Notes on pictures/screen shots

Unfortunately images put it the setting 'original size' will not show up on the actual blog post so all the screen shots I have used on my blog are slightly stretched as it is the only way they will show up.

Final Image

This is my final 4 panel all placed together showing the change from structure to noise. My idea is based on the concept of looking at something under a microscope. This is what has inspired my colour pallette as i wanted it to look cold and sterile and artificial (like its in a laboratory). I have also used this idea to inspire how across the board it is as though the 'object' is being more and more zoomed in on as more details can be seen but the form starts to be lost. My form is made by having layers and layers of circles drawn by circles then adjusting the variables like width, height and amount of small circles in each big circle etc

Playing with Size

Below is a picture of my final pannel where the only thing i have adjusted is the width and height of the BIG circles (that are made up by the little ones) so that all the layers of circles are the same size. I think it is amazing what a difference it makes, how my 'noise' panel can instantly be turned back into structure with such a straightforward adjustment.

Playing with Stroke

I have experimented with my almost finalized panels by adding a stroke to the outside of some of the circles. I have done this to see what it adds to my design and see if it builds upon the texture or detracts from it.

PANNEL 1 - STROKE

 NO STROKE

PANNEL 2 - STROKE

 NO STROKE

PANEL 3 - STROKE

 NO STROKE

PANEL 4 -  STROKE

NO STROKE

This is probably the only panel i am sure that i prefer the stroke on rather than off, without is the background become blurry and appears almost pixelated, the stroke helps to add depth and layering to the 'chaos' emphasizing the idea of structure and noise.

I also like how it fits the idea the 'microscope' zooming in closer to the form so we start to see more detail (i.e the outline of the shapes) but at the same time the symmetrical structure starts to become lost.

I think i would like to slowly bring in a stoke across my panels to build up more of a contrast between pannel one and pannel 4. 

Playing with Colour

Although I am happy with my colour choices I thought I should experiment using different colours incase I found that one really jumped out at me and to see what kind of a difference the colour palette brings to my design...

The green above and red directly below are variations on my 1st pannel which is currently a blue/purple colour. I found with both of these that they didnt capture the same mood as the original blue did. They dont have the distant, coldness that the blue does which i am trying to capture - these colours are much more in your face compared to the subtleness of the blue.

Below is my current final for my 2nd panel, above is an experimentation i did swaping the black background for a white one. Personally i think it lacks the intensity and depth of the black background, I prefer how the black works with the design rather than contrasts against it like the white does.

This red variation below was just me mucking around with changing colour and background, it is not something i think i need to keep developing, the colour experimenting has just made me appreciate my original colour choice more.

Playing with shapes

This was just a bit of experimenting I thought I would do once i had pretty much got my final panels down, i created it by replacing the circles with rectangles just to see what kind of effect it would produce. Below are shots of my 1st panel and 4th panel only.

To stick with my inspiration of looking through a microscope i definately think the rectangles de-tract from the idea of it being some sort of organism/cellular make up under a micro scope, the oragnic feel is lost and instead reminds me of pixels/electronics. The second image definately looks better with circles as the squares just makes it appear to be very blurry and pixelated. 

More Development

Starting to create noise - as i add more layers and the panels start to become more and more complicated  it becomes harder to see that the large circle forms are still there and its not just random small circles all over the place, to try and see this clearer i used a contrasting colour so it was easy to follow the line that are being made... This is just a way to show how the pictures are being created

Developing

This is a picture of me experimenting with creating lattices out of circles, i want to try experiment with the 'random' colour function to try and give the design some more depth as the moment it looks very basic and boring, i think mixing up the colour will also help to start break up the structure

Colour Scheme

Now that i have finalized my precedent and am starting work on how the design of my 4 panels i am starting to finalize my colour scheme although i will keep tweaking it to see what looks best,  this is the kind of pallet im thinking about using..

I am aiming to work with a cold, un natural looking pallet.

200 Word Description - Final Product

Organic Oranges?

The main idea behind my project is the idea of combining natural elements with man made ones. My project takes an ordinary organic object (an orange) and breaks down all the individual properties that together make it up. I have then recreated each of these properties using only artificial materials to create orange ‘segments’.  The experience my object intends to give the user is the unexpectedness of finding man made creations within an organic form. The users sense of touch and sight are then engaged by the segments on this inside as they feel and look at each one to try and decide what property of the orange it could hold. Although there is technically a ‘correct’ answer to this it is more important that the user interoperates for themselves what each piece could mean to give them their own individual experience.

