the project update

photograph courtesy edgar a. cabrera

now that the new semester has begun, the bus | shelter remains in our lobby, providing seating for those in the space. it's interesting to note that those sitting in the lobby far prefer the shelter over the excruciatingly uncomfortable concrete and metal benches usually encountered there. a small group of students met with the greensboro transit authority board in january in an effort to maximize the impact of their work. the shelter will be used as an exhibit for the regional design, arts + technology symposium in high point at the beginning of march. we hope that the project lives on in future years as a reminder to the community about the power of change in the face of adversity. in this way, the bus | shelter serves as a symbol linking past to present in our community. thanks for following this project.

12 | 12 @ 12

after working all week, the class has finally arrived at the moment of truth -- the bus shelter's unveiling before a public audience. in the last week, the class came to the realization that the hard-packed soil on site, and the windy conditions of the last several days would prevent them from revealing the design for the shelter outdoors. as a result, the community was invited into the lobby of the gatewood building.

all of the second year students stood proudly as tommy lambeth, department chair, congratulated them on tackling such a tough issue in studio. students gave an overview of the design process and uncg's female a cappella group, the sapphires, sang in celebration of a long semester's worth of hard work.


in the end, students realized that their work, while not sited at a bus stop, had truly brought a greater awareness of the woeful shortage of bus shelters in greensboro (64 shelters currently....1100 stops). read more about news coverage online....or better yet, stop by and see the shelter in the lobby, accessed off highland avenue.

overall comments on shelter|bus reviews

Another milestone passed!!!!

We have assessed all of the shelter|bus projects and that will be factored into your final grade for the course.  Please pick up all your materials from the critique room no later than noon tomorrow. As part of our ongoing effort to provide feedback, critique sheets from jurors will be distributed at the end of class on Friday.  We remind you to fill out online course evaluations.

We would appreciate it if the following students would deliver their boards and models to Suzanne's office sometime this week: Meg McMillan, Sara Zales, Michelle Bodon, Kevin Lahti and Maiken Schoenleber. These materials will be retained for the CIDA review in Fall 2009 and then they will be returned to you.

We have the following observations to make for the class as a whole:

• Many jurors commented that the strengths of the projects rested in the stories you wove to explain concepts and design process.  
• Students need to observe better time management with their studio projects.  We believe this to be a high priority in the coming semester.  Though some students put in a lot of hours, their time in the studio resulted in low-quality drawings and models or emphasis on the deliverables that did not maximize sharing information about the project --- in other words, the focus was misdirected.  Other students failed to put in the necessary energy and time to fully investigate the design opportunity.
• In the future be sure to recognize the value of planning well in advance for your visual presentation.  Too many students made last minute decisions in layout, composition and craft which adversely affected the positive perception of their projects.
• Successful projects included diagrams that helped explain the complexities of the shelter|buses.
• Use models more through the design process.
• Draw!  Draw!  Draw!  
• Experiment with presentation techniques earlier in the design process.  This includes color choices, lighting effects, textures, scale figures, entourage...
• Continue to experiment with how your board layout can bolster your concept and approach to the project.
• You've come a long way in your speaking abilities this semester.  Continue to practice the craft of oral presentation supplemented by visual material.  Without doubt the more organized verbal presentations led to a greater comprehension of design intentions.

Again, we look forward to your engagement over the next 9 days for the bus|shelter!  With your active contributions and commitment to the process we are quite confident that the 12|12 event will be a great success and be a seed for change.  Be sure to invite friends and family to the unveiling so they can see the results of your hard work this semester.  

adventures in board layout

I know you've seen this before...but let it serve as a reminder that it is always a good idea to map out your presentation board[s] (to scale) prior to gluing anything down.  To avoid surprises, why not propose some different board layouts in your sketchbook for us to look at in class this week?

student spotlight : sara easterling

During the analysis of the semester, thus far, the class requested feedback about projects that could be used as examples for students to follow.  We believe that Sara Easterling's bus | shelter project illustrates: clarity of writing and drawing; well-rendered sections; useful diagrams; informative details; and appropriate sheet composition.  Sara had some challenges with the concept and title congealing with the graphics...in other words, some of what she wrote did not appear in what she drew.  Because second-year studio is about learning how to communicate in writing, speaking and drawing, we feel Sara's work exemplifies a good place to be as we continue forward in the semester.  Well done, Sara!

detailing details

Earlier this semester I stumbled upon the website of Greneker Solutions, a company that's mission is to provide retail clients with "exciting solutions, conceptual ideas and manufactured products." While it appears that Greneker is most known for it's production of mannequins, I enjoyed looking through it's portfolio of "thematic presentations." What was most impressive to me were the drawings used to illustrate some of their themed fixtures and interactive displays.




