Creating Ideas

As a group on Thursday, we decided on the worst design out of the 12. We came up with the whisk that David brought. At some point we were laughing at poorly designed this whisk was. First off, it is metal and has rust all over it. This is terrible for when you want to actually use the whisk. Even just examining the object rust got everywhere. Secondly, the handle was so small that you could barely hold onto it. Also, there was no form to the handle just a straight metal bar. I thought that couldn’t be good for people with arthritis. Thirdly, when it comes to cleaning the actual whisk part it is very hard to get all the food out. Overall, we just came to the conclusion that this was definitely the worst designed object. So we started a web/map of how to make the design better and more helpful to the user. I found this very fun. Putting multiple minds together to come up with ideas was awesome. We created organized chaos on the paper. At one point we even came up with ideas of baby whisks and political figure whisks. However, in the end, we had some really great ideas. 

Project 1 summary

From this project I learned what good composition was and how the eye tends to like threes. Also, I learned that good color helps a design in more than one way. I learned that design is a process and spitting all ideas out, even the bad ones, will end up helping you come up with the final good design. I tried to use these things I learned to help me in my design. I used the concept of heirarchy using color, which I learned from the lecture was a good way to draw the eye to the most important part of the poster. I also made thumbnails of ideas so I could get out the bad ideas and look for the good ideas. If I were to do anything differently I would make more thumbnails and ideas to have more concepts to work off of. The most difficult part of the process would have to be the word list and intial ideas. After the starting point it got easier, but the start was hard, because I just had so many ideas I didn’t know where to start. Most of my ideas changed slightly into one another. They worked off each other, but none of them were drastic changes. Overall I found this project a real learning experience and I learned a lot about what is good design

5 initial good designs

The first object I chose for my good designed object was my laundry rack. This object’s main function is dry clothes that cannot go into the dryer. I considered this a good design because it folds up and is portable and is lightweight. It is also environmentally friendly because it is made of entirely recycled material. Also, the overall design is aesthetically pleasing.

The second object I chose was my razor. This is well designed because it has rubber around the razor area and smoothers to help reduce cuts and nicks. Also, there is a rubber grip that helps with holding the razor at the right angle. The head, where the razor is, bends and rotates to help with curves and knees when shaving. Finally, the pink color helps the user that this is a female razor.

These headphones I chose as my third object, is not even mine. Looking at well-designed objects, I noticed my roommate’s headphones and thought they were very well designed. First off, they have an adjustable head strap that is easy to adjust. The actual headphones, cuff around the entire ear to block out other sounds. Finally, they have a little notch to wrap the headphone cord on so that they won't get tangled.

My stapler has a good design because to put the staples in it, you just slide the top forward and place the staples in. Also, there is a safe guard, so you won’t staple your hand. Also, it is designed for both table stapling and air stapling.

My final object and the object I ended up using was my teapot. This object has a lot of well-designed features. First off, it is microwavable and this is very helpful for a college student. Also, the spout is designed so that when pouring the tea it has a notch for perfect pouring. Finally, you can steep the tea right in the pot with the tealeaves getting into the tea.

Color Police

The Good 

The image I chose that represented good color theory and color strategy was from Vanity Fair. This image shows the good use of harmonious strong chromas without having an overpowering effect. It also has a good use of neutrals to help the transitions between the different hues. Also, there is a constant motion that helps the viewer look at each item. This piece just has an overall good use of color theory. 

My other image for good color police was a Lincoln ad. I chose this image because it really just had a good quality of soften the contrast and used harmonious values and hues well together. When looked at altogether, it is visually appealling. 

The Bad

The image I chose that represented bad color. is a Ralph Lauren Fragrence ad. This image has bad written all over it. To start, the strong chromas are not harmonious. It distracts the audience from the product and there is no sense of hierarchy or where to look. Also, with the strong chromas, there are many different hues that clash and aren’t harmonious together. Overall, this is a bad use of color theory. 

My other image for bad color police was a JC Penny ad. I chose this image because it once agian uses harmonious strong chromas and contrasting hues together. Visually it is hard to look at without it blinding you. Also, it grabs the viewers attention but not exactly in a good way. It just looks bad overall. 

Color Theory

Point of intrerest will be scanned in 

 

Lincoln Ad will be Scanned in

There is one of each of my best examples of the different color theories and stratagies.

Harmonious Hues: 

Bottle graphic- this design is a perfect example of harmonious hues. Each of the hues flows into each other on the color wheel. The reds transition into orange then into yellow and so on. I find myself very drawn to this design because it also has a good use of chroma. There are certain hues that have stronger chroma, but then for transition it has a weaker chroma. Overall, I believe this is a great example of color theory in general. 

Harmonious Values:

Banana Republic Ad- This is an example of harmonious values. All of the values are light and give off an ethereal look, which is perfect for the perfume ad. All of the values of the greens and blues work with each other to create a harmonious piece.

Harmonious Chroma:

Points of Interest- In this assortment of items in a magazine the use of harmonious chromas were used to unite all of the items together and give them a sense of unity. It works well because it also uses the use of neutrals to separate the strong chromas from each other.

Contrasting Hues:

Shoe- this is picture has some interesting contrasting hues. It also has harmonious Chromas, but unfortunately it is kind of hard to look at. Both of the really bright chromas make it hard to look at the shoe.  

Contrasting Values:

Elie Saab Ad- In this ad there is a strong example of contrasting values that take place. With the light golds and dark browns and blues, the two actually complement each other. The light values stand out so there is a hierarchy of what the designer wanted the viewer to notice and in the back with the dark values it just emphasizes the focal point (light values).  

Contrasting Chromas:

Shirt (grey and red)- this picture has contrasting chromas. It has a strong red chroma and a weak gray chroma. Along with the design I think the colors are designed well into the pattern. 

Transitions in Value and Hue

World’s Fair poster- this is a great example of transition in value and hue. Each hue tends to have a softer value as it transitions into another color and it looks beautiful. Even though it is supposed to give of the idea of minimalistic, color wise it is not. The transitions are very specific and are used perfectly for the piece

Key The Color:

Book (tomorrow)- This book’s cover has a use of key the color. It has a strong yellow hue of over the entire picture. It gives it a sense of warmth and happiness, this works with the book because it’s about happiness. I really do like how it has the use of key the color, it works well with the over all piece.

Chroma Dominance

Shirt (orange)- this is an example of chroma dominance. With its very strong chroma it draws the viewer into looking at what looks important because all of the chroma is strong. I won’t say that it is a particularly good use of chroma dominance, but it catches the viewers eye, so in a way it does its job. 

Use Of Neutrals: 

Bed and bed spread- This picture represents use of neutrals. In the original picture the pillows were much more orange and the back board brown, but with the neutrals in between the two it gives it a easier way to view the colors. 

Softening the Contrast:

Lincoln Ad- in the ad it uses the color strategy of softening the contrast to make it easier to look at the colors and picture. With softening the contrast and not having such bright chromas it gives the viewer a chance to see all the colors in a relaxed way, without jumping from strong color to strong color.  

Limited Palette: 

Wicked Poster- In this poster the limited palette is really just green, red, and grey. These colors are used for symbolism, but also to create a simplistic design. I completely agree with statement less is more for this poster. By not having a whole bunch of colors, the poster looks better.