Instruction

My interactive object is focussed on touch and sight so users are welcome to feel and examine all aspects of my object. 

To begin the experience users need to take the lid off the orange. Users are then free to pick up any of the seven inner segments. When the users is satisfied with their experience of the segments simply need to place them back into the orange skin half and return the other half as a lid (segments go in no particular order).

Final Project - Photographs

These are my final 8 photographs of my project, some show the interaction some show some interesting details and others just capture all the elements of my project together.

Final Tutorial Feedback

Some feed back i was given at this tutorial was that i should look into ways of making it easier to remove segments separately and randomly ie without having to do it any order or do it all at once.

The photo below is an attempt at making separate compartments for each of the segments to sit it so they were easy to slide in and out of the orange. However, the combination of glue and dividers actually ended up making it harder to remove each section as they took up to much space meaning the pieces were even more tightly compact together. 

Will keep looking into ways or developing this idea however may have to just leave it as it is a pieces currently fit perfectly into an orange so it will be hard to work around this.

Final Segments Bare Materials

This is a picture of my final segments before being painted so the bare materials used to create each one can be seen.

In this photo is shows certain aspects that will soon be covered such as the original look of the sand papaer, the sugar in the 'liquid' segment and cardboard an plastic used as the scaffolding.

Segment Making and Developments

These are my first attempts of making my orange segments:

The segments directly below exactly represent what i will do for my final ones other however I mis calculated my measurements ending up with these pieces being to big to fit into the orange skin. Aside from this I am happy with how these pieces turned out as they successfully captured the property of the orange/idea I was trying to portray.

From left to right the segments are 

 - the fluffy outside (representing the white orange rind)

- sand paper covered for texture

- filled with sugar to create 'liquid' effect

These segments below represent attempts I have made that need re doing as were not overly successful. The segment on the left represents the idea of having a segment be squishy like the segments in oranges are. I tired making it out of a piece of plastic to hold the curved shape and a balloon filled with cotton buds however I found that the shape of the sides would not hold so will need to try with a firmer material.

The segment on the left represents the idea of how when peeling an orange bits get stuck under your fingernails. To show this I created a plaster mold with grooves that you can hook your fingernails under. Unfortunately the plater was too fragile and the grooves starte to crack. I really like this idea so do not want to abandone it but will have to seriously reconsider other materials I could use.

Orange Skin

The photo below is my attempt at hollowing out an orange to create the skin that my segments will sit in.

Aside from the small hole it was very successful and a lot simpler than I had anticipated which was extremely encouraging as this is the key element to my design, as it brings in the 'natural' element.

I am also experimenting with ways of trying to maintain the orange skin for longer without it wilting. I am trying with substances such as clear nail polish and hairspray at the moment to see the effect they have over a couple of days.

Experimenting with Materials

Now that I have my final idea locked down I started working with materials to first of all see what the base of all the segments should be made of but also to see what materials I should use for the individual properties of each segments.
Also had to start developing size and shape.

This is a photo of a segment made roughly out of paper then painted. Paper was never going to be a realistic option as it is to thin and would definitely not be durable enough to handle lots of people playing with it (which is a big thing I have to take into consideration), however this shows the kind of shape I will be aiming to make:


Each piece will be made from 3 pieces put together, 2 semi-circles that are joined along the flat end, then a 3rd piece that is shaped to give the curved bottom to the segment - this is the piece that is hardest to measure accurately size.

This is a photo another piece I made that has the 2 semi circles made from thick cardboard and the bottom joining piece made from plastic. I think this is what I will use as the base structure for all my segments, the plastic is perfect because it is able to be manipulated into a curve without creasing. I was going to use balsa wood for the semi circles but found that it cracked to much when I tried cutting it in a curve and the cardboard is thick enough to have almost no give in it anyway which is what I want to it remains more durable.

New Precedent

After the lecture on thursday i am starting to give some serious thought to my colour scheme...

These are some images i found of objects under a microscope that i want to use as the basis of my colour scheme and incorporate the circle idea which i want to base on the idea of cells....

