OUGD404 - colour swatches

For my first swatch I decided to use one of my photos from my travels during the summer. I loved this picture of a Venice canal and was inspired by the green of the water, the red of the boat and the pop of yellow in the background.

However as the brief was to swatch 'your street' I decided to stick to photographs of Leeds. After walking through the uni campus I got a few photos with interesting colours I could use in my booklet.

I chose to use the swatch below of the pond in the middle of University of Leeds campus. I loved the green and yellow in the water coupled with the greys and blues in the building/windows and the unexpected pinky-red in the Costa sign.

1. Pantone 1153

2. Pantone 695

3. Pantone 5635

4. Pantone Warm Gray 3

5. Pantone 5773

6. Pantone 5415

7. Pantone 7407

8. Pantone 728

9. Pantone 437

10. Pantone Process Black 

OUGD404 - Supermundane

Another who uses colour as a vital element to his designs is Supermundane (aka Rob Lowe), a designer and typographer from London.

He states himself that his 'practice is defined by a distinctive use of colour'. He also intends his work to have a physical or mental effect on the viewer.
This is evident when you look at his pieces. The mesmerising, intricate patterns and the bold colours coupled with the small details such as miniature dots gives the effect of an optical illusion. This encourages the user to interact with the piece more.

Lowe doesn't tend to use representational colours in his work, which he states gives him a lot more freedom when creating the design. He also says he does use orange and cyan a lot in his pieces. 

His piece in Leeds train station perfectly demonstrates the bold nature of his work. The bright colours of the mural contrast well with the grey and drab nature of the station, and offer some cheer to the atmosphere.

OUGD404 - Camille Walala

Camille Walala's signature style has been described as 'tribal POP'.

Her use of colour as one of the themes throughout her work makes a striking statement, whether the piece is small or supersize plastered on the side of a building. Although Camille is a graduate in Textile Design, she favours working large scale. She discovered this whilst working on XOYO's interior - "I absolutely loved the result. It was so nice to see the buzz and energy it gave to the place when the night came! That was IT, I found my purpose in life – making people smile and happy by creating colourful, bold and joyful surrounding environment."

Camille favours bright, bold colours to give her work a young and fresh vibe. This wall piece below is a prime example of this and it perfectly fits in with the trendy scene in Shoreditch, London.

Recurring colours I have noticed in many pieces of her work are turquoise, as well as the primary colours. These are instrumental in making her work stand out as they are simple yet bold and compliment the shapes in the pieces perfectly.

Camille says she spends a lot of time also trying to find colour combinations that work well together by looking at paintings or other imagery. This has inspired me to do the same and carry this on throughout my personal design work.

OUGD404 - International Klein Blue

International Klein Blue, created and registered by Yves Klein in 1957, was described by Klein as 'a Blue in itself, disengaged from all functional justification'. 

IKB 191 (1962)

Klein began to paint ultramarine monochrome paintings in the late 40's but was dissatisfied. The perfect blue colour was evading him.
He had specific difficulties creating a paint from the powder. In Klein's opinion, the fixatives used would extinguish the colour of the pigment. By enlisting the help of an art supplier, Edouard Adam, and finding a colourless fixative, Klein was able to create a colour (pigment) conserving all of the 'energy' of the powder. 

At the end of the 1940's, Klein took up monochrome paintings. He described the practice as "a means of painting that is against painting, against all the anxieties of life, against everything". After creating IKB, Klein entered his "blue" period (1955 - 62) using nothing but the colour to create hundreds of pieces, using a variety of media. This even included sculptures and performance pieces, where models would be painted in the colour and then walk and roll onto canvases.

IKB is striking and shocking. Whereas Klein describes it as a form of pure light, Maggie Nelson - an art critic - calls it too much. This surely echoes the sentiments of many, as I feel the colour is a dividing topic. The intensity of the colour, meant to depict 'cosmic space' allows it to stand out, and even creates hallucinatory overtones. IKB has become a colour famous in the art and design world. 

