Duncan gave us a range of Printed Textiles yearbooks from a range of different years so that we could see how other groups have tackled the brief in the past. This would allow us to see what had been effective in terms of layout, page assignment and type, as well as allowing us to see what hadn't been as effective. Duncan personally felt that the most successful publication was from 2011, which took on a square format, and focused on the course experience rather than acting as a business card for the students.
2004
As this yearbook is from ten years ago, it is obviously visually quite dated. Although the binding is quite professional, I do not feel that it is appropriate for the content. They have also failed to even give the publication a title so that the user is aware of what they are looking at.
In terms of the visuals, they are evidently quite "out there", with no real sense of layout or grid system. We personally want to make sure that we display the students work so that it shows it off to the highest standard possible. We therefore need to consider the work that each piece sits next to, as well as how much text is included on the page. We are going to steer clear of using opacities, and text on top of image like is featured within this book.
2007
This yearbook is a big improvement on the previous, and actually features a number of different aspects which are quite similar to our own concept. Firstly, the format includes a fold out cover, similar to the wrap around style we hope to use, which opens out to display the title of the course. Although this is slightly unnecessary, I feel that it shows how the format can be used in an interactive manner.
I also feel that they have used the space on the page well in terms of placing images of the student's work, not overcrowding and keeping text to a minimum. For our yearbook however, we do not feel that it is appropriate to have page numbers, or any kind of numbering system. The book is not intended to be used as a business card for the students, we want to make it more about a shared experience of their time on the course.
2011
This book is the most successful yearbook for a number of reasons. Firstly, the cover is very striking and is a complete representation of the course, creating both an eye catching and relevant first impression. The serif type is classic, offering a professional visual that compliments the high quality images effectively. In terms of content, pages have been used to give a much more in-depth feel for the course as well, using imagery to build a picture of the studio environment. This makes it much more personal and relatable. Space has also been used successfully in terms of the placement of student's work, making sure not to overcrowd the page, or clutter it with body copy. The only negative to this book was mentioned by Duncan, and that was the use of different themes to split up the student's work. Duncan felt that this wasn't very successful, as it is hard to put an individual into one specific category, as you do not want to pigeon hole their design and abilities.
2013
Last years yearbook only came in a PDF format, which has both advantages and disadvantages. Evidently, having a digital version allows you to quickly and efficiently share the file across the world, however the special touch is lost when the physical product is taken away.
There are certain aspects of this publications visual which do not appeal to me. Firstly, the print used for the front cover doesn't really have much relevance to the course as it has not been designed by one of the students. The colours are also quite garish and I feel that it is not reflective of their concept of a journey. There are a number of elements however that will help to inform our design, for example the use of relevant quotes and also the photographs of the course members.
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