OUGD404 - Studio Breif 1 - Looking into the core further

For this Brief i have chosen the core a shopping centre in leeds which I found particularly hard to navigate there use of multiply fonts ones of which lack legibility and understanding made it a feasible chose. I will research into health, what it means to be health, how a healthy person would navigate etc.

Here they are using three separate fonts I do not think this is nessary it does not show consistency and becomes confusing as one of the typefaces is particularly slim maybe this is to fit into the concept of it being the core which has connotations to health however I think this is a bad and naive way to show health if this is the case as health does not relate to size. The same thing could be done through the use of colours, scale and positioning. I feel like not much thought has gone into the icons and a much more effect and creative way of laying them out could be done. The white boxes create a bad contrast against the green with poor consideration to white space as there is just a chunk in the middle missing. 

The use of floor labelling is clever however again its a different typeface from the rest. The use of a sticker makes this look very cheap as stickers peel and become dirty quickly other methods such painting could be much more effective. 

These I really liked aseptically wise however to begin they do not fit in with the brand in the slightest, I have not got a clue when the idea to stick huge silver symbols on the wall came from but there was defiantly no thought process behind this apart from 'They look nice' also something i would criticise is how the baby changing and disabled symbols are considerable smaller, some may take this as they are less important and thirdly i haven't got a clue what the three lines are above the third disabled icon. 

This whole way finding system just seems to be in complete anarchy, no consistency, near to no link to the branding. The core is something strong something i would link to health, ambition, life. These icons should be full of life but instead they are dull and motionless. 

To start I want to look into health as this centre hosts a range of fitness outlets such as The Gym and buckram yoga soon to open. I would also like to simplify the way finding, but sticking to one font throughout. 

"Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity."  This was a famous definition of health created in 1946, new york. It shows health is more than just physical appearance. Its a range of factors I want to incorporate all of these factors within my way finding. 

Info taken from (http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/150999.php)

After researching into methods and strategies there was a lot of information suggesting to examine the area including a letur we had today by a member of staff from pete & peter design studio in shefield. They highlighted that there is a need to study audience, who I would be creating for so I revisited my location taking a closer look at who came in and out. A large proportion of the centre was useing the gym a feature at the very top which isnt actually made obvious that its there. Alot of this audience come around 5 however the gym is open 24 hours a day. Other popular shops where burgerking, yogurt and creams. These are a few of the food outlets inside. Looking at the space its self i noticed there is lots of white space, information seems to be placed in bad positions making it difficult for people to notice.

The cores logo uses 3 primary colours green, blue and red however they are a slightly lighter hue than normal. This does work well as there is 3 levels which helps however the levels are not very big and are not extremly complicated to manuver. 3 colours seems rather overbearing and slightly complicated for a small area.  The map of the area is also very complex with lots of unesaary info writen down, the clours are also not used in this. A colour scheme in this would be helpfull also as it would help show the different levels. Plant pots although nothing is really wrong they look horrendous they are a horrible green, This is just a personal aestic disliking however.

The core seems to be catering for a younger audience with there selfie corner and use of vibrant colours, The pictograms for the toilets as shown below also resemble children however I did not find that this centre tended to a hugely young audience quick the opposite with food shops such as cream a luxury cake shop which didn't seem to fit at all although is a very grand outlet. Realistically I really do not see anybody using the selfie corner and is just an example of a tend which has just been picked up on but not actually thought about.

I really liked there use of posters however I would like to use them in a new way. 

There pictograms used within this boards mean nothing as they are not explained they are just used next to stores. The colours also make legibly bad as they do not contrast well. It feels like they have aimed this at a younger audience however it seems a more older audience use the facilities inside from spectating. Id say it caters to healthy people through the gym and yoga however also to people wanting to eat fast food these people do not tend to past the first floor. There is also poles all around which could be used for information or decor. There could so be information placed on the floors. 

           
              

This space had a big plazama on the wall however I felt there was really no need for it there, It was not being used ether. This could be sold or ether put in another location. The food wall space is very over crowded, The images do not resemble what is sold there at all ether. 

