Monica Lu
Dio Antonio
Joshua Nham
Andrew Lee
Mikee Ronquillo
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Upcycling project
My upcycling design is a chair made from various materials that are both recyclable and non-recyclable. Milk crates, metal chair frame, self adhesive foam, sample vinyl tiles and PVC coated wiring (computer wires). However my design did not initially begin with the idea of a chair, like most designers and design processes the initial design ends up almost nothing like the final. In my case, it began as a hot water bottle jacket which was denied through helpful feedback. Using the feedback I had received from my tutor I took a more industrial approach and found that the chair is almost iconic in the world of industrial design from Charles and Ray Eames to Marc Newson. Obviously I did not expect my chair to be on the same level as world renown designers, merely inspired by. The materials I chose fell under the category of upcycling as such: Milk crates are often stolen and taken from grocers, shops and markets all the time which are usually disfigured or used for personal reasons which end up being discarded and in the landfill. Metal chair frames are just discarded chairs left for the council to pick up and melt down to form new metal, but the process in doing so is costly, possibly harmful to the environment and time consuming. Refurbishing a worn out chair is much more cost effective as well as safe for the environment. Self adhesive foam has a type of glue attached to it that is not only poisonous but prevents the foam to be recycled properly. Sample vinyl tiles are just offcuts that are used to display colour and texture of vinyl tiles at flooring departments but are discarded when not needed anymore. PVC coated wiring is an obvious ‘non-recyclable’ because PVC is poisonous when burnt so it can only be discarded into the landfill.
My chair features a pattern on the seat that resembles a decorative tile in the front or backyard of a house. Created with the sample vinyl tiles cut and pasted onto the bottom of the milk crate piece. I slotted pieces of self adhesive foam into the squares of the milk crate piece to create the image of a decorative tile that represents where and what the chair would be used for. The black chair frame against the white milk crate pieces enhances the seat and focuses the attention onto the coloured tiles and decorative patterns of the seat which becomes pleasing aesthetically.
Monday, October 11, 2010
Philippe Starck: Design for Life.
Mankind, ethicality, sustainability and ecology. What do these words mean to you? To Philippe Starck these are the elements of a successful design. In the television series "Design for Life" twelve young and ambitious designers compete for work experience with Philippe Starck himself at his agency in Paris.
For me, the main focus of this series was not the aspiring designers and their attempts to impress Starck. What caught my attention and started to make me think was; what goes on in Starck's mind and how he is able to design such influential and successful products. This is shown through the tasks he sets for the designers and how he responds to their said tasks. As previously mentioned ethicality, sustainability, ecology and beneficial to mankind are elements that he believes creates good design and expects the competitors to share his vision. This showed me that many factors must be taken into thought as a new design is to be created, through the process of designing a new product many things may change the course and outcome thus designers needing feedback. As Philippe Starck critiques the designs of the contestants, his harsh and seemingly cold responses seem not to phase the designers. I questioned this myself but came to the conclusion that when it comes to life and reality, there will never be sugar-coating in a real design firm. Watching how Starck reacts to designs and his comments has impacted me in a way that when I design future products I, myself will ask the same questions and critique in a similar manner to improve.
Another thing that was brought up in the series was that Starck's designs were unconventional and non-functional. That stumped me when I first noticed it, shouldn't good design do what it was meant to be designed for in a manner that would be appreciated and comfortable? Starck's philosophy is quite simple really; Simplicity and Necessity. He designs for what is needed in the world today and not of design trends that are in and out of season. I believe that his philosophy is almost perfect and just what we need in society these days. Simplicity and necessity in design that is not affected by trends of marketing. However, I still do not agree with the OPTION of the design to be functional or not, I stand by the idea of all good design must be functional in a way it was designed for.
Watching Starck and his 'tribe' trial the contestants has shown me how a successful designer thinks and feels towards design which has allowed me to adjust my vision of design and how good design is created. Starck is an amazing designer and I would definitely love to just sit down and pick his brains a little more in order to gain more insight into the design world but for now, the videos have sparked an interest in his work and will lead me into discovering more about Philippe Starck and design for life.
