Monica Alisse Hansje Van Halem Workshop Design Academy of Eindhoven October, 2011
Instead of thinking about conversions, such as figuring out how many centimeters make a kilometer, I decided to break open one of the Bic pens and keep track of how much ink was used up as I drew lines in the 95 millimeter container. I then figured out that while filling in a shape in a specific way would I be able to track how much ink would be used in the process. I instantly thought about tracing the shape of my foot, since kilometers made me think of taking hikes. Once I traced my foot, I filled it completely in and timed myself. I found out how much ink was used coloring in one foot and how long it took me to finish. I was able to finish one pen after drawing a huge letter M out of several feet on A1 paper. The next challenge was to draw the whole alphabet with the second pen. I decided to fill in my foot differently by slowly drawing spiral lines inside. I timed myself during the process, then once finished opened up the pen and checked how much ink I used: only 1 millimeter. I instantly realized I had to draw 95 feet for the 95 millimeters of ink. I also knew each foot had to have 23 lines inside and it would take me three minutes to fill in each foot. I liked the look, so I decided to continue. Before starting, I began listing the letters of the alphabet and found the number of feet needed for each one. I was able to fit 90 feet for the blocky type, but I figured my estimations would not be too accurate, and if there was a point I needed to draw another foot, I’d find it somewhere in the alphabet to finish my ink. As I worked I noticed how close I was to my goal, and figure the most entertaining part of the assignment was making estimations and planning. I decided to show these letters by making a diagram displaying how I made them in the process.
00:09 3 96 3 0.1
00:24 8 184 8 0.3
00:35 11 253 12 0.4
00:47 15 276 16 0.5
00:59 19 368 20 0.6
ESTIMATED COMPLETION FOR TIME, NUMBER OF FEET, LINES, AND INK USED UP X/04:30 time X/95 feet X/2085 lines X/100% ink X/3 kilometers
01:08 22 437 23 0.7
01:20 26 529 27 0.8
01:29 29 598 31 0.9
01:38 32 667 34 1
01:47 35 736 37 1.1
01:56 38 805 40 1.2
02:02 40 851 42 1.3
02:14 44 943 46 1.4
02:23 47 1012 50 1.5
02:35 51 1104 54 1.6
02:44 54 1173 57 1.7
02:56 58 1265 61 1.8
03:08 62 1357 65 2
03:20 66 1449 69 2.1
03:26 68 1495 72 2.2
03:35 71 1564 75 2.3
03:41 73 1610 77 2.31
03:53 77 1702 81 2.4
03:59 79 1748 83 2.5
04:08 82 1817 86 2.6
04:17 85 1886 90 2.7
00:09 3 96 3 0.1
00:24 8 184 8 0.3
00:35 11 253 12 0.4
00:47 15 276 16 0.5
00:59 19 368 20 0.6
ESTIMATED COMPLETION FOR TIME, NUMBER OF FEET, LINES, AND INK USED UP X/04:30 time X/95 feet X/2085 lines X/100% ink X/3 kilometers
01:08 22 437 23 0.7
01:20 26 529 27 0.8
01:29 29 598 31 0.9
01:38 32 667 34 1
01:47 35 736 37 1.1
01:56 38 805 40 1.2
02:02 40 851 42 1.3
02:14 44 943 46 1.4
02:23 47 1012 50 1.5
02:35 51 1104 54 1.6
02:44 54 1173 57 1.7
02:56 58 1265 61 1.8
03:08 62 1357 65 2
03:20 66 1449 69 2.1
03:26 68 1495 72 2.2
03:35 71 1564 75 2.3
03:41 73 1610 77 2.31
03:53 77 1702 81 2.4
03:59 79 1748 83 2.5
04:08 82 1817 86 2.6
04:17 85 1886 90 2.7