Design Challenge Two: Word/Image/Object Relationships

Design Challenge 2: Word/Image/Object Relationships

General Guidelines The objects in Sherry Turkle’s book are evocative for the storytellers as they allow for a personal connection or a link to something outside the object itself. Without the story, the objects would remain just that – objects...often just functional, banal, ubiquitous or unconsidered. This design challenge asks you to select an object from the book and re-design it such that its meaning and the evocative qualities expressed in the story become intrinsic to the object itself through a reconsideration of shape, form, texture, detail, function, colour, etc. This requires a close reading of the object essay to identify meaning, form, character, materiality, function, and sensuous and emotional attributes. For example, could the suitcase in Olivia Dasté’s essay be re-designed as a holder for memory rather than for physical items belonging to her grandmother? What would the new object look like? How would it function? Could the encyclopedia in David Mann’s essay be re-designed as a contemporary pocket-sized Rosetta stone? How could it be different from current PDAs? Design is about people. Design is about thinking, inventing, solving problems, collaborating, being curious, asking questions, and challenging everything. Design is about communicating with forms, structures, and materials. It is not about pretty shapes and cool gadgets. (Ellen Lupton.) Objectives:

• To develop critical thinking skills as a means of analysis for designing • To understand the relationship of audience, design choices, and performance metrics • To understand meaning in context (cultural, social, technical, material, etc.) • To expand design vocabulary • To design in 3D for audience, meaning, material and technology • To design in 2D for audience, meaning, material and technology • To apply the principles of visual structure using type and image to communicate concept and context

Look, Observe, Listen (from Ellen Lupton’s Designing with Materials) Looking for problems The ability to listen, observe, and emphasize is necessary for every designer. Be a fly on the wall, leave no stone unturned, and find the “why” behind the “why.” How to brainstorm Asking the right questions could mean solving the right problem. Design solutions from nature Swim fins, snails, fruits and flowers, honeycombs, and burrs are among the infinite useful structures to be found in nature.

Course Title Core Design Studio II Course mnemonic

DESN 200

Section number F001, F002, F003, F004, F005, F006, F007 Instructors F001: Celeste Martin

F002: Deb Shackleton F003: Hélène Day Fraser F004: Jill Anholt F005: Christian Blyt F006: Jill Anholt F007 Mike Culverwell

Emily Carr University Course Outline page 2 of 3

Be the frustrated user Many great products are designed out of necessity: 180s ear warmers, tissue dispenser, glow-in-the-dark rug, and the Sippy cup. Be inspired by the junk you collect Resourceful designers and students share their tips. Requirements: Three-dimensional object (see example of the star puzzle) three, tabloid-size information panels (see star puzzle examples) Verbal presentation stating the cultural, social and environmental context of your re- imagined object Three-dimensional Object The aim of the project is to physically/mentally connect to an object/essay in the book and to re-imagine that object through conceptualization, visualization, manipulation and modification as a new futuristic object. What will the new form look like? What will be its distinguishing attributes when it is in a different material from the one described in the essay? How will you make it? How would it be manufactured? What will be its significance? Start to analyze your new object by drawing it from different perspectives using different techniques such as perspective, pictorial, sectional, and isometric. Combine this approach with 3D sketching using basic and found-materials. Let your sketches be uninhibited. Be as creative and adventurous as you can. During the course of your process you will need to generate sketch and scale models as well as prototypes as “what if” experiments. You will have a choice of one of the following workshops to support your visual direction: wood, foam, vacuum form, or letterpress. The final object should be digitally documented from various perspectives. Edited imagery will be featured in three tabloid-size panels. Panel One: Object Research & Transformation Study One panel should describe/illustrate the transformation of the original object into its new form. This board should include a scan of the original object from the book with a caption indicating its category of origin or “home theme” (e.g. one of: Objects of Design and Play; Objects of Discipline and Desire; Objects of History and Exchange; Objects of Transition and Passage; Objects of Mourning and Memory; or Objects of Meditation and New Vision), and photographs of your re-imagined object with text describing its new pedigree. Supporting text should act as descriptors or captions. Panel Two: Observation Study A second panel should describe/illustrate a range of design drawings used to analyze/study your re-imagined object. Supporting text should act as descriptors or captions. Panel Three: Context Study A third panel should describe/illustrate the use of your re-examined object. This can be done through drawing/storyboarding or digitally documenting someone interacting with your object. Supporting text should act as descriptors or captions. The attached panels for the re-imagined swim fins by Dean are a student example from last year. However, the project parameters were slightly different in that students re-imagined an object from childhood. Your panels should be designed to demonstrate unity of layout through the use of a grid structure and headings. See the two examples from Ellen Lupton’s new book Designing with Materials. Thematic/Conceptual Criteria for The Three Panels