For example, a designer by the name of Valeria McCulloch, who has worn only blue for over 16 years, once claimed it was the only colour she wore.

Even more prominently, Klein Blue is the colour used by the Blue Man Group - a performance art company. The group perform musical and theatre numbers whilst wearing black clothes, and any visible skin is painted in IKB.

William Gibson used the colour in his novel Zero History. One of the characters has a suit made out of the colour, as he found it amusing that it frequently makes other people uncomfortable, due to its intensity. I found this interesting as a colour cannot be shown in a book, so the colour is almost infamous enough to be known to a novelist and used in this context.

OUGD404 - CMYK/RGB

CMYK and RGB are the two main colour models used in printing. A colour model is a system for creating a range of colours derived from primary colours.

RGB stands for Red Green and Blue - ie. the primary colours. RGB is used for digital displays and is an addictive colour model. This means the model uses light to display colour. By adding the colours together, lighter colours are produced. White is the product of all 3 primary colours in this model - reflecting the way light and the way the colours in the colour spectrum work to create white light.

Notice that in the RGB diagram the overlay of Red and Blue creates Magenta, Blue and Green makes Cyan and Green and Red creates Yellow.

RGB is used in screens - the white of the screen is made so by all pixels lighting up to full intensity. On the other hand, a black screen will be created by all pixels being off, and any colours on a screen made by the pixels illuminated in different values. 
RGB is the standard colour mode used in applications because it offers the most colours. Mixing the primary colours can create many combinations.

CMYK is the colour model used in most printers. In contrast to the RGB model, the creation of lighter colours depends on the removal of ink. This is referred to as a subtractive colour model.
CMYK is made up of Cyan (blue), Magenta (pink), Yellow and Key (black). 

Similarly to the RGB diagram, the overlaps create colours, however these are the primary colours. The combination of colours absorb light to create the colour.

In printing, each colour is put on the page separately, and layered. The result is the colour, printed in tiny dots in varying saturation and in half-tone. This half toning creates the appearance of a solid, by blocking out the light. 

While RGB is used for creating designs for screen purposes, CMYK is used for printing so if you were to print the same picture in both methods the picture would appear different.

Subjectivity vs Objectivity

The debate on Objectivity vs subjectivity in design was an interesting subject to explore in the study task work prior to creating my wayfinding system. Wim Crouwell firmly believes in objectivity; 'When Jan says that design is a subjective activity, he adopts -as a designer - the role of intermediary. I’m afraid, however, to adopt such a subjective role, and rather try to take an objective stance.' On the other hand Jan Van Toorn believes in subjectivity; 'I do not believe that a designer can adopt the position of neutral intermediary. The acts you perform take place through you, and you are a subjective link.' Van Toorn strongly opposes Crouwel's opinions and at one point the debate between them gets heated.‘You impose your design on others and level everything. You were at the forefront, and now our country is inundated by waves of trademarks and house styles and everything looks the same.’   

Crouwel represents the idea of the designer as messenger whereas Van Toorn proposes the notion of the graphic designer as an enabler of criticism and empowerment. In this way Crouwell can be seen as a modernist, similar to the views of Massimo Vignelli due to their beliefs in simple, corporate work, whereas Van Toorn can be compared to David Carson who's cluttered work directly reflects his own personal style.

OUGD404 - Pantone

Pantone came about as the printing company of M & J Levine Advertising, founded by the Levine Brothers. Shortly after he was hired, employee Lawrence Herbert found a way to organise the company's inks and pigments using his chemistry degree knowledge. After making a profit running the printing department he bought out another struggling division and subsequently renamed it Pantone.

The Pantone Colour Matching system devised by Herbert is mainly used in printing as an effective and consistent way to match colours. Deriving from only 14 basic colours, the system now contains over 1100 colours. These colours are all numbered, and this is the method used to describe and reference them. The standardised colours allows designers and printers etc to refer to the Pantone system to check consistency throughout the production process. 

