http://www.thedieline.com/
This is the website that I love to go on, and it always gives me inspirations. It shows many many examples of the best packaging designs from all around the world. This website will help guide me and inspire me for my thesis project.
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Friday, April 9, 2010
Editorial design Resource
Andreu Balius, Type at Work: The Use of Type in Editorial Design (New York: Gingko Press, 2003).
This book provides a detailed look into editorial design, as well as meaningful insights into the use of type as a design component and ways in which type can be used to support the expressive possibilities of visual information.
This resource presents useful guidelines on how typography is used to support the expression of a certain concept, using type as image, and using type with clarity and legibility. This book will enable me for my three thesis projects especially the one focusing on editorial design. I can look back to this book when I create my brochures, and magazines layouts, where a lot of information and type will be presented.
This book provides a detailed look into editorial design, as well as meaningful insights into the use of type as a design component and ways in which type can be used to support the expressive possibilities of visual information.
This resource presents useful guidelines on how typography is used to support the expression of a certain concept, using type as image, and using type with clarity and legibility. This book will enable me for my three thesis projects especially the one focusing on editorial design. I can look back to this book when I create my brochures, and magazines layouts, where a lot of information and type will be presented.
Packaging Design Resource
Marianne R. Klimchuk, Sandra A. Krasovec, Packaging Design: Successful Product Branding from Concept to Shelf (London: Wiley, 2010).
The book provides a framework for today's packaging design business, advices on portfolio development and professional practice guidelines, case studies that showcase how superior packaging designs were created, and insightful images of the design process, design concepts, three-dimensional models, and prototypes.
The content in the book is very useful. It has a highly visual-coverage and it fundamentally discusses how to create packaging designs for consumer brands that effectively communicate in the retail environment.
The book provides a framework for today's packaging design business, advices on portfolio development and professional practice guidelines, case studies that showcase how superior packaging designs were created, and insightful images of the design process, design concepts, three-dimensional models, and prototypes.
The content in the book is very useful. It has a highly visual-coverage and it fundamentally discusses how to create packaging designs for consumer brands that effectively communicate in the retail environment.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Way-finding Resource
David Gibson, The Wayfinding Handbook: Information Design for Public Places (New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2009).
By using real life examples, the book illustrates the way type, color, mapmaking, dimensional forms, material selection, and new media are used to create effective way-finding systems. The author draws on his thirty years of experience collaborating with architects, planners, developers, managers, and civic leaders to offer an insider's view of this rapidly evolving discipline.
The book fits into my research and I find it useful because it guides you to the discipline from planning and design to practical considerations such as setting up teams and managing projects.
By using real life examples, the book illustrates the way type, color, mapmaking, dimensional forms, material selection, and new media are used to create effective way-finding systems. The author draws on his thirty years of experience collaborating with architects, planners, developers, managers, and civic leaders to offer an insider's view of this rapidly evolving discipline.
The book fits into my research and I find it useful because it guides you to the discipline from planning and design to practical considerations such as setting up teams and managing projects.
Sunday, April 4, 2010
AIDS research
For the first and second thesis proposal, I will focus on packaging design and way-finding system. For my third proposal, I want to bring AIDS awareness to the Canadian public with editorial design. So I did some research on this topic and I came across this website, which is very informational and useful: http://www.avert.org/aids.htm
Here is an American HIV-prevention poster from 1989 and I thought it's pretty shocking and it makes you realize that somebody who has HIV may not show any signs or symptoms.
“AIDS” AVERT, 2010, Avert.org. 4 Apr 2010
http://www.avert.org/aids.htm.
Here is an American HIV-prevention poster from 1989 and I thought it's pretty shocking and it makes you realize that somebody who has HIV may not show any signs or symptoms.
“AIDS” AVERT, 2010, Avert.org. 4 Apr 2010
http://www.avert.org/aids.htm.
A showcase of 20+ airport signage designs and wayfinding systems
http://www.designworkplan.com/design/airport-signage-photo-inspiration.htm
This website shows photos of airport signage and informations that the author had collected from cities all over the world. This is a part of my research for my one of my thesis proposal which will focus on way finding systems.
Sander Baumann, “Airport Signage: Photo inspiration,” Design Workplan, 2009, Design Workplan. 4 Apr 2010
http://www.designworkplan.com/design/airport-signage-photo-inspiration.htm.
This website shows photos of airport signage and informations that the author had collected from cities all over the world. This is a part of my research for my one of my thesis proposal which will focus on way finding systems.
Sander Baumann, “Airport Signage: Photo inspiration,” Design Workplan, 2009, Design Workplan. 4 Apr 2010
http://www.designworkplan.com/design/airport-signage-photo-inspiration.htm.
Happy Colorful Easter!
I set up this picture with a basket, and inside the basket are a bunny lollipop, easter eggs, flowers, and a jar of jam....the basket is about 1.5 inch long! I then photoshopped the pictures in different tones.
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Proper Packaging Design Can Improve More Than Your Bottom Line
The story below talks about packaging design and relating it to the author's own life. The story is inspiring, and it helps me in doing my thesis because I will be focusing on packaging design, way-finding, and editorial design for my three thesis proposals.
Ron had a unique way of making boxes fit his custom-made marble sinks: He used a box knife.
Granted, it wasn’t the most efficient means of forming the folds over his precious cargo, but it served the purpose and, for Ron’s crew, it was good enough.
When I walked in his shop it was obvious Ron had a booming business. It was also obvious his current box supplier was lacking in creative design skills; hence the box knife.
And so, with Ron’s permission, we loaded a sink or two in the car and headed back to our design room in Seymour, Indiana. Our team of design experts whittled away — not with a razor-encased contraption, but with a high-priced, computer-driven cutting board.
The end result amazed Ron. The new box formed perfectly over his various products. It was stronger and cheaper to boot. What’s more, we added cut-out handles to accommodate Ron’s crew which included a few gals who toted the hefty boxes once they were filled with sinks. One handle on the side; one on the end — made perfectly to fit the arm spans of the Ron’s workers.
A common feat
It’s typical. Guys like Ron know that packaging is an important aspect of their business. But, alas, they’re serviced by box salesmen who know more about closing a deal than designing boxes.
