We went to Shoreditch specifically to conduct primary research, after which we used the images we took for our collage class and product design.

As soon as I arrived, I registered with the tutors and proceeded to explore the area. The first area I and my friends went to was Brick Lane, there were a lot of secondhand shops with each of them selling different products. Other than that, there were also a lot of cafes. We went to a lot of stores and spent a long time in each of them, especially the bigger ones as there were a lot of vintage products sold inside. I’d say that we quite explored a lot of places, we went to Spitalfields market, Redchurch Street, and Browns East. I really enjoyed exploring the areas of Shoreditch, being in awe of the wall art as there were a lot of variations on each wall. The more I pay attention to them, the more I realize how amazing the details were. Not just spray-painted art, there were 3D objects attached to the wall, sculptures, creative posters, and many more. Honestly, at first, we didn’t really find any interesting wall art, but as we go on to explore, we started to see a lot. I made sure to pay attention to details, capturing things I found interesting.

I also chose two stores that have contrasting target audiences to do my research, not forgetting to take images of the external and internal designs for my shop report. One was a thrift shop and the other is a streetwear retail store. During my trip there, I haven’t finished my customer profile interviews, I had hopes of finding interesting stylish people but didn’t find any. So I ended up not doing any interviews there. As we had a lot of time, I explored areas of Shoreditch from 11am to 6pm, it may sound like a long time but it feels like time passes by so fast. I made sure to take as many pictures as possible of objects I find interesting so I can have more options to choose from later on, including wall street art and 3D architectural shapes and structures. Time wasn’t a problem this time, I actually had finished finding all of the images needed in the first 3 hours but decided to explore more. However, with a lot of image options, I was confused about which one to choose. In my view, experiencing something in person is way more memorable and fun. I have the chance to connect, understand, and explore the way I like it. Seeing a picture can’t ever replace engagement with a real object. I feel like it also helps with the process, it felt more real and made me appreciate it more as I had made the effort to go to Shoreditch for the purpose of research. Overall, I really enjoyed the trip and would be happy to go back for further exploration. Although, I wish I had spent more time paying more attention to the details and explore further of the areas.