Evaluating Des Comm

I was very pleased with the way Des Com worked this quarter.

A few specific things I liked:
1. Having "TA's" This made a big difference since we were such a big class. We always had someone to talk to each class
2. Teaching new methods instead of new skills. We learned several different ways to go about projects. We can always learn how to be better at certain skills, or learn new skills; learning different methods is also very important so we can start to create our own unique work flow.
3. The class had due dates and quantities of what was due, but some things were more guidelines. I am not entirely sure if that makes sense but I felt that having less restrictions on the projects made them more fun and made me try harder.

The only complaint I really had was the timing of the tea project with all of our studio work, there was quite a bit going on there and it got a little overwhelming.

Evaluating My Work

I felt like this was probably my best quarter so far. I made a big effort this quarter to break out of my own mold, at least in terms of my design process and style. I started out only doing this in Des Comm, I figured that that would be the class to do it in since if I have a bad project it was only 2 or 3 weeks wasted (probably not wasted, I would probably learn things). It might have happened on accident, but about half way through the quarter, I started to do it in my studio as well, and I changed gears on my project, and it is probably my most successful yet.
Next school quarter, I would like to continue pushing the limits (my limits) in my designs. I want to take advantage of the fact that I can do things that are a little more "out there", while I am still in school. Over my internship, I hope to take advantage of the situation and learn as much as possible. Since I will be living at home, I am planning to get a lot of personal things done that are hard to do when I am in school.
I also plan to continue blogging, I have enjoyed it and think that it is good practice to write and discuss design. I am expecting very few people to read it but it should be fun anyway.

Wasting Time

I have not been able to stop watching this, and neither will you if you have a heart.
Click

Sorry, My Posts Were Getting Wordy

My posts have been getting extremely wordy. I do not feel like most people, especially designers, would read them. Designers tend to be visual people and would probably not read a post unless and image first got their attention.

So a blog can be a great tool for communicating design and who you are. It could almost act as a pre-interview. People can see your portfolio to see your skills and then they can see your blog to find out a little more about you and if they would want to work with you. So at the same time, if it is not done correctly, people will not read it and not know what you are interested in. This is not at all about Obama, I just figured it would get people to read through the post to see what I had to say about him.

Picture from The Big Picture, has some amazing and large news photographs.

Reviewing Goals

In my first post I mentioned a few goals I had for myself this quarter. I did not exactly get to them as I had planned. One of the goals I did not do so well on (exploring Cincinnati), and the other (honing my skills as a designer) I did but not as I had expected.

I am always working on all of my skills, but a little ways in to this quarter I decided to use my Design Communications class to experiment. I have mentioned it before; t is hard to experiment in your actual studio where not having a good project means an entire quarter of work with no portfolio piece and a bad grade. In Des Comm, however, a bad concept will not necessarily result in a bad grade, and 2 weeks of work with no portfolio piece in the end is much easier for me to justify. This quarter I went ahead with a project and concept that I typically would not have gone forward with because I would have considered it too risky. And I also tried to change it up graphically. Normally I stick to blue, white, and gray in presentations; this time I even used pink in a presentation, I never do that. I feel that I slightly but successfully broke out of my own mold in a few areas this quarter. I definitely consider that a success. for this quarter.

In my goal of exploring more of Cincinnati, I was relatively unsuccessful (the little getting around that I did, however, was great). When I had free time I just wanted to relax alone or chill with friends. There was an unexpected event for next quarter; I got a job at Priority Designs, which I am really excited about, in Columbus, my home town. This is great for a few different reasons. I will not feel any need to get around and see the sights of Columbus, I did that for 18 years when I grew up there. My plan is to focus on things that I tend to not have time for when I am away on internships or at school. (personal design projects, art, playing guitar, reading, biking, skiing, exercise, its a really big list in my head)

Overall, even though it is not done, I consider this a successful and enjoyable quarter, and hopefully my internship will be as successful and enjoyable as my last.

Strengths and Weaknesses

My strengths as a designer, I have spent plenty of pre-interview time thinking about answers to this and other such questions, but so far these standard interview questions have not come about. Even though they have not come up, it is important to be aware of your abilities, the strengths and the weaknesses. The strengths are important because you need to know what to focus on; the weaknesses are probably more important because obviously they are going to offer more room for improvement. Unless you are the type of designer that falls into the overly pretentious category, there is always room for improvement. Improvement, while obviously being important professionally, can also be personally satisfying. Everyone loves the feeling when you realize one day that you are definitely better than you previously had been, you have hopped up from that old plateau and are now starting on a new one.

It did not take me too long to come up with my own strengths and weaknesses. Being a student, our work is constantly being judged by teachers, our peers, and ourselves; I have already spent plenty of time thinking about these things.

