Choosing my Micro-Genre

The first studio brief of this module 'Design Practice' is an individual practice and we are to chose a micro-genre of music to base three designs for: a cassette tape, an A1 size flag and an object.

I searched for a micro-genre through everynoise.com, and at first I wanted to do Korean Pop as its a genre that I've listened too for a long time already and know quite a lot of, however after thinking about it for some time I figured that if I use it, my researched might be too biased or I may try and focus myself on something that I'm already drawn too which may end end of me making pastiche designs so I decided to not use it instead. However, there is a much lesser known genre that I'm quite interested in and is a sub-genre of hiphop which is K-hiphop or Korean-hiphop. I'm thinking of using this micro-genre as I think it would be interesting how it's different to American hip-hop and the influence it had as well as the cultural aspects it has. 

End of Module Evaluation for OUGD405 Design Process

At the start of this module with the Cellphone Symphony task I felt very lost and didn't really know what I was going to do as they brief was explained quite quickly and I was flustered at how fast the brief would go, because I thought I wouldn't really have enough time to come up with ideas that I'm satisfied with. At the end though, I came up with five ideas, however some I was not sure about because I felt that they were not really answering what the brief was asking me to do, unlike what I've gathered from other people ideas in crits. The brief was also segregated into parts and felt quite disjointed with all the breaks that we had, therefore it made it even more difficult for me as I felt I had too much to do. Also I tried to be more independent as I couldn't see Ben and Pat for a some weeks and honestly felt like my ideas weren't going anywhere, so I relied more on peer critiques instead. This allowed me to have a better understanding of the brief as well as have a more solid idea of my poster design which led me to my final design which Iw as quite happy about at the end.

For the publication brief, I also felt a bit confused at first. I was also quite daunted with having to do three publications but I think as the module went on and we actually started making and creating ideas for it, I felt more at ease. I really enjoyed the first publication as it was collaborative and I had the opportunity to work with other people and get ideas from other people as well. However, I found the second publication the hardest, as I thought we had to create 26 different ideas for each photos, plus O wasn't really sure how I could link all of my object together. I did spend a lot of time thinking of ideas rather than just going with one and see what I came up with, which I really regret. However, Ben and Pat did clarifying and helped with explaining it better which pushed me to actually do designs which I was quite okay with. The third publication was the one I was the most engaged in and probably the one I felt that knew what I was doing right in the beginning. For this publication I felt more confident and create a design which I took further and made into my final design at the end, which I was really satisfied with.

Overall, as the module progressed, although I did have a lot of moment where I felt really lost, I was able to be more confident at the end and also understand the module a bit more through the help of my peers and Ben and Pat, and also overall I was happy with the module and how it was set out, although my only regret was that maybe it could've been introduced sooner to use because then I would've had more time to think of better ideas and create better designs, especially for the Cellphone Symphony brief.

Final Publication

After a lot of feedback from my peers and having dilemma's on improving the final publication after the final crit, I finally finished my publication in the state that I am happy with. I decided that for my final publication it was best to leave the black thread as it fits in more with the mood of the publications well as as because I wanted it too be quite minimal and an aspect of the book which shouldn't really be the focus of as soon as someone sees the book. Also, although I know I do have some mistakes that i didn't see before it  suing making the final book that were pointed out I decided that I'm just gong to leave the book as it is as they are only minor mistakes as well as the fact that I may make even more mistakes if I start changing it as it's made by hand. and, with the time that I have I can't afford to do it all over again for my to mess it up, and decided that I'll present a publication which may be only 95% perfect. After stressing out about the back cover situation, I did decided to put one because it was only one page and the back cover so I didn't have to worry about messing about with the pages and at the end I was happy with the result and was glad I did it because enow I feel like my publication looks more complete than before.

Final publication back cover dilemma

Another, thing I was uncertain of about the final publication was it's back cover,as i kept the back cover as the sources/bibliography of the publication. I was uncertain about it because I wasn't sure whether I should put a black cover in order to work well with the black front cover or keep it more interesting with the sources. I got some mixed responses as some wanted to keep it but some wanted to put a cover on it. Personally, as I've seen how  it looks without i decided to try putting a back cover on it,; also because it was bothering me quite a bit as i thought that it just doesn't look like a complete book without a back cover on it.And, it turns out that it made the publication look much better than it did, as it seemed to tie in the publication together and, also I thought the front and back cover being the same colour made it look much better than having just the sources.