That where I come in.
I earn my keep by showing manufacturing companies how to save money by improving their packaging.
A company in Columbus, Indiana — my home turf — was shipping its goods in plain brown boxes; the same boxes that displayed their products on store shelves.
The purchasing agent was encouraged to test white boxes (the color is actually clay, but looks white to shoppers) to see if sales improved. Scepticism was, of course, expected. Clay boxes are, after all, more expensive than the normal brown fare. But once the test was run, and furniture displayed in clay boxes out-paced identical product in brown boxes, the buyers saw the light. Gone were the brown boxes. They were replaced with the more expensive clay-colored boxes. The reason? The substantially increased furniture sales more than paid for the higher-priced new packaging.
Lone Ranger of boxes
When I was a kid I imagined myself being the Lone Ranger. One feat at a time I would save the day then ride off in the sunset with my faithful companion, Tonto.
Turns out that box selling differs little from the Lone Ranger, except I drive a car and not a horse, and my partner is a box designer, not a faithful Indian companion.
The scourge of the packaging industry isn’t the black-hatted villain from the old westerns. Rather, the problem lies in less-then-competent design. A few subtle changes in box design can save money in labor while earning money by presenting a positive product display.
At Boxes.me our goal is to save our clients more than cold cash. We strive to remove the aggravation of working with poorly-crafted containers, shallow designs and, yes, box knives. Our goal is to improve the entire packaging process. Sometimes we save our clients by providing them less expensive boxes. More often we target their bottom line with workable solutions that can only be delivered by a top-notch design team.
“Packaging Desing: Proper Packaging Design Can Improve More Than Your Bottom Line,” Stock Images and Stock Photography Resource, 2009, Maxlin Stock Images Corporation. 3 Apr 2010
http://blog.royaltyfree-stockphoto.com/?p=1455.
Ron had a unique way of making boxes fit his custom-made marble sinks: He used a box knife.
Granted, it wasn’t the most efficient means of forming the folds over his precious cargo, but it served the purpose and, for Ron’s crew, it was good enough.
When I walked in his shop it was obvious Ron had a booming business. It was also obvious his current box supplier was lacking in creative design skills; hence the box knife.
And so, with Ron’s permission, we loaded a sink or two in the car and headed back to our design room in Seymour, Indiana. Our team of design experts whittled away — not with a razor-encased contraption, but with a high-priced, computer-driven cutting board.
The end result amazed Ron. The new box formed perfectly over his various products. It was stronger and cheaper to boot. What’s more, we added cut-out handles to accommodate Ron’s crew which included a few gals who toted the hefty boxes once they were filled with sinks. One handle on the side; one on the end — made perfectly to fit the arm spans of the Ron’s workers.
A common feat
It’s typical. Guys like Ron know that packaging is an important aspect of their business. But, alas, they’re serviced by box salesmen who know more about closing a deal than designing boxes.
That where I come in.
I earn my keep by showing manufacturing companies how to save money by improving their packaging.
A company in Columbus, Indiana — my home turf — was shipping its goods in plain brown boxes; the same boxes that displayed their products on store shelves.
The purchasing agent was encouraged to test white boxes (the color is actually clay, but looks white to shoppers) to see if sales improved. Scepticism was, of course, expected. Clay boxes are, after all, more expensive than the normal brown fare. But once the test was run, and furniture displayed in clay boxes out-paced identical product in brown boxes, the buyers saw the light. Gone were the brown boxes. They were replaced with the more expensive clay-colored boxes. The reason? The substantially increased furniture sales more than paid for the higher-priced new packaging.
Lone Ranger of boxes
When I was a kid I imagined myself being the Lone Ranger. One feat at a time I would save the day then ride off in the sunset with my faithful companion, Tonto.
Turns out that box selling differs little from the Lone Ranger, except I drive a car and not a horse, and my partner is a box designer, not a faithful Indian companion.
The scourge of the packaging industry isn’t the black-hatted villain from the old westerns. Rather, the problem lies in less-then-competent design. A few subtle changes in box design can save money in labor while earning money by presenting a positive product display.
At Boxes.me our goal is to save our clients more than cold cash. We strive to remove the aggravation of working with poorly-crafted containers, shallow designs and, yes, box knives. Our goal is to improve the entire packaging process. Sometimes we save our clients by providing them less expensive boxes. More often we target their bottom line with workable solutions that can only be delivered by a top-notch design team.
“Packaging Desing: Proper Packaging Design Can Improve More Than Your Bottom Line,” Stock Images and Stock Photography Resource, 2009, Maxlin Stock Images Corporation. 3 Apr 2010
http://blog.royaltyfree-stockphoto.com/?p=1455.
Graphic Design Cookbook
My friend borrowed me this book called "Graphic Design Cookbook" and basically it provides a collection of layouts. Rather than sorting through dozens of graphic design books to get ideas, this book has sections for every aspect of page layout placement including: page numbers, paragraph placement, titles, and much more. Overall, this book gives inspirations to anybody, specifically to graphic design students.
Friday, April 2, 2010
REVISED ideas for thesis proposal
1. How architectures make to the look and livability of our city
2. The positive effects of Bikeway design and way-finding signage
3. Lack of good way finding signage in the city on most surface routes
4. The definition between graphic design and illustration. What are the differences?
5. How to improve Toronto's transportation system with way-finding systems?
6. The need of information graphics. Why do we need information graphics?
7. Is food design important to human? Why do food need to be designed?
8. The importance of packaging design. Does packaging design make people's lives easier?
9. The relationship between graphic design and advertising.
10. Why is advertising significant in New York? Compare it with Canada.
11. Japan's graphic design industry.
12. The difference between Western graphic design and graphic design in Asian countries.
13. Is Canada's graphic design industry going downhill?
14. How does technology benefit graphic design?
15. The influence of modern design to our city.
16. Do the look of architecture relate to its interior design?
17. What are the aesthetics of interior design?
18. Do graphic design help benefit our daily lives?
19. Is web design important to us? What are the advantages and disadvantages?
20. Furniture design: form follows function or form goes first?
21. The concept of "less is more" in graphic design?
22. The role of graphic design and advertising used in war as propaganda.
23. The influences that affect designing for an international market.
24. The use, effects and value of colour in branding. What are the subliminal effects of colour and colour manipulation of corporate brands?
