For those not familiar with the ISTD Student Assessment Scheme, it is cited as a model of academic thoroughness and professionalism. Students must submit their overall design process of research, reflection, strategy, design development, technical and production specification, which is then assessed by teams of practicing designers and educators. They demand a rigorous approach to ensure standards are met and that the award maintains its significance. Students who are successful in the scheme are offered membership of the Society.
Kati Kielty: Putting Things in Order
I chose to create a piece that highlights and interprets the hierarchy within the American Mafia. I thought it would be best to create a multi-faceted project by breaking it into three separate pieces that work in conjunction with one another. The first book, Omertà, meaning code of silence, breaks down the hierarchy within a crime family. I wanted this piece to highlight the secrecy surrounding the Mafia by exhibiting a more restrictive and constrained style.
The second piece, entitled ‘The Boys’, is a profile book that examines individuals who were key players within the five families throughout its heyday. To contrast Omertà, the design is more expressive in nature to reflect individual personalities of the men featured. The hierarchy of order within the crime families is how both books are systemically laid out. The final piece acts as the sleeve cover to the profile book. It is a family tree of the five New York families and is meant to double as a book cover and as a stand-alone poster, which can be used as a reference to find those featured within the book.
Patrick Grant: Silence is Golden
My strategy is based on how silent film is largely overlooked, ignored and actively forgotten by the general public and cinema. We are an image-obsessed culture that can quickly forget about past events, and we actively consume new media readily. But contemporary audiences have very little knowledge about one of the cornerstones of popular entertainment: silent cinema.