Experiment of Red on pictures for publication 3

Per peer and crit feedback, I decided to experiment with making some photos of my publication red in order to signal important events and significant photos in the publication. However, I didn't really like how they turned out as the pictures looked too grainy as well as too bright for what i was thinking of. Also, when I out it with the publication and how  it would look inside the book, i felt that ti didn't really fit in and just makes the publication look quite mismatched, therefore I'm decided of not including colour in my publication, because I thought that even without the colour the images can still give as much impact on its own depending on it's severity and how people would react to it. As well as the fact, that I liked the monochromatic aesthetic better because it makes the publication look more complete and it's own colour and feel tied in together better.

Book binding workshop

We had a bookbinding induction in order to know different kinds of book binding techniques so that well be able to start thinking about the right kind of binding technique to bind our books with.

Pamphlet Book – A pamphlet book is stitched by a thread by having three holes in the centre pages of the book; starting from the middle hole, then going up the first side hole, back to the middle hole and down the other side hole then coming back to the middle hole again and tying the thread together it order to secure the book. It is quite easy to create the booklet and you’ll come out with a simple basic booklet. The pamphlet book is appropriate for books which have a certain small number of pages as it can only handle a certain number of pages as it can be quite hard to close  it properly if there are a lot of pages within it. This booklet is also appropriate publications which may contain a lot of text as it looks are reads like a normal book. 

Stab-Stitch Book – A stab-stich book is created by stitching individual piece of pages together with a thread. Similar to the pamphlet booklet, this technique is also relatively easy to do and is definitely the technique that I was mostly interested in because it was fairly easy to do and I thought that it would allow me to put more page sin the publication unlike the pamphlet booklet. The stitching itself is also quite interesting and not as boring compared to just stapling the booklet or threading it three times quite simply.

Concertina Book – A concertina book is created by gluing together 8 pieces of paper creating a ‘mountain’ and ‘valley’ while folding it. It can also include a hardback made from cardboard and buckram or left as it is. This technique was the most difficult for me to pull off as I messed up on gulping the pages of the booklet. However, my mistake turned out to be more interesting than I thought, as it left me with some pages sticking out which if I was to use this technique can possibly help me with thinking of the layout and more innovative ways formatting the actual designs on the book.

Informal crits with peers about my publication

I've talked to some of my peers about the amount of text I should put on my publication as I thought that maybe having a lot of text can be a bit too much reading. From talking to my peers I was suggested that the text are a bit too much reading and that maybe I could shorten or summarise some of it in order to see it concise and easy on the eyes.

From the suggestions that I got, i decided to summarise some of the text and paragraphs that I used in  my publication and after doing it I think that it definitely made the publication better  in terms of information and text used. Also, I've come to realise that summarising the text can make it easier for the readers to understand and digest information in the publication and not make them tired of it as fast as they'd be.

Informal talks with peers about final publication

I've decided to talk and get opinions from other peers about the state of my publication as I feel like maybe I should improve it a bit more. I asked whether I should change the thread colour of the binding for my publication to red like the crit that I got, however people have told me to maybe stay black as it goes well with the 'silent' idea and it keeps the aesthetic of the book 'complete' quite well. Other people thought, maybe white would be a better option as it can effectively juxtapose the theme of the publication as white has connotations of being pure and clean however the subject is the opposite of that. I also got another suggestion of maybe binding the other side of the publication in white making the publication completely closed only for it to be cut of by the reader to read through. However, although this can give my publication and interactive element to it, I think it's not necessarily relevant to the subject of the publication.

From these further discussions that I got I think that I will keep the threading of my publication as it is because after putting it against a white thread I felt that it was a bit out of the book and stand out a bit too much compared to the neutral and dark colours used for the stock and images. I've also decided finally that I'm going to keep the publication as it is as I don't really have enough time to do it again, and from the critique and other comments that I got while taking with peers it appears that my publication is good as it is and works effectively and answers the question it is trying to answer well.

