Collide Research Document by Jack Barnes

Collide 1

the brief 2

This is the final university brief for my second year; entitled ‘collide’. The general theme for this brief is the collision of two mediums to create a new experience in the form of both physical and digital outcomes which are responses to three themes: • Happiness • The internet / Digital Age • Your Future Self This brief is extremely open and down to an individual’s own interpretation of the brief and their interpretations of the three themes which are to be explored. Because of this, I will have to perform extensive research into the three themes and explore other practitioner’s creative outcomes which are somewhat related. I would have to also perform some self-critical thinking about what happiness means to me and what makes me happy and how I could convey that to an audience, as well as the impact the digital age has on my life and the world around us and how I could incorporate this into my work. Finally, I would also have to look at where I see myself in the future.

happiness 4

Happiness is the state of being happy, and for most of us, it’s the one thing we strive to achieve and feel for the entirety of our lives. The most unique thing about this feeling is that we all have different means of achieving this state. It varies from person to person. When I begin to take a step back and think about what evokes happiness in me, its apparent that happiness is a scale; some forms of happiness are more ‘happy’ than others, and the same goes for ‘happiness-inducing’ forms in our lives. Some are small things in our lives which bring a quick smile to our faces, others are monumental that change our lives.

stefan sagmeister: happiness by design 6

Renowned designer Stefan Sagmeister exhibitioned a show in which he explored the theme of happiness and design. In his TED talk, Sagmeister gives a talk discusses times in his life in which he has reached the ultimate stage of happiness, and then discusses the instances in which design has contributed to those ultimate stages of happiness. He states there are 2 possibilities where design impacts on happiness; one from a consumerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s point of view, where he was happy experiencing design, and one where a designer experiences happiness whilst designing. Sagmeister then goes on to discuss the visualisation of happiness and how easy this process is compared to designs which evoke happiness in themselves. For instance, he uses a series of posters for the New York subway as an example. In these posters, they are displayed in the same conventional way as the subways

subway posters are, but are pastiches with humourous captions. The function of these is that the viewer would find themselves bored on the subway viewing the posters without realising that they are different from the ones that are normally displayed. I really liked this example of how design can evoke happiness as it taps into how we ourselves become happy from small things, as I mentioned earlier, and the general simplicity of the design. Another example where design evoked happiness for Sagmeister was when a designer printed 55,00 speech bubbles and placed them emptily on existing posters - enabling other people to fill them in. I really liked this example because of the interaction and collaboration between designer and audience. It allows the audience to engage with the project and ultimately express themselves. It even works for the designers of the existing ads because they get more attention. Sagmeister then lists the aspects of his life as a designer and the design process which makes him happy: • thinking about ideas and content freely - with the deadline far away. • working without interruption on a single project. • using a wide variety of tools and techniques. • travelling to new places. • working on projects that matter to him. • the sense of reward from completing a design. For me, I can relate to many of Sagmeister’s points well. I personally enjoy working comfortably on a single project without the pressures of deadline, although unlike Sagmeister I find the projects which is open and free, can often make the design process convoluted. I much prefer working in my comfort zone, be it on editorial design or in identity. Like Sagmeister, I also enjoy working on projects which are personal to me, which I think can have an impact. Much of my work evidences this.

coca cola: open happiness 10

Coca Cola’s 2009 ‘Open Happiness’ campaign by Wieden+Kennedy won two gold iF communication awards in 2013 and is largely focused around the sense of happiness a customer receives when consuming coca cola. The campaign was a response to a general feeling that the brand had became mundane and ‘like wallpaper’, with Coca Cola wanting to contemporarise the brand, wanting to go back to basics and what it was known for - simple goodness. The campaign took many formats and was across many mediums - both physical and digital which I found useful as inspiration because my responses would have to be applicable to both physical and digital platforms. Coca Cola produced a series of minimal posters which capitalised on the instantaneous recognisability of the coca cola brand.

