Design Principles Project 2: Sense of Place

November 02, 2021

Design Principles Project 2: Sense of Place

17/10/2021 - 31/10/2021 (W9 - W10)
Evaleez Voo Lian Yun/ 0350275
Design Principles/ Bachelor of Design (Hons) in Creative Media
Project 2: Sense of Place

Index

Lectures

Lecture 7: Sense of Place

Introduction

A designer's role is to solve problems with effective visual communication.
These problems range from personal goals to community events, encompassing corporate functions to world changing projects.

Observation

It is an active act of acquiring information, through the senses, of a subject matter in its natural setting.
Our sense are important tools to let us know, feel, understand, analyse and even plan what we want to do.

The Importance of Observation

Being observant means to be attentive to your surroundings.
Pay attention to details and be analytical about them.
Observation can be an effective way to get ideas. These can stem from artfacts, daily happenings, physical surroundings, etc.
Example: Biomimicry

Fig 1.0 Beijing National Stadium (18/10/21)
Source: Lecture

Sense of Place

Give a hint of the surrounding you are in, how does the air feel? What is the temperature like? These feelings are taken in through careful observation and documentation of your surroundings.
Suitable design principles can be applied to create effective visuals.

Cropping
Proportionate composition
Emphasis

Think about the place you're in now, or somewhere you've been before that laid a lasting memory in you.

How do you express your sense of place?
Document your observations, photgraphs, diary, talking to others, etc.

Can be expressed through collage, illlustrations, scale model, etc.
Examples:

Fig 1.1 Sense of Place Example 1 (18/10/21)
Source: Lecture

Fig 1.2 Sense of Place Example 2 (18/10/21)
Source: Lecture

8 Ways to Improve Your Powers of Observation

Instructions

Visual Research

Note: All profile/ article links will be added in "References".

Fig 1.3 Sense of Place Reference 1 (21/10/21)
Source: Pinterest

When browsing through Pinterest, I found this artwork really interesting. The artist used the perspective from above to compose this work. Not only that, the subject matter are placed near to the intersection points in the Rule of Third and there exists a contrast between the lighting in the stairs and near the windows.

Fig 1.4 Sense of Place Reference 2 (21/10/21)
Source: Pinterest

In this work, the artist also used an interesting perspective in their composition. Again, the lighting here is superb and it gives a sens of depth and layering in the composition. This gives off a "this is a climax, look." vibe that most manga/ comic artists use and it trult captures the scenne in which the characters are in.

Idea Exploration and Description

Sketches

Design 1

For my first design, I wanted to incoporate a sweet memory I had when I was a kid. While looking at cartoons on TV3? TV7? - one of the local ones, I found out what a carousel was and I really wanted to ride it. Back then, my family's financial status wasn't as stable as it is now. Hence, we didn't spend a lot of money of entertainment or recreational activities. It didn't really bother me much too because I knew it was meaningless to think about it anyways.

In 2013, my dream was finally realized. My family went to Hong Kong Disneyland and I, of course, went on the carousel ride I dreamt off. Here's a picture of me and my mum in front of the carousell:

Fig 1.5 Disneyland Trip 2013 (22/10/21)

I wanted to capture the feeling I had when I was onboard the ride becuase it truly was a place with deep memories.

Fig 1.6 Design 1 Sketch (28/10/21)

As inspired by the references I found on Pinterest. I wanted to incorporate a nice angle to my design.

Design 2

Fig 1.7 Design 2 Sketch (28/10/21)

For the second design, I wanted to showcase an MRI machine. A few months ago, I had severe headaches everyday to the point where my parents told me to get my brain checked. Although it wasn't that scary to me, but I can tell my parents were pretty worried, especially my mum. So, actually getting the MRI was a memorable experience for me. The room looked so cool too, I thought I was in 2080. The room was all beige, with very little stuff except for a huge tunnel like thing in the middle.

Process

After receiving feedback from Dr. Charles and some thoughts myself, I chose Design to continue.

Fig 1.8 Design 1 Process 1 (28/10/21)

I started off with some lineart of the caousell and its horses. Since my last project was done in a straight angle, I wanted to use a different one this time, so I choose a lower, side angle to start my project off.

Fig 1.9 Design 1 Process 2 (28/10/21)

Gen Z term but everytime I look at this horse my brain goes, "What a Chad."

Fig 2.0 Design 1 Process 3 (28/10/21)

Since riding a carousell was a dream of mine since I was a kid, I wanted to insert adult me, reaching out to younger me because we made it, our dream came true <3.

Fig 2.1 Design 1 Process 4 (28/10/21)

However, the more I looked at it the more it feels as if older me takes too much attention away from the place itself. So, I drew a very happy younger me in the frame.

Fig 2.2 Design 1 Process 5 (28/10/21)

I started off by creating the background, I was aiming for a happy dreamy vibe and coincidentally I just downloaded some new textures from Clip Studio Paint and decided to use it in my design.

Fig 2.2 Design 1 Process 6 (29/10/21)

Afterwards, I added the flat colours of the design.

Fig 2.3 Design 1 Process 7 (30/10/21)

Rendering details to the composition.

Fig 2.4 Design 1 Process 7 (30/10/21)

The composition seemed like it was missing something. The cherry on the cake was to adjust the hues, levels, etc.

Feedback

Week 9

The carousel idea is good.
You should insert a picture of you on the carousell in your eportfolio.

Week 10

Sense refers to the 5 senses a human has, find ways to apporach those senses. You can try animating your work and add audio.
Let people feel was you felt when you were at the place.

Final Outcome

Fig 2.5 Sense of Place Final Outcome (31/10/21)

PDF:

A Child's Dream

Just like the Self- Portrait task, this task was quite enjoyable as well. Not only has it made me go deep into my meories to find places that gave me an impression, it also made me draw horses (it may seem like a mundane task, but I never drew horses before, so learning horse anatomy was interesting ʕ•́ᴥ•̀ʔっ)

Riding a carousel has always been a dream for me, being able to visualize it was a tough task but it helped me understand angles and colour theory better (making something look dreamy was way harder than making something look scary). I used the Rule of Thirds on my composition, which is visible with younger me being in one of the intersection points of the artwork.

Event though I am quite satisfied with my work, I feel bad for not trying to animate it, mainly due to the time constraint, which was entirely my fault (I forgot I had an AGM on the weekend and it took way too long), hopefully I'll be able to animate it before this semester ends.

Reflection

Observation is really important for a designer. The world is huge and sometimes we tend to miss out on the little details in life. In this case, remembering the scene in the carousel was incredibly hard, that's why the carousel itself doesn't have a lot of details. I felt like I would've been able to create a better composition if I was observant enought back then. Moreover, colours also play an important role in creating a certian atmosphere.

Note to self: When COVID restrictions ease, go out. Experience things you couldn't during the lockdown and note down the different atmospheres you are in. Why does it make you feel that way? Is it the lighting? The colour scheme? The structure? Observe these traits so you can use them in your designs next time.

References

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/869687378012717127/

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/869687378012717066/

Being More Observant is a Skill Your Can Learn; This is How You Do It

Parr, A., 2020. Being More Observant Is a Skill You Can Learn; This Is How You Do It. [online] Medium. Available at: <https://medium.com/live-your-life-on-purpose/being-more-observant-is-a-skill-you-can-learn-this-is-how-you-do-it-c30fa5723db9> [Accessed 29 October 2021].

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Evaleez Voo Lian Yun (0350275)