Pantone even releases how each colour can be made in RGB and CMYK by releasing the values for each colour in the models.

As a product, the colours are presented in swatch guides available to buy. The pages of the guides contain colour swatches, often a colour in varying tints and tones. The swatches can then be used even by the smallest of designers.

Whereas CMYK is suitable for printing such as full colour photographs, Pantone colours should be used in designs. There are examples of use across the world, from flags to logos. For example the designated colours for the Union Jack (excluding white) are as follows:

Even Barbie has a designated Pantone colour: 219C. This pink is used across Barbie's branding, in logos and packaging.

I think the invention of Pantone has revolutionised the way we design, especially given the shift in recent years from hand crafted designs to the digital age of computers and desktop publishing. By creating a coherent and standardised system for every colour imaginable the production process has become easier and more efficient. 

OUGD404 - colour theory research

Colours are arranged within the colour wheel - first created by Sir Isaac Newton in 1666.
It is based on red, yellow and blue otherwise known as the primary colours. All colours derive from these 3 basic ones.

Secondary colours come from a mix of these primary colours, orange (red and yellow), purple (red and blue) and green (yellow and blue).
Tertiary colours fall in between these and complete the colour wheel (below).

Colour Harmony 

Harmony in visual terms is something pleasing to the eye. In relation to colours, harmony would bring balance and stability to the viewer. However if the colours were too harmonious, or dull in other words, the viewer would be underwhelmed meaning the colour combinations would not work well and the design would fail.
On the other hand, if colours don't harmonise they will clash. This will put the viewer off and create a sense of chaos. Meaning people will not look at the design as they cannot make sense of it. You have to reach an equilibrium to avoid boring or chaotic colour combinations.


Analogous colours are any 3 colours next to each other on the colour wheel. (eg dark green, a medium toned green and a lighter green).
Complementary colours are colours facing each other on the colour wheel. Eg purple and yellow or orange and blue. These colours create a contrast and often a successful design.


Colours can appear vastly different in differing contexts. 

The red next to the black stands out more in the black background, but looks duller in the white background. It gets lost completely in the orange surroundings but looks vibrant against the blue. The above picture perfectly demonstrates the relationships between colours and how the context is vital in portraying a message and complimenting a design accurately.

The rectangle on the left, appears to have more of a reddish tinge against the blue tinged purple background, as opposed to the rectangle on the right which looks more blue against the red toned purple background. In fact the rectangles are the exact same colour. This is really interesting as it demonstrates the subjective way our eyes see colours.

Warm and cool colours

Warm colours are associated with daylight/sunset and cool colours with an overcast or grey day. Warm colours are generally red to yellow including browns, and are said to arouse the viewer, whereas cool colours are blue and green tones, which relax the viewer.
For example, coffee shops tend to favour warmer colours to create a 'cosy' atmosphere, where the visitor can feel comfortable and at home. An art gallery on the other hand will use cool colours to create a sense of calm.

OUGD404 - Josef Albers

Josef Albers was a German - American artist and educator. He studied painting at the Academy of Fine Arts in Munich and joined the Bauhaus as a glass maker at the beginning of his career. He is best known as an abstract painter and theorist - particularly for the strict composition and varying colour palettes within his work 'Homage to the Square', which was extremely influential and informative in the field of colour study. 

Albers created hundreds of variations of 3 or 4 squares set inside each other. The squares were all set the same, all placed nearer the bottom of the image as opposed to a central alignment.

The square sets are created in hundreds of different colour combinations and with no additions of text, the combinations across all pieces of artwork alter the feeling and character of each artwork. Despite the composition never changing, the relationships between each square in one piece vary - the climates, as Albers put it, are vastly different.