25. The influence of Andy Warhol in Pop Art.
26. How color symbolism matter in graphic design. How much of a role do color meanings play in graphic design color choices?
2. The positive effects of Bikeway design and way-finding signage
3. Lack of good way finding signage in the city on most surface routes
4. The definition between graphic design and illustration. What are the differences?
5. How to improve Toronto's transportation system with way-finding systems?
6. The need of information graphics. Why do we need information graphics?
7. Is food design important to human? Why do food need to be designed?
8. The importance of packaging design. Does packaging design make people's lives easier?
9. The relationship between graphic design and advertising.
10. Why is advertising significant in New York? Compare it with Canada.
11. Japan's graphic design industry.
12. The difference between Western graphic design and graphic design in Asian countries.
13. Is Canada's graphic design industry going downhill?
14. How does technology benefit graphic design?
15. The influence of modern design to our city.
16. Do the look of architecture relate to its interior design?
17. What are the aesthetics of interior design?
18. Do graphic design help benefit our daily lives?
19. Is web design important to us? What are the advantages and disadvantages?
20. Furniture design: form follows function or form goes first?
21. The concept of "less is more" in graphic design?
22. The role of graphic design and advertising used in war as propaganda.
23. The influences that affect designing for an international market.
24. The use, effects and value of colour in branding. What are the subliminal effects of colour and colour manipulation of corporate brands?
25. The influence of Andy Warhol in Pop Art.
26. How color symbolism matter in graphic design. How much of a role do color meanings play in graphic design color choices?
Princess Tea Party
Miniature toys that belong to me...collecting miniatures is one my interests now because I can take photos with them and practice my photography skills. The cake is about 1.5 inch long.
I entered a photo contest: White Elegance
This is the photo that I've entered in a miniature photo contest. The title is "White Elegance". We were asked to take a photo of our miniatures in only one color and I chose to do white.
The winner will get a prize of a very rare piece of furniture (miniature) by a company called Re-ment, it's a famous miniature company in Japan.
Here is the link to view all the contest entries, and I'm #15: http://rementfanclub.com/
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Putting some night cream on...
I took pictures of my toys (miniatures and a doll originated in Japan called "Licca").
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Discuss Proposal
Proposal Title
Abstract
The need
Initial research
Audience
Research areas
Research question/problem statement
Subquestions
What forms might the deliverables take?
How will the core project benefit your education?
Abstract
The need
Initial research
Audience
Research areas
Research question/problem statement
Subquestions
What forms might the deliverables take?
How will the core project benefit your education?
Monday, March 29, 2010
Ideas for Thesis Topic
These are some of the thesis topics I have in mind for now:
1. How architectures make to the look and livability of our city
2. The positive effects of Bikeway design and way-finding signage
3. Lack of good way finding signage in the city on most surface routes
4. The definition between graphic design and illustration. What are the differences?
5. How to improve Toronto's transportation system with way-finding systems?
6. The need of information graphics. Why do we need information graphics?
7. Is food design important to human? Why do food need to be designed?
8. The importance of packaging design. Does packaging design make people's lives easier?
9. The relationship between graphic design and advertising.
10. Why is advertising significant in New York? Compare it with Canada.
11. Japan's graphic design industry.
12. The difference between Western graphic design and graphic design in Asian countries.
13. Is Canada's graphic design industry going downhill?
14. How does technology benefit graphic design?
15. The influence of modern design to our city.
1. How architectures make to the look and livability of our city
2. The positive effects of Bikeway design and way-finding signage
3. Lack of good way finding signage in the city on most surface routes
4. The definition between graphic design and illustration. What are the differences?
5. How to improve Toronto's transportation system with way-finding systems?
6. The need of information graphics. Why do we need information graphics?
7. Is food design important to human? Why do food need to be designed?
8. The importance of packaging design. Does packaging design make people's lives easier?
9. The relationship between graphic design and advertising.
10. Why is advertising significant in New York? Compare it with Canada.
11. Japan's graphic design industry.
12. The difference between Western graphic design and graphic design in Asian countries.
13. Is Canada's graphic design industry going downhill?
14. How does technology benefit graphic design?
15. The influence of modern design to our city.
Macaroon Tower
I love the way macaroons look (their colors are fantastic), and they taste great too! I went to a cake shop called "Ruelo Patisserie" in Richmond Hill, and I bought three macaroons.
The top one is Orange Cream Cheese flavor, the middle one is Espresso, and the bottom one is Pistachio with Raspberry. I like the Pistachio one the most! I brought the big macarosns home and took a picture with my mini macaroons (they are plastic miniatures).
Sunday, March 28, 2010
My 21st Birthday
Today is my birthday and I went to watched Alice In Wonderland after dinner.
I didn't get a birthday cake today (ate chocolate fudge cake with vanilla ice cream instead) so I took a picture of my miniature toys.
Happy Birthday to me!
Typography Animation
From Youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FwihSPaTcSU
A really interesting typography animation.
Friday, March 26, 2010
Readings 6
Semiotics: a primer of designers – Challis Hodge
- Author: “Semiotics is important for designers as it allows us to understand the relationships between signs, what they stand for, and the people who must interpret them — the people we design for.”
- Chandler: “The study of signs is the study of the construction and maintenance of reality. To decline such a study is to leave to others the control of the world of meanings.”
- Becoming aware of these systems and rules and learning to master them is the true power of visual communication and design.
- Semiotics teaches us as designers that our work has no meaning outside the complex set of factors that define it; the deeper our understanding and awareness of these factors, the better our control over the success of the work products we create; helps us not to take reality for granted as something that simply exists; helps us to understand that reality depends not only on the intentions we put into our work but also the interpretation of the people who experience our work
- The meaning of a sign is not in its relationship to other signs within the language system but rather in the social context of its use. The study of semiotics needs to account for the relationship of the symbols and the social context or context of use.
