Lesson video

Welcome back, here we are for lesson five, our final lesson of our 'Graphic design unit.

' You've worked so hard in the last four lessons and there's going to be lots to do today as well.

You've learned lots of technical language and techniques.

You've discovered that the Bauhaus was an art school working 100 years ago, and that the work that was produced there had world wide far reaching influence.

You've learnt about a modern contemporary artist working now, and you've been inspired by her, the way that she works and her techniques.

You've learned to use grids, to help you with organising layout.

And last week, we started to redesign an existing product.

That was a children's reading book.

We followed a brief, we started thinking about firstly the front cover.

Today we will be developing and looking at the spine and the back cover and evaluating and sharing our work.

Here we go.

For this lesson you'll need your sketchbook, your pencil, a ruler that measures in centimetres, coloured pencils and A4 paper.

As I always say, if you do have a black pen and some coloured pens available to you, you are welcome to use those but always draw with pencil first.

So, today's lesson, we're going to start by recapping our previous learning in a really fun, I think warm up activity.

We're going to review and develop our designs.

We're going to finish our designs and evaluate our work, whereas look at it really close do you think what have I done that's worked well? What would I do differently next time? And also focus on feeling really proud of our work.

So we're going to celebrate and share.

Our keywords for today, a gradient, which is a gradual change of colour or shade.

I will show you how to do this during the lesson.

A proof, that's the mapped out layout of the final design.

Typesetting, that's the laying out of text, making sure that it is clear and readable, or sometimes we use the word legible to mean readable.

Today's warm up is a hand challenge.

You will need your hand, your sketchbook and a pencil first of all.

And you're going to make a contour drawing of the outline of your hand.

I'm going to suggest to you here that you don't draw around your hand, you'll have a much better shape to work from if you look and just follow the line.

Remember a contouring is the outline, don't need any of the details of your hand, just need a clearly drawn outline.

And then you're going to do this, you're going to think about the key words that you have learned during this unit.

I have chosen concept, layout, typography, content and form.

And each of those I have written on my hand shape using a different type of text a different type of typography.

Think about the words that you have learned during this unit and think about different techniques, different types of typography that you have spotted and that you have used before and that you like to use, and decorate your hand using those words.

So, your sketchbook warmup challenge, work in your sketchbook, use your hand as your inspiration for some really interesting typography.

Draw and then write inside.

Remember draw a contour drawing of your hand.

Don't need the detail of your hand, you're just using the outline.

You can add colour if you like, and you're welcome to use my examples to help you.

Pause the video while you work, I'll see you soon.

This is my book cover redesign so far, from last lesson if you remember you can see here I chose to use 'The Twits,' by Roald Dahl as my starting point.

I've decided, that I will put Mrs. Twit on the back cover.

While I Was drawing, I used the grid lines to help me to position Mr. Twit centrally on the page.

And I now need to decide what to do next, can you help me? Great, thank you.

I've got some really good ideas there.

So yes, I'm going to add texture to his beard using lines just like we've done before, thank you for that suggestion.

I'm going to look at my typesetting, so where my writing is placed on the page to make sure that my letters are evenly spaced.

A few of you notice there that they're really not, are they? Especially on the word, 'The Twits' I need to sort that out.

Now I'd like to use a gradient of colour for the background.

So pause the video to complete your task.

You're going to work in your sketchbook.

Look at your book cover redesigned from last lesson, and make notes in your sketchbook.

What will you do to develop? What colours will you use? Do you have the same problem I had with your typesetting? Think carefully, write your notes, pause the video while you work and I'll see you soon.

So if you remember I decided that I wanted to use a gradient of colour in the background of my design.

So while you were looking at your work, I've practised different gradients in my sketchbook, or you might want to do this, but I'd practise first before you use it directly onto your redesign.

And my typesetting, now it's really important not to confuse this with typography.

Remember typesetting is the way the topography is set out on the page.

Is the spacing between the letters, the size of the letters and whether or not it is clear and legible, readable.

So, I wasn't very happy with the way that I'd written Twits.

There's wider spaces, smaller spaces, the first T is much larger than the T that's further on in the word.

There's lots of things about this I want to change.

So now we're going to continue with our redesign work so that we have a finished proof of the front cover.

So you will need to pause the video to complete your task.

It is the time to complete your front cover design proof.

You're going to develop and complete your illustration.

You're going to develop and complete your typography.

You can add colour and all pattern and importantly, take your time.

Remember if you want to try and use a gradient of colour, practise in your sketch book first before you use that on your front cover design proof.

Pause the video while you work, I'll see you soon.

So, here is my front cover for 'The twits.

' I've made a few changes and I've added some detail.

I've used colour gradients on both the background and on the typography.

I adjusted the typesetting for 'Twits' to make sure that it was more evenly spaced.

And I am pleased with this proof for the front cover redesign.

Now I'll think about the next steps.

So I'm going to use my design for the front cover to shape my design for the back cover.

It will feature Mrs. Twit.

And I will design the spine of the book using the same typography as the front cover, so that all three pieces fit together.

So your next steps, you will need two pieces of paper.

You'll need to again, you've done this before, you'll be an expert at this now, you need to create two centimetre by two centimetre grid to use for designing your back cover.

Just like we've done before.

And you will need to draw a guide for drawing the spine of the book and make it the width of your ruler and the whole length of the A4 paper.

Just like this.

Aim to make your 'spine' have the typography and colours that link your front and back covers.

Link your back cover and include the words 'Designed and illustrated by' and add your name.

You can see here on my spine, I've got a gradient of colour, I've got the same typography that I used on the front cover.

And on the back cover my typography, I have just focused in on the same writing that I used 'For the and by Roald Dahl' on the front cover, can you see them? I've got the gradient in the background and also I've added a lot of little details and lots of pattern align, like I did with the front cover, and also is there on the spine.

Now when you have completed your proof, you could use a large piece of cardboard or a tabletop to lay out your work ready for it to be photographed and to share it.

I made sure my work wasn't sitting flat on the tables.

I used some Blu-Tack to hold it in place and I put my three pieces together.

So, we are now finishing your proof.

You're going to develop and complete your illustration and typography for the spine and the back cover of your book.

You need to keep to the content theme of the front cover.

Make sure that all three pieces link together.

There is no rush here, take your time.

Pause your video while you work, and I will see when you finish.

Welcome back.

Now you have finished.

Look at your finished proof.

If you were the teacher what three positive comments would you make about your work? Now when I look at my work I really liked my use of colour here.

I like the way that the gradient follows through from the front cover the spine and through to the back cover.

I like the little details, like the little lines on Mr. Twit's beard and the little dots on Mrs. Twit's dress and also the way that her hair moves.

I'm really pleased with my typography too.

Now, unfortunately we've almost come to an end.

You have been an absolute joy to teach.

During this unit, you have made so much amazing art.

You need to spend the time looking back through your sketchbook at the different activities that we've completed and how much progress you have made.

You should feel very proud.

You're awesome.

Now is the time to share your work with Oak National Academy.

Now you might decide that you would like to share your book cover work, or yourself portrait, or any of the warmup activities that we've taken part in, the Bauhaus work.

It is up to you when you look back and you review your learning think what am I most proud of.

Now if you decide that you would like to share your work, you need to make sure that this is done by your parent or carer.

You need to tell them why you are so eager to share your learning and ask them politely if they would be willing to put your work onto Twitter.

And they can do this using the #LearnwithOak and the Twitter address @OakNational.

I really hope that you have enjoyed this graphic design work as much as I have, you know I'm enthusiastic and I'm so proud of all of you and the incredible work that you've produced, keep drawing.