Final Publication Final Crit (Uncomfortable Images)

Today, we had a critical for out final publication which for me was the uncomfortable images publication.

I got various different feedback for my own publication and I think this would really help me in the future for other briefs and design decisions. From the crit, people enjoyed my use of paper stock as it "feels raw and natural". Also, my intention of having text in separate pages in the book to create phase some to be effective as it "helps for the images and text to not compete for attention". People also mentioned how my use of colour as it "conveys the mood well".

However, I think that I need to write my rationale in more depth as I seem to miss out justifying my use of paper size, image layout and font choice. I will do this, in order to clearly justify my design choices according to the theme of my publication. There were also some text and image that went wrong in my publication that I didn't see before and I'm thinking of maybe leaving or taking out specific pages and redoing them but this may become too fiddly as I made the publication by hand. I was also suggested to maybe make the binding thread a different colour to contrast the black and white aesthetic, but i don't know if that well be too contrasting for the mood or not, also adding more blank pages in my publication would've been better as well.

Also while going round different people's publications, publications that had an interactive aspect to it caught my attention, as I thought they were a cover way of keeping the readers interested and also adds a very playful aesthetic to their publications which works really well with their theme. I also like how they've utilised their theme and gone through different viewpoints in order to make it more creative and innovative. 

example of other student's interactive publications

Warszawskie Getto by Hubert Hilscher

The book about the Warszawkie Getto in Poland designed by Hulbert Hilscher shows the people in a way in which they aren't exploited or disrespected by glamorising them in the photos.

Upon reading about and looking through the book design I realised that this book is similar to the publication that I am trying to design. It's similar in a way that I am also trying to document human suffering without minimising the people in them. I also noticed how Hilscher sectioned the pages of the book in order to tell a clear narrative of the tragedy. There's also a clear heavy use of photographs rather than text and with the photographs not necessarily having the same grid system but is laid out accommodating the subject e.g. having the photograph of a landscape spread put across two pages to highlight the scene.

This book design has further inspired me on what to do for my own publication as I further thought on how I can lay out the pictures on the page according to what kind of picture and impact it has. As well as maybe try to use less typography or only use certain important parts of an article in order to accomodate the picture. Also, i will try and put my publication in chapters in order to show a clear narrative much like how Hilscher has successfully chaptered his book design, making it much more impactful and effective on higlight the human suffering in the getto.

Publication Interim Crit

On Friday we had an interim crit for our three publication designs.

From the crit, I decided that I'm going to take my design for my uncomfortable images publication as I thought it was the strongest out of the three that I presented and it was also the publication which I thought was the more interesting and the one that I liked the most from my own designs. My peers in the crit also agreed that I should take this publication further.

In the crit, my first two publications didn't really get much feedback however, people have said how the third publication was interesting and is on an interesting topic to do. Having the images saturate the whole publication was also a good idea. However, though the images are nice they should be put in a certain order as only putting the images anywhere won't really bring out the message that is trying to be discussed in the publication. The publication should have some sort of order or narrative in order for it be much more effective and can take the readers on a journey as well as make them understand the whole purpose of the publication. In order to do this, I was suggested to have categories in the book or chapters which focus on certain parts of the crisis such as poverty, death or genocide etc. and use these topics in order to create a story with the images that I'm using. Also, in order to further emphasis the topic choosing colours and paper stock can also help as it can help with the structuring of the book in order to "force the reader to do what you want them to do". Furthermore, I was also suggested to cut down the use of collaged images but maybe use the actual images themselves as it can look too amateur-ish.

After, the criticism I decided to take on the suggestions I received and realised that maybe I should have a struture because looking back at my experiments the images were only put their without much consideration and as I was thinking if I'm going to do the final book, I need to give the publication a sense of beginning, middle and end or else it's just going to be a book full of pictures without having a story to it which defeats the whole purpose of what I'm trying to do; even with the articles I have to carefully manage the pagination in order for each page to relate to each other.

