I also believe that design can do more than sell products for clients and it can play a bigger role in solving societal problems.
2.24.2011
Critical Debates in Design - task 4 : CSR
This billboard for South African Nedbank actually has solar panels on it that generate electricity for the kitchens of a neighboring elementary school. Meanwhile, most companies talk about their social responsibility programmes but this powerful message shows it in action and emphasises Nedbank's by-line - "make things happen".
I also believe that design can do more than sell products for clients and it can play a bigger role in solving societal problems.
I also believe that design can do more than sell products for clients and it can play a bigger role in solving societal problems.
2.23.2011
Critical Debates in Design - task 3 : Animation
The pioneers of animation include Winsor McCay of the United States and Emile Cohl and Georges Melies of France. Some consider McCay's Sinking of the Lusitania from 1918 as the first animated feature film.
Early animations, which started appearing before 1910, consisted of simple drawings photographed one at a time. It was extremely labor intensive as there were literally hundreds of drawings per minute of film. The development of celluloid around 1913 quickly made animation easier to manage. Instead of numerous drawings, the animator now could make a complex background and/or foreground and sandwich moving characters in between several other pieces of celluloid, which is transparent except for where drawings are painted on it. This made it unnecessary to repeatedly draw the background as it remained static and only the characters moved. It also created an illusion of depth, especially if foreground elements were placed in the frames.
Walt Disney took animation to a new level. He was the first animator to add sound to his movie cartoons with the premiere of Steamboat Willie in 1928. In 1937, he produced the first full length animated feature film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.
With the introduction of computers, animation took on a whole new meaning. Many feature films of today had animation incorporated into them for special effects. A film like Star Wars by George Lucas would rely heavily on computer animation for many of its special effects. Toy Story, produced by Walt Disney Productions and Pixar Animation Studios, became the first full length feature film animated entirely on computers when it was released in 1995.
Avatar was a movie which has virtually changed the face of the movie world. The film used cutting edge animation technology which gave the characters a more lifelike feel and most of all used a very advanced form of 3d animation.
This is where avatar innovated the movie industry. The film did not try and capture the audience's attention by showing off the power of the three dimensional capability but rather worked the element into the move subtly to enhance things like flying fight scenes. This made it so that the audience essentially forgot about the 3d dimension and was simply better immersed into the film.
This type of technology has been so popular that most of the major television manufacturers are scrambling to make televisions which can support the new media format.
In the future, the animation industry is about to take another leap forward in the development quality realistic images and animation, however, the content or the story is still more important than technology.
Early animations, which started appearing before 1910, consisted of simple drawings photographed one at a time. It was extremely labor intensive as there were literally hundreds of drawings per minute of film. The development of celluloid around 1913 quickly made animation easier to manage. Instead of numerous drawings, the animator now could make a complex background and/or foreground and sandwich moving characters in between several other pieces of celluloid, which is transparent except for where drawings are painted on it. This made it unnecessary to repeatedly draw the background as it remained static and only the characters moved. It also created an illusion of depth, especially if foreground elements were placed in the frames.
Walt Disney took animation to a new level. He was the first animator to add sound to his movie cartoons with the premiere of Steamboat Willie in 1928. In 1937, he produced the first full length animated feature film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.
With the introduction of computers, animation took on a whole new meaning. Many feature films of today had animation incorporated into them for special effects. A film like Star Wars by George Lucas would rely heavily on computer animation for many of its special effects. Toy Story, produced by Walt Disney Productions and Pixar Animation Studios, became the first full length feature film animated entirely on computers when it was released in 1995.
Avatar was a movie which has virtually changed the face of the movie world. The film used cutting edge animation technology which gave the characters a more lifelike feel and most of all used a very advanced form of 3d animation.
This is where avatar innovated the movie industry. The film did not try and capture the audience's attention by showing off the power of the three dimensional capability but rather worked the element into the move subtly to enhance things like flying fight scenes. This made it so that the audience essentially forgot about the 3d dimension and was simply better immersed into the film.
This type of technology has been so popular that most of the major television manufacturers are scrambling to make televisions which can support the new media format.
In the future, the animation industry is about to take another leap forward in the development quality realistic images and animation, however, the content or the story is still more important than technology.
2.10.2011
Critical Debates in Design - task 2 : Sign system
Pentagram’s Paula Scher has designed graphics for a Midtown Manhattan garage that make sure drivers never forget where the car is.
Signage as backseat driver: typography throughout the building directs drivers what to do and where to go.
Supergraphics are installed on the elevator doors.