405 - Study Task 2

For this study task we have to create a pictogram for one of the Olympic campaigns.  I was looking at all the diffrent ways contries have done each pictogram. London used very intriquent lines where as rio took inspiration from there typeface. I chose to do an icon for the London Paralympics, I thought this was be a interesting pictogram to do as they are fairly new within the paralympics only just starting in 2008 with bejing. 

The latest set of pictograms was produced for the rio 2016 olympics, The characters are based on the typography for the Rio games. The typography is inspired by the emblem for the event which takes into consideration of the curves from the Carioca landscape. This takes inspiration from there home land and interlinks even element of the even together smoothly. The fuilidity of the lines are aimed to simulate movement of the athletes in action, The frame are shaped like pebbles and add to the sense of movement in the athletes swell as adapting to the silhouette.

I created a pictogram for London 2012 Paralympics for a wheelchair athlete by using geometric shapes and limited detail to create an easy to understand symbol. The London pictogram's where created with applications in mind so I aimed to create something which can be adapted to a variety of platforms. They created the pictograms with two distinct forms one being a "silhouette" and the other a "dynamic" version which was inspired by the London underground map incorporating lines which extend outward. I chose to create the silhouette form as it is the most diverse allowing it to be adapted to digital use. The London pictograms also have common theme of straight lines placed to create bold geometric shapes, The heads of icons all follow the same pattern of 5 lines I have also incorporated this into my pictogram the head is shaped slightly longer than usual to resemble a helmet. 

405 - Fridays Critique

For my critique I was looking to answer the questions of which environment to chose. I had a range of locations I was considering my first being leeds college of art which I found lacked consistency and used multiply signs. Such a the several arrow signs all in different colours there is also some doors with numbers printed onto then others with just numbers next to the door. However my worry was that a large amount of students where doing this location and you can also only take it so far as it is a school the information needs to be informative and simply. The other locations I was looking at was The Core and Trinity. Feedback suggested for me to chose the one which I had the most interests in, so to think more about is it somewhere I would go? What stores are inside or Facilities for the college? I found this helpful it helped me evaluate my choice better, because The core has many connotation to health and strength I decided to use here, as I am into health and fitness its a common interest, the core also has outlets such a yoga and The Gym which is the gym I go to. Its also designed rather badly. The critique group thought Trinity might be to much of a task as the way finding is already pretty good and easy to understand. They also said If I had an option over leeds college of art then it would probably be the better option as such a large amount of students are doing it. Advice from simon also noted that i will be restricted with the leeds college of art and chosing a environment more suited to me will allow for more creativity.

404 - Studio brief 1 - How do you read?

The elements of design

• LINE – The linear marks made with a pen or brush or the edge created when two shapes meet.
• SHAPE – A shape is a self contained defined area of geometric (squares and circles), or organic (free formed shapes or natural shapes). A positive shape automatically creates a negative shape.
• DIRECTION – All lines have direction – Horizontal, Vertical or Oblique. Horizontal suggests calmness, stability and tranquillity. Vertical gives a feeling of balance, formality and alertness. Oblique suggests movement and action
• SIZE – Size is simply the relationship of the area occupied by one shape to that of another.
• TEXTURE – Texture is the surface quality of a shape – rough, smooth, soft hard glossy etc.
• COLOUR – Colour is light reflected off objects. Color has three main characteristics: hue or its name (red, green, blue, etc.), value (how light or dark it is), and intensity (how bright or dull it is).

The principles of design

1. BALANCE – Balance in design is similar to balance in physics. A large shape close to the center can be balanced by a small shape close to the edge. Balance provides stability and structure to a design. It’s the weight distributed in the design by the placement of your elements.
2. PROXIMITY – Proximity creates relationship between elements. It provides a focal point. Proximity doesn’t mean that elements have to be placed together, it means they should be visually connected in someway.
3. ALIGNMENT – Allows us to create order and organisation. Aligning elements allows them to create a visual connection with each other.
4. REPETITION – Repetition strengthens a design by tying together individual elements. It helps to create association and consistency. Repetition can create rhythm (a feeling of organized movement).
5. CONTRAST – Contrast is the juxtaposition of opposing elements (opposite colours on the colour wheel, or value light / dark, or direction – horizontal / vertical). Contrast allows us to emphasize or highlight key elements in your design.
6. SPACE – Space in art refers to the distance or area between, around, above, below, or within elements. Both positive and negative space are important factors to be considered in every design.

