Introduction

My interest in Art and Graphic Design grew from an early age and influenced me when I was choosing my GCSE options at high school. After achieving an A* at GCSE level in Art and Design, it assured me that my desire to pursue a Graphic Design qualification was the right thing to do. I am an organised, committed and dedicated worker, which helps me to achieve the objectives or goals that I set myself. I always try to put as much effort into my work as possible to make it the best it can be and I always try to improve my work via the processes of review and self critique. However, whilst always putting maximum effort into my work, I also allow myself time to carry out some extracurricular activities, where I can spend time with my friends and family. I enjoy playing a range of sports such as football, cricket and golf, as well as jogging and attending the gym to keep myself fit and healthy.

In my portfolio I have displayed numerous pieces of work that I have created, from GCSE level at high school up to A2-Level at college. I have also included my GCSE exam piece, AS exam piece, my AS coursework final piece and my A2 exam piece. I have learned lots of new techniques on Mac computers; for example I have learnt how to merge images, create dramatic lighting effects and how to warp objects into a 3D form, vectoring on illustrator and I have shown a range of these skills in my exam pieces. In addition to the computer based techniques, I have also displayed a range of media and techniques in my portfolio such as monoprints, pencil shading, acrylic paints and watercolours. I have used these as I have experimented with different materials and media such as sand, soil and other three dimensional material to create tactile and textural effects.

This is a line drawing I produced for my A2 Level Unit 4 exam folder. It is a line drawing of South Aytoun Street, Manchester.  Although it is a simple 2D line drawing, built up of different lines and line thicknesses, I have achieved my intention of creating a 3D perception of the street scene.

I created this piece for my A2 Level Unit 3 coursework folder. The image illustrates my experimentation with watercolour media to capture shading and depth to make the image look less flat.

This is another piece that I created using the principal media of watercolour.  I also used a fine liner pen to create a sense of depth and a more structured image with more defined outlines of the key image features.

I created this monoprint for my A2 Level Unit 4 exam folder. My intention here was to create an effect that was representative of the age of the bridge and to give a sense of antiquity.  I feel that my use of pastel like shading to depict a patchy, aged linen like image has been key to achieving this objective.

This is another monoprint. However, this time I have worked into it with watercolour, fine liner pen and water.  I used the watercolour to create the shading on the image and the fine liner pen to add just enough definition to allow an understanding of what the print represents - i.e. a tyre skid mark.  I created the smudge effect with a sponge and water, dragging it down the page with reducing pressure to create the desired dynamic representation of braking forces and friction between tyre rubber and road surface.

 Above is a section of my A2 Level exam piece. I created the image through use of the vectoring technique and using the Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Photoshop software products. I used the Illustrator software to create the outline and to colour in the image and Photoshop to create the shading. To create the shading I used two tools called 'Dodge Tool' and 'Burn Tool'; these two tools allowed me to lighten and darken my vector where appropriate to give my image a more advanced, 3D appearance.

This is my A2 Level exam piece.  I have combined a number of the various techniques that I experimented with on other pieces to achieve my design intention of creating a 3D image by promoting a perception of depth.

This is a pencil shading drawing I produced for my A2 Level Unit 4 folder. By incorporating light and shade I have created depth and interest.

This is my GCSE final exam piece which took me 12 hours to complete. Within the piece I have used a wide range of media. For example I have used acrylic paint, oil pastel, felt tip pen, fine liner pen, sand, pencil shading and watercolour. By using all these techniques and media it has helped me to create this unique piece. I like this as you can see all the different layers I have created to build the piece, the contrast between the layers and different colours and the shading I have created with each media.

Above is another monoprint where I have incorporated watercolour into it to enhance representation of the speed at which the rollercoaster is moving at. I achieved this via use of quick brush strokes on the roller coaster carriage to make it look like it is moving extremely quickly.

This is an image of a media I have used known as acrylic paint, and this image is of the front of a motorbike and I used it in my unit 1 coursework folder. Furthermore I feel that this piece has great contrast and shading within it, that helps create a more interesting and effective design.

Above is my AS Unit 2 exam piece.  I had to create a magazine cover for the magazine ID. I had to create a cover advertising the new ages of technology.  I achieved this using the idea of typography, incorporating machinery and electronics into letters to create my own style of typography.

Here I have used watercolour and fine liner pen. I feel that the fine liner pen has enhanced the image and has made look more effective. I like how the watercolour looks untidy as it spills over the edges of the drawing and I like the cross hatching to create shading.

Above is a practical analysis for my A2 Level Unit 3 coursework folder.  I have analysed the typographer David Carson. To create this piece I have built up a large amount of layers to create the background and I have created another layer where the white writing sits on top.

This is my unit 1 AS Level coursework piece.  My objective was to advertise a sporting event.  I did this by analysing the artist Vault 49 and I incorporated their style into my piece.