I'm thinking of using different paper stocks to go with certain topics e.g. poverty with brown rough ribbed paper and death with red paper. I will also use colour to highlight important pictures with I think have the biggest impact in order to demonstrate the topic that I'm trying to shed light on. I'm also thinking of having a kind of page or chapter information on the front of the publication much like a book to guide the readers on what the book contains as I think doing this may also help the readers understand the concept of the publication. In addition, I'm still going to make the book A6 and thick as I think it fits the aesthetic of the book and theme as well as making the production of it as cheap as possible but also if the publication is to be reproduced in the future it will be very fast and efficient.

Rohingya Crisis : Uncomfortable Images

For my uncomfortable images I decided to use the crisis in Myanmar (Burma) at the moment which is the ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya Muslim people. The Rohingya people are currently a stateless community due to Myanmar denying the people citizenship. This has also resulted in the mass killings, starvation and refuge of the Rohingya people to neighbouring countries like Bangladesh. However, Bangladesh is also trying to 'get rid' of the Rohingya people in the country.

This for me is something that very  uncomfortable and disgusting as I really just can't believe how someone or a country would do such a thing to a minority of a country and make actions such as killing just because of their beliefs and traditions. As someone who is a minority and comes from a country full of different traditions and ethnic background it saddens me to see this kind of thing happening in the world. In addition, it also saddens me how the rest of the world has very little information about this crisis, such as that I was talking to my friends about this topic and them not knowing what it was and where it was happening. I also think that even when it is shown and reported it is still watered down and kept small therefore people don't really know how severe the crisis is; and it's only when you really read articles about this that you will really see the full effect and devastation it is causing to the Rohingya people.

Shit Plug by Paul McCarthy & Jason Rhoades

Shit plug is a really interesting publication because it is such a random book filled with lots of different designs and illustrations. I also find it interesting how although the book have all these different seized pages and different paper stock, it still works together as a whole publication, which I think can be an example of what Jan van Toorn was saying about subjectivity in graphic design. Shit plug is a book which completely goes against so-called rules of publication or book designing by having these different sized paper and paper stock and also somehow kind of having a grid but not, because the pages don't necessarily have the same grid system that it's following how each page seems to have it's own grid system, where when all of the pages and put together it sill somehow works. Also, doing this kind of publication also shows a very playful and bright aesthetic to the book which gives it an even more interest and uniqueness to it which makes it stand out from other book publications. I may try and follow  this method of playfulness with grid systems as it seems to work well with very quirky themes. I'm thinking of taking inspiration from this for my fanzine publication as it involves lots of collages and very bright and interesting patterns and cut, perhaps it will make the publication look more fun and loud at the same time.

Publication Three: Uncomfortable Images Experiments

For the third publications I decided to created collages of pictures of the Rohingya people in the Rohingya crisis. Creating collages made a more interesting layout of pictures in the publication as well as I thought that it may make it more look aesthetically pleasing. I'm planning to make the publication A6 and think of including pictures and articles about the ethnic cleansing in Burma (Myanmar).

I tested the publication in different paper stock to see which one I thought would fit the best and also aid to the mood and feel of the publication itself.

Idea 1

• This version of the publication was printed on normal white paper, also the black and whit pictures really stand out on the paper, I thought that the paper itself was not appropriate as it feels and looks too thin and it doesn't really have the right appeal that I was aiming for the book to have. Because, the publication has a quite serious tone to it I thought the white paper was too basic and doesn't really express that feeling.

• For this expriement I tried yellow paper but it turned put too bright and doesn't really fit the publication. I thought the paper quality was also too shiny and has a different feel to the contents of the publication and I think using this type of paper would just make the publication look gaudy and take away the design of it. 

Idea 2

article grid experiment on publication

• Though in this version of the publication experiment, I experimented with the articles that I was going to use and how they were going to be guided on the page. I thought having this column grid style for the typography fit the publication as it resembles that of new articles on newspapers and I thought this could add to the mood of the publication. In additional, I think that having the text like this can break the oversaturated pages of pictures in the publication, which can help it tone down the pace for the readers and not let them get bored of it but instead get more interested and actually read what it's about.

Idea 3

I had a hard time deciding on the paper because of limited paper availability and printing availability. I've decided to opt for sugar paper as it has quite a rough texture to it and I thought it may go well with having this kind of newspaper-ish type feel to the publication.

