Skip to main content

Posts

Showing posts from January, 2018

Rethinking the Way We Sit Down

In Niels Diffrient's TED Talk he showcases an office chair that he designed. When walking the audience through his design he emphasizes its functionality. This speaks to how functionality is really all a design is. There is a problem and a design is created to solve that problem. Sometimes the problem is widely acknowledged, but sometimes that problem isn't noticed until it's solved. By this logic, a designs merit is based on how well it solves the problem it is meant to, but this is not always the case. Most designs are mundane things that fade into the background of day to day life, like a chair. It is when these designs are not even acknowledged that they have truly accomplished their goals. This can also be seen in how similar designs for objects like these are. Nobody really reinvents the office chair, they all usually have the similar features: height adjustment, reclining, back support and cushions. It is how these fundamental features are implemented that leads to

Sunset Manipulation Tutorial

Trippy Dorm Room Poster

How To Ruin A Great Design

     There are plenty of ways to mess up a great design. While I agree with Alice Rawsthorn's article on how such mistakes are made, I think she neglected to mention how to avoid making these mistakes. I would say that the way to prevent such a travesty from happening is simple. Make everything have a meaning. Don't put anything into a design if it doesn't help solve the proposed problem. This goes for creating new designs as well as updating old ones. Every element in a design should have a function that is necessary. The context of the design should be apparent without someone needing to explain it.

First Day Questions

What is your previous computer experience? I have a slightly above average amount of computer experience. What do you hope to get out of this class? I hope to be more effective at using both Photoshop and Illustrator. What is the relationship between computers and visual studies? Computers are not only a gateway for people to access all visual mediums, but they also provide the abilities to create things in all visual mediums. What is your experience with Photoshop and Illustrator? I have been using Photoshop and Illustrator for two years now and still feel like there is a lot of things for me to learn. Do you have a computer at home? If so dose it have Photoshop and Illustrator? Yes, my computer has both Photoshop and Illustrator. Do you use a  Mac  or PC? I primarily use a PC. What do you hope to do with your major? I hope to maybe either work for a large company with some popular licenses that I could work with, or to be a freelance Graphic Designer.