Journal 05: Peer Dialogue

            After reading Alicia’s course reflection, I started to notice we both found a lot of the same things to be interesting the past few classes. I also enjoyed the hot wheels video because it gave a glimpse into how design could potentially help the disabled. I was excited after seeing this video and I can’t imagine the excitement of someone with disabilities after seeing the possibilities of this type of design. I liked that Alicia took a different direction and found faces within industrial designs, even if she didn’t do it on purpose. I especially liked the face found within the steering wheel. Also, it was interesting to read about the Wieden & Kennedy firm since they have made many ads for popular companies such as Coca Cola and Nike. Alicia mentions that one of the lectures in class made her change her mind about what major she wants to pursue. I am also starting to rethink which of the three design majors I really want to pursue.

            After looking at Kelly’s found faces, I really liked the faces found on the elevator and Math Tower. It’s amazing how many faces can be found in everyday life. When reading her response to the assigned readings, I realized we had a lot of the same reactions, especially when she said “I never realized until taking this class that my life, and the lives of others is encompassed in design.” I completely agree with her, I guess it was a little naive of me not to realize this sooner. I found her research on designers to be the most interesting, mostly because I’d either never heard of them or knew little about them. For example, prior to reading her post I’d never heard of Brandever or Stefanie Schwarz. I really liked the designs shown on the wine bottles that she posted. The abstraction and creativity of the labels drew me in. Then I read about the graphic designer, Stefanie Schwarz. The examples of work Kelly posted were so interesting and colorful. I look forward to finding out more information on Schwarz.

            I think reading other student’s blogs is really helpful and educational. Without this assignment I would not have known about many of the designers and design firms the students posted about. It’s really increased my interest in design as a whole.

Journal 04: Found Faces

Contact Case

Ethernet Plugs

Laptop

Plug

Plug

Course Reflection 2

            During the fifth class the design process was the topic. We talked about the methodologies and processes, which can be linear, cyclical, or branching. Then an overview of the design process was discussed, which includes problem definition & constraint, research, the design cycle, production, and evaluation & review.

            I found the link on the blog from the fifth class interesting and funny because I always heard not to use comic sans, but never really knew why. After reading it, it seemed so obvious why and kind of comical that I never realized how much I've used the font inappropriately.

            Prior to our class about design for accessibility, I never really gave much thought to how much designers can help disabled people. Some of the statistics were shocking, 28 million people had difficulty walking a quarter mile and climbing 10 stairs according to the 2000 census. Also, 18 million people reported having difficulty carrying a 10-pound bag of groceries or grasping small objects. According to the Americans with Disabilities Act, reasonable accommodations should be available to all. A section of their act states, “Provide equally effective access to programs and services to individuals with disabilities in an integrated manner.” Further into the discussion Hopkins Hall was discussed regarding it’s accessibility for the disabled. It would be very difficult for someone with disabilities that has never been to the building before to figure out how to get in. The wheelchair ramp is on the opposite side of the building in comparison to the parking lot and the elevator isn’t much easier to find.

            Later the topic of universal design was discussed. “Universal design is a theory that states products, services, and environments should be designed to include a broader range of the population including those with varying disabilities.” I found the Good Grips products to be one of the most interesting examples discussed. I’ve seen the Good Grips products many places and actually own some myself, but little did I know why they were designed in the first place. The designer’s wife was having issues using a can opener due to some loss of ability to use her hands. Instead of just opening the cans for her he decided to invent something to help her and soon after came the Good Grips products.

            During the seventh class the scavenger hunt for assignment number three was the main focus.

            Out of these four classes I found the class on environmental design the most intriguing. I think environmental design is especially relevant today and designers should be especially focused on it. Environmental design promotes sustainability, designing for the needs of today without compromising the future, and is design that is environmentally friendly. A great example of an environmental design is Grolsch’s beer bottles. The top seal and glass are both recyclable. By making the whole bottle recyclable they are reducing their amount of waste. Some other examples of environmental design we were shown were the recyclable Aeron Chair, 135 mpg Tesla Roadster, and chocolates with edible packaging.

