Assignments

Design Studio Research

Between weeks 2 and 8, at the start of class, 2 students will give a presentation on a contemporary design studio (2 or more designers) of their choice.

See the list provided below for some options to look into but feel free to pick a studio that isn't on the list. This research should be interesting to you and your design practice.

Unlike presentations you might have done as part of Design 1A, this assignment asks that you present using any format of your choice (slides are not mandatory). How you present is up to you and you should consider how your chosen format works with your research subject. In other words, alongside an investigation into a contemporary design practice, the project asks, what is the form of your presentation and why?

Format thought starters: printed poster, printed sheets for distribution, PDF, series of jpegs, oral history (verbal presentation only, image examples are described), playing cards, drawings, are.na channel, YouTube video, website, slides, post-it notes…

Presentations should include:
• Brief biography/context of the design studio, in your own words
• Close readings of 3 work examples (What are the design gestures present? Who was the commissioner? How was it produced? What do you find interesting? Etc.)

Requirements:
• Format of your choice
• Presentations will be 10 minutes (plan carefully not to go over time)
• Look for good quality images, if reproducing images
• Do not simply copy/paste or read info from websites or Wikipedia
• Please cite your sources, give credit

Design studios: Actual Source, Alexis Mark, Alright Studio, Aparelho, Base Design, Collins, Dinamo, ELLA, Europium, Experimental Jetset, Graphic Thought Facility, Hubertus Design, Ideo, Iguana, Kasper-Florio, L+L, MetaDesign, Mevis & Van Deursen, MGMT, MTWRF, Nonverbal Club, Offshore, OK-RM, Omnivore, Other Means, Pentagram, Playlab, Porto Rocha, Project Projects, Push Pin Studios, Querida, RoAndCo, Studio Lin, Total Design, Violet Office, W+K, WeShouldDoItAll, Wkshps, Work & Co., XXIX, Zak Group, 2x4.

Exercise: Dots

Following the in-class directions, create abstract compositions that explore formal relations between 2 dots on a page.

Project 1: Object Study

Create a unique set of images that represent the physical qualities of a common object of your choosing.

Part 1
Explore different places in your life (home, school, routes, neighborhood, etc.), and collect several common objects that catch your eye. Think about why you're drawn to these objects. Choose one for further investigation. Think carefully as you will be working with this object for the entire semester but don't let this intimidate you, as any object will prove interesting. Reference these slides...

Your object must pique your interest and have the following qualities:
• Portable (± hand-sized)
• Non-perishable (no live animals or food!)
• Fairly good condition (it will impede the process somewhat if you started with a crushed plastic cup you found on the street, for example)
• Visually simple (i.e. choose an object that does not have complex construction or assembly—this will allow more freedom for interpretation)
• Common (i.e. objectively understood by most people)
• Used for at least one specific purpose (avoid decorative objects)

Requirements:
• 4 methods x 4 images each = 16 images in total
• Black and white
• Explore media and techniques widely
• At least one of your methods must be analog/done by hand
• You are also encouraged to combine media (e.g. paint + photography; or cut paper + scanner; or watercolor + pen + scanner)
• Your images should be high res (300 to 600 dpi)
• Image ratio should be 5.5:4.25 (final images will be 5.5 x 4.25 in., horizontal or vertical orientation)
• All images must be self-created and new for this project. Don’t use images from a website, or previously created images, even if they are your own.
• Each image should focus on one of your object’s qualities (e.g. the scissors’ sharpness)
• Multiple images can express the same quality of your object

Exercise: Package Mashup

Part 1
Transform a mass produced image into your own in different ways, using 4 different techniques. Your edits may change the original image’s meaning, add to it, or critique it. 2 images x 4 techniques = 8 images in total.

Start by choosing 1 package from this folder. Note that you may only choose 1 and you will use it for the entire exercise. Create 2 8 x 8 in. square compositions using Photoshop for each of the 4 scenarios below. See examples here.

1. CROPPING
   Crop into the image. Experiment with abstraction by zooming in.
2. OVERLAY
   Combine multiple crops by playing with opacity, blend mode, inversion, etc.
3. ABSENCE/ISOLATION
   Cut out a single element from the package, creating an absence, or negative space. Alternatively, you can isolate one element from the package. You can fill the absence/background with a solid color, content-aware fill, or simply leave it white. (Play with figure/ground.)
4. COLLAGE
   Make a collage with multiple elements from the package, using any technique above in combination, and adding any tool of your choice such as the paint brush, clone stamp, eraser. You can begin by isolating one or more elements and composing a new image with them. Try making a pattern with an isolated element.

Sentences: (1) Stays on until you want it off (2) Real. Satisfying. Crackers. (3) More Power to You (4) The taste adults have grown to love (5) Save Our Saucepans (6) YABBA DABBA DOO!