• Demonstrate the evocative nature of your re-designed object; be a storyteller • Demonstrate your observational and material research • Demonstrate the intensity of your design process • Create a grid system for the panels so that they read as a set • Demonstrate the principles of visual structure hierarchy

Process: Select an essay and object from the book as your inspiration for your 3D object re-design. Conduct object and material research in order to develop thumbnails and concept sketches. Prepare a short project proposal for the design and fabrication of your redesigned object. Include a concept sketch of the “new”

Emily Carr University Course Outline page 3 of 3

object and proposed material exploration and fabrication methods. Include H x W x D dimensions and a timeline in your proposal. Specify your workshop choice (woodshop level 2, foam, vacuum form soft product) with an alternative as a back up. Workshops are scheduled based on demand so please include an alternative material approach in your proposal. Faculty members review the proposals with the studio technicians, provide recommendations, and prepare the workshop schedules. Make it Real (from Ellen Lupton’s Designing with Materials) Refine Object design is communicating with materials, shapes, forms, and colors. You just designed a meaningful thing. Will other people know how to use it by just looking at it? Will they understand its significance? It’s meaning? Communicate Designers communicate their designs to people who will be making them, selling them, and using them. Present Display, post on-line, photograph, sketch, video, write. Produce Designers make things that need to be fabricated. Dialogue with technicians and suppliers needs to start early in the process. The more you know about the processes, the better designer you will be. Distribute How will your new form be distributed? Imagine it as a component in a distribution system. How will you explain to others how it works and what the benefits are? Timeline Week 7 Proposal Development Weeks 8/9/10 Design development of redesigned object through sketching, modeling, prototyping and workshop sessions; hands-on development with materials, methods, and techniques; workshops in support of approved student proposals; one of woodshop level 2, vacuum form, foam, or soft product; desk critiques inform iterative cycles of the design process. Documentation of design process phases in process book as well as digital documentation of the object's re-design phases. Thumbnails, concept sketches, and comprehensives for panel designs. Week 11 Critique of Design Challenge 2: studio pin-up of panels and exhibit of evocative object. Design Challenge 3 is introduced.

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Birch VeneerMATERIAL

The Star ParadoxTITLE

Object Research & Transformation StudyDESCRIPTION

DWGNO. TEAM PROJECT REV SHEET

DESN 200 – Evocative Objects – Challenge 2 – 01/03

The information contained in this drawing is the sole property of the designer. Any reproduction in part or as a whole without the written permission of the designer is prohibited.15/11/11

DATE

Beayue Louie

=Σ

“It wasn’t so much the stars that held my attention. Rather, it was the space between, around, and beyond them.”

~Mitchel Resnick

Stars are intriguing objects in that they are both completely familiar and completely foreign to us. They serve as the common nightly backdrop to all our lives — a mundane sight we take for granted — but they also represent the mysteries of the universe — a seemingly never-ending void full of possibilities yet to be discovered. The Star Paradox explores this dichotomy by showcasing how a star can be both simple and complex.