            During this class we were also shown a few videos involving environmental design. My favorite video was on Michael Pritchard’s Life Saver water filter. It was amazing to watch such filthy water be filtered into safe drinking water. With $8 billion the amount of people without safe drinking water could be cut in half and with $20 billion everyone could have access to safe drinking water. To put this in perspective Pritchard gives us the amount of money the English Government spent on foreign aid the past year, $12 billion. I think if we used our money a bit wiser and had the help of designers, such as Pritchard, we could solve many of the world’s major problems.

Assignment 03

The method I used to go about finding the buildings and chairs for the scavenger hunt was by researching on the internet. For most of the clues I was able to type in the name of the designer or chair and then "at OSU" to find a link that gave me the answer I needed. I also did some research online to find my interesting facts about the chairs and buildings. From there I went out to each place and took my pictures.

The Barcelona Chair was designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. The chair was originally made to furnish Van Der Rohe's German Pavilion at the International Exhibition in Barcelona. It was designed to serve as seating for the king and queen of Spain, while the stool, which is no shown in this picture, was intended to accommodate their attendants. Design Within Reach

The chair in this picture is Eero Aarnio's Pastil chair. The Pastil chair was designed in1967 and in 1968 the chair was awarded the Industrial Design award. The New York Times wrote about the Pastil Chair and The Ball Chair, one of Aarnio's other designs, "the most comfortable forms to hold up the human body." The magazine I am reading is the April 2011 issue of Metal Architecture. The article was about lighting up your space.
Pastil Chair

In the picture is the Wexner Center which was opened in 1989 and designed by Peter Eisenman, the first major public building he designed. Eisenman's design was driven by the overlapping grids of Columbus's street plan and our campus. The building is set between these two different grids. The Wexner Center was named in honor of  Leslie Wexner's, Chairman and CEO of Limited Brands and donor to the Wexner Center, father.
Mimoa
Wexner Center
Wexner Center History

Designed by Philip Johnson the Mathematics Tower is shown in this photo. I found the four arches on the the building's face to be a really interesting detail. They draw the eye upward to the top of the building, along with across the building's face due to the curvilinear lines.

                                                          

The Thompson Library was designed by local architects Acock & Associates. The building was actually built in three different stages: "the original, a Second Italian Renaissance Revival Style Structure opened in 1913; a 14 level stacks tower with wings and pavilions completed in 1951; and a modernist addition to the west, completed in 1977."  
Acock & Associates

Group Members:
Alicia L's Blog
Kelly B's Blog

Assignment 2

                                            Dale Chihuly (shorter post)

Fiori di Como

            As my aesthetics of appearance professor was talking about the different expressive qualities of line, a video was shown that focused on an artist that specializes in creating pieces with blown glass. I realized that I had definitely seen some of his work before, but never gave a second thought about it or who the artist was. As she showed more and more of his projects I became interested in finding out more about the artist and his work. Luckily, we were assigned this project and I was able to do so.

Neodymium Chandelier

            Dale Chihuly was born September 20 in Tacoma, Washington to George and Viola Chihuly. Unfortunately, Dale had somewhat of a tough childhood. At sixteen Dale lost his older brother, George, and soon after at seventeen he lost his father, Dale. He attended a wide array of colleges and universities. From starting out at the College of Puget Sound to transferring to the University of Washington, to receive his B.A. in interior design and architecture. He then attended the University of Wisconsin to receive his M.S. in Sculpture, to attending the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) where he received his Master in Fine Arts. Dale chose to teach at RISD for eleven years and he established their glass program.

Joslyn Window

            In 1961, Dale learned to melt and fuse glass and after this his career started to take off. Only three years later, in 1964, Dale “receives the Seattle Weavers Guild Award for innovative use of glass and fiber” and is “awarded highest honors from the American Institute of Interior Designers” a year later. His first environmental installation was installed in Pilchuck in 1971. From then on his portfolio of work continues to grow and grow.

            While in England in 1976, a car accident leaves Dale with 258 stitches in his face and loss of sight in his left eye. As if this wasn’t bad enough for the artist, about three years later he was in a bodysurfing accident where he dislocates his shoulder and then gives up his position of being in charge of production of his projects. Although he has given up his position his work has been quite successful and beautiful. He has had installations in many different parts of the world like the White House, Las Vegas, London, Venice and many others.