My Strengths

1. Keeping the User In Mind

I feel that I am good at keeping the users needs at the forefront of my design and decision making processes. I always try to keep in mind who I am designing for, with everything from usability to emotional connection.

2. Not Being Stubborn

It is easy to get caught up in an initial idea or concept and to just go with it. This is fine as long as other options do not get blocked of; they still need to be left open. It is important to be open to new ideas throughout the entire design process. I try to do this by being open to suggestions from teachers and peers (ID as well as in other majors). I will occasionally step back from what I am doing and explore a different route. I will treat it as an exercise and not be upset when nothing new comes from it. Even if nothing comes from it, stepping back works as a good exercise and an enjoyable mental break.

3. I Have Fun

This is really important. I cannot afford to and do not want to get burnt out. Projects need to be fun. I do this by trying new things, enjoying the new learning experiences and everything else that comes with the projects. I love what I am doing in my life now and have a great passion for design. That being said, it is not the only thing in my life. I think it is important to experience many things and keep many different activities and hobbies going.

My Weaknesses

1. Sketching Ability

I have recently made some big improvements here but there is still quite a ways to go

2. Risk Taking

It can be hard to take a big risk on a project. The risk of failure is high, which would mean no portfolio piece and a bad grade, hard to convince myself that is is worth it. The result, however, could really be something great.

3. Keeping Contact

I have not done the best job in keeping contact with people I have met and worked with on my previous internships. It is not only good for networking purposes but socially I met some great people I want to stay in touch with.

Useful Boundaries

Dieter Rams' 10 Principles for good design
Good design is innovative.
Good design makes a product useful.
Good design is aesthetic.
Good design helps us to understand a product.
Good design is unobtrusive.
Good design is honest.
Good design is durable.
Good design is consequent to the last detail.
Good design is concerned with the environment.
Good design is as little design as possible.

Dieter Rams was a product designer for Braun in the 50s and 60s. Plenty of Apple designs and forms have been directly influenced by Braun products designed by Rams. (Interesting comparison here) This is not so much about a design process but about guidelines. Typically a design brief or problem statement is used as the basic groundwork of restrictions for coming up with a design. Restrictions may sound like a bad thing, but in the context of problem solving and creativity, they provide the framework that concentrates, focuses, and allows the creativity to flourish into a well refined solution.

A basic set of principles that are always in the back of the mind can be a valuable tool when designing. Having this list of principles or personal guidelines that apply to all your work can not only be helpful, but can act as your own quality control. These restrictions keep the thought process focused so the creativity can also stay focused on what is important, the problem and the solution.

As someone matures as a designer, they will probably have their own list, either written or just in their mind. It will probably be evolved from a mix from others and things that have come from experiences. Either way, having a "list" in addition to the problem or brief will only benefit in the process and consequently in the end result.

Nike Football

I have watched this so many times. It's the new Nike Football commercial, "Fate" by David Fincher. It chronicles the lives of LaDainian Tomlinson and Troy Polamalu. Great music and amazing vizuals. I just wish I had time to exercise.

Illustration and Storyboards

Stephan Martiniere is probably my favorite concept artist. He has been involved in many movies and video games. His work is very varied, with everything from quick sketch fine art fully rendered digital paintings. They are all extremely visually descriptive and tell their own story.

Another artist who tells convincing stories through sketching and art is Jim Mickle, a storyboard artist.
Jim Micke does a great job getting an idea across using just quick sketches and occasionally descriptions. He uses the main image of a scene to describe what is going on.

The ability to tell stories is an important part of a designers skillset. It is practically everything we do. We tell the story of a product; we tell the story of a problem someone is having with a product; we tell the story how a product or system causes a problem; we tell the story of how a problem can be solved.

Quick Visualization

I just finished up some exercises in quick visualizations of some USB thumb drives. The exercise was not just about an overall design but about working on details and some new rendering and guess...visualization techniques.
USB drives were used because there is not much to design other than details; the shape and size is basically fixed. With the quick schedule of school, this part normally gets overlooked. I traditionally go from a nice sketch to 3D really quickly (not always the best approach).
I choose the company Konzuk. They are a Canadian jewelry company known for their work with stainless, concrete, and powder coating.



I realized that there are ways to do things faster. It took me awhile on my first few, but then I was able to go quickly. The problem was that previous to this, I was either sketching or rendering. I never did much of the in between. I had to learn how to do this. There is a big difference between a sketch render and an incomplete final render.
I realize how helpful this process can be. I already did some more of it for my sustainable pc project this quarter.
I think this could be a good thing for a client because sometimes you do not want them to fall in love with an idea too early; this process makes them realize things are still in the design stages. If you gave them hyper realistic renders early and then find that it cannot be done the client might be very disappointed.
The rest the work for this will eventually be on my coroflot portfolio and my pdf portfolio.

