Emerge

I was really lucky to be involved in a great exhibition during London Design Festival called Emerge. I was one of 22 of 2009’s brightest young graduates who was chosen by guest selector Fraser Muggeridge. Part of the exhibition was a take on Pentagram's poster brief for which 22 established designers design a poster celebrating London in red, black and white. Mine was based on the fabric patterns on buses, tubes and train seats found around London.

Its been a while... I had a bit of a break hunting for internships and doing an exhibition.. I shall digress in the next few posts :)

I went and detoured one day to Margate... I have never been before but it is at the very tip of Englands toe and does feel like the end of the earth. One thing that I saw and fell in love with was what was quintessential British seaside typography. I studied in Bournemouth (another seaside town) but have never seen such wonderful time warped sign-age...

The design team at Front manipulated a Royal Delft vase by exposing it to a simulated gust of wind. I think that the approach is really original. The object is manipulated to tell a new story.It has now been given a persona which it didn't have before. This is a similar concept that I will approach the objects that are to be used as a demonstration of tools of the state of Flow. The mundane turned extraordinary.

Nice little packaging concept from chappsmalina. The exterior informs the reader about the inside with little information, focusing on the outline of the contents and the familiarization with the audience. This familiarization is linked with the vector images used to represent the tools used in my chosen activities of Flow.

Not much said about this piece, but through the form of  the single sheets and the anchorage of the name, enough said. Unique.

Haptic

I was introduced to Kenya Hara's book Designing Design. This book really was enjoyable, opening my eyes to a new form of considered design. Above is an image of Kosuke Tsumura's Kami Tama. These lanterns are constructed with a silk meesh that, with the help of a wig expert, was transformed into ghost like light almost feeling alive. If you focus on how you feel and experience a sensation of its touch just through sight you will be able to recognize that there is a unexplored field of design. Hara called this Haptic which is the awakening of the senses. An exhibition was held in 2005, filled with amazing idea like this. Worth a look.

Base

The packaging and book work of Base is pretty inspirational although what seems to be a large agency they still produce the work with extreme attention to detail. Bepeople is a personal fave.

Big Active

Big Active update with some new work for the band ‘White Lies’. The colour palette is crisp and works well with the typography. However with my flip books i need to think of practicality with the finishing. Something that adds grip but keeps in tone with the other material used.

The packaging here is approachable and conscious of the user, I need to concentrate n an accessibilty with my final books.  The integration of the instruction on the outer packaging makes all the information easier to digest.

Jungundwenig

I heart heart heart the feel, layout and look of this book. jungundwenig, The website in German again. What I can make out is that they are a two man studio based in Berlin. Their work is well considered, romantic yet crude at the same time.

  funny promotion from Purpose

Small update from Australian design studio Southsouthwest with a catalogue of works for artist Stephan Balleux. Black on black... nice.

To read this clock, the red and white ball float in water. The red the hours, the white the minutes. This is a somewhat romantic way of demonstrating time. The fluidity of the balls would be more captivating than the standard clock, yet would the time in a gaze be a waste?  I think not. 

The website is hard to understand as it is in German but strong graphics done with consideration. The inside cover is something that appeals to me and its optical illusion.

Newspaper Books

Chris Svensson graduated in 2007 from Central St Martins. He achieved alot of press for his knitted creations, but the handling of this newspaper cut off  are my favourite.

Static

The idea of interruptions made me think of disturbances. I looked at static on television and how although a distraction from the normal vision it encourages this hypnotism which I find relates with the 'in the zone' feeling.  Your thoughts?

These are just a few graphic experiments that I've done. Reading is the most universal and common state of Flow. I wanted to represent being distracted and disturbed when in the state of Flow. 

A Friend of Mine

There seems to be alot of really interesting work coming out of graphic design studios in Australia. Not really on my radar until I saw this identity for the Skin + Bones exhibition at Somerset House, designed Melbourne studio, A Friend of Mine.  It was about the fusion of fashion and architecture. The pin and thread typeface mimics the concept of structure yet still holds on to the craft of fashion. The repetitive nature and the obvious creative process of constructing this sign-age echos that of  the process of activities to achieve the state of Flow............ I also love the identity and print work for The Modern Flower Co.

Noriko Ambe Amazing

Noriko Ambe work has the repetitive nature, and you can imagine the constant need of concentration and detail. By executing an obviously intensive workload in the final design I could showcase the need of Flow. 

Nina Jua Klein: 'A project exploring the spatial and rhythmical qualities of ornaments. Two-dimensional shapes derived from three-dimensional objects become the basis for translating an ornament's surface area into sound." The packaging is slick for this project. The use of a system is something that I can relate to while constructing my flip books

Alice Wang's Peer Pressure Project is a really unique way of commentating about a social situation. She concentrates on the pressure we feel in the need to conform. The earphones play out different music t the embarrassing stuff you're listening to. Popular Mobile is a service that randomly sends messages to make you look popular. Fast Typing Keyboards will give the impression that you're a whizz kid and the Positive Printer prints out all your positive emails that your colleagues will accidentally see when they go to get their prints. I think that this project is double edged as although it helps give confidence to the user is may raise the standard of what success is. 

How can I demonstrate Flow without intimidation and incorporate it into everyday occurances?

Warning! Moods Are Contagious!

Random as.. Purgatory pack

Random website

Although a random as product I think that there lies an interesting concept. Purgatory is a place of state of suffering inhabited by the souls of sinners who are repaying for their sins before going to heaven.  I feel that happiness is a state that everyone is struggling to achieve and it would be quite an interesting concept to produce a 'Happiness Package'.  Also wishing for others to achieve happiness too.  

When to the Design Museum and saw Hussein Chalayan's exhibition 'From fashion and back'. 

I am a lover of fashion but I would recommend this exhibition to anyone. Although renowned for his innovative use in technology, I was pleasantly surprised that his collections are driven through strong concepts. 

One collection related quite strongly to my research. In the 'Kinship Journays (A/W 03) runway show, a trampoline, confessional and a coffin shaped boat occupied the space. Each of the elements represented a narrative of sin, hope, redemption and salvation, inspired by Roman Catholic religion. A model bounced up and down attempting to reach the Divine. This abstract representation of the strive for attaining could help with the concept of attaining positivity. 

His website is worth a look at too.

 

At the theatre

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