sketching across the design process

I'm Ray DeLaPena

● Director of Strategy at

Catalyst Group

● IxDA Local Leader (NYC)

15 years consulting for:

Finance, Legal, Education, Medical, Consumer

Hello

sketch

verbto make a sketch or sketches. (Helpful, huh?)

noun1. a simply or hastily executed drawing or painting, especially a preliminary one, giving the essential features without the details.2. a rough design, plan, or draft, as of a book.3. a brief or hasty outline of facts, occurrences, etc.: a sketch of his life.4. a short, usually descriptive, essay, history, or story.5. a short play or slight dramatic performance, as one forming part of a vaudeville program.

.

"a means whereby the designer could

explore and communicate ideas."

- Buxton, Sketching User Experiences

Sketching is about the ACTIVITY

not the artifact.

The artifact

● Quick

● Timely

● Inexpensive

● Disposable

● Plentiful

The Drawing

● Clear vocabulary

● Distinct Gesture

● Minimal Detail

● Appropriate degree of refinement

● Suggest and explore rather than confirm*

● Ambiguous*

* Design Sketches

Pocket notebook

● Personal, portable, readily available

Scrap pile

● 1 side printed = 1 side blank

● Cheap, plentiful, "green"

Notebook

● You already have it... you can sketch in it too!

Dry-Erase Markers

● Whiteboards, Windows, Mirrors

● Open invitation to sketch!

Let’s warm up a bit...

Broken Telephone / Chinese Whispers

1. Write down a phrase (5-10 words)

2. Pass it on

3. Draw the phrase

4. Fold the paper to hide the words

5. Pass it on

6. Write down the phrase (from the drawing)

7. Fold the paper to hide the drawing

8. Pass it on (go to 3 & repeat)

Learn

BuildMeasure

For YOU

When an idea is not yet fully baked

● Working through a problem space

● Thinking up solutions

● Exploring options

Why you don't need to "know how to draw" to use it

● No critics!

● You can't do it wrong

A moment on the brain...

Doodling engages auditory, kinesthetic and

visual functions in the brain, enhancing

learning.

Sketching engages two out of three (but

two more than just thinking.)

Exercises

1. Think through the problem on your

own.

2. Pair up and talk with your partner to

create a single solution.

3. Show your solution to the rest of us.

FIRE!! (Or maybe just cooking dinner?)

Think about the problem

● What are the difficulties?

○ Danger or Dinner?

○ Turn it off!!

○ Is it working?

○ What if I’m not home?

● How could it look and work?

○ Inputs, outputs, and sensors?

○ Any new features or interactions?

For YOU and ME

When you are trying to explain to or understand

someone else

● Show me what you mean (Let me show you what I mean)

● Using your hands? -- Use a pen & paper.

Why you don't need to "know how to draw" to use it

● It's about the conversation, not the drawing

● You can explain away your lack of artistic ability

● You can define your own visual language

Samples

Why visual communication?

Why visual communication?

External reference (not in our heads) allows for

● Exploration of Concepts

● Different levels of Complexity

● Shared Clarity

Talk about the problem*

● Take a few minutes to share your

initial thoughts

● Combine elements from both partners

● Or start from scratch

* Share the paper

For ME (Well… not for you)

When you have reached a level of understanding you

want to communicate or demonstrate

● It should stand alone

● Remember, it’s not art. Don’t make it precious

Why you don't need to "know how to draw" to use it

● You're not restricted to only pictures

● Use words, arrows, color, legends

Comics are no joke

Comics combine words, pictures, and icons

in a single unified vocabulary.

Show Your solution

● Make it stand alone

● Use words and pictures

● What do you want to communicate?

○ The concept?

○ The sequence?

○ screens?

Knowing which sketching mode you are in

will:

● Clarify your purpose

● Improve your speed of problem solving

● Increase your depth understanding

http://www.visual-literacy.org/periodic_table/periodic_table.html

● Bill Buxton - Sketching User Experienceshttp://www.amazon.com/Sketching-User-Experiences-Interactive-Technologies/dp/0123740371

● Sunni Brown - The Doodle Revolution

http://sunnibrown.com/doodlerevolution/manifesto/

● Scott McCloud - Understanding Comics

http://www.scottmccloud.com/2-print/1-uc/index.html

● Dave Gray - Visual Thinking Basics

http://www.davegrayinfo.com/2012/12/07/visual-thinking-basics/

● Dan Roam - Back of the Napkin

http://www.danroam.com/the-back-of-the-napkin/

How was it?

raydelapena@gmail.com

@rayraydel