• I actually quite like how the pictures turned out on the sugar paper as the black looks quite dark and the pale brown makes the images stand out of the page. However, i'm still not really satisfied with how thick the paper quality is. I think i will try and find a lighter paper than sugar paper as see if I can get paper which fits the newpapper feel in order fro my publication to feel right and have the right aesthetic and physical attributes in order for it to work really well.

Publication Two: 26 Characters Experiments

My objects: headphones, charger, lip balm, plaster and post-it-note

I was struggling a lot with coming up with ideas for this publication because I thought we had to have 26 ideas in total for each picture, however after clarifying the brief again, I started the publication with comic up with one main idea with I could take into several views and take 26 photos based on that idea.

My idea was using the theme of hierarchy, as in which object I use the most and use the least. 

Idea 1

• For this idea, I created a flip book which showcases all the objects overlaid on top of each other based on how often I use them with the headphones being on top as the most and post-it-note on the bottom as the least. Doing this already shows the relation of the object to the theme as they can be realised that they are in some sort of order as the flip book is flipped because one by one the objects started to disappear from the page. Also, instead of only doing twenty six photos, I decided to take photos based on the movement of the objects to give a more fluid movement of the flip book. 

Idea 2

• For my second idea, I decided to create a concertina book. I took exaggerated photos of the images to show details of scratches and wear of the objects in order to demonstrate the duration of time as well as highlight which object I used the most and the least. The concertina is also back to back as readers can follow the narrative front to back and see how much the changes happen of the objects within the publication. I think using a concertina is quite effective for this as it can clearly show the structure of a narrative but also has some dynamic appeal to it due to its shape which can appeal to the readers/audience more. 

Idea 3

• The third idea for this publication was to use the scale of different page sizes to show which objects are higher up the hierarchy and vice versa. The book is pamphlet stitched together as it was the most effective way for the pages to flip. It's also an interesting way of showing which objects are deemed the most important and the larger the picture the more exaggerated it is, therefore how it's used and how long it's been worn out can also be seen as well further emphasising the hierarchy of the objects. Thus, I think that creating the publication in this way has effectively showcased the them of this publication to the readers.

Publication 1: Fanzine Factory Experiments

For our group publications I decided to put my own twist to the existing ones our group agreed with in order to keep it individual to myself and also has my own interpretations of the theme of the book.

Idea 1

• My frist idea was to print the book out normally on a5 paper and insert some tracing paper and trace over the important parts i.e. the eyes of each collage, this will highlight the key theme of the book as well as direct the readers attention to it. I didn't really particularly like this idea as I thought it was too straight forward and didn't seem too interesting for me. 

Idea 2

• My second idea was to make quite possibly challenge what a normal book size is by making it square. Also I've decided to put a bit of colour to it by having yellow a yellow half cover to it and to correspond to this, fact about eyes are also printed in yellow flaps inside the booklet, making it more interactive for the reader. However, as I was stab-stitching it I realised that the flaps were a bit short so they don't really fold properly which defeated its purpose however, I still think it adds some fun and interest to the book as theres more dynamic elements to it.

Idea 3 

• My third idea was to take the eye in context of the opticians and reference the page sizes with the alphabet test you get when you get your eyes tested. The pages of the publication gets smaller and smaller to link this reference and I think it's a good way of coming about this theme and although it may seem a bit direct it still looks fun and may also be interactive as the pages can be ridiculously small making the readers feel like they're actually doing the test as the images may get ridiculously small as well. 

Objectivity vs Subjectivity - Wim Crouwel and Jan van Toorn

Crouwel and Toorn's debate can be described as a debate on objectivity versus subjectivity, where Crouwel describes designers as 'selfless messenger(s)' whilst Toorn implied designers as 'interventionist - an enabler of criticism and empowerment.'

In the debate Toorn criticises objective design and Crouwel's use of grids and say "You impose your design on others and level everything...out country is inundated by waves of trademarks and house styles and everything looks the same. [What your approach does is basically confirm existing patterns]. I think Toorn is implying here how being objective takes away the individual creativity of the designer and restricts them to certain 'rules' which they need to follow thus creating a stream of designs which all look similar and does not have the uniqueness and individuality of the designer. Though, Crouwel replied by saying how Toorn's design is 'pretentious' and a 'so-called good design'. Crouwel clearly thinks that subjectivity in design does not mean good design and he may think that rules need to be implied in order to create a more traditional good graphic design. 