Stars: Objects of Design & Play

If we look at the stars one-by-one from our vantage point on Earth, each star is a mere speck in the sky. When viewed together, however, they form a complex universe that teaches us about patterns, mathematics, astronomy, navigation, spatial relations, astrology and science, while posing questions of existentialism and faith.

Synthesis: Simple Part + Simple Part = Complex Whole

The things that fascinated us as children helped to shape our desire and drive to learn more about the world we live in as adults. The Star Paradox taps into this sense of discovery by transforming a single, simple two-dimensional shape into an unfamiliar object that has no recognizable beginning or end.

Sense of Discovery

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Birch VeneerMATERIAL

The Star ParadoxTITLE

Observation StudyDESCRIPTION

DWGNO. TEAM PROJECT REV SHEET

DESN 200 – Evocative Objects – Challenge 2 – 02/03

The information contained in this drawing is the sole property of the designer. Any reproduction in part or as a whole without the written permission of the designer is prohibited.15/11/11

DATE

Beayue Louie

A

Detail A

Cyclical View of The Star Paradox

Linear View of The Star Paradox54.7�

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“The tetrahedron occurs conceptually independent of events and independent of relative size. By tetrahedron, we mean the minimum thinkable set that would subdivide theUniverse and have the interconnectedness where it comes back upon itself.”

~R. Buckminster Fuller

“How can three-dimensional space ‘curve back on itself’? How could I envision that? How could I feel that?”

~Mitchel Resnick

The TetrahedronTo create The Star Paradox, the simplest structural system was used — the tetrahedron. Although this four-sided polyhedron uses the minimal number of points required to form a three-dimensional shape, it is the strongest, most stable and most utilized structure in the universe. According to R. Buckminster Fuller, the tetrahedron is the prime geometry of nature. Without this structure, the universe as we know it would not exist.

Systems ThinkingThere are many ways of looking at the universe: as a collection of individual parts; as a web of interconnected relationships; or as an unbroken whole.

While each theory has individual merit, the universe can also be all three — an integral living system, made up of parts, relationships and wholes. The process of understanding how elements of a system in�uence one another within a whole is known as ‘systems thinking’. Drawing on the notion that a system is best understood in the context of its componential relationships, the concept of cause and effect becomes cyclical rather than linear. A change to one part of The Star Paradox will result in a change to every part.

Relationships

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Birch VeneerMATERIAL

The Star ParadoxTITLE

Context StudyDESCRIPTION

DWGNO. TEAM PROJECT REV SHEET

DESN 200 – Evocative Objects – Challenge 2 – 03/03

The information contained in this drawing is the sole property of the designer. Any reproduction in part or as a whole without the written permission of the designer is prohibited.15/11/11

DATE

Beayue Louie

Examine & InvestigateThe Star Paradox is a physical representation of some of the paradoxes that surround us: how a pattern can emerge from the interactions among basic shapes; how a three-dimensional space can ‘curve back on itself’; and how a complex whole can arise from a collection of simple parts.

It is not quite a puzzle, nor a solution. Yet its purpose is to both puzzle the user and allow him or her to manipulate it in order to test the theories and better understand the paradoxes that exist in our universe. This object is meant to incite the same curiosity we held as children, while stimulating our creativity as adults.

Sometimes the answer to the most challenging problem lies in the simplest solution. And sometimes the simplest form encapsulates the most challenging concepts.

“This object was different from the stars of my childhood: you could hold it in your hands and test it out.”

~Mitchel Resnick

“Knowing an object does not mean copying it — it means acting upon it.”

~Jean Piaget

teaching others by sharingexperiences.

Understanding

Taking on Issues

Passing on Knowledge

The SX-70 Polaroid Camera

what ideas are important for the future?

creating visual aids forteaching new ideas.

objects of history & exchange.

transformation

Improve

Experiment

teach

The intention is that the lamp will be used by a child, so they can learn from a young age, that wasting electricity has consequences. The Pollution Cloud Lamp is a constant reminder to turn lights off when they’re not in use.Even if the concept isn’t clear at first, through this day to day exposure to the visual representation of pollution, the lesson will eventually be realized.