- The disciplines involved in semiotics include linguistics (where it began), and has been adopted by disciplines such as philosophy, psychology, sociology, anthropology, literature, aesthetic and media theory,
- Semiology aims to take in any system of signs, whatever their substanceand limits; images, gestures, musical sounds, objects, and the complex associations of all these, which form the content of ritual, convention or public entertainment: these constitute, if not languages, at least systems of signification.
- Structuralism is an analytical method used by many semioticians. Structuralists seek to describe the overall organization of sign systems as languages.
- Semantics focuses on what words mean while semiotics is concerned with how signs mean.
- Semiotics is the study of sign processes, or signification and communication, signs and symbols.
* Semantics: the relationship of signs to what they stand for.
* Syntactics (or syntax): the formal or structural relations between signs.
* Pragmatics: the relation of signs to interpreters.
- A text is an assemblage of signs constructed with reference to the conventions associated with a genre and in a particular medium of communication. Text usually refers to a message, which has been recorded in some way so that it is physically independent of its sender or receiver.
- Language (code): the system of rules and conventions which is independent of, and pre-exists, individual users ; Speech (message): its use in particular instances
For examples: any specific film is the speech of that underlying system of cinema language.
The Reflective Practitioner: how professional think in action- Donald Schon
Summary: An analysis of the distinctive structure of reflection-in-action. He explores the relationship between the kinds of knowledge honored in academia and the kinds of competence valued in professional practice.
- professions had come to be seen as vehicles for the application of the new sciences to the achievement of human progress: engineers became a model of technical practice for the other professions, medicine was refashioned in the new image a science-based technique for the preservation of health
- 3 principal doctrines of Positivism (a dominant philosophy): the conviction that empirical science was not just a form of knowledge but the only source of positive knowledge of the world; intention to cleanse men’s minds of mysticism, superstition, and other forms of pseudoknowledge; the program of extending scientific knowledge and technical control to human society, to make technology
- 2 kinds of meaningful propositions: analytic and essentially tautological propositions of logic and mathematics/ the empirical propositions which express knowledge of the world.
- Positivists recognized to what extent observational statements were theory-laden, and found it necessary to ground empirical knowledge in irreducible elements of sensory experience. They began to see laws of nature not as facts inherent in nature hut as constructs created to explain observed phenomena, and science became for them a hypothetico-deductive system.
- actual practice of phenomena-complexity, uncertainty, instability, uniqueness, and
value-conflict do not fit in the model of Technical Rationality. Positivism solved the puzzle of practical knowledge in a way that had been foreshadowed by the Technological Program
- professional practice is a process of problem solving. Problems of choice or decision are solved through the selection of the one best suited to established ends. With emphasis on
problem solving, we ignore problem setting (the process by which we define the decision
to be made, the ends to be achieved, the means which may be chosen)
- To convert a problematic situation to a problem, a practitioner must make sense of an uncertain situation that initially makes no sense. Professionals are coming to recognize that although problem setting is a necessary condition for technical problem solving, it is not itself a technical problem.
To solve a problem by the application of existing theory or technique, a practitioner must be able to map those categories onto features of the practice situation.
- Knowing-in-action refers to the kinds of knowledge we can only reveal in the way we carry out tasks and approach problems.
- Reflection-in-action is the ability of professionals to ‘think what they are doing while they are doing it’.
- Reflection-in-action is an extraordinary process; is the core of practice for some practitioners; is not generally accepted because professionalism is still identified with technical expertise.
It is the kind of reflection that occurs whilst a problem is being addressed, in what Schon calls the ‘action-present’ (the zone of time in which action can still make a difference to the situation). It is a response to a surprise – where the expected outcome is outside of our knowing-in-action. The reflective process is at least to some degree conscious, but may not be verbalised. Reflection-in-action is about challenging our assumptions. It is about thinking again, in a new way, about a problem we have encountered.
- When someone reflects-in-action, he becomes a researcher in the practice context.
He is not dependent on the categories of established theory and technique, but constructs
a new theory of the unique case. His inquiry is not limited to a deliberation about means
which depends on a prior agreement about ends. He does not keep means and ends
separate, but defines them interactively as he frames a problematic situation. He does
not separate thinking from doing, ratiocinating his way to a decision which he must later
convert to action.
- Reflection-in-action is important because dilemma of rigor or relevance may be dissolved if we can develop an epistemology of practice which places technical problem solving within a broader context of reflective inquiry, shows how reflection-in-action may be rigorous in its own right, and links the art of practice in uncertainty and uniqueness to the scientist’s art of research.
- Author: “Semiotics is important for designers as it allows us to understand the relationships between signs, what they stand for, and the people who must interpret them — the people we design for.”
- Chandler: “The study of signs is the study of the construction and maintenance of reality. To decline such a study is to leave to others the control of the world of meanings.”
- Becoming aware of these systems and rules and learning to master them is the true power of visual communication and design.
- Semiotics teaches us as designers that our work has no meaning outside the complex set of factors that define it; the deeper our understanding and awareness of these factors, the better our control over the success of the work products we create; helps us not to take reality for granted as something that simply exists; helps us to understand that reality depends not only on the intentions we put into our work but also the interpretation of the people who experience our work
- The meaning of a sign is not in its relationship to other signs within the language system but rather in the social context of its use. The study of semiotics needs to account for the relationship of the symbols and the social context or context of use.
- The disciplines involved in semiotics include linguistics (where it began), and has been adopted by disciplines such as philosophy, psychology, sociology, anthropology, literature, aesthetic and media theory,
- Semiology aims to take in any system of signs, whatever their substanceand limits; images, gestures, musical sounds, objects, and the complex associations of all these, which form the content of ritual, convention or public entertainment: these constitute, if not languages, at least systems of signification.
- Structuralism is an analytical method used by many semioticians. Structuralists seek to describe the overall organization of sign systems as languages.
- Semantics focuses on what words mean while semiotics is concerned with how signs mean.
- Semiotics is the study of sign processes, or signification and communication, signs and symbols.
* Semantics: the relationship of signs to what they stand for.
* Syntactics (or syntax): the formal or structural relations between signs.
* Pragmatics: the relation of signs to interpreters.
- A text is an assemblage of signs constructed with reference to the conventions associated with a genre and in a particular medium of communication. Text usually refers to a message, which has been recorded in some way so that it is physically independent of its sender or receiver.
