post hand-in bliss

101, 111 & 171 first hand-ins done and all is serene and good in the world...

dsdn 101 | project 1 hand-in

EX 1. IDENTITY 

I chose to group together my five objectives in a hierarchical composition. Originally I was going to use my ring as the fifth item (as seen here) but in the end I chose to replace it with a USB stick. I was pleased with the outcome of this piece and quickly realised I have a strong preference for working in ink. I appreciate strong lines and clearly defined objects. I also like the cartoon-like aspect to this medium.

Identity - final. ©2013 helenkwilliams

EX 2. HATCH

 

I continued to explore the surfaces and patterns evident in four of my five objects in my hatch exercise. I decided to layout the twenty-four sketches according to the hierarchy of exercise one. I tried to increase the density of each row so as to fulfill the brief's requirement of a discernible gradient. (Interestingly, it ended up being readable from top to bottom and well as from side to side.
I excluded the USB stick from this stage since it will be the focus of the next four exercises. 
I started with a motif or single example of some aspect of each of my personal items and then imagined how each would look as the viewer backs away. I enjoyed this exercise and almost found it therapeutic. (Although some of the hatching in the far right squares was a test of my patience). I used a full spectrum of pen thicknesses (from 0.05 to 0.8). I am particularly satisfied with some of the leaf row (third down).

Hatch [final] ©2013 helenkwilliams

EX 3. ANALYSE/DRAW 

Analyse/Draw - [final] ©2013 helenkwilliams

I commenced my analysis of the USB stick with drawings of the exterior and then imagined the contents (with the help of a little research online) which I drew mostly with a hatching technique.


EX 4. SECTION/SCALE 

For this exercise I took the USB stick section from the last exercise and used semi-transparent paper to add layers of new information to the diagram. Inspired by USB circuit board diagrams (found here), I embellished and repeated patterns used in the earlier section  as well as references to my hatching.  I find the mood for this sketch very industrial and urban so it felt fitting to finalise the sketch with a city scape constructed of USB's erected along the 'top' of the section.

Section/Scale - [final] ©2013 helenkwilliams

By way of explanation, these are the three layers that make up my final sketch:

Section/Scale - three layers ©2013 helenkwilliams

EX 5. IN THE STYLE OF...

The style of drawing was derived from a piece originally drawn for online design magazine ‘Core 77’ by Chicago designer and art director Craighton Berman. It also features on Berman's drawing blog here. 

Original. Source

Craighton typically uses a naive, cartoon-like style which is deceptively simple and fun to look at. To answer the brief, I emulated his simple composition, quirky ink-pen style and clean layout, all of which are signature features of this designer’s drawing. In this particular sketch I also drew inspiration from his use of primary colours and tried to use a similar sense of humour in my text. I felt very comfortable in this style as there are already elements of it that I try to use in my own drawing.

In the style of... [final] ©2013 helenkwilliams

EX 6. FINAL PATTERN 

Using the procedure trialled here I have made a tile using the USB stick again as my hero.

I used a complementary colour scheme as confirmed at kula.adobe.com. I originally wanted a more pale aqua but was unable to buy it in the Promarkers as they were sold out. I checked and this darker hue is still acceptable. It is very Christmassy!

kula.adobe.com - screen grab

This is the tile:

Final pattern tile [final] ©2013 helenkwilliams

Final pattern [final] ©2013 helenkwilliams



EX 7. CONTACT SHEET OF ‘WINDOW VIEWS”

I started out drawing views of all the electronic controls, phones etc we around the home and then started focusing on interesting views of the buttons and controls. To keep a sense of unity among the nine I selected, I have drawn all of the items on the blue carpet in our home. My love affair with the ink pen continues...

Window views [final] ©2013 helenkwilliams



dsdn 111 | introduction to project 2

4 Precedents

Had our first studio for the new project regarding Fluid Form.

Researched precedents and came up with the above.

Started abstracting ideas and sketching them. Worked on ideas for the planet images and the swimmer image:

Studio sketches

For example the amount of drag/force underwater versus above water.
Or the increased distance between the sun and the planets represented as a fan-like object.



dsdn 111 | hand-in

Planar (Card) Form

Line (Wire) Form

Mass (Foam) Form

All three forms

Presentation drawing: three forms combined in (side) orthographic view

Final summary: 

In this assignment, I think I have had varying levels of success in expressing my intentions in the three forms I have created.

The first form (card) was useful in kick-starting the design process and even though I do not think it was the most resolved form, the heavy line of its 'spine' inspired the development of my ideas for the shape of the second form, the wire form. This form became a metaphor for my chosen word (focus) as well as informing the overall concept for the second form.

Working on the second stage of the assignment culminated in an 'a-ha' moment in the design process. Because it required me to create three forms, each of which are necessarily created sequentially,  this assignment forced me to move past what proved to be a difficult early phase and I was eventually able to produce a form that met my design objective; to entirely convey the sense of the word 'focus’ without resorting to a literal interpretation. Consequently, I have come to better understand a crucial difference between art and design (or perhaps more accurately ‘happy accident vs. intentional result’). I have best summarised the principles I applied to this part of my work here. 

The final (foam) form came easier to me, allowing me to further abstract my focal idea using the previous stage, even though time constraints left me with a piece that I know I could have crafted better.