            After looking more in depth at Dale Chihuly’s work he has really become one of my favorite artists. It’s amazing what he is able to create with glass and the difficulties he had to overcome is really inspirational.

                                          Works Cited

“Chronology.” Dale Chihuly. n.p. n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2011.              

            <http://www.chihuly.com/>. 

Chihuly, Dale, et al. Chiuhly Projects. Seattle: Portland Press, 2000. Print.

 



 

Michael Graves (shorter post)

            Michael Graves is a name many people have probably heard but may not know too much about, including myself. I’ve heard the name numerous times, but never knew much about him besides that he designed products for Target. I chose to pick him as one of my designers so I could learn a little more about him and so I would be able to put some information to the name.            

            Michael Graves was born in 1934 in Indianapolis, Indiana. He attended the University of Cincinnati and later Harvard University’s graduate school of design. He also went to the American Academy of Rome to study.  He later began teaching at Princeton University in 1962 and stayed to teach architecture for over 25 years. In 1964 he founded the Michael Graves & Associates in Princeton, NJ and since the opening of his company he has designed over 350 buildings worldwide along with more than 2,000 products for various companies.

Conical Kettle

            Michael Graves’s designs for Alessi are probably the most well known. He designed the conical kettle with birds in 1985. In an interview he had with the New York Times, Graves talks about why he used certain colors for the Alessi Kettle. He said, “Blue is cool, so you’re supposed to think that it’s not hot. And the bird is red: you’re supposed to think to be careful to remove the bird.” The phrase “function before form” has come up many times throughout our class and readings so far, his quote seemed to fit right in. As simple as the thinking behind the design was, I personally think that was a great part because he focused on the function of the kettle.

The Dolphin Hotel

            To focus more on his architecture, a few buildings Graves is well known for include “the Public Services Building in Portland, Oregon (1982), the library in San Juan Capistrano, California (1983), the Humana Corporation headquarters in Louisville (1982-86), the Dolphin Hotel in Disney World, Florida (1989), and the annex to the Whitney Museum of Art in New York (1989-90).” I was surprised to read that he was a part of designing the Dolphin Hotel in Disney World, Florida having stayed there before. I thought the hotel was massive, beautiful and I was really intrigued by the architecture. This just goes to show me that design is truly all around me in my everyday life. 

                                      Works Cited

“ALESSI – Kettle 9093 Michael Graves NEW Blue or Black For Sale.” 

            Photograph.Collectibles-Articles.com. n.d. Web. 15 Apr. 2011. 

            <http://www.collectibles-articles.com/>.

Ben Mangor. “Walt Disney World, Dolphin Hotel, Orlando, Florida USA.” 

            Photograph. Super Stock. n.d. Web. 15 Apr. 2011. 

            <http://www.superstock.com/>.

 

“Michael Graves.” Art Directory. n.p. n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2011.

            <http://www.art-directory.info/>.

“Michael Graves Biography.” Target. n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2011.             

            <http://pressroom.target.com/>.

“Michael Graves.” Kettererkunst. n.d. 12 Apr. 2011.              

            <http://www.kettererkunst.com/>.

Rima Suqi. “Michael Graves on Objects He Designs for Target, and Himself.”

            Home & Garden. The New York Times. 30 Mar. 2011. Web. 12 Apr. 2011.

            <http://www.nytimes.com/>.

Paul Rand  (longer post)

            Another designer I have heard the name of and knew just the basics about is Paul Rand. I’ve learned just a few things about Rand from a previous design class and the current design course I’m in. I wanted to learn a little more about the graphic designer since that is the area I’m interested in getting a degree in.

            Paul Rand was born in Brooklyn, NY in 1914 as Peretz Rosenbaum. He was educated at the Pratt Institute, Parsons School of Design, and the Art Students League.  He later went on to teach at Cooper Union, the Pratt Institute, and Yale University.

            As stated in the Graphic Design Archive Online, Paul Rand’s career can be divided into three sections. “From 1937-1941, he worked in media promotion and book design; from 1941-1954, he focused more on advertising design; and from 1954 on, he began to concentrate on corporate identity programs.”