For example, in the left piece, the colours used remind me of a fire or a sunset, and envoke feelings of warmth. The feeling of the piece overall is an uplifting one. However on the right, in all squares he uses blue but in different tones. The inward gradient effect coupled with the use of a cool colour makes the piece more sombre and feel less happy. 

Albers work perfectly demonstrates the profound effect colour has on design and the importance of picking the perfect colours to compliment designs. The colours used in a design to convey a message/feeling need to be researched and well thought out to avoid a mis communication.

OUGD404 - colour booklet briefing

6th Dec 2016

research Josef Albers and the homage to the square

research Pantone and Lawrence Herbert

Pantone your street

photo of street within Leeds, take area and swatch it
time of day (?)

Camille Walala 'she lights up the night'

colour in fashion

• photograph street scene
• colour swatch
• booklet in a design of your choice/backed by research
• including colour swatch and OWN words

• 250 words on Joseph Albers
• 250 on Klein blue
• 6 examples of Klein blue in GD
• 100 words on Pantone
• 100 words on RGB v CMYK
• 500 words on the use of colour in GD
• research/images/evaluation of the colour group/harmonies/contrasts

ways of folding
stock card/paper
layout

M to M M/M Paris
Making and breaking the grid
The layout look book
art of the book
high quality
japanese book binding

Study task 1 research

Jim Lambie

Jim Lambie uses brightly coloured vinyl tape which he arranges in the gallery space to highlight the architecture of the room. The continuous lines coupled with the bright colours changes the dynamic of the room - turning what was once a peaceful and quiet space into one with energy and rhythm - the room feels more alive.


Pae White

Pae White focuses on everyday objects and her use of space is seen to be unusual and notifiable. To quote her:

"For the last several years, my practice has focused on an exploration of the neglected, the forgotten, the spaces between things, even the things between things. I am equally drawn to the temporary, the fleeting, to the ephemera of everyday life. My work has attempted to subvert the viewer's expected relationship to an everyday object, nudging them off balance, encouraging a deeper look."

This can be related to wayfinding as she alters the viewers view on something, diverting them and refocusing their viewpoint.

OUGD405 1 - Study Task 1

Study task 1
video 2 mins long groups of 4

test how people react to interventions and with public space

supergraphics and wayfinding

1. create a diversion
2. create a new connection
3. make someone pause or stop

thorougly document Leeds

gather visual research/ ideas for you subjective sign system: beauty, loss, fear

only use abstract graphic language
no text

Jim Lambie

Pae White

Eltono

Ideas 

1. block off a way, use arrows to direct people, mock construction (X over pavement tile)
2. a chair, bench (decorated), pathway (with a dotted line or arrows), hopscotch/footprints
3. chalk drawing, tape installation

We could carry out our task at Liberty Park, Trinity or Merrion centre, on Briggate, at LCA or Uni of Leeds, or at the train station. We though that everywhere with maybe the exception of Liberty Park would give us lots of people to interact with our signage.

SIGN 1
Our first setting was the University of Leeds campus. We chose to use this setting around lunchtime as a lot of students and staff would be wandering through the campus, and we would be likely to create an intervention or diversion of some sort.

For our first sign we used tape to section of an area of walkway we observed many people walking through - the space between a pillar and a large plant pot. The path through here was direct and one frequently used, presumably for its ease and speed.
We decided to tape off this area using red and yellow tape. We chose these colours - using colour theory - as red symbolizes danger and yellow is eye catching, encouraging people to take notice of the sign and create the potential for pause or stop.
The way we arranged the tape formed a sort of cross shape as crosses are used to symbolize a wrong action. We thought this would deter people from walking through the section too.

Whilst filming our sign, we observed that everyone was diverted around this walkway, not using the path they potentially would have done.


SIGN 2
For our second sign we moved to the city centre, particularly Briggate, the popular and busy shopping street in the centre of the city. 

