What does it mean to be an acrobat reader? Is it being so involved in the narrative you have to finish the story immediately? Is it the way you hold the book and explore the pages? Or is it a book that forces you to witness from every angle? In this project I will explore the story of The Library of Babel by Jorge Luis Borges an Argentine writer in the 20th century. I chose this story as the vivid visualisations were intriguing, the constant repetition of shape and the idea of infinity was something that really drew me in and caused an instant reaction of mapping.
The brief is to create three books from the chosen text, one with words, one with words and image and one with image alone. I explored the tactile quality of a book looking specifically at paper and binding. Eventually deciding on using recycled paper with flex through the grain and a circle bound book for an eternal experience, no beginning, no end, infinity. The other two book are saddle stitched so that the focus was drawn to the content which is about journey and the libraries form.
We are living in an age consumed by the media, codes are the basis of everything yet they are seen as almost alien to the average person. This brief stated to create four A1 posters and a twenty second video advertising a series of events displaying the works of Ryoji Ikeda. Ikeda is a visual artist who works in the realms of sound, data and video to create elaborate installations for people to experience.
Throughout this project I was drawn to the idea of source codes, an easily accessible code which is the source of every web page, eventually deciding to use Ikeda's own websites codes as a basis of the posters
How are two completely different points similar? Or how are two similar points different? This brief is the study of two spaces which will both evolve into an outcome which combines them either by similarity or difference. The spaces can be broad or very small, the point is to explore the little details or one aspect of the space and to translate it into a design of some sort.
I explored the space surrounding a bench and my homes sofa. Though I found the surrounding areas interesting I eventually ended up focusing on the bench and the sofa itself as they are both used for the same purpose but differ in material, location and atmosphere. Resulting in three typefaces presented in a book.
The process box is a capsule for the process books of my final major projects: Two Points, Acrobat Reader and Visual Systems. This holds my developments, trials and mini posters which shows my entire journey. However the idea behind the box is more than just a container.
The idea behind the process box is very much linked with Robert Rauschenberg’s Thirty Scatole Personali (Personal Boxes) 1953 which I viewed at the Tate Modern. I was inspired by the idea of curiosity boxes. I was also reading The Memory Palace by Edward Hollis (2013) who talks about spaces which represent memory and a collection of personal items. When talking about a cabinet of curiosity Hollies states “collecting is, of its nature, an act of memory.” (p.118) therefore this box serves as a personal insight into my thoughts and almost a journal of what has been achieved in the final major project.
Hollis, E. (2013) The Memory Palace. London: Portobello Books
This project is dealing with the opening of the Design Museum at it’s new location, and the first permanent free collection that the Design Museum has ever displayed on November 24th 2016. This brief is asking for the designer to explore different ways to communicate a permanent collection encouraging public engagement and interaction. Raising awareness of design in our everyday lives.
The first outcome is to discover a system or method which raises awareness of design using a select ten objects. The object I chose was the Olivetti Valentine Typewriter as it stood out as outdated amongst the new technology. The system I created was a multi sensory wall presenting the details of the objects to the viewer. A case study of the object was also created as an outcome. I also explored the system of mechanics and deconstruction