LCC’s last show of the summer, ‘Round About‘, drew in a large crowd of  industry experts, parents, students, past students and design enthusiasts (young and old) for its show preview on Thursday 30 June 2011.

Guests queued to see work from final year students across nine courses at LCC, (BA) Graphic & Media Design, (FdA & BA) Design for Graphic Communication, (BA) Graphic Product Innovation, (FdA) Graphic & Spatial Communication, (BA, FdA & ABC Dip) Animation, (ABC Dip) 3D Modelling & Animation, (BA & FdA) Media Practice, (BA & FdA) Digital Media Design and (BA & FdA) Games Design.

Split into six pathways the Graphic & Media Design course (whose work is also available to view online) drew in a large crowd.

In the Upper Street students from the Illustration pathway presented a diverse mix of final pieces.

On show were projects in various forms from print to digital, with some pieces consisting of hand-made projects such as a quilt by Kirsten Abildgaard, which could be seen hanging from the ceiling of the Upper Street and a colourful deck chair by Lucy Barrett.

The students from the Design for Print pathway have their work displayed in the Atrium Gallery. Their work looks at the importance of print within the Graphic Design industry and how it is used to convey a message to the audience.

Elsewhere the work by students from the Design for Advertising pathway received very positive feedback. “Very inspiring work” were among the messages left on the comments wall in the show space.  As well as the brilliant design work on show an underlying deeper message was often present. This was to fit with  the courses aim to establish a deeper understanding of strategies and audiences, covering a range of media platforms, considering environmental, political, social and cultural agendas and challenging the ethics of traditional advertising.

Showcasing in room D112, 38 students on the Typo/Graphics pathway address issues and form theoretical view points around a number of topics including, ‘design as pollution’ and creating a commercial re-branding of London 2012.

The work on display, the result of eight project briefs, was bright and eye-catching. Narae Lee’s ‘Dynamic London’, a response to the London 2012 brief, considers the skyline/architecture in London as a key element of the new identity. The colourful and abstract figures shown below give a positive impression that London is playful, exciting and dynamic.

But alongside the bright and colourful displays there was a project that was slightly different from those surrounding it, ‘The Mirror Test’, a machine which claims to read brain waves. This self-initiated project by Rongkai He (pictured below) is made up of moving mirrors that react to data produced by the participant’s brain waves.

The work described here is just a snapshot of what’s on display; you can see the full range of work produced by the Typo/Graphics students on their website www.typois.co.uk designed by Rich Cousins and Pedro Moreira.

Design for Interaction & Moving Image was down in the Atrium and presented guests with a range of work using various forms of media and materials.

While spread across the two rooms, D105, D116, the Information Design pathway students engaged their guests with their projects. Lots of guests studied the work on display in these areas in depth and took some extra time during the evening to stop and browse the pieces in detail.

Information Design student, Harol Ha Ni Ng produced a series of eye-catching horoscope books that were displayed nicely and caught many guests eyes in the Reading Room.

Away from the work of the Graphic & Media Design students and despite the heat in The Gallery, the work displayed by the students from the Design for Graphic Communication course generated a huge amount of interest. The room was full of guests discussing the work and taking the time to study each piece.

There was a good selection of work on display from the quirky to the serious. And with an interactive section consisting of screen-printing and binding, guests were drawn in by chance to take something away from the show. The night also saw two students from the FdA Design for Communication win leading digital agency LBi’s Talent Takeaway prize.

Meanwhile, luring the crowd in with bags of popcorn, students from Animation and the 3D Modelling & Animation courses were showcasing their videos in the Main Lecture Theatre. Their work could also be found up in the Refectory, where sketches and models generated a lot of interest.

Upstairs the Games Design and Digital Media Design students displayed their work and the atmosphere up there was far more relaxed, with many guests taking the time to sit down and absorb or interact with the work around them.

Displaying downstairs in the Lower Street were students from the Graphic Product Innovation and Graphic & Spatial Communication courses. Lots of interactive pieces were on display and BA Graphic Product Innovation student Joel Longbone used a bike to demonstrate his product.

The project named ‘Cyke’ uses a multi-coloured device attached to handlebars of a bike to help facilitate better and safer navigation in London. The colourful arrows flash in order to tell the rider which direction they should go. Joel says that the product will show that, “Existing concepts can be improved and change the way people go about their daily routine or encourage people to do something they don’t usually participate in.”

Students from the Graphic Product Innovation course also held an outdoor event for the occasion in the containers in front of the LCC building. Students dressed up and interacted with guests and games such as coconut shy were available.

Work by some of the students was also available to buy in the Pop Up Shop.

‘Round About’ will be running until Friday 8 July 2011 from 10 am – 7pm.

Photography: Ana Escobar, Christian Anderson & Vicki King (BA Photography)

Words by Dominique Major