For this sign we created an arrow, placed onto Dan's torso and pointing towards his hand, which is held up in a high five motion. Once again we used the material at our disposal, tape, but instead of red or yellow we used green. The arrow signifies direction, or an invitation, and the green colour represents the word 'go'. All these coupled together clearly invite people to high five Dan while he remains motionless in the centre of the street with his hand outstretched. 

As expected we were successful in our approach and many people came to high five him either on their way past him, or physically changed their path in order to high five him.
In this way we made many new interactions with the public, in the form of a high five.

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlN6rlf8-ps


EVALUATION

Overall our signs worked really well. We achieved 2 of the objectives: creating a diversion, and making a new connection. 
In creating sign 1 we took into account colour theory and the use of red and yellow I think helped to reinforce the purpose of the sign.

Sign 2 was more abstract in the way it was presented - on the human body. I think this also worked well though, people were more likely to interact with it as it was on another human making it more familiar to them. 

Otl Aicher

Otl Aicher was a German graphic designer best known for his pictograms created for the 1972 Munich summer olympics (shown below).

The Munich pictograms are created using 45 and 90 degree angles only, each depicting a sport, with silhouettes in poses affiliated with the sport. The icons are standardised due to these angles and consistent stroke thickness through the head, body and limbs of each icon. 

Aicher designed these using a grid system and the uniformity of the icons coupled with the clarity of the design lead to the icons becoming a milestone in icon design. The icons were reused for the 1976 summer olympics in Montreal, Canada - proving and reinforcing their success.

What is interesting is that Otl based these icons on the ones from the 64 Olympic games in Japan, designed by Yoshiro Yamashita and Masaru Katzumie. These icons (below) do not conform to this grid system and include curved lines and varying stroke thickness. Otl has moved on from this approach and while using the basis of silhouettes in sport poses he has brought a sense of uniformity to the icons.

I really like Otl's approach to iconography. The consistency and ease of understanding of the icons is something I would love to carry across to my own signs/icons and I think I would be able to do this by using a grid system, similarly to Aicher.

Leeds signs

*add more detail to signs*

Road sign shows direction (arrows), as well as icons for public transport. These road signs are kept consistent throughout all of the UK to ensure understanding.

UK symbol for parking.

Public transport signs. Bus stop signs include numbers for buses and stop number too to make a journey easily navigated. Bus icon on bus shelter allows people to easily see what it is - important for foreign visitors unfamiliar with the bus system.
Blue is also the colour used for information within the UK sign system.

CCTV camera is obvious, shows a camera indicating that we are being watched. No smoking sign is an Imperative sign, warning us of the prohibited action. 

Traffic lights are a type of sign - the colours give instructions (red=stop, amber=waiting, green=go). This allows people to cross the road safely and cars to avoid traffic incidents.

Sign posts give directions to places on the post using arrows and pointing these arrows in the general direction.

Disabled icon - international symbol universally recognised.

Triangle is a warning - coupled with the red colour this sign is warning about CCTV.

The exclamation mark also shows a warning.

Arrows indicate direction and the cones also signal a warning (orange colour). These are often used to block off paths.

 

Double yellow lines on a road mean no parking here. As opposed to a single yellow line which means parking is not allowed at certain times of the day.

Neon yellow and red stripes provide a clear warning. 

Symbols for restaurant, wifi and male and female toilets.

Arrows provide direction, encouraging people to walk a certain way.

Symbols seen in Leeds trinity centre. Left provide warnings and direction in reference to the use of an elevator, right show icons of services eg. toilet, information point and cinema.

Footsteps are indicative, encouraging people to step on to the escalator as well as telling users which way to face - preventing accidents.

Signs are more obvious/ noticeable when scaled up and lit up - neon lighting catches the eye.

Road crossings feature 'red and green men' telling pedestrians when it is safe to cross. Also crossings with striped posts and flashing lights on top to indicate when to cross.

Bike symbol, arrow and red path clearly show which part of the pavement is the cycle path.

Commonly used sign showing a barbers shop. Red and white striped pole.