In Scher’s original concept, she wanted to fill the windows of the non-descript structure with the question “Did You Remember Where We Parked the Car?” City zoning, however, required more traditional signage on the façade, which Scher has rendered in elegant neon. The interior signage acts as a kind of backseat driver as one moves through the garage. Set in Verlag, the typographic pileup includes instructions for drivers—“Slow and steady wins the race,” “Don’t stop here, continue,” etc.—and supergraphics identifying parking levels and elevators.
This is a really stunning sign system idea as being a backseat driver. It can better communicate visually with a driver than just a direction sign (arrow), however, it does work only in a few times then after that people would simply ignore due to its excessive detail when driving.
Signage as backseat driver: typography throughout the building directs drivers what to do and where to go.
Supergraphics are installed on the elevator doors.
In Scher’s original concept, she wanted to fill the windows of the non-descript structure with the question “Did You Remember Where We Parked the Car?” City zoning, however, required more traditional signage on the façade, which Scher has rendered in elegant neon. The interior signage acts as a kind of backseat driver as one moves through the garage. Set in Verlag, the typographic pileup includes instructions for drivers—“Slow and steady wins the race,” “Don’t stop here, continue,” etc.—and supergraphics identifying parking levels and elevators.
This is a really stunning sign system idea as being a backseat driver. It can better communicate visually with a driver than just a direction sign (arrow), however, it does work only in a few times then after that people would simply ignore due to its excessive detail when driving.
2.03.2011
Critical Debates in Design - task 1 : Typeface
1.FUTURA
Following the Bauhaus design philosophy, German type designer Paul Renner first created Futura between 1924 and 1926. Although Renner was not a member of the Bauhaus, he shared many of its views, believing that a modern typeface should express modern models rather than be a rivial of a previous design. Futura was commercially released in 1927, commissioned by the Bauer type foundry.
While designing Futura, Renner avoided creating any non-essential elements, making use of basic geometric proportions with no serifs or frills. Futura's crisp, clean forms reflect the appearance of efficiency and forwardness even today
Futura had the honor of being the first typeface on the moon, chosen for a commemorative plaque left by the astronauts of Apollo 11 in 1969.
Futura (and its variants) have become an extremely popular typeface for countless corporate logos, commercial products, films and advertisements for years. In fact, so popular that certain art directors had began boycotting its.
2.FRANKLIN GOTHIC
Franklin Gothic and its related faces, are realist sans-serif typefaces originated by Morris Fuller Benton (1872–1948) in 1902. “Gothic” is an increasingly archaic term meaning sans-serif.
Franklin Gothic has been used in many advertisements and headlines in newspapers. The typeface continues to maintain a high profile, appearing in a variety of media from books to billboards. Despite a period of eclipse in the 1930s, after the introduction of such European faces as Kabel and Futura, they were re-discovered by American designers in the 1940s and have remained popular ever since.
The Franklin Gothic typeface is the primary influence for nearly all MoMA materials; it’s the basis of our logo and our official font “MoMA Gothic,” which were both created by Matthew Carter. We were happy to see that MoMA used a version of Franklin Gothic as long ago as the 1930s.
Following the Bauhaus design philosophy, German type designer Paul Renner first created Futura between 1924 and 1926. Although Renner was not a member of the Bauhaus, he shared many of its views, believing that a modern typeface should express modern models rather than be a rivial of a previous design. Futura was commercially released in 1927, commissioned by the Bauer type foundry.
While designing Futura, Renner avoided creating any non-essential elements, making use of basic geometric proportions with no serifs or frills. Futura's crisp, clean forms reflect the appearance of efficiency and forwardness even today
Futura had the honor of being the first typeface on the moon, chosen for a commemorative plaque left by the astronauts of Apollo 11 in 1969.
Futura (and its variants) have become an extremely popular typeface for countless corporate logos, commercial products, films and advertisements for years. In fact, so popular that certain art directors had began boycotting its.
2.FRANKLIN GOTHIC
Franklin Gothic and its related faces, are realist sans-serif typefaces originated by Morris Fuller Benton (1872–1948) in 1902. “Gothic” is an increasingly archaic term meaning sans-serif.
Franklin Gothic has been used in many advertisements and headlines in newspapers. The typeface continues to maintain a high profile, appearing in a variety of media from books to billboards. Despite a period of eclipse in the 1930s, after the introduction of such European faces as Kabel and Futura, they were re-discovered by American designers in the 1940s and have remained popular ever since.
The Franklin Gothic typeface is the primary influence for nearly all MoMA materials; it’s the basis of our logo and our official font “MoMA Gothic,” which were both created by Matthew Carter. We were happy to see that MoMA used a version of Franklin Gothic as long ago as the 1930s.
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