The object is designed to function as a table lamp in order to have it at the level of the the user, increasing interaction and exposure between the object and the child.

It was important to create the lamp out of a material which can last a life time

to avoid the waste which comes as a result of poorly made products.So the lamp is constructed out of plastic, despite the negative aspect of it

being difficult to re-use. However, the final product would be made of corn plastic which, “...allows us to make a comparable product out of a renewable resource,

as opposed to oil reserves that will one day run dry”(1), helpingto ease the environmental impact.

1 Robert Lamb What Is Corn Plastic

objects of history & exchange.

observationtransformationfunction

exposure

enhance

“If electricity creates pollution, why do people use lights during the day?” -Jake Rubin

The Pollution Lamp

applying the knowledge...

objects of history & exchange.

contextobservation

connect remember

expand

�e Yellow RaincoatBy Matthew Belmonte

The ‘hug machine’ or ‘squeeze box’ is a deep pressure device

designed to calm hyper-sensitive persons, especially

people with autism. It was invented by livestock architect

and university professor, Temple Grandin, whose idea

stemmed from the calming of cattle when squeezed into the

cattle chute.

�e Hug Machine

protection

environment

tension Pressure to Relieve TensionEveryday Examples

Eye maskX-ray lead blanket

Heavy quiltsDog sitting on lap

Being burried in sandCucumbers on eyesPillow on the chest

OBSERVATION

Weighted Chest PillowWeighted Chest Pillow

Weighted blankets and pressure vests are used by children with autism to help calm and better integrate sensory information.

The vests and blankets on the market look very clinical and are marketed specifically for children with hyper-sensitivity disorders.

Why not create a weighted chest pillow with an interesting design for adults to use as a stress reliever and sleeping aid?

Retro Boxing Glove DesignAn inviting and cozy form of protection.

The leather has a nice, comforting

smell.

The weightfeels so great.

Zzzzz

CONTEXT

User Experience

Discipline and Desire

The user found theweighted boxing pillow relaxing

and meditative. She used it as a tool to helpher fall asleep and to calm her mind. She enjoyed

the smell of the leather and the earthtones of the fabric.

w

DownrabbitMurray the Bunny

ise

theprom usage

ise

the

hole

“Murray the Bunny” tells the story of a stuffed rabbit that accompanies a little girl

throughout her early development. She mirrors her experiences when she plays

with the toy.

An object of Transition and Passage

This story led me to “The Velveteen Rabbit,” a fairy tale that explores the nature of toys and how they can become “real” to children. The purpose of personified toys and imaginary friends is to fill an abscence, something the child is lacking (usually the prescence of a parent or other children to play with).I wanted to design something that addresses this abscence and the need to create friends. Jigsaw puzzles bring people together, andmust be physically joined to be complete, so I decided that that would be ideal for a form.The end result was a 16 piece puzzle for ages 3-4 that is contained in a realistic toy rabbit, alluding to “The Velveteen Rabbit.”

theprom usage

ise

in “Murray the Bunny” bridges the generations between a child and her much older sister. This rabbit puzzle functions in a similar way by bringing people together bthrough a game. Fairy tales canbe passed through generations without the necessity of a book, and the images on the puzzle can trigger a conversation between a child and a parent, or a child with anotherchild. The zipper on the pocket inside the stuffed rabbitis plastic, to be more comfortable to the touch, and the puzzle pieces are made out of thick felt to make it soft and malleable and avoid possible swallowing.

The Rabbit

The illustrations on the puzzle are courtesy of Gabriella Galvez.

usage

served its function when presented to four-year-old Alma. She immediately removed the puzzle from the Bunny container and began putting the pieces together.

The BunnyPuzzle

Her younger brother, Jasper, seemed more interestedin the discarded, empty bunny. After the puzzle was completed for the first time, Alma asked her mother to re-build it for her.

Her mother commented on the characters in the puzzle, and proceeded to remind Alma where those charac-ters came from.