'Gestalt is a psychology term which means "unified whole". It refers to theories of visual perception developed by German psychologists in the 1920s. These theories attempt to describe how people tend to organize visual elements into groups or unified wholes when certain principles are applied.'


SIMILARITY / CONTINUATION / CLOSURE / PROXIMITY / FIGURE & GROUND / TOP

OUGD405 - Studio Brief/task 1 - research

PRIMARY RESEARCH

Today to start studio brief one we went looking for some wayfinding systems around Leeds this primary research was to get an idea of how company's use wayfinding to navigate through first hand interaction with the system. I found some too be useful and others not so. We visited trinity shopping centre to begin then moved onto white gallery, the train station and the core. The trinity centre used a easy colour scheme to help work out the levels of the floors this was useful. They also used a San serif which was very clear to read it was accompanied by a range of easy to understand icons the only flaw I would say is the map itself is very cluster and slightly confusing. Other than that a very basic straight forward easy to understand system. 

White cloth gallery was less of a wayfinding system as it is only a few room however I have used it as an example of good aesthetics for signage. The train station of another example of a very basic easy to understand system I thought it to be the best out of them all. Placing the right information in the right locations so I could always find where i needed To go. The white text on the dark shade of blue makes for good legibility as the white dominates the blue. Again they use a San serif with a range of well established symbols. This brings me to the final, the core. This was another mall similar to trinity but smaller. It was the worst system out of all the places I found this was due to use of colour font and placement. To start the placement of level 2 board was out of the way completely, this resulted in us having to look for it. The colour of on the light up board matched with the white font are increadible hard to read, to make matters worse the font used is a very fragile San serif which looks slightly like it's been handwritten. It is not praticle and easy it read it lacks legibility. I feel they have tried to hard to be different yet not come up with anything original, instead just used vibrant colours and a fancy type face. From this research I learnt I will not be taking a similar approach to the core instead when I have decided on my location will look into the most effient band effective ways to create a way finding experience that is easy and stress free. A factor I did like however was there use of stickers on the floor. 

SECONDARY RESEARCH 

Case Studies 

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Pentagrams wayfinding signage for LCC

Looking into pentagrams redesign of the way finding system for LCC I got a general idea of what I need to consider and look into. Key principles of my chosen environment are a important thing to look into to begin, pentagrams inspiration came from LCC's - A dedications to "making" and physical design. This helps give the project a direction it also lead them to creating something very adaptable which is ideal in an environment such as a college due to its rapid pace of change e.g. new classes, rooms, equipment. Pentagram also talk about which materials they use this is something for me to keep in mind, as it is all part of the way finding experience. They use perforated powder-coated alumnimun this helps visitors identify the signage as well as making it a extremely versatile and adaptable system as signage can be fixed onto any of these boards, this eliminates the need for a mass redecoration programme when elements must be changed. “Jez and I spent a lot of time walking between the different rooms in the different buildings to understand how the room types were used. Once we understood that the college needed something very simple and functional it was clear to us what we needed to do,” says Lippa. This suggests that for me to get a real understanding of my college I need to venture through the whole of it. 