Project 2: Object Posters

Based on Project 1: Object Study, design a series of three posters that uses connotation and/or metaphor to convey an extended message or theme—beyond the standard denotation of your object—using type and image.

Part 1
Think about your object’s function and possible connotations related to it (associative meanings or narrative aspects of your object). Be open and creative, spanning from simple to complex ideas. Examples: apple → teacher’s pet, lightbulb → bright idea.

In addition, think about single words, as well as single sentences, that could express your idea(s) clearly and interestingly. Then create a keyword list with 10 or more words, phrases, ideas. Fill out this collective class presentation with your discoveries.

Part 2
Based on your ideas, consider what kind of poster series you might want to make:
• Poster series that provokes an action (political message, propaganda, public awareness, PSA)
• Poster series that promotes something (events, concerts/performances, products/services, places)
• Poster series that presents information (research, academic subjects, poetry, broadsides)
• Poster series that share an idea (poster as art)

Requirements:
• Posters can be in color or in black and white
• Poster size is 18x24 in.
• You must use InDesign
• You are only allowed 1 typeface for the entire series
• All posters must have one phrase or keyword
• All posters must include at least one image
• If working in color, make sure to use a CMYK colorspace
• Consider how you can thoughtfully blend typography and image
• All images must still be self-created and new for this project. You cannot use images from the internet. You can use or build upon images from Project 1: Object Study, but you are encouraged to create new ones.

Exercise: Icon Scavenger Hunt

Part 1
Take a 15-minute walk around the building and document 5 examples of vector-based icons. Add your photos to this collective class presentation. Be prepared to discuss what the icons represent, their key characteristics, if anything is surprising or unusual about them, their scale, and more.

Part 2
Choose 1 of your collected icons to recreate in Illustrator at 2 scales: 3x3 in. and 32x32 px. The latter version will need to be different from the first (simplified!) as it's much smaller. Icons should be black and white (black against while background). Export images of your icons and add them to the collective class presentation linked above.

Project 3: Object Icons

Following your studies of a selected single object through Project 1 and Project 2, design a set of 9 icons that represent a topic or theme directly connected to your original object, which must be one of the icons.

Part 1
Come up with 2 potential themes for an icon set. Each theme should have a title, and a list of 9 objects including the object you’ve been working with so far. Make a copy of this example document, fill it out with your ideas, and save it to the class Drive (Week 7).

Remember that what can be qualified as a set can reach beyond a simple grouping or category. Members of a set can work together, evolve from a common source, share qualities that complement each other, etc. In addition, the strength of any set is in maintaining an equal balance for each element while, at the same time, allowing each to be distinct and unique.

In pairs, discuss your ideas.

Part 2
Following in-class discussion, decide on a theme to push forward. Sketch 3 icons in 3 distinct styles for your selected theme. Start with pen/pencil sketches, based on broad approaches/ideas for the simplification of your objects into recognizable icons. 3 styles x 3 icons each = 9 icons total.

Next, design your icons in Illustrator. Use your sketches as a reference—scan them and place them in, if necessary—and develop them digitally. Again, 3 styles x 3 icons each = 9 icons total. Reference these slides...

Bring your illustrator sketches to class, printed out on 11x17 in. paper sheets (9 icons: 3 icons per sheet, 3 sheets total). Your icons should be printed out at scale.

Requirements:
• Final icon size will be 4.75x4.75 in. (consider this scale as you design!)
• Black and white only
• Each icon in the set must be related formally (similar line weights, balance of positive/negative, etc.)
• The conceptual way you approach the visual representation of your subject must also be consistent throughout your set

Project 4: Object Animation

Continuing your investigation of a selected object, create a 10–15 second video that uses image and text to represent a topic or theme directly connected to your original object.

Part 1
Brainstorm words or phrases that could inform the theme of your video. Reflect on the type of message you want your object to convey in motion. In addition, come up with 2 ideas in sketch form (think in storyboard format, with a few frames per idea) for your animation. Fill out this collective class presentation.

Part 2
Considering class feedback, commit to 1 idea for your video and start building your animation. Export a 5 second first draft and add it to this shared class folder.

Remember that your animation should include image and text. What is the text going to be? Will text and images move together? How will their motion convey meaning? Think about speed, rhythm, space... Is the action happening fast or slow? Is the text animated or still? Are objects interacting with each other? Is there a beginning, middle, and clear end?

Requirements:
• 10–15 seconds
• You may use any software you’re comfortable with, including AfterEffects
• Your composition should be 1920 x 1080 pixels
• Black and white or color
• Your animation must include image and text
• You can use any image of your object you’ve created so far and you are also welcome to create new graphics for this project but you may not use any images from the internet
• Exported as .mp4 file
• Your video must loop
• Sound is optional but recommended