OUGD401 - Mind Map

In order to firmly establish a topic for my context of practise essay I was required to produce a mind map detailing a range of potential routes in which I could take my essay. This was helpful as it helped to focus in more detail at which topic within my chosen title I would like to specialise in. From this I was then placed in a group with other students studying the same title in order to compare and discuss what topics we had placed on our mind maps and which was the most likely for use to choose. This was again really helpful as it allowed me to add more topics to my mind map that I had not thought of when individually completing this task. 

From this I have become undecided as to which topic I would like to focus on during the rest of this module. I have decided between focusing on capitalism and how other systems could be better than our current economic and political system in which I would look at groups such as the occupy movement. The other focus I feel I could take focuses on the Perl Harbour attack in world war 2 I could look at the use of propaganda used by the American and Japanese governments to see how they are similar or intact dissimilar creating an critical comparison between the two. 

I order to determine my specific research focus, I plan to discuss these two options with my contextual studies tutor and ask for feedback as to which focus could conceive the most interesting results in regard to my essay and body of physical graphic design. From this I will then complete the second part of study task 3 and begin with my extensive research into my chosen topic. 

OUGD401 - Essay choice

As part of the context of practise module I am required to submit a 3000 word essay along with a body of physical graphic design. We were given 5 topics to choose from that included; 

• Modernism: “To what extent have Modernist design principles influenced contemporary Graphic Design?”
• Postmodernism: “How did Postmodernism impact on Graphic Design practice?
• Gender representation: To what extent does advertising construct our ideas of gender?
• Social/political: “Discuss the role that Graphic Design has played in Political and/or social change in a specific period in history.
• Consumerism: “What is the relationship between branding and The Consumer Self (Ewen)”

We were given seminars introducing the basics of each title, in which we learnt the key ideologies of each topic and considered how it would form the basis of my final project. I  was then asked to independently choose a topic I felt I would be able to sustain across the essay and physical body of work and be able to articulate my reasons behind this choice. From  Studio Brief 3 in my context of practise module I had researched about Russell Brands views on Capitalism, found that this interested me as although his views were some what controversial he spoke confidently about how we could change our lifestyle to become less reliant on capitalist ideologies. I feel there was enough research and theories to be able to sustain a 3000 word essay and think I could create an interesting body of physical work to accompany this. For these reasons I have decided to choose the fourth topic; 

"Social/political: “Discuss the role that Graphic Design has played in Political and/or social change in a specific period in history."

I will use my interest in Russell Brand and his political views as a starting point however I think I will focus more heavily on theories from credible authors and theorists. To start my research I was asked to gather reading material from the library and reference it in the Harvard style as this is a skill that will later be needed when compiling my essay and bibliography. The books I have chosen to research include; 

Bylthe, J (1997). The essence of consumer behaviour. Europe; Prentice Hall Europe

McNally, D (2006). Another World is possible - Globalisation and Anti-capitalism. 2nd ed, Canada; Arbeiter Ring Publishing

Clarke, D Doel, M & Housiaux, M (2003). The consumption reader. London; Taylor & Francias inc.

Heath, J & Potter, A (2005). The rebel sell: How counter culture became consumer culture. UK; Capstone Publishing LTD.