            His first designs were for his father’s grocery store and his school’s events. He began his career creating stock images that were supplied to newspapers and magazines. Around this time was when Paul decided to change his name from Peretz Rosenbaum to Paul Rand to avoid the Jewish identity given by his name. “Peter Behrens notes the importance of this new title: ‘Rand’s new persona, which served as the brand name for his many accomplishments, was the first corporate identity he created, and it may also eventually prove to be the most enduring.’”  By his early twenties Rand was already gaining international attention. Even before he was such a well-known designer he was branding himself. I think you have to be a pretty intelligent person that knows exactly what you want to do what Paul Rand had.

            Rand was chosen for the job of setting the page layout for an anniversary issue for the Apparel Arts in 1936. After doing such great work with this job he was given a full-time position along with an offer as art director of Esquire-Coronet magazines. At first Rand didn’t believe he had evolved the level of skill needed to accept the job, but soon after at twenty-three years old he decided to take the position. It's truly unbelievable the amount of work Paul Rand did by the early age of twenty-three and how much skill he already possessed.

            Rand’s corporate identity that gained him the most notoriety was the IBM logo he designed in 1956. He then modified the logo in 1960 and later in 1972 to the popular striped logo. Louis Danziger gave much credibility to Paul Rand when he said, “he almost singlehandedly convinced business that design was an effective tool. […] Anyone designing in the 1950s and 1960s owed much to Rand, who largely made it possible for us to work. He more than anyone else made the profession reputable. We went from being commercial artists to being graphic designers largely on his merits.” Paul Rand designed logos for Westinghouse, UPS, and ABC to name a few. His designs were rumored to reach $100,000 each in the ‘80s and 90’s. He also helped to establish the Swiss Style of design.

             I really enjoy the simplicity of many of Paul Rand’s designs like the ABC and UPS logos. He doesn’t feel the need to make his work look busy to give it the feeling of importance. In an interview with John Maeda, one of Paul’s students and friends, Paul is asked “what are the fundamental skills of a designer and he responded by saying the fundamental skill is talent.” Paul definitely has the talent he talks about in this interview. I find him to be an extremely creative person, especially because sometimes making a very simplistic design is harder to make than a complex one. Unfortunately, Paul Rand is no longer with us as he passed away from cancer in 1996. His work continues to influence designers and people everywhere.

 

Paul Rand's logos for ABC television, IBM, UPS, and Ford

     

                                                Works Cited

“Original Mad Men: Paul Rand & Saul Bass.” The Dapper Dude. Photograph. 

            20 July. Web. 15 Apr. 2011. <http://thedapperdude.com/>.

 

“Paul Rand: A Brief Biography.” Paul-Rand.com. n.p.  n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2011.                   

            <http://www.paul-rand.com/>.

“Paul Rand.” Graphic Design Archive Online. RIT Libraries. n.d. Web. 12 Apr.  

            2011. <http://library.rit.edu/>.

“Thoughts On Design: Maeda @ Media, Interview excerpt with John Maeda.” 

               Paul-Rand.com. n.p. n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2011. 

               <http://www.paul-rand.com/>.

Reading Reflection 01 - Chp. 1 - 6

            For reflection one we were to read chapters one through six in John Haskett's "Design: A Very Short Introduction." Here is a little bit of what I took from the first couple chapters.
            The book starts out with explaining what exactly design is. One of my favorite quotes from the first chapter is “The history of design, however, can be described more appropriately as a process of layering, in which new developments are added over time to what already exists.” I love this quote because design never forgets one aspect of itself; it just continuously builds upon those fundamental ideas and makes itself better. Design is so interesting because it is like building blocks, the more you learn about other designers and methods the more you build your own design abilities.

            The book mentions that it’s hard to determine exactly when people started to use design to change their surrounding environments. As far as tools are concerned, they were designed early on to be an extension of the human limbs to increase efficiency. The example of using clam shells to dig or scoop water, something you could do with your hands with less efficiency, was given. I find it to be pretty cool that what seems as simple as using a clam shell to collect water helped evolve what is now a huge design industry.