- Language (code): the system of rules and conventions which is independent of, and pre-exists, individual users ; Speech (message): its use in particular instances
For examples: any specific film is the speech of that underlying system of cinema language.
The Reflective Practitioner: how professional think in action- Donald Schon
Summary: An analysis of the distinctive structure of reflection-in-action. He explores the relationship between the kinds of knowledge honored in academia and the kinds of competence valued in professional practice.
- professions had come to be seen as vehicles for the application of the new sciences to the achievement of human progress: engineers became a model of technical practice for the other professions, medicine was refashioned in the new image a science-based technique for the preservation of health
- 3 principal doctrines of Positivism (a dominant philosophy): the conviction that empirical science was not just a form of knowledge but the only source of positive knowledge of the world; intention to cleanse men’s minds of mysticism, superstition, and other forms of pseudoknowledge; the program of extending scientific knowledge and technical control to human society, to make technology
- 2 kinds of meaningful propositions: analytic and essentially tautological propositions of logic and mathematics/ the empirical propositions which express knowledge of the world.
- Positivists recognized to what extent observational statements were theory-laden, and found it necessary to ground empirical knowledge in irreducible elements of sensory experience. They began to see laws of nature not as facts inherent in nature hut as constructs created to explain observed phenomena, and science became for them a hypothetico-deductive system.
- actual practice of phenomena-complexity, uncertainty, instability, uniqueness, and
value-conflict do not fit in the model of Technical Rationality. Positivism solved the puzzle of practical knowledge in a way that had been foreshadowed by the Technological Program
- professional practice is a process of problem solving. Problems of choice or decision are solved through the selection of the one best suited to established ends. With emphasis on
problem solving, we ignore problem setting (the process by which we define the decision
to be made, the ends to be achieved, the means which may be chosen)
- To convert a problematic situation to a problem, a practitioner must make sense of an uncertain situation that initially makes no sense. Professionals are coming to recognize that although problem setting is a necessary condition for technical problem solving, it is not itself a technical problem.
To solve a problem by the application of existing theory or technique, a practitioner must be able to map those categories onto features of the practice situation.
- Knowing-in-action refers to the kinds of knowledge we can only reveal in the way we carry out tasks and approach problems.
- Reflection-in-action is the ability of professionals to ‘think what they are doing while they are doing it’.
- Reflection-in-action is an extraordinary process; is the core of practice for some practitioners; is not generally accepted because professionalism is still identified with technical expertise.
It is the kind of reflection that occurs whilst a problem is being addressed, in what Schon calls the ‘action-present’ (the zone of time in which action can still make a difference to the situation). It is a response to a surprise – where the expected outcome is outside of our knowing-in-action. The reflective process is at least to some degree conscious, but may not be verbalised. Reflection-in-action is about challenging our assumptions. It is about thinking again, in a new way, about a problem we have encountered.
- When someone reflects-in-action, he becomes a researcher in the practice context.
He is not dependent on the categories of established theory and technique, but constructs
a new theory of the unique case. His inquiry is not limited to a deliberation about means
which depends on a prior agreement about ends. He does not keep means and ends
separate, but defines them interactively as he frames a problematic situation. He does
not separate thinking from doing, ratiocinating his way to a decision which he must later
convert to action.
- Reflection-in-action is important because dilemma of rigor or relevance may be dissolved if we can develop an epistemology of practice which places technical problem solving within a broader context of reflective inquiry, shows how reflection-in-action may be rigorous in its own right, and links the art of practice in uncertainty and uniqueness to the scientist’s art of research.
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Creative Eggcraft
“Eggcraft,” Buzzfeed, 2010, Buzzfeed. 25 March 2010
http://www.buzzfeed.com/expresident/eggcraft.
I was surfing on the internet and I came across this page. It shows three images and they are photos of somebody's craftwork made with egg shells. They're really adorable and I think the person who made them are so creative. I love seeing inspiring and creative artworks.
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
My cakes collection
Here is a picture of all my miniature cakes collection! These tiny toys are great for practicing photography skills. I love shooting them in macro.
Friday, March 12, 2010
Readings 5
Why designers can't think- Michael Bierut
Summary: "Modern design education is essentially value-free: every problem has a purely visual solution that exists outside any cultural context." Bierut expresses his concern for a lack of culture among many design school graduates and makes a strong plea for educators to remedy this.
- graphic designers are lucky because they can partake in as many fields of interest as we have clients
- process school= swiss school (only 15 yrs) ; portfolio school= slick school (from 1950s)
To the portfolio schools, the “Swiss” method is hermetic, arcane, and meaningless to the general public. To the process schools, the “slick” method is distastefully commercial, shallow, and derivative.
- Process schools favor a form-driven problem solving approach; don't relate to real world as much; focus on "process" more than "product"
- 1. draw letterforms, translate 3D objects, still life photography> 2. relate drawing of object to hand drawn letter then combine letter with a photo> 3. letter+object+photo+a 42 pt. typeface= poster for Rudolph Nureyev
- Portfolio school aims to provide students with polished books that will get them good jobs after graduation; the problem solving mode is conceptual; focus on "product" more than "process"
- what's wrong with graphic design education is how both school are the same: what's valued is the way graphic design looks, not what is means; the passion of design educators seems to be technology; educators need to expose their students to a meaningful range of culture; most mediocre design today comes from designers are who faithfully doing as they were taught in school, worship altar of the visual
- pioneers of graphic designers were more well-rounded because their work draws its power from deep in the culture of their times (they had no intensive specialized programs);
I come to bury graphic design- Kenneth Fitzgerald
Summary: He proposes that the objective of design, to create a class of expert professional practitioners, can - and should - only lead to its demise as a specialist profession. "An education through design rather than in design should be our goal."
- design's essential impulse is to perpetuate itself, in other words, its first concern is reproduction; to assure its existence, design strives to create a class of expert prof. practitioners with high social standing
- We should be resigned to never achieving full regard for expert design production, The reason is that as the non-designer public become converts to design’s message, the conversion is total.