Ultimately, my enthusiasm for this project grew as I worked until I achieved a successful outcome and this impetus has fuelled my motivation for working on the next assignment and for the degree as a whole.



dsdn 111 | line (wire) form - two more iterations

The eighth and ninth iterations came about after coming into the studio and talking to Nan.

I knew my wire form was unresolved and a routine question about the slightly rounded corners on the form ended with a new perspective on my whole project. The word I was looking to represent is

focus

which the card form had already illustrated exactly. I talked through a few adjustments and half an hour later I had produced this form which I felt was the most successful version so far.

eighth iteration

If I wanted to further the concept of my form containing or defining the space, the process was better served with the use of alternating 'ribs' which interlocked. I sketched a diagram to represent my idea:

alternating rib idea sketched up

Even though these changes resulted in an asymmetrical form, it is still balanced and unified. The form looks wholly deliberate now especially with the addition of the one line of black thread which allowed me to reincorporate the spine idea and really emphasise the idea of 'focus' by drawing the viewer's eye down the line of thread to the focal point or focus of the object.The repetition of the rib forms strengthen and unify the form. The implied tension of the thread (even though it is not load bearing) seems to pull the piece together and ultimately define the interior space.

Ninth iteration: Focus

The word 'focus' better encapsulates my original ideas around the tiled bathroom image too as it is more positive than 'cornered or 'trapped' yet bears some relation to those ideas.

This form is the most successful of the three I produced for the project. There are clear design principles used to support my intentions. It is asymmetrically balanced, (it sits really comfortably contrary to the lopsided shape), it uses repetition (in the 'ribs') and tension (with the thread).

dsdn 111 | mass (foam) form

First sketch. I had this to start with as I entered the workshop. I have been playing around with ideas in 3ds Max as well but found sketching more effective.

Sketch ideas for foam form.

Since I have developed my wire form further I was afforded an opportunity to explore assymetry with this form as well.

I used the outline of the wire object to inform my sketches.

So this image

Side view wire form

Became this sketch:

Sketch of side view

 And the alternate side view image

Alternate side view

Became the sketch that was the first design of the foam form:

 Finally, I used the front view image of the wire form

Front view

 To become the plan for the foam cut outs.

Plan for cut-outs

 And used adhesive labels cut to these sizes as templates for cutting the foam:

Templates - adhesive labels

I cut the five pieces then shaped them one by one to complete the form

Foam form - left side view

Foam form - rear view

dsdn 111 | line (wire) form

I have spent the week experimenting with different ways to further develop the ideas I have been exploring with particular reference to the interior side (and therefore negative space) of the card form.

First iteration:

Initially I took the final card form and...

translated the lines of the form (literally) into this wire form

Wrong - it didn't convey the meaning of the word 'cornered' at all. And it was clearly too literal.

Second iteration:

As I observed the card form from the front I noticed the importance of the line through the centre which formed a spine that seemed to point to the tip of the card (which in turn obscured the darkest area underneath the form). In its simplest form the card was forming an arrow. So I decided to emphasise the spine by doubling the wire along that line which also served to strengthen the form.
I quickly did a rough version of what I was thinking:

Rough second iteration

With the idea of using geometry to organising the design of this form I also noted the measurements of the card form to see if there were any patterns or ratios I needed to be aware of. Finally I noted the dimensions required if I decided to halve the size of the form:

Dimensions of Card Form

I then drew some sketches to help me understand

a) the proportions of the form - I flattened one of my wire iterations and sketched the (ideal) form I wanted to create:

Illustration 1: flattened wire form

b) how the form was in relation to the card - I used the sketch below to compare my wire forms by flattening them directly on the sketch.

Illustration 2: flattened card form

 Third Iteration:

I then used this information to guide me on precisely where to bend the metal.

Process work - third iteration

But weirdly all my calculations didn't help and I ended up with a form that was far less successful than the first effort:

Third iteration

At this point I felt I wanted to try working in some of the other types of metal. I have very little experience in shaping metal wire so I wanted to see how the copper and finer wire performed.

Fourth Iteration:

The copper was a complete flop. I could not manipulate the wire very well at all and I felt it wasn't the right colour anyway:

Copper

 Fifth Iteration:

I started working with the finer gauge wire but even though it was much easier to use it looked too fine and delicate and did not convey my ideas at all. I persevered and even applied thread but it proved to be 'rickety' and not very hard to discard.

Finer gauge wire

I am, however, interested in the possibilities for photographing this form. I like how the shadows it casts refer back to the scoring on my card form:

Finer gauge wire

Sixth Iteration:

I returned to working with the wire we were initially given and decided it worked best for me. I found it easiest to bend. In addition, the outcome seems solid and has a strong, industrial quality which is more in keeping with my objectives.

I created this iteration thinking I had my dimensions right but again, found the wire 'ran out' before I could finish. I continued with the thread anyway to see what it looked like and felt vindicated in my decision to move on and make another - it seems uptight, severe and too simple. I need this form to feel quite solid with more than just three points of contact with the ground...

6th iteration

Seventh iteration:

This is the form I had been wanting to create.There is a spine that points right at the shadowy corner concealed beneath the front tip. The symmetry and repetition of the form are not only pleasing to me aesthetically, they also relate back to the card form without being an exact replica of it. This is a form that has evolved from the original. It has helped me understand the next part of the project and how it must progress from here. I am much closer to my final iteration now.

Seventh iteration (left) and original card form (right)