Final Segment Ideas

At tutorial I talked to some of the other group members and narrowed down my ideas list of what segments to create, my final seven are: (however I now have a couple of spare ideas I can use if I find I need to add another segment)

- weight
- sandpaper (based on opposite texture of skin)
- groves (based on getting orange under your fingernails when peeling)
- peeling the segment
- fluffy white outsides
-squishy
- liquid insides (made using sugar)

My next step is to start experimenting with materials.

Segment Ideas

My ideas so far for my inside segments of my orange are: (aiming to have approx 7 but will depend on the measurements once I actually start making)

1. Segment based on the weight of an orange, will weigh the same as a whole orange rather than the normal weight of an individual segment

2. Sand paper on the outside of the orange to create a texture that appears to be the orange skin but is rough to touch not smooth as skin is dimpled in, sand paper is opposite (dimpled out)

3. segment that plays with the idea of the action of peeling an orange (needs developing)

4. Using a material such as cotton buds cover parts of the segment to make it feel fluffy, duplicates the idea of the white stuff on orange segments having a 'fluffy' like texture.

5. playing with the idea of segments being filled with liquid but it still seeming quite dense. Will probably use substance such as sugar (also represents orange as they are sweet) so when the segment is shaken it seems as if something is 'sloshing' around inside.

6. Idea that when you peel an orange it gets underneath your finger nails so have a segment with grooves that put your fingernails in, possibly made out of plaster or similar material

7. Idea that the outside skin of the segments is actually quite see-through and it is the inside that is very orange. Use clear plastic to create a piece that you can see through to the orange substance on the inside  (which will be something like ornate tissue paper)

8. Playing on the squishiness of segments will use materials such as cotton buds possibly covered in a balloon to re create this texture

9. playing on the idea of how kids use segments as 'mouthgaurds' for fun, possibly make a segment out of bits of actual plastic mouthgaurds (however, this idea is less about the PROPERTIES of the orange)

- these were the ideas I was able to develop enough to now have ideas on how I would actually go about making them and what materials I would use. I now want to try get some feedback from people to see what ones they think would be the most successful.

Developing first ideas

These are some of the boxes I created for my smell idea, i made the green one smell of mint and the red of strawberries as these seemed to be smells people associated with these colours, however I made the lids interchange able so that the smell and colour can be mixed up to create it unexpected smells to the colour association.

Feed Back on Interim

The feedback I was given from the interim presentation was helpful for getting suggestion on how to develop my ideas further.
Some of the comments I received were:

- consider how the segments of my orange will stay together within the orange skin (i.e how they will stay in a circle not just all fall apart)

- think about smell as another factor - do you want you orange to smell like an orange to increase the realism?

- presentation, will it be just the orange? perhaps make a stand for it to sit in

- accessibility of the individual segments, consider how easy/hard it will be to take out each segment of the orange without interrupting the other segments

- how obvious will the property of each segment be? clearly stated or left open for interpretation by the user?

I also received some good feedback from the group that my idea seemed very original and it was clear through my story board and description what it was I was trying to portray.
The main point everyone made was that the execution on my project would be key to its success, high quality details in the putting together of different materials and painting will need

Circle Lattice

This is a screen shot i took of playing with the opacity of the circles, this see-through blue colour makes me think of looking at objects under a micro scope which has given me a new inspiration for my precedent, i still want to work with my circle idea but make it more sterile and cold looking rather than soft and organic which is what i was originally aiming for - I think this could be more of a challenge as a circle is a softer shape but i want to push my ideas more.

Circles drawn by Circles

This my first attempt at my idea of having circles drawn out of circles, already starting to adjust my original idea.

This screen shot is just of a sketch I made mucking around with positioning, colour and the amount of circles in each big circle - just testing what variables i can manipulate.

Idea on Panels

This just a quick sketch of an idea I have for my 4 panels. its very loosely based on the precedent of flowers opening, it begins with structure, as if flowers are 'blooming' from the bottom of the page, will be made by circles made of circles drawn around a single circle center point. As it progresses more 'flowers' bloom, triangles also will be added in to add texture, by the fourth panel however it becomes noise by just being a huge overlapping jumple of different sized circles and triangles.

Im not sure how realistic doing this design would be as I have yet discovered  the level of difficulty it would have however this is more a starting point for me to work off to develop my final further.