            In chapter three the book begins to talk about the importance of utility and significance. One quote I found interesting was, “human life is frequently inspired and motivated by dreams and aspirations rather than just practicality.” I really responded to this quote because it reminded me of the creativity of humans. It’s almost mind boggling to think about the ability some people have to create such beautiful things. I think the quote is also true in that sometimes designers don’t always base their designs off of practicality and I think that in some situations that’s alright.

             Chapter five talks about communication and how it is used throughout design. I don’t think I realized to what extent non-commercial organizations had a need for design regarding communication. Such as churches, charitable organizations, news programs, and museums. For example, museums need well-designed directional signs to let visitors know exactly where to go and news programs need everything from logos to on screen designs. It’s really amazing how much design is integrated into our everyday lives and sometimes we don’t even notice it. Later in the chapter the use of communication design in political campaigns is discussed. “Even political campaigns for the presidency or other major offices are run as advertising campaigns.” Advertising has become so popular that political campaigns are run by it. No longer does it only matter the actions of political people, but also how they brand/advertise themselves. I don’t exactly think this is what we should be basing our decision off of, but this is a huge part of society today.

           Lastly, I found the evolution of office spaces to be a very interesting section of chapter six, where environment was the topic. At first, employers had offices designed for employees to have little distractions and to have a strict hierarchy between the levels of employees. Then offices moved towards being designed in a way that employees were encouraged to interact with each other and work together to do their jobs better. I personally think I would function better as an employee if I had other employees to bounce my ideas off of. I think a lot of people are more creative when hearing others’ ideas and building off and adding their own ideas to them.

            Overall, I found the reading to be very interesting and easy to understand. I definitely learned a lot from the first six chapters that I was unaware of before. I think having a general knowledge of design’s background will come in handy throughout this class.

Journal 03

First, I'd like to comment on the first blog I looked at Courtney S'. She mentions being an English major and right from the start of reading her posts I could definitely tell. I think she had some great insight on the class so far and I really liked the patterns she picked because I found them to be really creative. I especially liked the beanbag chair and how crazy the colors were splattered all over it http://timefordesign.tumblr.com/. I’m in the same boat as Courtney because I also want to double major, one of which in design. I too am applying to the design major next December. Hopefully she'll be chosen for the major since she mentioned having an interest in interior design since she was little.

           

Next I looked at Rebecca S' posts. I also love yoga and have an older sibling that graduated from here. I thought the patterns she chose were original and really interesting. I especially liked the metal grate, stairs, and grapefruit patterns http://bbeaulieu11.blogspot.com/. In her course reflection she mentions how much she liked learning about the evolution of chairs, which I also enjoyed. It was really cool to see how many of them were right here on campus.

Lastly, I read Kristian B's blog.  I think it’s very courageous to attend a college in another country and would be an interesting experience. I think it's pretty cool Kristian grew up fencing and has stuck with it all his life. The opportunity to travel internationally doing something you've been doing for such a long time has to be pretty rewarding. I wish I had the opportunity to be in design classes throughout my primary and secondary schooling like he did. I agree with his statement that design is a very important topic in our lives and if it weren’t many of us probably would not be in this class http://kboy123.blogspot.com/.

http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/00680/patterns1_680151n.jpg                                                                                 This image was found on Google images and can be found at the URL above. I chose this image of rope because it is simple and something that is used everyday. The first thought when I see rope wouldn't be that it has a pattern, but this assignment has helped me to see things in a different way. I like the way the rope folds over itself over and over to create a braid type look. I like that in some areas of the rope it seems to disappear because of the braided look. I think this also helps to pull your eye to different sections of the rope.

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO8fhB8aHw_-ulSsaqUbKokfJlMqJBQEsRwAUy2d9dejo6WCIvnlzVDr4lFR3_RGZGU1IgCOqXh7elXBa0R-afOTP9GQ1rnLIzZqKPLtyVUtlNLULPRQ2BXmIX1oolAHl7DWeYIh2xilVv/s1600/box+graffiti+pattern.jpg This image is from Google images and can be found at the URL above. I chose this picture because of the unique pattern and also the bright pops of color. I liked how creatively they used the fence to hold what looks like painted cups to form a piece of art. The pattern makes your eye go in all directions, but the color helps you to focus in on certain places and that is what drew me in to this piece of art.

