Tuesday, March 24, 2009

InfoArch:Design Directions

This is the main screen of my first concept (I refined the colors in the 2nd one) :
If the viewer clicks the picture of each designer a biography will pop up to the side of it. 
When the viewer clicks the title of their essay, the text pops up below it and they can scroll down to read the whole essay. Key words from each paragraph will be highlighted and a brief summary of the main point of each paragraph will come up when they click on it. 
This is the main screen of my second concept:
The viewer can click the name of the designer or their picture to get a bio of them.
They can scroll to the right to read the whole bio and see examples of their work.
When the viewer scrolls over and reveals more of the work, they may also click each piece to see a larger version of it and the title of it.
The viewer can click the title of the essays and each paragraph will come up one after another for both designers. Highlighted text can be hovered over to reveal my summary of each paragraph. 

For my third concept I wanted to put more thought into how the two designers could be compared side by side, with their biographies and work, as well as with their essays. 
If the viewer clicks on the title of the essay, it will show up below. 
Keywords are highlighted in each paragraph
Once the highlighted text is hovered over, a text box will come up with my interpretation of the paragraph in it

InforArch: Wireframes

Installing Meaning: TypeCon 2010

conference description:
The art of installation typography opens the door to infinite areas of exploration and experimentation. However, applying meaning to typographic imagery that exists in a 3D space is the main focus of the topics introduced at this conference. Keynote speakers, such as designer Anna Garforth, will provide their insight on the use of expressive typography in physical spaces. Participants will learn how a projector, highly ornamented typography, physical objects/materials, grids, and a combination of all these elements can be used to send a message with multiple levels of read. By considering word choice, typeface choice, materials used, and the setting of the installation, the artist is responsible for what is being portrayed. Why not install meaning into a typographic installation?

designer bio:
Anna Garforth is a successful designer and illustrator who lives in London and graduated from Central Saint Martins. She set up an illustration/design practice known as abe, through which she has produced editorial works for The Ecologist Magazine, website designs and created various large scale art installations. She is best known for her recent work titled Mossenger, which consists of type crafted from moss. She carefully considers word choice and then uses ornamented typography shaped with natural materials that simultaneously dictate their own message. By using type in real environments, Anna sends powerful messages about nature and civilization. This piece landed her a place in Creative Review’s October 2008 Issue and she has since installed site specific pieces around Europe. Mossenger has also recieved press in over twenty magazines world wide. 

visuals:
To begin, I am going to install the word "meaning" into a 3D space with first a projector, then with string on a grid, and then with objects that will bring life to the word. The three stages of this process will serve as a photographic imagery to use on my posters, postcards, name tags, etc. 

InfoArch: Point Of View

Why did you choose these articles?
I chose these articles because I wanted to challenge myself with a topic that I was not only completely uneducated about, but also something that would be interesting to work with. I really struggled with comprehending the articles and had to spend a long time reading and rereading everything both designers had to say. Because receiving a dynamic, well-rounded, and ideal education is important to me, I found it intriguing to learn about the standpoints of these two renowned experts. 

Do you agree or disagree with the main point of their essays? Why?
Salchow's article is broken down into two myths or main arguments. 
I agree with the main points of the first myth he discusses. I agree with what he says about a graduate's experience at a school being summed up by his or her portfolio and also with what he says about the school being responsible for providing the ideology that will inspire students to grow in their own directions. However, when he states that schools should focus on quality rather than variety, he uses an analogy with food that I do not find relevant or successful at supporting his argument. Again, I do agree with what he says about schools not spending 4 years on non-visual aspects of education, such as liberal arts studies, although a little fundamental knowledge is important. I also agree that there should be an ideal balance of academic breadth and visual scholarship. 
In the second myth he discusses I agree with his main point that “Good designers are not always good teachers but good teachers are always good designers.” I do think that his arguments can be controversial, but I happen to agree with most of them. 

In Paula Scher's article, she discusses how theoretics should not be applied to design education because it makes things too complicated and eventually boring. I don't agree with this completely because she is saying that since older professional designers don't use or need the knowledge of all this terminology and jargon that is being taught, it must not be necessary. I do think that it is good to learn theoretics, but it shouldn't be the primary focus of design education. She says that its not the "exclusionary language," but the way design teachers are making graphic design concepts even more complicated to explain. I think this is an ignorant thing to say, considering the complexity of the design principles makes them hard to clarify easily (It isn't the teacher's lack of ability to teach).
However, I do completely agree with what Scher says about how "Designers learn by doing." She makes a good point by saying that this is sped up when someone gives students a way to do something and by learning how to do it, they can understand it better. Once they understand it, they can teach somebody else.

