Proposal Presentation
Research
I first had a deep dive and think about where I want to go after graduation, looking at a range of options such as in-house, agency and freelance work, even looked at the idea of starting my own studio. I instantly eliminated freelance as it is something I have briefly done before joining the course, and although it is freeing, there is a lot of work in finding clients consistently, so it comes with quite a few risks. I have began to look at agency work due to similarities in freelance in regards to the range of different projects that may come with this direction; in-house for an agency seems like it could quickly become repetitive and boring working with the same format, assets and guidelines.
I have begun to research different graphic design roles on a variety of sites with job listings, looking at Indeed, Dribble Jobs and Behance Jobs, these all have a variety of skill requirements on the ones shown. This has led me to the decision of tailoring my projects to strengthen gaps within my skillset; looking at improving hard skills such as motion design, print production processes, illustration and branding; Whilst also ensuring I look at key soft skills such as collaboration, creativity, conceptual thinking, communication and problem solving which all seem to be consistent across job boards.
The Initial idea surrounding my project is to explore trend culture, viral moments and taste exploration. the inspiration for this came from multiple sources such as conversation with peers surrounding current trends and how social media and influences current flavours such as salted caramel and pistachio being the most recent big trend in flavours, whilst also looking at how seasons and holiday periods create a range of different flavours combinations. One specific project that influenced my idea was Anya Hindmarch’s ice cream project that became a viral talking point across social media for its weird and wonderful approaches to something ordinary.
CreativeBoom
Creative Boom Article: How brands are using illustration to tell their stories in 2025
The article deconstructs one of the latest design trends that companies are utilising which is the use of illustration. It shows the clear relationship between branding and illustration which can sometimes be forgotten.
A lot of brands use unique patterns as part of their identity but the use of illustration can take this up a notch with the use of illustrations.
The reason I decided to look at this article is because one of the skills that I lack is illustration, something I want to use efficiently within my portfolio project and to see if I can apply some of the ideas within this article to the brand I am making. The moodpboard below is a clear indication of the direction i’m heading and it is heavily influenced by illustration, layout and branding.
Creative Brief
Creating a structured creative brief has helped me to define the direction of the project, creating a project scope, identifying what I’m creating and why. it ultimately helps me design with strategy rather than aesthetics. I was able to build an initial brief and through refinement I was able to create a brief that would be the structure for a successful project, allowing me to reflect back through the course of the project to make sure I am keeping in line with the brand goals.
References
Behance (n.d.) Graphic Designer job list [online]. Available at: https://www.behance.net/joblist/330857/Graphic-Designer (Accessed: 18 October 2025).
Indeed (n.d.) Graphic designer jobs UK [online]. Available at: https://uk.indeed.com/jobs?q=graphic+designer&from=searchOnDesktopSerp&radius=25&start=10&vjk=3422bd80b8f82d61&advn=4025471202000092 (Accessed: 25 October 2025).
Sloane Street (2025) ‘The Ice Cream Project Returns for 2025’, 6 June 2025 [online]. Available at: https://www.sloanestreet.co.uk/news/the-ice-cream-project-returns-for-2025/ (Accessed: 29 October 2025).
Dribbble (n.d.) Brand Designer job listing [online]. Available at: https://dribbble.com/jobs/295755-Brand-Designer?source=index (Accessed: 22 October 2025).
May, T. (2025) ‘How brands are using illustration to tell their stories in 2025’, Creative Boom, 9 October 2025 [online]. Available at: https://www.creativeboom.com/insight/how-brands-are-using-illustration-to-tell-their-stories-in-2025/(Accessed: 20 November 2025).
