Reflective Assessment Point CCDN 331

1. 1. Reflective Assessment Point:
Thoughts and ideas about the lecture topic of the week: Theory + Application (15 July)
Me as a designer
Goal: I will employ these weekly reflections to help me to hone my personal design
identity using the lecture topics as a springboard for my ideas.
In this week’s lecture, Tonya mentioned that as a general PRINCIPAL she likes to
keep everything ORGANISED for her students. Immediately I was engaged. As a
reformed slob I have waged war against disorganisation since the Great
Organisation Epiphany of 2001. I basically cleaned out my life and, since then,
whenever I find I am losing the battle, I reboot and try to bring myself back into
order through revised systems of organisation. It is a work in progress, however it
means I know and recognise good organisation and really love to see it in action. It
is, and has been for many years now, a guiding principal in all my professional and
personal work.
Furthermore, Tonya talked about hitting a wall as a young designer and how she
realised she had reached this point because she didn’t know who she was as a
designer and where she wanted to go to. She didn’t know what direction she
wanted to go in. More importantly, she talked about reaching stages as a designer
where she was sure of what she wanted and liked and then ‘outgrowing’ this
persona. From my own personal experience I confirm that this is a phenomenon that
never ends. At forty-six years of age, I continue to mature in my tastes and ideas at
the same time I am relinquishing long-held beliefs and convictions. She used this
part of the lecture to introduce the idea of seeking inspiration inwardly, of using
introspection to inform our design. This course is, according to Tonya, about
developing ideas through a process of critical design and self-reflection. For me this
is appropriate because the whole act of returning to study after a well-established
career in events has involved enormous self-refection. Tonya challenged us to be

2. spelunkers in the depths of our own design minds, which was a nice metaphor for
the process I myself have undertaken to participate in, indefinitely, in order to
maintain purpose in my creativity.
Finally another analogy that really resonated for me was Tonya’s hamburger
comparison and I was prompted to define myself as a hamburger even as she
spoke. I feel like I am an old school hamburger that has been refreshed for
contemporary consumption. When I was a kid, there was always a great takeaway
somewhere nearby that made amazing hamburgers the Aussie way – with ‘the lot’
(including beetroot) and that was my favourite. After a hot day at the beach or by
the river, sunburnt, hungry and tired we’d order our hamburgers and chips and they
were always delicious. How often do you hear, ‘they don’t make them like that
anymore’? I am one of those, but with a twist:
 made with the best kind of French artisan bread;
 organic Angus beef patties and aged cheddar cheese;
 free-range eggs;
 vine-ripened tomatoes;
 Mayonnaise à la Française;
 a dollop of gourmet relish;
 served with hand cut King Edwards potato chips deep fried in fresh, clean oil.
 (sorry Tonya) there would have to be tinned beetroot – for nostalgia’s sake.
I’m a contemporary take on a classic that has benefited from a lifetime of tasting
food around the globe and knowing what just works. Australian with an international
spin. It has to look spectacular and it’s made with love. Intriguingly, this perfectly
defines one of the kinds of design I am most interested in – retro that is revisited
with respect and care.

3. Finally this brings us to my thoughts on theory – as Tony said ‘a tool in your design
arsenal that permits you to frame and organise your observations’. It is a rationale
for why something works which was the final point made that resonated or spoke to
me in the lecture. I am a culture and context student. I am using my skills both new
and old, to create a structure that can be read by anyone, in any discipline to
understand and/or interpret a design. This is my purpose as a designer. To provide a
conduit between design and other entities that might otherwise be unable to
communicate. This week’s lecture was useful in reiterating this for me.