This semester felt like a giant work-in-progress. Not just in terms of design outcomes, but also in how I thought about my topic, my process, and what kind of designer I want to be. Nothing about it was linear, but maybe that was the point.
I started exploring gender and design (but I knew that this was not going to be my master topic). But as I am deeply interested and connected in the motorsport world (through Formula Student, karting, and so on) I realized that maybe I should continue in that direction. What interests me is how things are visually coded, and who they speak to. It’s not just about gender but also about access and emotion. It also helps that this is somewhat of an extension to my bachelor thesis (which was more focussed on the communication side), which leaves me to explore the design aspects.
What helped me the most during the last months were trying out as much as I can: riso, screenprinting, abstraction, drawing, and experimenting with typo. Letting myself play without always knowing what the final product would be. But I also have to acknowledge my biggest pain point this semester: focus. I felt torn between just wanting to make stuff, planning of where I want to go in the future, but then not really finding the time to do either. So, what’s next?
I would love to say that I know what I want to do, but that would be a lie. Generally, heading into the sports-design direction feels like the right step for me, but I’m not sure where exactly I’m going or what I will focus on. Maybe that just needs more prototyping during the summer or just needs another semester of exploring my path as a designer. I’m still figuring out what my master topic and final product could be, but I know I want it to live somewhere between graphic design, culture, and experience (preferably in motorsports).