Look how clearly the designers' ideas come across. These are the quality of drawings we should all attempt to produce in order to explain the details behind our ideas this semester. Bear in mind, however, that the designs presented here are examples of "themes" not "concepts."

spinning around connections

as we continue making connections within the community this semester it might be helpful to explore the linkages among people and groups using diagrams similar to this one found in a recent issue of Spin Magazine.  while the relationships we are searching for may be of a different sort (in that they are likely to not include rock stars and models) this example reveals how degrees of separation can be illustrated in a manner legible to all.

evaluation + more evaluation

http://www.cs.duke.edu/courses/spring02/cps100/assign/yahtzee/yahtzee.jpg

after reading the class evaluations from last week, the teaching team has a few observations for you:
[1] most students saw great value in working in teams, though some expressed concern about group dynamics and the ability to find time to meet as particular challenges of this group work...one student remarked "before this charrette, i considered myself a loner; now i think that working with people opens you up to new ideas." another student suggested that letting go and being open to the ideas of others represented a strategy for group work. finally, some students expressed concern their frustration at establishing a meeting schedule for the group only to show up at the appointed time and have others in the group show up late or not at all. in the end, all of these group dynamics are about communication and the spirit of inquiry, both foundations for this studio...and the practice of design.
[2] in thinking about what types of information students wished to hear more about, they noted that explicit information on public speaking would be good as well as how to get our work into the community. both of these issues raised will be addressed explicitly in the coming weeks.
[3] students had many ideas about changes they would propose in the world including something as vague and important as world peace, but also broad topics of sustainability, equality, and integration were mentioned. moreover, students suggested that water provision systems, transportation systems, and university/community relations illuminated other areas of work about social change through design. one student summed it up by writing: "we are a generation of great thinkers but lazy people and it is up to us to actively engage the world around."
[4] students identified the wealth of resources around them (peers, teaching team, clients, human beings) as their greatest surprise, as well as shock and concern over the quality of public transportation and the number of people who rely on it as a sole mode of transportation.
[5] on this issue of the class blog and individual blogs, all students (except one) believed the process of sharing information outward in the digital realm through the blogs to be a significant positive for the studio. some queried about the audience for the blogs beyond faculty and students, many noted challenges technically in getting information up in a timely way. some students requested more analysis of student work, more summary comments as a way to recognize relevant and engaging work in the studio and the community. importantly, one student noted that one's world should be balanced from this digital realm by looking at physical work in the studio. the teaching team believes this to be an exemplary practice.

process makes "perfect"

process is the key in carrying a project from conception to completion. in order to understand the whole problem and situation of the project-- while leaving individual beliefs and presumptions out-- is follow a two stage method: analysis + synthesis. analysis is the identification and dissecting of the problem while synthesis is putting together the parts to make a whole in order to apply the solution. within this two-stage process—there are eight steps to guide you in solving the design solution for the project. commit with the project, state the problem, collect information through precedents + research, analyze through conceptual diagrams + sketches, ideate to form a concept, choose those ideas in which are creative, implement the ideas, and then evaluate the outcome.  

this is an example of a design sequence for developing a plan from the conceptual stage onto the final stage. [see those bubble diagrams do come in handy]  it is clear that each step is equally important as the next because it allows you to learn what is successful  to incorporate into the final design. [take note on the comments listed below each diagram-- it clearly defines the details associated with each step.] 

the following information and diagrams came from --the design process: the sequential steps.

Concepts for Dummies

After reading Rengel this weekend you all should have a general idea of what concepts are and some of the ways a designer goes about attaining the most appropriate one for their project. I refrained from using the word "selecting" in the previous sentence because attaining a concept goes beyond a situation similar to picking which laundry detergent you want to buy at the grocery store. I will be the first to admit that Chapter 6 is a lot to take in one reading (it still hurts my brain when I look at it in one sitting), especially the varying ways in which the word "concept" is used. I recommend reading it over several times and taking notes each time. It also might help to look at some of your previous projects to see where you might have already used some of the criteria mentioned in the chapter to help your understanding.

