How Color Transforms a Design: Ikea Side Table

Ikea: known for its lifestyle enhancing, low-priced furniture that allows their customers to put a personal touch on any room. Personally, I find shopping at Ikea to be a lot of fun (but maybe that's just the designer in me…). They have a variety of furniture and home accessories that can update, renovate, decorate, and personalize. Ikea even puts together room samples so that the work is done for you: just select a room you like, find the furniture in the warehouse, add a little elbow grease and paint, and viola! My favorite part of Ikea, though, is its ability to offer a wide variety of furniture that can be easily matched to other products. How do they do this? Color, of course! Every table, bookshelf, and bed stand comes in a variety of colors that can be mixed and matched. The beauty of these pieces is that they are very similar to one another, but they give a room a completely different feel.

Take this table: the left in "White" and the right in "Walnut Effect"

Furniture can completely change the feel of a room. White furniture makes a room look sleek and futuristic. White can also have a clean and sterile feeling, which is probably why it is used in hospitals. I would venture to say that white is much younger feeling: there is no aged look to a clean white table. Wood furniture, however, makes a room feel much cozier and homier. Rather than feeling hard and stale, a wood table can make the room feel warm. A wood table can also look beautiful when it is a little rugged, with scratches or marks on the surface. A white table with scratches or stains usually just looks dirty and un-taken care of. 

One difference that is notable with these two tables is the color combinations that are available with each. White can be paired with almost anything: a white table can work in a white room, to complete an aesthetic, but white can also fit into a room with many colors. White can work with any color of the rainbow, to create a fresh accompaniment. Wood colored, however, has a limited usage. Wood looks good with cooler colors, like green and blue, but can have an unpleasing aesthetic when paired with red or orange. Wood also does not match all other wood: a warmer honey-colored wood cannot always be paired with a darker maple. Woods can look especially bad if they are almost the same color, but just a little off (similar to how black shirts and black pants do not always match). In all, wood is decidedly less neutral than white. 

I actually own this table, in the red version. The red is very energetic and young feeling, and brightens up any room it's in. It definitely lacks the sleek look of the white, and the homey, mature feeling of the wood version. However, in my drab dorm room, the little red table brightens up the off-white walls and blue-grey carpeting. I have a feeling that this little table will continue to be an easy way to brighten up any of my rooms in the future!

Utopian Design: Bike Lanes

After growing up in Davis, I am no stranger to bike lanes. I biked to school in elementary school and junior high (unless I could coerce my parents or my friends' parents into taking me). However, I had long since fallen out of practice of biking, because of my gratefully received car, when I started UC Davis this fall. In just one quarter, I have re-founded my appreciation for Davis's utopian use of bike lanes. Davis claims itself to be the bike capital of the United States, and was one of the first towns to implement bike lanes. These lanes help bike riding children, university students, and adults navigate their way safely through the streets of Davis.

Bike lanes help bikers and cars feel safer together on the road. In my experience on both sides, bike lanes make the experience much more enjoyable. There is nothing scarier than rushing to school on a weekday morning, and being afraid of hitting the bikers that insist on biking on 5th street (There aren't bike lanes on 5th for a reason people! Take a side street!) As a biker, I know how hard it can be to negotiate traffic when there are bike lanes, and when bike lanes aren't present, I find myself very uncomfortable. I take an extra long route to my job at Baskin Robbins downtown in order to avoid biking on roads without bike lanes.

Though this isn't their intended use, I also think bike lanes contribute the the small town visual aesthetic of Davis. Every time I go to San Francisco, I marvel at how close the cars are to the curb. However, in Davis, the wide street gives a more leisurely and open feeling, unlike the cramped, busy feeling of cities.

Bike lanes encourage bikers: Davis is the bike capital of the United States because the bike lanes make it so easy to get to destinations without a car. Rather than using cars, which use up fossil fuel and create pollution, Davisites turn to the cheaper, environmentally friendly mode of transportation. There is no doubt that the implementation of bike lanes was based on utopian ideas at its conception.