For me, the main focus of this series was not the aspiring designers and their attempts to impress Starck. What caught my attention and started to make me think was; what goes on in Starck's mind and how he is able to design such influential and successful products. This is shown through the tasks he sets for the designers and how he responds to their said tasks. As previously mentioned ethicality, sustainability, ecology and beneficial to mankind are elements that he believes creates good design and expects the competitors to share his vision. This showed me that many factors must be taken into thought as a new design is to be created, through the process of designing a new product many things may change the course and outcome thus designers needing feedback. As Philippe Starck critiques the designs of the contestants, his harsh and seemingly cold responses seem not to phase the designers. I questioned this myself but came to the conclusion that when it comes to life and reality, there will never be sugar-coating in a real design firm. Watching how Starck reacts to designs and his comments has impacted me in a way that when I design future products I, myself will ask the same questions and critique in a similar manner to improve.
Another thing that was brought up in the series was that Starck's designs were unconventional and non-functional. That stumped me when I first noticed it, shouldn't good design do what it was meant to be designed for in a manner that would be appreciated and comfortable? Starck's philosophy is quite simple really; Simplicity and Necessity. He designs for what is needed in the world today and not of design trends that are in and out of season. I believe that his philosophy is almost perfect and just what we need in society these days. Simplicity and necessity in design that is not affected by trends of marketing. However, I still do not agree with the OPTION of the design to be functional or not, I stand by the idea of all good design must be functional in a way it was designed for.
Watching Starck and his 'tribe' trial the contestants has shown me how a successful designer thinks and feels towards design which has allowed me to adjust my vision of design and how good design is created. Starck is an amazing designer and I would definitely love to just sit down and pick his brains a little more in order to gain more insight into the design world but for now, the videos have sparked an interest in his work and will lead me into discovering more about Philippe Starck and design for life.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Experience Enrichment Project
The Rakuzai hand saw.
My target market are men and women professional carpenters and homeowners of ages between 20 - 40, have a family and home and where aesthetics is a factor towards deciding on items to purchase. These individuals love to do things themselves whether its fixing, renovating or removing.
The Rakuzai is a hand tool that takes many hindering factors of a normal hand saw and solves them with its new design. The name ‘Rakuzai’ is Japanese and can be literally translated to mean ‘comfortable’ or ‘easy cut’ which sums up the general purpose of the Rakuzai, to aid the user in cutting with as little effort as possible. During the process of redesigning the hand saw much research, thinking and creativity came into play to create the Rakuzai.
My target market are men and women professional carpenters and homeowners of ages between 20 - 40, have a family and home and where aesthetics is a factor towards deciding on items to purchase. These individuals love to do things themselves whether its fixing, renovating or removing.
The Rakuzai is a hand tool that takes many hindering factors of a normal hand saw and solves them with its new design. The name ‘Rakuzai’ is Japanese and can be literally translated to mean ‘comfortable’ or ‘easy cut’ which sums up the general purpose of the Rakuzai, to aid the user in cutting with as little effort as possible. During the process of redesigning the hand saw much research, thinking and creativity came into play to create the Rakuzai.
Instinctively the process began by summarising the problems that a hand saw presents when using it, however with such an amazing design what was left to fix? The only complications that arose included the size of the blade and the fact that cutting straight would not be guaranteed unless you happened to be a skilled wielder of a hand saw, but what about those who are not? I decided to create a guide that would show you if you were cutting straight during the crucial first few cuts. A thin wheel is placed on either sides of the blade, if only one spins as you cut then it is an indication you are cutting at an angle; therefore to cut straight both wheels must be rolling. This factor decreases the chance of cutting off route and also saves time from starting the cut again which turns monotonous and time consuming jobs to fast and enjoyable work.
The other issue was the size of the blade. For example, you need to cut in a tight space that the saw cannot fit in. You could always take a significantly longer time to cut with a Stanley knife or you could take advantage of the Rakuzai’s replaceable blade and fit the thin blade to the handle and cut the workload and time in half. This allows the Rakuzai to tackle a variety of jobs and even make it pleasurable with the ergonomic handle and grip. As the handle of the Rakuzai requires the power grip, for maximum power in an adult male, the handle should be 3 or 4cm in diameter. The handle for the Rakuzai falls under the requirement as it is for male but as males hands are generally larger, females have no problem handling the saw. As most carpenters wear protective gear, the measurements for the Rakuzai accommodate for those who wear gloves while working which eliminates uncomfortable grasps and the need to remove gloves to use the saw.
