Design Practice - Studio Brief 3 - development

After recieving feedback on our first presentation critique, we were able to gather ideas of ways to develop certain ideas that had worked so far on the project. This also gave us the opportunity to decide which elements would need to be forgotten, and which could be done differently.

To start off the development stage, reassigning roles to each member was necessary to again gather ideas. This also gave each member the opportunity to explore the development of a certain element individually, while recieving feedback from the rest of the group on ways to improve the development. The group also decided that the imagery that was used in the poster, leaflets and catalogue would need to be relevant in accordance with the context of the project. For example, using halftone patterns throughout would reinforce the idea of the theme.

In terms of the typeface, it was clear that to improve it meant considering how the halftone pattern was included. For example, the ‘O’ had been changed to the shape of our logo to show the audience the type of style that the display would be. However, some suggested that this logo could first be simplified and then added to the title, making it easier for the audience to understand its intentions. Another suggestion was to try and create an interactive typeface using braille that can be understood by blind people. This was then created in several ways that would include the halftone pattern. However, it proved to have less importance with the rest of the exhibition and was later discarded. 

Next, we would need to reconsider the direction system and the rating system included in the display. To do this we would need to take the patterns away from the stickers because it was seen as overcomplicating the design. Another approach that could have been taken was to take inspiration from some pattern designs by Damien Hurst. This idea brought about the development of a mapping system for our project, as many of the designs by Damien Hurst looked similar to a map. The only concern during this stage was how to create the imagery without the overuse of colour, as the project was primarily focused on the use of black and white. Therefore, one way that the map could be approached, would be to analyse existing maps of leeds and pick out certain areas and constituencies that could be identified on our own map. This would then act as another interaction for the viewers, as they would be able to place their given sticker on an area of the map where their event originates from. By clearly marking iconic buildings in Leeds, there would be several recognisable locations for people to place their sticker near. The last idea for the map was to make it black and white with just the names of the iconic locations. As this was my role in the development stage of the project, it meant that I would need to consult the there members of the team on which aspects of the map should remain and what needed changing.

This was the map that would be used as a reference for our own design

After seeing this effect on google maps, this gave me the idea to create something similar. By outlining certain streets in the centre it would be possible to navigate around the areas of the map and make it more recognisable to the viewer.

Here is the first experiment with the map, which highlights the different constituencies within Leeds. However, we agreed that this wasn't suitable to our design as it wasn't limited enough in the colour scheme, making it inappropriate for the aesthetic.

The second idea involved the use of imagery for icon buildings in Leeds, including the town hall, Kirkstall Abbey and Kirkgate market. 

The map itself had also been simplified further in a way that would make it more appropriate to the theme of the project. However, the group still felt as though there needed to be limitations in the colours Therefore, the next idea would involve just black and white.

By marking the locations of the iconic areas in Leeds, it was possible to recognise the different areas more clearly. This would then be simplified even further to make the map completely black and white.

This was the final result of the map of Leeds, showing the central main roads, as well as the smaller central roads. The map also continued the use of labels as it was a clear way figure out on the map where the viewers can place their sticker.

At this stage the group needed to come up with ways to promote the exhibition. This included the use of social media, through Instagram and Twitter accounts that had been set up. By using social media accounts it would be possible to convey the ideas of the exhibition to the intended audience before the display is revealed. It would also include snippets of the exhibition as well as imagery that would show variations of the halftone pattern, applied to certain elements of our project.

Another idea that had been adapted during the development stage, was to add the variations of the old logo to beer mats. This way, we would be able to see whether any of the old designs could potentially be transfered to a different purpose. This idea could have also worked well in accordance with the social media link, as some designs make use of the halftone hashtag. This means people in public places, such as pubs, would be likely to further discover the exhibition by searching the hashtag online.