Design that Endangers Society: Aquadots

Aquadots-- a seemingly harmless child's activity. Arrange them in colorful designs! Easy to use! Just spray with water and they stick together! Teach your children about colors and shapes! 

WRONG. Aquadots were recalled in 2007 because when water is sprayed on them (to make your designs permanent) they produce a toxic chemical. And not just any toxic chemical. GHB, also known as the date rape drug. 

What were designers of this toy thinking? Young children do not know to keep things like this out of their mouths. And even if they did, mass producing a toy that can be used to render other people unconscious when ingested is just bad planning. Design flaws are understandable, but this puts worries about lead paint into a new perspective. 

Design of childrens' toys should fun, easy to use, colorful, and most of all, safe. I sincerely hope that the designers of Aquadots had back-up career paths. 

10-Year-Old Fashion Designer Cecilia Cassini

Preteen. Precocious. Prodigy. All of these words can describe Cecilia Cassini, the world's youngest fashion designer. After getting her first sewing machine at age six, Cecilia began designing dresses for girls her age. She believes that every girls should have dresses, and her creations show a taste for vintage fabrics and sequins.

Cecilia encourages all kids to follow their dreams, and believes that you don't have to wait until adulthood to pursue a career. At the age of ten, she has been featured in ten magazines for her designs, and sells her custom made pieces online and at Fred Segal. 

Cecilia also runs a blog on Blogger, where she discusses trends and her day-to-day activities. 

More and more, the young are taking the spotlight. Child stars have always been a subject of public attention, but today's youth take this to a new level. Justin Bieber was discovered on YouTube at thirteen and became an international hit by the time he was sixteen. Nine-year-old Willow Smith, daughter of Will Smith, just released her first music video. 

Designers should keep in mind that the younger generation is a powerful force: designing a product directed at this generation could make a designers career. 

Ergonomic Evaluation: Facebook

As I seem to have taken on a technological theme to many of my blogs, you must have known it wasn't going to be long before I confronted the design of the one and only Facebook. Considering that Facebook had 500 million users as of July 2010, the design must be something special. Though the ergonomic scale has the connotation of belonging in the physical world, in an ever-changing technological universe one must consider evaluations of websites in terms of safety, comfort, ease of use, performance, and aesthetics in order to understand reasons for their success.

Facebook's safety is questionable. Accounts are password protected, though this seems to offer little actual protection: accounts still get hacked, and hundreds of wall posts promoting some online dating site or whatever get posted. Facebook users often volunteer a lot of personal information as well, which can also be dangerous, and users are sometimes very ill-informed on the privacy options. However, privacy settings are generally easily managed, and if users are careful, Facebook has few safety problems.

The physical comfort of Facebook can vary depending on your location (on the couch, at school, etc.) so we must evaluate Facebook's comfort in another way. It seems that our society is much more comfortable with online interactions that with interactions involving another person's physical presence. Facebook provides "comfortable" social interactions for those who are uncomfortable doing so in person. Facebook is an easy way to keep in touch with friends and family; whereas a phone conversation with a random high school friend might be awkward, Facebook communications are comfortable and simple. A user can keep in touch with a quick wall post, rather than a lengthly phone call.

Facebook's performance as a social networking site is obviously at the top. Why else would so many people, with a variety of ages and interests, choose to use it? Facebook is productive for its main purpose: social ties. There are a multitude of way to keep up with friends: posting on Walls, putting up photos and commenting on photos, video posts, and status updates. The News Feed allows you to keep up on general activities of your friends, while Notifications alert you of direct interactions with friends. There are even features which remind you of old photos, and encourage you to rekindle old friendships.

The ease of use category is closely related to aesthetics on Facebook: for a website to be easy to use, generally it must be aesthetically pleasing. The simple homepage is designed with the most important information right around the top; your inbox, friend requests, and account settings are all in place for optimal usage. Friends' updates are organized with the most recent at the top, and less recent as you scroll down. There are many navigation options available on the home page, but the page doesn't look cluttered or confusing. The colors contrast enough to stand out from each other, but not enough to be distract from their purposes. Facebook's design is one of an incredible streamlining of ease of use and aesthetics.