- Koolhaus’s engagement in design might be considered another triumph for the field. It is, in fact, a sign of the coming apocalypse, because the works are contemporary, capable and forgettable.
- Design culture is blind to its motivations. It constantly seeks to eradicate itself and designers will instinctively reject this notion.
- design study without application is unlikely
- practical hazards in academia: how it puts that idealistic pursuit into practice;well-funded design programs being hijacked or infiltrated by sinecure seekers
- Design is a dislocated art form born out of industrialization.The idea of professional artists is fairly implausible, certainly as a way to consistently generate fresh insight. The activity inevitably becomes routinized and formulaic when required to be on demand. The product turns distant, abstract, and impersonal.
- the only problem professional design solves with any demonstrable success is a designer’s urgency to get a professional design job.
Summary: "Modern design education is essentially value-free: every problem has a purely visual solution that exists outside any cultural context." Bierut expresses his concern for a lack of culture among many design school graduates and makes a strong plea for educators to remedy this.
- graphic designers are lucky because they can partake in as many fields of interest as we have clients
- process school= swiss school (only 15 yrs) ; portfolio school= slick school (from 1950s)
To the portfolio schools, the “Swiss” method is hermetic, arcane, and meaningless to the general public. To the process schools, the “slick” method is distastefully commercial, shallow, and derivative.
- Process schools favor a form-driven problem solving approach; don't relate to real world as much; focus on "process" more than "product"
- 1. draw letterforms, translate 3D objects, still life photography> 2. relate drawing of object to hand drawn letter then combine letter with a photo> 3. letter+object+photo+a 42 pt. typeface= poster for Rudolph Nureyev
- Portfolio school aims to provide students with polished books that will get them good jobs after graduation; the problem solving mode is conceptual; focus on "product" more than "process"
- what's wrong with graphic design education is how both school are the same: what's valued is the way graphic design looks, not what is means; the passion of design educators seems to be technology; educators need to expose their students to a meaningful range of culture; most mediocre design today comes from designers are who faithfully doing as they were taught in school, worship altar of the visual
- pioneers of graphic designers were more well-rounded because their work draws its power from deep in the culture of their times (they had no intensive specialized programs);
I come to bury graphic design- Kenneth Fitzgerald
Summary: He proposes that the objective of design, to create a class of expert professional practitioners, can - and should - only lead to its demise as a specialist profession. "An education through design rather than in design should be our goal."
- design's essential impulse is to perpetuate itself, in other words, its first concern is reproduction; to assure its existence, design strives to create a class of expert prof. practitioners with high social standing
- We should be resigned to never achieving full regard for expert design production, The reason is that as the non-designer public become converts to design’s message, the conversion is total.
- Koolhaus’s engagement in design might be considered another triumph for the field. It is, in fact, a sign of the coming apocalypse, because the works are contemporary, capable and forgettable.
- Design culture is blind to its motivations. It constantly seeks to eradicate itself and designers will instinctively reject this notion.
- design study without application is unlikely
- practical hazards in academia: how it puts that idealistic pursuit into practice;well-funded design programs being hijacked or infiltrated by sinecure seekers
- Design is a dislocated art form born out of industrialization.The idea of professional artists is fairly implausible, certainly as a way to consistently generate fresh insight. The activity inevitably becomes routinized and formulaic when required to be on demand. The product turns distant, abstract, and impersonal.
- the only problem professional design solves with any demonstrable success is a designer’s urgency to get a professional design job.
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Clash of the Titans
I am so going to watch this movie when it comes out!! The visual effects look awesome. It always amazes me how realistic these "CG artworks" look and I wonder how do animators create such fantastic works?
Miniature Room
This is one of my "blog friend"'s photo. She collects miniatures as well and I love seeing photos of her miniature room that she sets up. This is one of my favorite of hers. This was done at Christmas time and it really brings out the theme of "White Christmas". I'm always inspired by her works.
linglam34, DSC00129, 2009, Flickr, 6 March 2010
http://www.flickr.com/photos/31350928@N03/4186980988/
Friday, March 5, 2010
CoverGirl: LashBlast Ad
I was taking the subway to school today, and I noticed the bars on the entry gate were painted yellow. I looked closely, and realized that this was an ad for CoverGirls's LashBlast Length mascara. I tried to take a picture but it didn't turned out good so I found this image online.
The yellow bars represent the tip of the mascara brush, and the black bars represent your eyelashes. It's giving you a "picture" that your lashes will be THAT long like the black bars, when you apply this mascara.
I thought this was a really creative idea by using the entry gate because a lot of people pass by these gates daily and I think most people would take a look at the ad to try to figure out what's happening with the yellow bars. I love this ad.
“CoverGirl LashBlast Length: Entry gate,” Ads of the World, 2009, Mediabistro. 5 March 2009
http://adsoftheworld.com/media/ambient/covergirl_lashblast_length_entry_gate?.
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Some of the best ads ever
http://uaddit.com/discussions/showthread.php?t=642
This website provides images of some of the best advertisements ever made, and there are a lot of them which I like and I was blown away by how brilliant and smart some of the ads are.
I really like # 12 Ultra Slim Sony Cyber-shot T1. The idea was clever and funny as well, although you can see that the advertisement was not expensive at all.
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Type 4 project- Bauhaus
For typography class, we were told to choose a typeface, and create it with materials that's made by you and it cannot be created digitally. So, I've cut out geometric shapes (circle, triangle, square) from construction papers and I drew the Bauhaus font with a black marker, and I took a photo of it.
Big & small Ferrero Rocher
As I've mentioned in my previous post, I love miniatures and I like collecting them. Recently, I bought a few Ferrero Rocher mini chocolates, and I took a picture of them with the REAL ones. It was fun to do, and the photo turned out pretty interesting.
Friday, February 26, 2010
My HTC phone
I love decorating my "stuff". I love glamourous, shiny and glittery things, so I thought: why don't I decorate my phone? I've glued cute little accessories and swarovski on the back of my HTC phone. People have commented on it and they seem to like this idea of decoration =)
My miniature cake shop
I love miniatures. There is a Japanese company called "Re-ment" who produced plastic miniatures, and I collect them. I like playing around with the miniatures and arranging them the way I want. I took this photo a few days ago when I finally have time to make the "scene". I made the background, floor, the 2 white cabinets and everything else are plastic miniatures, which are all removable (the cakes can be removed from the plates so you can place them anywhere you want).