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Whybrow & Johnson Banks Wayfinding Signage for Ravensbourne

A way finding systems developed for ravesnboure college by whybrow with johnson banks. Ravensbourne is a university sector college innovating in digital media and design. They relocated to a RIBA award-winning purpose built campus in London in September 2010. Where they had a new identity created by Johnson Banks. This identity takes its cue from the building’s cladding, a stunning non-periodic tessellation inspired by the work of mathematician Roger Penrose. This has then been taken further by using these three tessellation tile shapes as the internal signage. This depth behind the decisions that have been made behind this entire project is something I will look into for my project, by researching into leeds college of art. They analysed the users and there routes taken to created correct direction point, Again similar to pentagram they analysed the areas thoroughly I will be analysing leeds college of art to understand how the students navigate around. The method they used was screen printed to remove the need to fabricate or have additional signage, this is a completely different method to pentagrams as they do not allow for redecoration however as this is a relatively new building I guess they will not need to. For the content within the way-finding they 'developed a simple zonal numbering system and sign inventory.' One thing I have taken from these two case studies is to keep the typefaces simple and legible.

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WAY-FINDING THOERY

'Wayfinding can be defined as spatial problem solving. It is knowing where you are in a building or an environment, knowing where your desired location is, and knowing how to get there from your present location.'

The five principle behind wayfinding

'Three criteria determine the navigability of a space: first, whether the navigator can discover or infer his present location; second, whether a route to the destination can be found; and third, how well the navigator can accumulate wayfinding experience in the space.'

Study taken from Lynch, 1960 'What makes Lynch's findings especially interesting is that the imageable or memorable features of a space are used by people to assist wayfinding. Landmarks are memorable locations that help to orient the navigator; regions are distinct areas that place him in one part of the environment; and nodes mark points where wayfinding decisions are made. Since a navigator's uses these features to record his past route-following experiences, a designed space that employs them should be more effectively navigable.'

1. Paths: Familiar streets, walkways, subway routes, bus lines
2. Edges: The physical barriers of walls, fences, rivers, or shorelines
3. Districts: Places with a distinct identity, such as, in New York, Chinatown, Wall Street, and Greenwich Village
4. Nodes: Major intersection or meeting places, such as the clock in New York’s Grand Central Terminal
5. Landmarks: Tall, visible structures that allow you to orient over long distances

Source (http://www.ai.mit.edu/projects/infoarch/publications/mfoltz-thesis/node8.html)

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Typeface

When considering a typeface I found some brilliantly purpose designed fonts one that really stood out was fs mill bank by font smith created to be used within wayfinding however these fonts have licenses and cost a large amount. So I decided to look for fonts will similar aspects I am up with helvetica, Futura and clear view. Now helvetica is a widely used typeface because of its 

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Whybrow - Wayfinding Solutions 

To get a better understanding of how to approach my way finding brief I decided to look at a company which deal with way finding in particular. first Whybrow analyse by identifying the problem then get under the skin of it. By 'interrogating' the brief, the consists of conduct technical sit audit, assessing visitors behaviours and flow routes. This helps me by giving me a basic understanding of what i need to do to make sense of my chosen environment. Next they develop by defining the way finding strategy. At the design stage they agree on form, material and graphic design of each way finding point. Its then user-tested and refined before production artwork is developed. They produce concept drawings, a full inventory with mapped locations, and arrange dda compliance tests. Finally they solve the situation, by evaluating with clients and users before signing off the solution. For this i would use my crib groups to evaluate ideas and concepts. 

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Critique Fridays

For my critique I was looking to answer the questions of which environment to chose. I had a range of locations I was considering my first being leeds college of art which I found lacked consistency and used multiply signs. Such a the several arrow signs all in different colours there is also some doors with numbers printed onto then others with just numbers next to the door. However my worry was that a large amount of students where doing this location and you can also only take it so far as it is a school the information needs to be informative and simply. The other locations I was looking at was The Core and Trinity. Feedback suggested for me to chose the one which I had the most interests in, so to think more about is it somewhere I would go? What stores are inside or Facilities for the college? I found this helpful it helped me evaluate my choice better, because The core has many connotation to health and strength I decided to use here, as I am into health and fitness its a common interest, the core also has outlets such a yoga and The Gym which is the gym I go to. Its also designed rather badly. The critique group thought Trinity might be to much of a task as the way finding is already pretty good and easy to understand. They also said If I had an option over leeds college of art then it would probably be the better option as such a large amount of students are doing it. Advice from simon also noted that i will be restricted with the leeds college of art and chosing a environment more suited to me will allow for more creativity.