The creators of Facebook continue to edit and tweak parts of Facebook everyday; Facebook is an ongoing study in terms of ergonomic design. Facebook users demand this performance. If Facebook were to fall short in any of these categories, users would simply move on to a new site. Facebook is used everyday without analysis of its design, but as we analyze it we can see why its popularity has risen so quickly.

Instagram

Okay, so I'm a little obsessed with my iPhone, and I just got a new app that I need to share.

Much like the Hipstamatic, which has similar features but costs $1.99, the free app Instagram allows the user to put different filters on their photographs. Each filter gives the look of a different type of camera from a different era in film. This app transforms a simple quick snapshot into an artful photo, and is easier than sending a text (that pesky touch keyboard always gets me…).

Beyond the regular magic of the iPhone camera (i.e. its clarity, quickness, ease of use, etc.) you can now create one of a kind photographs on the phone. That annoying middle step of uploading your photos to your computer so you can edit them? Taken care of! And no need to cart around that nice camera anymore, the iPhone takes perfect pictures and fits into your pocket with ease.

The iPhone camera and cell phone cameras in general are changing how we take pictures. How often do you see people, instead of taking out a camera, using a phone camera to capture the moment? I went out with my family recently, and my mom lamented that she had failed to bring her camera. However, she was able to use her phone (one of the few features she actually knows how to use) to take several nice snapshots. With this new app, your, and her, pictures can look even better with half of the effort.

Here's one that I took with my blog's name, that took all of about five minutes to take and style. The hardest part was picking which effect I liked best (the winner was "Lord Kelvin")

I might even spring for the $1.99 version.

Word and Image: Logos

Some of the most effective logos feature an interaction of word and image demonstrating the aim of their product. While some logos, such as the Nike "Swoosh" are abstract, logos featuring a clue of their origin are some of the most interesting combinations of word and image.

Burger King has a prime example of a logo that combines words and image. The words actually make up the meat portion of the burger; no mistake can be made what Burger King is trying to sell us (though they also conveniently include the word "burger" in their name to keep us on track). Because the interaction of the word and image is subtle, it allows the observer to connect the product with the logo in a stronger way.

The FedEx logo also combines word and image in a discreet way. The arrow in the middle of the word is supposed to symbolize the speed and precision of FedEx. Few people notice the arrow on their own, but once made aware of it, the arrow is impossible to ignore. The discreet imagery has an affect similar to the Burger King logo: the idea of the product is shown without overwhelming the viewer. However, the FedEx logo does fail sometimes with this subtle imagery, like I said, few people notice the arrow on their own. However, the subconscious message is still present. 

Both of these logos use word and image to create a unique branding tool. Without pushing their product in the consumers' face, they allow the interaction of the word and image to demonstrate their products' superior qualities. Word and image come together to create a deeper meaning: in both cases, the logos would lack branding qualities if it were just text on its own. 

Word and Image: Illuminated Manuscripts

Leaf from a Psalter: Initial D with Monks Singing, ca. 1495

Girolamo Dai Libri

Source: Girolamo Dai Libri: Leaf from a Psalter: Initial D with Monks Singing (12.56.4) | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art

In a time before the Internet, before mass-production, even before the printing press, the illuminated manuscript was not just a book, but a work of art.

The term illuminated manuscript refers specifically to those decorated with gold or silver paint, but the term has grown to include any embellished manuscript. These illuminated manuscripts, mostly from the medieval art period, demonstrate how much time and effort was put in to book making before the printing press. While manuscripts continued to be illuminated after the invention of the printing press, they appeared much less frequently and were usually only collected by the wealthy. In some cases, illuminated manuscripts are the only example of painting from a certain time or area.

Leaf from a Manuscript of Valerius Maximus, ca. 1380–90

Workshop of Pierre Remiet

Source: Charles V Manuscript Leaf [French] (31.134.8) | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Illuminated manuscripts are important to consider when thinking about word and image, because they are some of the earliest forms of combining word and image. The art form has died out for the most part, in favor of either illustration-free books, or illustrations aimed at children. Very rarely are books decorated in this style in our modern era. However, we must consider the effect of these manuscripts on those who would have seen them: this could have been the viewers' only experience with art in their lifetime.