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Readings 4
Michael Bierut - On (Design) Bullshit
Summary: Bierut admits that a lot of work that involve creativity and aesthetics involve a creative leap, all of which are counter to whatever rationale as known as bullshit you'll have to come up with to justify your decisions.
- Professor Frankfurt: "bullshit is not designed primarily to give its audience a false belief about whatever state of affairs may be the topic, but that its primary intention is rather to give its audience a false impression concerning what is going on in the mind of the speaker."
- every design presentation is inevitably, at least in part, an exercise in bullshit.
- examples of bullshit: theories about the symbolic qualities of colors or typefaces; unprovable claims about the historical inevitability of certain shapes, fanciful forced marriages of arbitrary design elements to hard-headed business goals
- goal: getting your client it to do it the way you like it
- client kept rejecting brochure design, Bierut had no idea what French design looks like but came up with an approach using Empire typeface, his boss presented it as "Ahm-peere"
Jessica Helfand and William Drenttel- Design and Faux Science
Summary: explains what is real science and how design is becoming faux science
- Faux Science is the antithesis of modernism: it’s form awaiting content, or worse, serious form retrofitted with interchangeable content. In today's anything-goes world of relentless self-expression, science has become the designers' safe haven. It's the new "look and feel." And it's an easy one to imitate. We grasp its formal conceits—its systematic language of documentation, its methodical alignments—and parlay them into a visual language that resonates with kick-ass authority.
- Real science: one of the most essential phenomena of the mod age.” It’s hygienic and objective, rational and finite, grounded in numerical certain and cosmological reason. Science is all about clarity and specificity and rationalism, about charting DNA strands and analyzing chemical compounds, about physical density and gravitational pull and a reality that is anything but virtual.
- information design is a faux authority: we buy into the form so unquestioningly, ratified by an alarmingly robust strain of Swiss modernism, ahistorical, unconcerned with earlier sources and ignorant of alternative models, it’s modernism run amok and form masquerading as content.
- Panaceas: organisms in the graphical realm are a visual cure-all (in language of numbers, there is mathematical morphology; in the lexicon of infertility, there is reproductive morphology; in linguistics, morphology is the study of the form and structure of words)
- Documenting: Combine the urge to collect with the inclination to organize, and the resulting activity offers unique assortment of scientific pretensions. In documenting, designers dutifully observe the minutiae of their efforts, recording with a detail-consciousness bordering on the absurd.
- Thesis model of Hegelian dialectics: scientist migrates from observation to analysis to discovery; designer catalogs the everyday, making thick, wordless books with pictures that jump the gutter
- Faux Science is the new vernacular, a methodology that, while highly disciplined in a formal sense, is still all about appropriation.
- "The difficulty lies not in the new ideas, but in escaping the old ones.” In other words, design beyond reach (serious questions about the role of education)
Michael Vanderbyl- Graphic Design Thesis: A Survivor's Guide
Summary: an overview of Graphic design thesis project
- purpose of graphic design thesis: designed to define the complex intersection between personal voice, conceptual understanding, and the ability to conduct and use research effectively in the service of creating a compelling, finely crafted public communication
- thesis proposal: a proposition/ argument which you intend to support through research, it might detail your anticipated investigation/ address the potential implications of your proposition; a clear and well written proposal will direct your research, the form of your project and its design
TIPS: - start with what interests you, make sure you have a point, don't base your proposal on the obvious, shorter is usually better, think through your claims, don't make sweeping statements for dramatic effects, define terms, don't claim you will prove anything, be aware you will revise your proposal as your research and process evolves
- purposes of research: to understand how to evaluate what you see& read; to develop your own opinions& critical frameworks based o informed judgements; to acquire the critical skills to discern reliable/ useful sources from the junk; to evaluate your own work in light of what you learn through research; to develop your own understanding of the relationship of history/ theory to practice; to have the chance to explore a topic that interests you
TIPS: - let your topic dictate the type of research you do& have an idea of what you look for, maintain a level of cynicism, consult with an expert mentor, develop a system for note-taking, footnote sources, avoid reading pseudoscience, interviewing your friends is not research of intellectual merit
- thesis project: a proposition or argument explicated by design and supported by research
TIPS: - do not have preconceived ideas about what form your project will take, create a written outline of your narrative/argument diagramming core and secondary messages, give your audience multiple access points to your content, visual language of your thesis should be appropriate to your subject, make realistic time allowances for the inevitable learning curve, approach the idea of creating an installation with trepidation
- choosing topic strategies: to elucidate an original observation about your topic, to make audience reconsider the topic/see it in a new light, strategy of opposition, using the personal to communicate the universal, examining societal taboos, propose new avenues for design, elevate the little-notices to a place of prominence in the world
- 6 project sequence: research (readings, interviews, observations), analysis (what can i do with this research), design intent (what can i do with this research), methodology (how can i do it), fabrication (how will i make it), documentation (process book)
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Photography effect - Bokeh
I love photography and I love the effect of "bokeh". It is one of the photography effect that I use often. The main object is focused while everything is out of focus, and when there is light, it will turn into a dot of light. The image will look really elegant and interesting.
Kiwi_GaL, Bokeh Love, 2008, Flickr, 20 February 2010
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kiwi_gal/2588530003/>.
"Red Romance" Poster
I love this poster. The designer has incorporated words into the girl and her dress. The use of red is very strong and it just brings out the whole image. The words say "romance" and "red", which combines as the title of this poster.
bw-inc, Red Romance, 2008, Flickr, 20 February 2010
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bw-inc/2554658908//>.
Friday, February 19, 2010
Inspiration - typography assignment
We're doing an assignment in typography class, in which, we have to spell out the name of a chosen font with something that we found or we can create our own. I came across this poster and it inspired me with an idea for my assignment. I chose "Bauhaus" and I will spell out the letter by creating geometric shapes because this is one of the main characteristics of Bauhaus.
Pablo Alfieri, Playful, 2008, Flickr, 19 February 2010
http://www.flickr.com/photos/en_remolinos/2227138207/>.