11 11

They also produced a typographic poster forming the iconic shape of the coca cola glass bottle which I also think works well because of its minimal design and visualises happiness well with its cursive type. Finally, my favourite example from the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;open happinessâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; campaign is a viral spot they did which shows two vending machines - one in Pakistan and one in India which were fitted with cameras. The idea of the project was to unite users (from two countries who have being historically engaged in conflict) to work together in harmony by completing a series of tasks in order to have their coca cola dispensed. I think this is a great idea, both in the root of the idea and how it was exhibitioned. The general idea is unique and evokes happiness as well as visualising what happiness means whilst the idea to portray the spot in a viral fashion utilises new technologies and the use of a vending machine uses physical means as well.

smile suggest 14

Smile suggest is an internet project which tracks your facial movements in the background when you are browsing the web and whenever it detects a smile from the user, it bookmarks the web page. I think this is a really creative idea which visualises happiness in every sense of the word. Whilst suffering from obvious technical difficulties and drawbacks, such as reading facial expressions, I definitely want to take my project in this sense of â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;out-of-the-boxâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; alternative thinking when trying to visualise happiness. Also, the website is an example of how technology and happiness go hand in hand, which is useful for my brief.

the internet 18

Born in 1994, technology has always being integral in my life. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s shaped who I am, I rely on it more than Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d like to admit and it has a monumental impact on all our lives. Everything we do now involves technology in some form. We will do our shopping online, or order takeaways online, converse, interact and meet new people online. We use the internet for learning, for entertainment, for social interaction. Designing an outcome which incorporates the internet and digital technology could be relatively straightforward because the internet is a medium which is incredibly accommodating to many forms of media and design, such as social media, websites, mobile apps and viral marketing campaigns.

douglas coopland & the future 20

Douglas Coupland is a designer and writer who looks at the role of technology and the future who famously wrote ‘my brain no longer feels the way it used to, and I miss my pre-internet brain’. One of my favourite works of his is his work entitled’ ‘The Lovers’. Initially looking like an optical illusion, the artwork takes the form of people jumping out of the burning world trade centre when viewed through a smart phone. I think this is incredibly creative. ‘works comment on the contemporary way in which many of us now view the world through the lens of our ever-present phones.’ Another piece of work that interested me of Coupland’s is his typographic poster series ‘slogans for the twenty first century.

In these series of posters, Coupland tries to capture the cultural impact technology has on our lives. He creates thought-provoking typographic statements on a poster which also comes across as being quite humourous. I like this idea of using humour to provoke real ideas and thoughts in the audience.

a charge for privacy 24

Branger_Briz’s ‘a charge for privacy’ is another alternative art-styled piece which sets out to provoke thought in its audience. The piece allows an audience to charge their phone up, in exchange for all the user’s images being stored and randomly projected in Lincoln’s Chad Varah house. ‘The piece is a reminder that nothing online is really “free.” We often forget (or might not even realize) that the online services we depend on for our most intimate and private exchanges (Facebook, Gmail, etc) are not exactly “free” nor are they exactly “private.” Every word you email to your family and every link you share with your friends is being archived, indexed and monetized, either in the form of targeted ads and/or other data-mining ventures’

I really like this concept because with topics such as privacy and civil liberties, much of society doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t really care because they think it doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t affect them, yet this exhibition brings this subject into focus and helps it hit home for the audience. This is a really good example of how a physical piece of work can represent the role technology has on our lives and how physical and digital work can combine and work together.

ocr: Ad Infinitum 28

In a response to the notion that the freedom that the internet offers comes at a price - the userâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s data and privacy, The Office of Creative Research addressed this in an installation entitled â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Ad Infinitumâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;. The installation examines every single advert that we are presented with on a daily basis of internet browsing and presents an analysis of how we can be portrayed through our browsing habits. The central part of the installation is based around floodwatch; a chrome extension that tracks the ads a user views when browsing chrome with the intention of raising awareness of how advertises track your browsing history. I think this is a great idea which really tackles a troubling moral conflict in our society which involves technology and the internet.

your future 32

What we do now dictates where we will be going in the future and where we want to be in the future dictates what we do now. For me, I’ve always done everything I’ve done with the intention of it contributing to my future. Throughout my life, I’ve always being building and building with the intent on bettering myself and those around me through education and the development of myself but I’ve never had a concrete, set in stone vision for where I see myself in the future. Perhaps, when considering this aspect of the brief, I could explore this idea in more detail, as well as investigating and experimenting with how i could portray this through design. I will research how design and the future go hand in hand, with design often being spearheading the societal landscape and all our lives.

tom watkins when iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m a dad d&ad winner 34

Tom Watkins won a D&AD pencil for his response when he was asked where he wanted to be in the future. He thought to inspire future fathers by creating and illustrating a childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s book, and launched a website to support this idea. In terms of the book design, I really like Watkinsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; work. The book uses geometric shapes and soft pastel colours to form the illustrations which looks really impressive and helps to form the conventional aesthetic of a childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s book. I also really liked the idea to build on his idea and bring it onto the web and engage with other futurefathers to hear about what they want to do when they are a dad. This kind of interaction is something I would really like to do in my own project. Again, this is another project by a designer which addresses a personal message that is very close to their heart. This, again, is something which I want my own response to address.