   http://static.becomegorgeous.com/img/arts/2010/Sep/04/2690/nail_art_design_thumb.jpg                                                         This image was found on Google images at the URL above. I chose this image to focus on all the different patterns the nail polish created. It was interesting to see a different medium used to create pattern and it really shows that pattern can be found anywhere. I like these patterns because they use bright colors and animal prints. If I were to see someone with these patterns on their nails it would definitely catch my attention.

 http://www.defyimages.com/Architecture/archepatterns/200804Sydney12/307018156_fVoBN-S.jpg                                        This image was found on Google images at the above URL. This building clearly stands out from ordinary buildings and the uniqueness of this building's pattern is what drew me in. I think it is so interesting how it was designed with all different size cutouts for the windows. It's almost like a maze for your eye to try and figure out how to follow.

                http://www.debraprinzing.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/11/brick-wall-okc.JPG                                                      This brick pattern was found on Google images at the URL above. I like this pattern because of it's rustic feel. I like that the bricks do not look brand new, but instead look old and used. Also, my favorite part is the negative space between the bricks and how the sun shines through.

This is a picture of a mat that goes into your shower to prevent you from slipping. I picked this pattern because I thought it was playful and fun. I liked that some circles were filled in with other circles, but then others were left empty. I think that helps to not make the pattern look to busy.

I found this pattern on the back of one of my chairs in my room. I like how each block has it's own color, but at the same time they are all brought together with the use of putting one rectangle on top of another. I think the space between each rectangle helps to draw your eye around the pattern and bring it to the next thing.

This grid like pattern was found on a dish towel. I picked this pattern because I use it almost everyday and never paid much attention to the pattern. Although you can't see it well in this picture the the fabric in the squares is raised up and uses texture along with the grid pattern.

This floral pattern was found on a roll of paper towels. I liked that it really had two patterns to it. The dominant floral pattern and also the bounty diamond pattern that is more of the background pattern. I was drawn to this because it had used both pattern and texture at the same time.

I found this vent near the top of my shower in my dorm. Of course it looks a bit aged and dirty, but I think that is why I was drawn to it. It was different from the other patterns because it had more of an industrial feel.The grid pattern was pleasing to my eye because it was balanced and everything is equal.

Course Reflection 1

            The first day of class we were introduced to the course and our teacher. The following class we began to discuss what design is. The dictionary definition, “design is to design a design to produce a design,” brings up the issue that design means different things to different people. Many times when you ask different people what design means to them their definitions will vary. I liked that during the lecture the idea that “art is usually oneself, design is usually others” was brought up. It helped me to understand the difference between the two. Once this idea was brought up the quote from Louis Sullivan, “form follows function,” was discussed. I think it’s necessary for certain products to be designed following this idea such as, toothbrushes and telephones. These types of products are made for a specific purpose and if there were only one type of each of these products people would most likely buy them regardless of what they looked like. We also watched Tim Brown Urges Designers to Think Big video. The video discussed using design thinking rather than designers focusing on one small project at a time to help make a larger impact. I thought Tim had a good point, if all the designers today were thinking at a large scale and “building to think rather than thinking to build” design could change for the better.

            During the third class we went on a mini tour of campus on the way to the two different libraries we visited. It was interesting to see some of the architecture we talked about in class in real life and on campus that I otherwise may not have noticed. Such as the Bauhaus type architecture of the building our class is in. The fourth class meeting we talked about the differences between the three design majors, industrial, interior, and visual communication design. I learned exactly what each type of designer focused on during this lecture. Industrial designers are more focused on inventing or refurbishing products while interior designers focus on the functionability, safety, health, and welfare of interior spaces. Visual Communication design is used to communicate a specific message to an audience whether it is to inform, educate, persuade, or entertain. Lastly, I found most interesting in this lecture was the difference between photography and illustration. I never gave much thought to the difference between the two besides that one is taking pictures and the other is making a picture. An illustration of a stomach with a scope inside was the example given. We discussed that it would’ve been difficult to take a picture of the inside of a stomach and many people would be grossed out by the picture rather than learn from it. The illustration was a much tamer way of communicating what needed to be taught. Overall, the lectures and videos have been very interesting to me and I am glad I took this class.