What possibilities do you foresee for designing, comparing and contrasting the two?
Salchow discusses 2 myths about design education by stating how a school should be balanced in both its curriculum and within the makeup of its faculty, while Scher talks more specifically about how technical jargon is not necessary for teaching design principles and how design students learn best. 
I think that my website needs to start with information about the two authors, in biographical form. That way the viewer can learn about who these designers are and why they are qualified to say what they have to say. Then, I need to introduce the titles of each of their essays so that the viewer can choose which they want to learn about. I don't see any immediate correlations among the two essays, other than in that they both discuss design education. Therefore, my site needs to create a narrative that guides the viewer through one at a time. Maybe I will find a way to link one point from Salchow's article to a point in Scher's article, which would provide a whole new level of read to my website.
I also want the main arguments from each essay to stand out in hierarchy so that it remains a consistent element of the layout. This will allow the viewer to see what all the secondary text is saying in a more simplified version. 
I need to find a way to link the two together because as of right now, a direct contrast is all that seems reasonable.  One possible link within Salchow's essay could be "quality rather than variety" in his first myth and "quality over quantity" in his second myth. Maybe I could link that to Scher's message that "doing rather than telling" is more effective in design education. 

MY RESEARCH OUTLINES

GORDON SALCHOW'S ARTICLE


PAULA SHER'S ARTICLE

Type IV: Installation Typography

Here are my most updated Concept Map and Timeline


RESEARCH
I brainstormed a list of theme names and decided to go with something not so descriptive, seeing as though if I used the words 'distortion', 'ornamentation', or 'meaning', I would be too specific and rule out some of my potential guests who aren't interested in those areas of my exploration. So, since I did cover such a broad spectrum during my experimentation, I need something simple to sum it all up: 
INSTALLATION TYPOGRAPHY
or
typecon 2010: installing meaning

What my theme encompasses:
The world of installation typography opens the door to infinite areas of exploration and experimentation. However, applying meaning to typographic imagery that exists in a 3D space is the main focus of the topics introduced at this conference. Keynote speakers, such as designer Anna Garforth, will provide their insight on the use of expressive typography in physical spaces. Participants will learn how the use of a projector, highly ornamented typography, physical objects/materials, grids, and a combination of all these elements can be used to send a message with multiple levels of read. By considering word choice, typeface choice, materials used, and the setting of the installation, the artist is responsible for what is being portrayed. Why not install meaning into a typographic installation?

Designer Bio:
Anna Garforth is a successful designer and illustrator who lives in London and graduated from a school called Central Saint Martins. Anna set up an illustration/design practice known as abe, through which she has produced editorial works for The Ecologist Magazine, website designs and created various large scale art installations. She is best known for her recent work titled Mossenger, which consists of type crafted from moss. This piece landed her a place in Creative Review’s October 2008 Issue and she has since installed site specific pieces around Europe. Mossenger has also recieved press in over twenty magazines world wide.

In regards to Mossenger, she said "It seems as if writing with moss, represents an unusual synthesis between advanced civilization and nature. It is a chance for us to speak as individuals and artists, but also to be the spokesperson of organisms which have no voice in our world. We hope that not only the words will be noticed, but also the moss itself, put to the forefront through it’s sculpting, fashioned into a form we can understand."

Anna's typographic installation work goes hand in hand with this conference's theme because she uses ornamented typography in 3D spaces/environments to send powerful messages about nature and civilization. She has an awareness of materials that simultaneously dictate their own message, and eloquently uphold her message and principles. She aims to utilize readily available, renewable materials and objects. In effect, she gives life to "expired" matter, introducing the opportunity for cradle to cradle design.

Fundamental to her conceptual thinking, Anna has the ability to connect herself and the viewer to nature's sense of oneness. The wilderness is the ultimate reminder of the need to be whole and complete. She says, "Wilderness reminds us what it means to be human, what we are connected to rather than what we are separate from." Anna carefully considered word choice, typeface choice, and the materials she used in this work. She aims to continue exploring the potential of organic and inorganic materials, initiate questioning in the viewer, and convey the message of unity, balance, and moderation.

Examples of Anna Garforth's Installation Typography









Monday, March 23, 2009

Final Bike Tire Replacement Manual







This is my groups awesome manual for replacing a bike tire.