I also like how, after execution, Watkins created a welldone, simplistic animation to present his idea. This could be something I could consider when finding a medium to present my work when I have produced a response. However, I would have to develop my skills at producing animated outcomes if I was to do this. All in all, I found this project greatly inspiring and I like the combination of a book and then creating a mixture of a promotional campaign online, and then using the online presence to develop his idea further.

shannon lea (home) maker d&ad winner 38

Another D&AD winner which I looked at which addresses the future is Shannon Lea’s (home)maker work. ‘Ten years from now, I know that I want to be designing and concentrating on my craft. Equally, being a wife and a mother could not be further from my mind. Both the print and digital illustration reflect this; the image visible during the day depicts my current ambitions. Whereas during the night, or at least when the lights are off, I’m confronted with the future I don’t want to be mine.’ ‘As the phosphorescent ink would only glow if printed onto a white background, this meant neither colour could overlap. As a result, both illustrations were built up around the other, together but entirely separate.’ I really like this idea, the execution is great and unique by having two contrasting outcomes in one production.

This is another project which tackles a real issue that the designer feels incredibly passionate about. Again, I really want my project to be something I feel strongly about, much like Leaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s. In terms of the design, I really like the illustration. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve always being a big fan of the line drawing aesthetic and this goes hand-in-hand with the minimal use of colours. I also really appreciate the attention to detail required to have two contrasting illustrations drawn on the same canvas.

microsoft: how 2019 will look like 42

In 2009, Microsoft released a visionary video which looks to how its technology will shape the world in 2019. It shows a utopian future where technology is at the centre of our lives; children interact with fellowchildren across the globe in touch screen classroom environments, conversing with each other with technology bridging the language barrier. We see commuters using touch screen technology to manage their lives and managing their commutes using mobile devices for wayfinding. We also see a digital newspaper with moving images and slide-away stories. The general observation which Microsoft is trying to convey is how integral technology will be in the future to our every-day lives. How it will make everything more convenient and efficient, our productivity will be amplified due to it. It helps to show how reliant we will be on technology as well and how technology will begin to digitalise regular items.

Almost 7 years on since microsoft produced the video and I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t think they are far from how they perceived the future to be. Although much of it is glamourised by todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s standards with utopian holograms forming the workplace, much of the core concepts have being completed. For instance, mobile devices now are regularly used to manage commutes with technology helping us buy and use tickets, plan and navigate our journeys using GPS and entertaining us whilst we are on them with mobile apps / games, books being read on devices and other media platforms such as films. On a train, a commuter can watch netflix on a tablet, and use her phone to act as a ticket. This would not have been possible in the past. All in all, I appreciate the evolution and advancement of technology and how it shapes our lives by making things easier.

monotype: type reinvented 46

FIELD and Monotype worked together to explore how type can be responsive and emotional whilst still being communicative. ‘Sensual Power explores the role type design plays on the future fashion stage. Evolving from outlines into glyphs and words, the artwork reveals the sophisticated craftsmanship of our industry’s most treasured typefaces, coming to life in an infinite series of digital posters. An elegant and energetic experience revealing the sophisticated craftsmanship of our industry’s most treasured typefaces, paired with dynamic, motion-controlled visuals and sound.’ - FIELD. The exhibition is interactive allowing viewers to engage with the type in a physical way and the projected type reacts. Whilst being visually stunning, I do find the subject matter had to engage and relate with. Because of this, I would prefer my response to the collide brief to consider a real issue and / or something which more of the general public can interact with.

initial idea #1 50

My first initial idea came from watching Stefan Sagmeisterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s talk; the part where he talks about an artist who places speech bubbles in public places, allowing the general public to write captions, using this, the underlying theme of happiness & design and then taking into consideration Smile Suggests (which bookmarks websites which makes you smile), I came up with the idea of pinning / liking / favouriting pieces of design, be it branding, editorial design, signage etc because, personally, looking at good design makes me happy. I think this can take the form of a physical tag or sticker, and acts of synergy can allow an app which you can tag places of good design. Also, the idea is engaging and interactive, like many of the pieces of research I looked at. I think this idea has good foundations for an internet campaign with lots of room to develop the idea further. Because of this, I will have to develop a form of identity for the concept.