Monday, September 13, 2010
Gary Hutstwit - Objectified
Objectified pretty much summed up what I had in mind of industrial design and what I want to do in the future. Everything we use, almost everything we see and everything that is probably sitting on your table right now... Is a product, a result of design. Time and effort was placed into creating the design that communicates to us not only through functionality but all aspects of appearance from size and shape to colour and texture.
A very simple and obvious rule is that the consumer must know and acknowledge the design for it to be a good design, but as obvious as that statement is; there is still design out there that does not fall under that criteria. When designing a product, we as industrial designers must take into consideration the good and the bad extremities (as shown in the video, a case of arthritis). In doing so we can create designs that accommodate for a larger target market. Another issue (as I have learnt from Annie Leonard's Story of Stuff) is perceived obsolescence which involves trends in the market. Good design is design that does not age and becomes a priceless piece in the eyes of the consumer. A design that is kept due to sentimental or emotional value is a good design.
One of the most important things any designer must take into consideration is materials. Without materials, there will be no design. There are many things that can be said about materials. One of the most important is the environmental impact of materials from sourcing to disposal. What is the purpose of designing a product if it does more harm to the environment and it's surroundings than good? The issue of environment and recycling with materials part of design has been apparent for as long as design has been around.
The video has done a lot to convince me this profession is what I want. From the topics of objects and their communication ability to materials. It was a nice and refreshing video on design that all designers must go back to during their career to remind them to keep on track with good design. I know I will.
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Annie Leonard - The Story of Stuff
Materials economy, it's all about being green and recycling. Doing our part in society to prevent any further pollution to the world, but how many of us actually do so? People may be aware of these problems but from the lack of knowledge, they are unable to act.
After watching Annie Leonard's Story of Stuff, a more important and critical issue is brought up that makes recycling look like a simple obstacle to hurdle over. The main problem is consumerism and society's subconscious push towards consumption. I buy energy saving light bulbs and do my part in recycling, so does a lot friends and family however like previously mentioned the main problem lies in consumption. Notice how I said "I buy energy saving light bulbs" ? Even recycling has been turned into a market of consumption. This vicious cycle tends to be fuelled by what Annie Leonard describes as 'perceived obsolescence' where trends control consumption. Theoretically: Once a trend appears we as consumers will flock towards it and succumb to the appeals of said trend, once a new trend appears the old is discarded and repeat.
Annie Leonard presents a linear idea that pretty much maximises the use of any resource from extraction right to disposal and recycling. Not to sound pessimistic but this is but a mere dream that is almost impossible to achieve. This conclusion is based on the fact that many products are made in ways that render them almost impossible to be recycled. What are we to do to keep this world from plummeting into a deep hole of consumption and irresponsible waste disposal?
From this video, it has shown me that we as designers must help prevent said problems. Society's push on consumption will never cease as almost every single business strives on the consumption of their product by us consumers, however we as designers can make a large difference by two ways. Firstly we must acknowledge and research resources that allow possible recycling and/or reuse. Secondly we must create products that would give the consumer a type of emotional attachment that will keep them from disposing the product.
After watching Annie Leonard's Story of Stuff, a more important and critical issue is brought up that makes recycling look like a simple obstacle to hurdle over. The main problem is consumerism and society's subconscious push towards consumption. I buy energy saving light bulbs and do my part in recycling, so does a lot friends and family however like previously mentioned the main problem lies in consumption. Notice how I said "I buy energy saving light bulbs" ? Even recycling has been turned into a market of consumption. This vicious cycle tends to be fuelled by what Annie Leonard describes as 'perceived obsolescence' where trends control consumption. Theoretically: Once a trend appears we as consumers will flock towards it and succumb to the appeals of said trend, once a new trend appears the old is discarded and repeat.
Annie Leonard presents a linear idea that pretty much maximises the use of any resource from extraction right to disposal and recycling. Not to sound pessimistic but this is but a mere dream that is almost impossible to achieve. This conclusion is based on the fact that many products are made in ways that render them almost impossible to be recycled. What are we to do to keep this world from plummeting into a deep hole of consumption and irresponsible waste disposal?
From this video, it has shown me that we as designers must help prevent said problems. Society's push on consumption will never cease as almost every single business strives on the consumption of their product by us consumers, however we as designers can make a large difference by two ways. Firstly we must acknowledge and research resources that allow possible recycling and/or reuse. Secondly we must create products that would give the consumer a type of emotional attachment that will keep them from disposing the product.
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