Daniel Holmes

Artist Statement

Being able to adapt to a range of medium is an integral component of a modern designer, an element I attempt to make evident within myself. I try and emphasize through my work the importance of embracing new techniques whilst simultaneously recognizing retrospective methods. I believe the ability to identify a simple solution is essential, clarity of representation is paramount, innovation and purpose must be a successful miscegenation in order to compose a communicative and prominent piece.

City Types:
This brief set by ISTD (The International Society of Typographic Designers) required me to look at examples of letter forms in a typical city centre and to integrate words and images to make a personal statement in a typographic magazine that was about to be launched. Instead of focusing on type literally I conducted an inquiry in to the types of people within the city. Rather than focus on professional people that operate within that sphere, I examined the persons that undertook less high profile tasks and viewed how they were integral to the city. The primary image is of the magazine cover, the pattern was constructed exclusively of type that was juxtaposed to form various figures that conveyed human form. The remaining three images are of double page spreads taken from the feature article ‘City Types’.

Ford Capri:
A fictitious campaign to promote the unveiling of the ‘New’ Ford Capri at the British Motor Show. As the visuals were exclusive to the Motor Show, design was purely typographically based. The previous vehicle had a stigma attached, so I decided to highlight the feelings of the people who had an affinity with the car. These were portrayed in a lonely hearts format, the typography followed a grid derived from road maps, highlighting the cars journey. The image is of a proposed billboard poster for the campaign.

Si’tha:
To create a fictional design consultants and form its ethos and identity. Si’tha is a company that challenges the idea that ‘good’ design is exclusive to London. It also begs the question, what is good design, what is contemporary, what is cutting edge and who and what defines these? Based in the North, the identity revolves around Northern dialects and sayings. The image is a spread taken from an accompanying experimental promotional publication.

Ted Baker:
The international fashion label was looking for a new marketing campaign. With Ted Baker having a patriotic British identity I chose to use the British Isles as the basis for my investigation. The theme of the piece focused on British coach holidays and the various seaside resorts that they tour. I felt that this retrospective look at a bygone Britain with a kitsch acknowledgement to the tour buses encompassed the humorous undertones synonymous with the Baker brand. The image is one of a series of four posters.

Pink:
Involved creating an identity and manifesto for a fictitious budget airline. The name pink was chosen, paying homage to the colour many ‘Brits’ turn after sun contact abroad. The logo comprised two components, the typeface, which was always to appear in black and an image from a gathered collection. The images all relate to objects that make up the indulgences of ‘a Great British holiday’ abroad. The image is taken from a double page spread from the manifesto that showcases the pink destinations.

Father Frost:
Is an interactive story book for young adults with learning difficulties. The Russian folk tale ‘Father Frost’ was chosen. The focus was on instilling fairy tale values while creating a visual style that appealed to an older audience. The visuals centered around the traditional Russian doll theme. Interaction was based on translating the Russian Cyrillic typeface in order to be presented with the English. The two images represent a scene from the tale and the map interface used to navigate the piece.

To Kill A Mockingbird:
Following the BBC’s Big Read campaign I was asked to chose a book from the short list to illustrate. The book in question was Harper Lee’s ‘To Kill A Mockingbird’. The book centres around racial conflict in America in the early 20th century. I decided to draw parallels with racial friction then and today by sourcing imagery that encapsulated this from both eras. The image is part of a set, the one featured tackles racial prejudice in the early 20th century.