initial idea #2 52

My second initial idea considers the future of graphic design - where the practice is going, how technology can affect it and how graphic design can affect technology. I think a response to this can be presented in both a physical and digital medium; be it a manifesto, physical magazine or ezine, or animation. A response involving this subject matter would be incredibly open-ended and down to personal opinion and would involve a massive amount of research to be undertaken to form a compelling, informed response. I do think however, that I would definitely look at how trends recycle themselves in graphic design, so this could be something I would consider. I would also look at how technology will interact with graphic like tablets and surfaces enhance many designerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s workspace. However, I would like to take on an actual issue in my response that I feel strongly about.

experimentation & development 54

Try out as many things as possible - Stefan Sagmeister

good design typeface experimentation 56

I experimented with different typefaces to try and lay the foundations for the identity of ‘good design’. It needs to be simple, clean and straightforward because it’s representing the notion of welldesigned design. This is very much my philosophy. A variety of typefaces formed my experimentation; I wanted to try geometric sans serifs because they are very much the ‘in-style’ right now, slab serifs and classic serif typefaces. I always maintain that it’s important to keep your options for an identity as open as possible during this stage. Despite this, I don’t want to use more than 1 typeface throughout the entire identity on the principal that I don’t think it’s necessary. I don’t want to complicate the identity and think a typeface with a variety of weights is more than enough to form the identity for ‘good design’. I think having a heavy weight on the ‘design’ could work also to help reinforce the how the identity is based around design.

good design good design helvetica bold

akzidenz grotesk - bold

good design good design circular - black & book

bodoni - bold & book

good design good design apercu

muller - black & medium

good design bebas neue - light & bold

good design

american typewriter regular & bold condend

good design buka

good design good design good design roboto slab & regular

brandon - regular & bold

neue haas grotesk

From doing this experimentation, I think I much prefer to have contrasting weights for my identity, with an stronger, bolder emphasis on design. Examples which I favour the most are circular, bodoni, neue haas grotesk and brandon. I also quite liked Roboto because of how smart it looks, and Google (who I am regularly inspired by with their design philosophy and work) use Roboto frequently. Although I really like the aesthetic of bodoni, I do not think itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s suitable for forming my identity because of how formal it looks.

good design 60

I experimented with an underline for the logotype, but I am conflicted about the relationship between the break in the line and the descender from the g.

good design iconography experimentation 62

With the logotype for ‘good design’ settled, I felt that it was only appropriate to develop and experiment with a logomark to represent my concept. Most major establishments have a logomark to represent them; be it Nike, McDonalds, Apple or Netflix. An appropriate logomark needs to encapsulate what the brand’s function is. For example, a plumbing company would need to contain some form of iconography that represents plumbing. I intend the logomark to be simple, and minimal making it flexible at all sizes, and for no more than two colours to be used in the making of it. It also can’t be too complex because it will be placed next to the logo type; forming a coherent visual harmony which will represent my brand. Beforehand, I could look at iconography and semiotics in general; I know from past experience that Google have an ‘icon-font’ for app developers that embodies their material design philosophy.

My initial idea was to combine two iconic ‘icons’ that are instantly recognisable - the heart and the paint palette. The heart obviously symbolises love, and likes / adoration of something, whereas the palette symbolises art, craft, design and colour. I combined this by producing a logomark which has the ‘paint blobs’ from a palette, along with the handle. I think this is a recognisable representation that the brand stands for the appreciation of something visual.

good design 66

This is the outcome of my development cycle for ‘good design. I am extremely happy with the conclusion of this process. I feel that the logo type is modern, legible, coherent and clean. The name ‘good design’ is colloquial, whilst remaining concise. I am also really happy with the logomark because I feel that it’s quite clever, whilst remaining minimal and not overly-complicated. The combination of mark and type works really well together, I think it remains balanced and will allow the brand to be flexible throughout materials.

