On Wednesday 18th January, our good friend Jodie Greenwood from Wedge Collective delivered a skills workshop as part of the PLACED Academy programme on graphic design. Jodie shared the journey she had taken, from academia to setting up her own highly successful creative agency, with an honest account of the highs and lows of early days in a career. Jodie also shared some of her work for diverse clients from across the UK, from sports to fashion and the built environment. Finally, Jodie talked through how she approaches a commission and the design process, giving our participants an insight into how the brands we all recognise are developed.
Our participants were then split into smaller groups to take on their own branding challenges. Jodie had created a range of design briefs which mimicked those she may receive herself. Groups had to work out what the client wanted, what information was missing, and create a mind map of their initial thoughts. They then sketched a range of ideas before settling on their preferred one to develop in more detail. Each group presented their ideas, and received feedback from Jodie.
The session was a great example of how transferable the design process is – whether designing a logo or a building. The group created some wonderful, creative designs in a very short period. Massive thanks to Jodie and the Wedge team for sharing their expertise with our young people.