Inspiration - Food design
I love eating. I always think that food is a form of art, a form of design. Food bento art is really popular in Japan. The example below demonstrates perfectly how food is truly a form of art and design.
kickintheheadcomic, Farm Bento, 2008, Flickr, 19 February 2010
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kickinthehead/3018015970/>.
Graphic Design 3 class - photography reference
I have to take photos of water for graphic design 3 class, so, I went on Flickr and I searched for inspirations on how I can express and demonstrate different forms of water.
Manveer, Water Macro, 2008, Flickr, 19 February 2010
http://www.flickr.com/photos/manveer/2859851248/>.
Friday, February 12, 2010
Readings 3
Judith Bell- the review of the literature
Summary: Bell defined “literature review “, “theory” and “theoretical framework” by referencing the definitions of others. She critiqued and did reviews on the short extracts from 3 successful literature reviews, and provided a “review of the literature” checklist at the end.
-Hart thinks lit review important because without it will not acquire understanding of the topic of what has already been done on it, how it was researched, what the key issues are. “The review is a part of academic development, of becoming an expert in the field.”
-critical review of literature: involves questioning assumptions, querying claims made for which no evidence has been provided, considering the findings of one researcher compared to those of others and evaluating. All researchers collect many facts, but then must select, organize and classify findings into a coherent pattern.
-theoretical framework: explanatory device which explains graphically or in narrative form, the main things to be studied – the key factors, construct, and the presumed relationships among them
Clara Nai: provide you some background to the problem of institutional barriers and also to the way Clara grouped her findings
Gilbert Fan: gives you an idea of how he approached his task on the decline in student enrolment; produced a complex but good review and good thesis
Richardson+Woodley: what good is that the language they used, the care they take in drawing conclusions from the research findings and the way some of the findings are qualified
Reviewing the 3 reviews:
Richardson+Woodley: had extensive knowledge of topic before they undertook the work, able to produce exhaustive review of previous studies
Clara and Gilbert: knew great deal about issues and identified topic of interest very early but did not have advantage of a firm knowledge base about previous research, sufficient for only a brief literature
Review of the literature checklist:
1. Evidence of reading will always be required in any research.
2. Researchers collect many facts but then must select, organize and classify findings into a
coherent pattern.
3. Your framework will not only provide a map of how the research will be conducted and
analysed but it will also give you ideas about a structure for your review.
4. Literature reviews should be succinct and, as far as is possible in a small study, should
give a picture of the state of knowledge and of major questions in your topic area.
5. Ensure that all references are complete. Note the page numbers of any quotations and
paraphrases of good ideas. You cannot use them without acknowledging the source. If
you do, you may become involved in a plagiarism challenge.
6. Watch your language. Perhaps inferences may be drawn, but ‘proof’ is hard to come by
when dealing with human beings.
7. Examine your sources critically before you decide to use them.
8. Remember that unless you are comparing like with like, you can make no claims for
comparability.
9. Do not be tempted to leave out any reports of research merely because they differ from
your own findings.
10. Start the first draft of your review early in your reading. Many more drafts will be
required before you have a coherent and ‘critical’ account but better to start small and
then build on your first attempt than to have to make sense of everything you have read
at one attempt.
Eric Alterman- Out of print
Summary: Death and life of American newspaper: Newspapers are dying because of the emergence of internet. Not many people want to read plain old newspapers. Huffington Post created an internet-based news site and it came back “alive”. Ironically, the internet is going to save newspaper companies, if they can fully embrace it.
- few believe that newspapers in their current printed form will survive. Newspaper companies are losing advertisers, readers, market value
- trends in circulation and advertising, rise of the Internet made the daily newspaper look slow and unresponsive; newspapers have created Web sites that benefit from the growth of online advertising, but the sums are not nearly enough to replace the loss in revenue from circulation and print ads.
- the advent of Craigslist, which is wiping out classified advertising- have created a sense of doom
- rather than compete in an era of merciless transformation, the families that owned the Los Angeles Times and the Wall Street Journal sold off the majority of their holdings
- 19% of Americans between 18-34 claim to even look at newspaper(least preferred source for news)
- average age of the American newspaper reader is 55^
- public trust in newspapers is slipping, less than 1 in 5 believe what they read; nearly 9 in 10 thinks the media consciously seek to influence public policies
-Today’s consumers “want news on demand, continuously updated”, want a point of view about not just what happened but why it happened, able to use the information in a larger community- to talk about, to debate, to question, meet people who think about the world in similar or different ways.
- news is a shared enterprise between its producer and its consumer
- Internet-based news site is alive in a way that is impossible for paper and ink. Huffington Post took advantage of their community and created new way of thinking and presenting the news: vast majority of the stories that it features originate elsewhere> editors link to whatever they believe to be the best story on a given topic> repurpose it with a catchy, often liberal-leaning headline> provide a comment section beneath it where readers can chime in
- Huffington editorial process: using mullet strategy (argue and vent on the secondary pages, but professional editors keep the front page looking sharp
- newspapers are dying: the evidence of diminishment in economic vitality, editorial quality, depth, personnel, and the over-all number of papers
Stacy Schiff - Know it all
- Summary: to show the origin of Wikipedia from 2001's progress to current time. The author stressed the point that Wikipedia is not a reliable source because it can be edited by a 5 year old.
- Wikipedia provides so much more content than Britannica when searching for keywords : If you typed "women" on Britannica and typing "coffee preparation” on Wikipedia we can see the big difference (lists espresso machines which you will want to consult before buying.)
- Wikipedia: search word for the whole layout; Britannica only one-fourth of layout, rest of the page are ads
-Wiki is easy to use because when you type in a keyword in the search bar, Wikipedia lists the matches from most relevant to irrelevant; Britannica gives you a list of options to choose from, has more ads and buttons
- Wikipedia has history and additional related topic to the search word, unlike Britannica, which only shows a brief definition of the word.
-Wiki is to Brit as rock and roll is to easy listening- Wiki may not be as smooth, but it scares the parents and is a lot smarter at the end because as like Brit, Wiki is a combination of manifesto and reference work
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