good design logo colour experimentation 68

good design

outline for ‘good design’ 72

I have decided to proceed on with this concept for the outcome of the collide brief. I feel that it brings in multiple disciplines into design, it involves something I’m passionate about and I feel that this idea has incredible amounts of potential. I have developed, what I believe to be, a solid foundation for the brand, so I will have to develop the brand further, producing materials for the brand and promotional material. Ideas for things I can produce that involve ‘good design’ are: • Website mockups (hashtag that curates ‘good design’) • Mobile app mock ups • Physical ‘tags’ / ‘stickers’ • Instagram / facebook / social media pages • Promotional materials; posters, flyers • business cards • branding guidelines book

using new technology 74

Using new web technologies, I was able to create a platform which acts as a ‘virtual exhibition’ to showcase those involved with good design. First, I created a tumblr account. Tumblr allows for many themes which all have different purposes and allows for different presentations of content. I used the syndex theme because it focuses on the core image. It’s clear and minimal and has infinite scrolling. I felt like this would grant the users a plethora of good design which would make them happy. I then used IFTT (if this then that) which allows users to create recipes based on circumstantial actions from different technologies. In this instance, I created a recipe that searches for images on instagram with the #thatsgooddesign hashtag and posts them onto my tumblr page - creating a handsfree curated exhibition. Also using locations / GPS on instagram, it allows a user to state where they found the good design work that made them happy.

physical output: sticker design 78

The brief specifies that a physical output for collide must also be achieved. Because of this, I set about producing some designs for some stickers, which would be used for people to physically â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;tagâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; artefacts in which their design evokes a sense of happiness in them.

These were the designs for the stickers that I produced. I made the decision to go with a minimal design, just to convey the brand; and not the ideals. This would be something the user would get from the website. I made this decision because the tag is supposed to be placed on something that is well designed, I felt that it would go against the ethos of ‘good design’ to distract an audience’s attention from a well designed artefact by placing a sticker on it, cluttered with information. I opted to go with the circular sticker design as I believed the shape would conceal all the neccessary information to be communicated in a bettet fashion than the rectangular stickers. I printed the black and white stickers instead of the other colours because, again, I didn’t want the stickers to distract from the good design that they are showcasing.

physical output: poster design 82

As a means of promoting good design, I made the decision to design some posters that could be displayed at the collide exhibiton or in public. The poster would need to be consistent with my brand identity, and to communicate the idea behind good design.

http://thatsgooddesign.tumblr.com/ where good design evokes happiness

part of the collide exhibition at huddersfield university

launch party mon 25.4.16 7pm - late

get involved #thatsgooddesign on instagram

exhibition 26.4.16 - 30.4.16 9am - 5pm

This was the A3 information / promotional poster that I designed to promote my website. I went with a minimal aesthetic to the poster with minimal colours used. The poster is clear and coherent, with all the necessary details communicated, such as the dates of collide, the link to the website, a brief description about the website’s purpose and how an audience can get involve.d Overall, I am incredibly satisfied with the outcome of the poster. My favourite aspect is my icon being used above the ‘i’, helping to establish my website’s identity.

conclusion 86

After completing the design work for the brief, I am incredibly happy with my response to collide. Postbrief, I believe it is always important to reflect back on the project from its beginnings, right through to the concluding stages in order to learn what you would do differently, and to build upon the experience. Deep, thorough research allowed me to critically explore a range of subject matters, practitioner’s work and allowed me to become more informed for my own response to the brief. Exploring a range of design work and concepts on a variety of mediums, from exhibitions to animations inspired me a great deal and this was integral to the overall success of my outcome. In particular, I think the decision to research into established renowned figures such as Stefan Sagmeister to younger, more independent work such as D&AD winning designs generated a more diverse research pool. The inception of my final idea was very much like a ‘eureka’ moment, and I took the flash of inspiration and developed it straight away. The influence the research stage had on my idea is unquestionable, as the good design concept can be traced back to small ideas and themes from the vast pool of research. During the development stage of the idea, I was incredibly happy with the overall aesthetic of good design. It’s contemporary, functional and conveys the overall concept fluently and fluidly. I believe I executed my ideas well, and I think the use of IFTT is innovative, and satisfies the briefs ‘technolgy’ aspect effectively. One aspect of the brief which I did struggle with, was in terms of populating the site and trying to get people to engage with it. It is difficult, especially today in the age of vast social media campaigns, to try and push a product to an audience. I also would have liked to produce an animated response in tangent with the good design website to try and promote it and explain the concept further.

The concept is still incredibly open-ended and does have lots of potential, I believe I could create additional ‘branches’ of the project for each type of practice in regards to design, eg editorial or branding. Despite this, however, I am incredibly happy with the overall outcome of the project, and I think this project could be something I work on more as a creative and the upkeep of this site could be a highlight of my portfolio.