in which may be involved within my design, as money has been around for centuries. 

This design explores an hands on approach to that of exhibit design. I believe that an interactive exhibition would allow the consumers to personally connect with the exhibition and in turn remember the experience in much more depth. 

Multiple variations of the same product allows similarities to be drawn. Light is also an important factor in which may be considered, as it is often expressed a beautiful. Lighting is also important in viewing art.

Shield design

There were 4,000 entries to the public competition to find the new designs.

Matthew Dent, 26, from Bangor, Gwynedd, won the competition. He will have his work stamped on the side of millions of coins.

The royal coat of arms featured in Matthew's designs are a symbol of the reigning monarch.

Mr Dent said: "For designs of mine to appear on a medium as significant and prestigious as the United Kingdom's coinage and to be produced and circulated in millions is a tremendous honour."

Harry Eccleston

Harry Eccleston was an artist and bank-note designer who worked for the Bank of England for 25 years and was responsible for the pictorial "D" series of banknotes, issued in 1970. Each denomination featured an historical figure, the £5 note bearing the portrait of the Duke of Wellington after the celebrated painting by Sir Thomas Lawrence. Among the many meticulous preparatory drawings he made were the portrait of the Queen (entailing several royal sittings in Buckingham Palace) and details of weapons and military uniform for the Peninsular War scene on the reverse of the note.

Describing the experience in a letter he praised the skill of his engraver colleague, David Wicks, writing "...how different security engraving is from normal engraving, particularly in the control of line spacing. To see your drawing turned into this was unbelievable." It is typical of Eccleston's generous modesty that whenever he mentioned his work at the Bank he never failed to express his admiration for the skill of the craftsmen who translated his designs into the complex filigree of engraved line. From 1967 onwards he became the first person to hold the post of bank-note designer full-time, and in 1979 he was awarded an OBE in recognition of his services.

Money Research

Data from the Payments Council has found that more of us pay with debit cards, credit cards or automated payments than with cash these days.

In the year to May 2015 businesses, consumers and financial organisations made 18.3bn cash payments, versus 19.8bn non-cash payments. That’s means cash was used to settle only 48 per cent of all transactions.

By 2024 we’ll only be using cash twice every three days, according to Payments UK. Instead we will favour our plastic using debit cards to make most of our purchases.

The trade body believes we’ll buy more items that were traditionally bought with cash, such as groceries and lottery tickets, online. Meanwhile small transactions such as newspapers or lunch will be paid for with a card.

Does this spell the end for cash?
Not necessarily. “Cash remains a vital part of our day-to-day lives and is still the most attractive or only option in lots of situations,” David Hensley, director of payments industry body Cash Services, told the Guardian. “We continue to value notes and coins so highly for their familiarity and 

Bilingual design

Following my research closely I began to develop some ideas surrounding the ways in which I could develop a bilingual design. I looked at the positioning of both English and Welsh along with their relevance to imagery. I found that minimal designs appeared less overwhelming and were far easier to navigate. During the following stages I will correlate further imagery in order to express the basic layout for the book.