It should be noted that this chapter is not the golden rule of concepts and that there is no golden rule. I know, its frustrating..."...but I want structure and strict guidelines to follow so I know if I'm doing it right!" Rengel is a very good starting place for understanding them but it is one of [many] approaches. Explore elsewhere and everywhere.

Unfortunately, you will also find that people will sometimes disagree with your interpretations, peers and instructors alike, usually in a mixed and confusing way (even more frustrating). Don't be offended and don't be afraid to have a productive conversation with your dissenters as this will only help you in your journey. I like to think that the more people who are able to understand your concept, usually a direct result of your articulation audibly and visibly, the more successful the concept is. Like anything else, it takes practice.

As for myself, I associate conceptualization with design process because it is my belief that they drive each other simultaneously. My process might be comparable to a combination of natural/unnatural disasters or maybe even Stephen Hawking's theory of what a person would experience if they were sucked into a blackhole (kudos for whoever looks that up and emails one of us). Look at the name of my blog (and the header for a description) and you will get an idea of how I view things. The thought of having a linear process might be appealing to others but it scares me to think that some people view it as a check list. I am constantly looking to be influenced by everything around me, regardless of how far into a project I'm in, and reconnecting, merging, or scrapping new ideation and old ideation. While that might not necessarily be appropriate for someone in the real world, we are students and we can afford to do things like this. I can attest to the mental growth that will occur if you are always open and not afraid to toss something you like for something that you can convey better conceptually...and to repeat the process until you've exhausted all avenues.

This is an example of my own work from a project last year when I was a third year in Stoel's studio. We were charged with picking a location in the building and coming up with a way to make that location better for student presentations. My concept was "[end/ex]ogenous influence" and my location was the lobby. It started with analysis ( light, circulation, use, sound, problems for presenting in the lobby, etc) and progressed to ideation with different media usage (3-d modeling, painting, sketching, photography, etc). I spent a lot of time looking at books, magazines, the internet, inside and outside Gatewood, our campus, Greensboro- everywhere. I crossed analytical process with ideation and external influences (precedents) constantly throughout the project. Though I changed concepts many times in between the beginning and end, my final concept was born from my design process as a whole. Its difficult to explain on a blog but if you are interested, feel free to come and talk to me about it.




A little cheat sheet...
"Concept" defined, via google, as:
1. comprehensive or organizing idea (strategy)
2. unit of knowledge abstracted from a set of characteristics attributed to a class of objects, relations, or entities
3. abstract or general idea inferred or derived from specific instances

From Rengel:
types: philisophical, thematic, functional, mood-related, stylistic
main concept: helps to tie the entire project together by providing a dominant structure or idea that all other design ideas adhere to
organizational concept: guides arrangment or order, placement, divisions, and relationships helping to establish a scheme(s) for the project
character concept: style, image, theme helping to give personality(ies) to the project as a whole

section cut

section cuts are one of the many ways designers can show and study spatial relationships, details, connections and other important design features. the key to a successful and informative section cut relies on the designer's ability to cut through the spaces that reveal the most. moreover, a section cut must show your design concept in a clearly legible manner. these sections might help you understand how useful and informative a section can be.

-edgar

the rest of the semester...

well gang, it's time for another big transition and the image here, dubbed a "squbble" by debbie nestvogel, lays out our time together. a copy of this same graphic can be found on blackboard.

and the academy award for...

the client charrette documentary goes to....
camacho + easterling + jackson + schwarz
for best special effects
eng-goetz + hall + lessane
for best screenplay
farley + giles + stanisic + stokes
for best editing
brown + dipasquale + neitzel + takeda
for best voice over
the results for these special awards have been verified by the accounting firm of pike+rowland.

six thumbs down

today, we reviewed all the blogs in the class. disheartened by the lack of care in the quality of the blogs, in the style of movie-reviewers siskel and ebert, we gave your blogs a RESOUNDING six thumbs down!!! Y-I-K-E-S! next reviews in a week: do better.

six thumbs up

thanks to the following students for taking care in their craft and content of the blogs at this point in the semester. all class members should look at these nine blogs and leave a substantive comment that speaks to the information contained there AND the way it was represented.



anna will
emme zheng
heather link
katrina fischer
laura dipasquale
laura snoderly
monique farley
nacarra lessane
sara easterling

we encourage all members of the communitybydesign studio (iar201) to redouble their efforts with these nine blogs as the "thumbs up" standard for the class. remember that these blogs are your own outward link to the world about the work you do as designers. they should be your best work always. moreover, we utilize your blog as a means to assess your effots and performance in this course.