While I appreciate the artistic value of these manuscripts, they also make me think about how lucky we are today to be exposed to so much literature and art. These books are truly beautiful, but I cannot imagine one book being the extent of my experience with the medium.

Mass Produced Object: Cell Phones

Everyone has a cell phone: from grandparents to children, cell phones are becoming an indispensable part of our society.

Cell phones are being designed so they are easier to use: full keyboards encourage texting phenomenons, they are smaller and easier to transport, memory chips allow us to keep more data than ever before. "Smart phones" allow us to utilize the Internet, so that e-mail, map functions, and Facebook are in our pocket. Form closely follows function in the realm of cell phones: if something can be designed to be sleeker, smaller, or better looking, it immediately is.

Cell phone design is of importance to the consumer because whatever phone you choose becomes part of your identity. The device gets used so often, for key interactions with business partners, family, and friends (and that's just the phone portion). When you meet a person with the same phone, you feel an immediate connection, a recognition of a part of you that someone else has.

This mass produced object is so much more than just a telephone: your cell phone is your partner, a companion that is always there to help you and guide you.

Objectified: Study of Content and Form

Gary Hustwit's documentary Objectified features a series of interviews with designers and design critics in which they discuss their ideas about design. One of the basic interactions we have with design lies in the interaction between form and content, which are discussed extensively throughout the movie.

The two main types of form are explained well by Alice Rawsthorn, a design editor at the International Herald Tribune. She separates types of form into two categories: analog and digital. Analog design constitutes things that tell us what they do by what they look like: an alien coming from another planet could guess what to do with a chair or a spoon. Digital design centers around the microchip: an MP3 player's form gives very little hint as to what it is used for. Analog products by nature give some hint as to what they are used for, but the microchip has annihilated this theory; form does not need to give a hint of content.

Karim Rashid describes his design aesthetic as "techno-organic"; he seeks to create a "physical interpretation of the digital age." He believes that the design of our surroundings should reflect the growing technology of our times. Rashid compares our less technological furniture designs, like wooden chairs, to using a horse-drawn carriage rather than a car. Digital cameras are still shaped in a rectangular form, which was created to house the rectangular film: why do we continue to create cameras this way? Rashid emulates the question of digital form; his creations emulate the desire to move away from traditional forms, continuing the quest for something new.

This concept connects with my last post as well-- technology is changing the way we design. Technology creates a new medium with which to design; it also creates a desire for the futuristic, as we look toward what is next. Lastly, technology creates a new relationship between content and form, one where designers have more opportunity and flexibility with their designs.

The Listening Post: Data-mining as Art

Data-mining, the gathering of data about individuals from information given on the internet, is a highly controversial subject these days. Countless websites do it: Amazon uses data-mining to suggest other items you may be interested in purchasing, the NSA uses data-mining to track potential terrorists. The use of data-mining provides the "miners" with various statistics of how they spend their time online. Many people fear this invasion of their privacy, but others, like Ben Rubin and Mark Hansen, turn this act into art.

The Listening Post, housed in the San Jose Museum of Art, features small screens that display phrases taken in real time from chat rooms. An electronic voice reads some of these phrases aloud, accompanied by soft music in the background. These phrases vary, the computer program can be set to pick out phrases and words at random, or it can be set to find phrases that start with certain words: "I am", "I like", "I love". You can follow this link to watch a video of the art piece.

This piece brings around an obvious discussion: Many people find data-mining invasive when it's done by the NSA, but does in have the same connotation here? Can this process of data-mining, used to secretly gather information, really be evaluated as art? What is art in our modern and technological lives?

Since the introduction of the Internet, our society has changed rapidly. In the art and design world, the Internet has brought around a mass sharing of art on websites like Flickr, discussion forums on websites or blogs like this one, and much more. With the creation of The Listening Post, we are moving into a new usage of the Internet in art: it has been created literally out of the Internet. Rather than being shared or discussed on the Internet, this piece takes a part of what is inherently part of the Internet, instant chatting, and puts it back into the physical world as art.