For me, I think that both arguments have their merits and just like in the article, it doesn't really have much of an impact now as today both arguments are redundant due to the fact that their are now a array of way designs. And, this was characterised by Rick Poynor as 'pluralism'. Though objective design and using grids and traditional typographic rules are essential to creating a graphic design and being able to create clean design, having subjectivity into play can give the design, the designers individual unique colour which makes the design more innovative and different from the rest. It can also show the designers own use of play and different techniques in order to make designs which can push design principles.

Susan Sontag's 'Regarding the Pain of Others' Summary

Upon reading a section Susan Sontag's book I gain some more knowledge about uncomfortable images and how people can perceive them.  From the book she describe how people may have na urge to have an 'attraction of mutilated bodies' however people perceive this as 'mental conflict' or suspicion. 

People have this mental conflict as they consciously know that what they are doing may be wrong, however, just like how Socrates relates a story of Leontius the son of Aglaion, ..."He wanted to go and loot at them, but as the same time he was disgusted and tried to turn away".

Suspicion is also seen as one of the emotions seen when reacting to atrocity events that are far away from an audience or not part of what they are experiencing. However, Sontag has stated that suspicion is not a valid response for such events as the audiences cynical and the images they see have little effect on other people. People are also doubtful of the purpose and meaning of the images. They may not know the full context therefore they make their own assumptions and interpretations of the images that they see without knowing the full meaning of it.

Furthermore, Sontag has slash stated that on the there hand people may feel sympathy. However, she also said how this as well is not a valid response to images. Because, although as Bataille has stated, "he can imagine extreme suffering as something more than just suffering, as a kind of transfiguration", we the audiences are not present in person to experience the suffering and are only mere spectators to the event therefore not being able to feel the exact pain or feelings that people that are actually suffering feel. In addition, the audiences can't physically do anything to the event and because of this people may care less of 'faraway suffering' as Sontag has said that "it seems normal for people to fend off thinking about the ordeals of others..." This why people may not think much about what happens in the news and they know that it's not happening near them or to them and "whenever people feel safe...they will be indifferent". 

To add to this, Sontag has also mentions the issue about the over saturation of images of atrocity in the media where it has become too much that people start to think it's normal, she calls this 'Ecology of Images'. She stated how images should be cut back instead in order to 'protect the reality that they depict' and to also keep the shock that it gives people. However, it's sadly ironic that from the time she wrote this book images has instead increased, may be due to developed technology and people finding new ways to get 'the biggest story headline'. Also, I found this really interesting as I thought it's kind of similar to what is happening now. For example, with the POTUS Donald Trump, his unacceptable actions and often intolerable public words such as tweets are becoming an everyday event in the United States, that every time he comes up with something thats quite stupid and something that a President shouldn't say, it somehow just becomes normal and no one seems to do anything anymore because they are used to it by now. 

Overall, from the book, I learnt that people either respond to atrocity and uncomfortable images in two different ways which is with suspicion and sympathy. And, that due to hyper-saturation of images, most things meanings lessen and people care less due to this as they are becoming accustomed to it that it doesn't shock them anymore. 

Uncomfortable Images: Publication 3 ideas

For my third publication I chose the theme of 'Suffering' from the uncomfortable images that me and Will had this morning as well as an overall theme from my own uncomfortable images which was about the ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya people in Myanmar.

From reading Susan Sontag's 'Regarding the Pain of Others', I figured I could challenge her idea of 'Ecology of Images' and how Sontag thinks decreasing the amount of pictures released can make the meaning of the pictures resonate better rather than to be deemed normal or ignored by people or in order "to protect the reality that they depict".

However, for my uncomfortable images I realised that it's message or situation is barely being shown in mainstream western media and even from talking to people from my group, they didn't know much about what it was about. Therefore, I think challenging the idea of 'ecology of image' by over saturating the pages with pictures and text will be a good idea of tackling this perception of image use as it may actually show the reality of the situation to the audience and depict what is happening to the Rohingya people rather than not showing it at all.