Design from Down Under

Surya Graf is a designer in Brisbane, Australia. He is currently working at a Street and Garden Furniture Company. Most of his website work is personal work. His site is extremely basic but fun and effective. In comparison to my work, his is all set on simple forms and colors. Graphically, in comparison to Colin Roberts, he is quite simple, only the basic and what is needed. I cant really say which is better. I know that simple works well for me (maybe because I am just not good at getting too intricate), but it is definatly personal and no matter what should be whatever displays the work best.

See his site here.

Different Styles

I wanted to talk about an Colin Roberts, I feel mildly lame picking a designer from UC that just graduated. I am not really into the same things, as his big thing is shoes. I do think it is good to learn from people whose work is very different than yours. Not only is his work very different, his graphic style is also very different (He has a very urban, street, and loose feel to his graphics). Sometimes the best place to pick up new techniques and styles is to learn from people with ones very different from your own. I am not saying I want my work to all of a sudden look like his, but I might find something that I could incorporate into my work.

Take a look at his his portfolio here.

Moving Fast

Technology changes at a faster pace than ever before, it seams every few weeks or even days new ideas and technologies are becoming a reality. I feel our life will be very different in the future, the changes will be more drastic than when our parents were young to the present day. I am going to leave these categories slightly general because I believe that there are too many to narrow it to three individual technologies.

1. Local Green energy

This one is obvious, but I couldn't leave it out. I don't really know if there will be just one that changes everything or is the answer, it will probably be a combination of multiple technologies. I think the noticeable difference will be that things will be more local, it will not be what we have now where there are giant power plants for millions of homes and buildings; it will be local things. (Solar is not so great in the arctic for half the year, and wind is not that great in most inland areas)

2. Nano Technologies

This can have a huge impact on everything, from consumer electronics to medical equipment. The new possibilities are endless when things get smaller. More can be shipped, more lives can be saved and improved with the shrinking of components, Certain things that might have to keep someone in a hospital now hooked up to machines may one day be a small device inside them enabling them to live a normal life.

3. Social Networking and Information Sharing

(Facebook, Myspace, Linkedin, Flickr, and the millions of other similar sites.)
This has already had profound effects on society, but I think some of the possibilities have not all been reached or realized. So many people can have access other people's information as well as post there own. The internet has already connected so many people and enabled people to share so much information. I believe that so much more is going to come from things like this, the quality of information and amount will continue to grow exponentially. The world will continue to get smaller and smaller.

Tease

I recently saw the trailer for the move The Watchmen, originally a graphic novel by Alan Moore.



I recently worked on a teaser for my portfolio. A movie trailer/teaser is very similar to this, the movie is the teaser for the movie and my teaser is a teaser for me/ my portfolio.
What I thought worked well in the Watchmen trailer was that they showed quite a lot, but not anything truly important. It got me excited and kept me wondering and wanting more. This is exactly what a teaser should be, get them excited and wonder what else you are capable of.

Keep on truckin

Freitag, a Swiss bag manufacturer, not only has a strong message, they also live by it. Recycle. In this day and age it is more important than ever. The two brothers that own the company make the bags out of used semi truck tarps and old seatbelts. By using strong and durable materials while maintaining good designs, they have created an object that people will want to keep for years and one that will last for all those years.
I mentioned that they also live by this. Their headquarters in Zurich is made of old shipping containers.

Finally Done

Portfolio...Enjoy!

Portfolio Time

Here is a good article from Design Sojourn about describing some different types of portfolios. They discuss the different types as well as the persona, audience, dangers, and examples of each. The article is nice and short so your ADD shouldn't kick in.

Design Sojourn Designer Portfolio Shootout

Enjoy

First Post: Intro

I am a 4^th year industrial design student at the University of Cincinnati. I have done three internships so far. The first two were in Lexington, Kentucky at Lexmark International, the printer company. I learned a lot there and Lexington was a beautiful place. I don’t believe I could actually work there though, the job just wouldn’t have enough variety for me.

I just finished a summer internship in Austin, Texas at M3 Design. The job was great and I fell in love with Austin. I definitely plan on living there, at least for a few years. It was one of the most exciting places I have ever been, such a young and progressive town. It’s hard to believe a place like that exists in the middle of Texas. I kept busy the entire time, there was always so much going on. The music was great, the food was great, everything was great. M3 Design had 6 designers and lots of engineers. I had lots of fun with the people at M3 and learned a lot from everyone I worked with. I worked on everything from medical products to toys.

My experience in Austin has inspired me to work hard and to hone my skills as a designer. Another thing I got from my time in Austin is a new desire to explore; by this I mean experiencing where I am. I was always so active in doing things and going places in Austin, it has motivated me to try to find more things to do here in Cincinnati as well as wherever I end up on my next internship. Hopefully this quarter will be successful in all aspects.