Things Im thinking of experimenting

• I can overlay loads of images on a page
• overlay it on articles 
• print out articles print images on it
• idea of ethnic cleansing on the amount of photos that go through the page (gets less and less as pages go on)
• use grid for the text?
• use colour to indicate 'important' photos which challenges Sontag's philosophy the most.
• experiment on newspaper like paper stock.
• Maybe I can also compare the ethnic cleansing in Rohingya to other cleansing happening to other religions. Maybe this will have a different effect? Maybe people have different perceptions of various religions? Maybe some will deem one religion better or more important than another? I could maybe compare it to the religion that is oppressing the Rohingya'n people in Myanmar? juxtaposition of culture? I may have to think about the publication avoiding being racist? Maybe use jusxtapositioning articles and intermixing them and only highlighting important parts of it?

Uncomfortable Images Gif Making

In pairs we were to compare our uncomfortable photos and find  word which links both pictures together in order to create a gif.

My uncomfortable images were from the ethnic cleansing thats happening in Rohingya. I find this really uncomfortable as the idea of ethnic cleaning itself is something that I find really disturbing and wrong. Killing people just because of there religion is something which I think is horrendous and just unnecessary.

Will's uncomfortable photos were of wounds, and with the thoughts of the wounds making him feel sick. 

We created a gif in pairs by combining one of our photos from our uncomfortable images and used a word which describes both pictures. We used the word as a starting point for the gif, as well as try to come up with other words which we could use.

Starting with a mind map we thought of all the words that are very similar to pain which was the first word that we thought of that could fit out both out pictures. Doing this, we narrowed it down to which word we thought was the most appropriate for our images as well as a word which we could effectively visualise - 'Suffering'.

We collaged the images of the ethnic cleansing in Myanmar and put a cover with eyes in order to signify the people who watches it happen and the audience of the news of the suffering of the Rohingya people. With red paint which could signify the pain and the lives lost because of the cleansing. Also, a knife was added in order to portray the kind of weapons that are used and show how it is a crime. Overall, I think the gif was quite effective in portraying the word, as the usage of colour and images clearly showed the message of the word and the connotations and mood that it has.

Uncomfortable Images: Categorising Images

In our groups we were to categorise our pictures from: Uncomfortable - Easy, Ethical - Unethical, Important - Trivial, Vulgar - Cathartic (providing psychological relief).

• When choosing the order of the image, we thought of the context a lot, e.g. the picture of Rolf Harris - if it was someone else on the picture, it would've been okay, however at the was him and we know he's a pedophile the whole meaning of the picture becomes completely different. 
• We also thought about the connotations the images has wether we thought of it in a very negative way.
• As each people have different views for each images, we all have different thought on how uncomfortable or easy a picture is e.g. picture of wounded foot was easy for some people but was very uncomfortable for some, however picture of ethnic cleansing was very uncomfortable for everyone. 
• If someone else was on the picture would it make it any different?

Uncomfortable to Easy

• Rolf Harris
• Ethnic Cleansing
• Wounded Foot
• Wind Turbine collision 
• Fake Nails on opposite side of hand
• Sophia the robot
• Unstraight picture frame

Ethical to Unethical

• Ethnic Cleansing
• Rolf Harris
• Sophia the Robot
• Wind Turbine Collision
• Wounded Foot
• Fake Nails on opposite side of hand
• Unstraight picture frame

Important to Trivial

• Ethnic Cleansing
• Rolf Harris
• Wind Turbine Collision
• Wounded Foot
• Sophia the robot
• Unstraight picture frame
• Fake Nails on opposite side of hand

Vulgar to Cathartic

• Wounded Foot
• Ethnic Cleansing
• Wind Turbine Collision 
• Sophia the robot
• Rolf Harris
• Unstragiht Picture Frame
• Fake Nails on opposite side of hand

What is the purpose of the image?

• Google Image

What is the image used for?

• Informative to people who don't know anything about the situation of the Rohingya people in Myanmar.     

How does the image change according to the content in which they are seen?

• The image may have more impact if it was put with an article or if it was put with the headline; however, it is also quite ironic how its not really put as a headline as it is a very serious humanitarian crisis?
• Maybe is doesn't resonate to the western audiences as much as it's something that doesn't affect them?