Using Random and Loops

These are my first attempts at using loops (that I have fully coded myself i.e not used pattern maker) and using the 'random' function to generate colour. They are just me mucking around with how function like what to change to create however many repetitions and how to limit the colour pallet to it doesn't become "rainbow vomit" etc

Inspiration

i had a look at openprocessing for inspiration on patterns/colours/arrangements I could use and found that t was a great place to look. I found that when all these images were placed together in the same place is was easy to look at them all and decide which ones were more structure and which ones were more noise to get a clearer idea of how I personally distinguished the two.

Below is a link to a sketch that I thought was a very simple yet clear representation of structure

http://www.openprocessing.org/sketch/10433


The next link is a sketch that I found that is very similar to the 'structure' one however it is as if someone has transformed it to become noise.

http://www.openprocessing.org/sketch/10432


Although these are in black and white they definitely helped me gain a clearer idea on what i an aiming to achieve across the 4 panels

Playing with Colour/ Precendents

Disocvered how to use the pattern maker code into a way of creating gradients to have a look at colour schemes between two colours to see how the work and blend together.

This screen shot and image is looking at the idea of using flowers opening as my precedent. I am leaning toward using circles as my main shape for my images so want to base my idea of a object that is really organic and natural. This is an idea of the kind of colour scheme I could look into using to create a really soft piece of design.

Another idea I had for a precedent was using sea shells. I think they provided a nice neutral colour scheme and the patterns made with the shells i.e spirals, and layering of different designs on one shell to create a unique pattern would be something that would be fun to explore.

Beginning Project 2 - Patter Maker

This screen shot is my first attempt at using the pattern maker code, playing with colour, shapes etc very basic but was fun code to play around with!

Story Board and Proposal

Proposal:

My project is designed to focus on the senses of sight and touch. 

The idea behind my project is to combined natural elements and man made features to make an unexpected experience for the user. To achieve this I have taken the idea of using an orange to represent the natural feature but cutting it in half and  hollowing it out so all that is left is the skin that forms the 'shell' for my project. 

The unexpected experience comes when the orange is opened up and at first appears to be a regular orange made up of fruit segments but on closer inspection it become apparent that the insides are actually all artificial and man made. Each segment will then take this idea further by breaking down the combined properties that make up an orange into individual elements so that each segment represents a specific quality the orange has, however it will be re created out of man made features. For example one of the segments will be focussed on the weight of the orange so rather than weigh what one piece normally weighs, the segment will weigh the same weight as the orange as a whole and will be made out of artificial materials such as wood, plastic, card and metal. Other ideas I will explore for the other segments are the ideas of peeling back layers and how it is easier on some oranges than others, the squishiness of orange pieces, how the segments are not hollow but also not fully liquid inside and the idea of texture and how the pulp of the orange is soft and gets stuck under your fingernails. 

The experience I want to give the user is how you can break down all the elements of a natural object and re create these using man made objects, creating an artificial experience of something that is so everyday and ordinary.

This is my story board to accompany my proposal...

Represents HOW my project works...

First Ideas...

For our tutorial we had to bring in our first ideas/mock up models of possible projects we want to attempt. I found that I was having HUGE blocks on coming up with anything I could push beyond the most basic of ideas. However I came up with a few that I thought I could develop and refine to turn into an interesting and unexpected experience for the user...

The ideas I came up with were...

1. The association of colors with smells.
I wanted to set up an experiment that would be more like a game where colored boxes are placed in a line. Each box has a hole in the top where the user smells, however all the lids of the boxes are mixed up so the color does not match the smell of the box, e.g. the blue box might smell like banana and the yellow box might smell like bubblegum. The user then lifts the lids of the boxes and matches them up so that the color of the lid matches the smells they just smelt.
The problem with this idea is that not everyone associates the same smells with the same colors. Although i would try to use obvious smells e.g. berries for red, this would take the unexpected element out of the project. Also I am not sure what kind of experience I would be aiming to give the user with this project.

2. Having an object that looks plain and boring until a light is shined on it.
This project would play with shadows and the sense of sight as it would be taking something boring and turning it interesting. This is modeled off a similar idea where people take rubbish and model it so that the silhouette the shadow creates is off a completely different object e.g. a motorbike.
A way I thought of expanding this idea is by involving touch in it by a shape to begin with but then having certain parts of the shape that the user then has to adjust or pull away e.g. paper flaps. It would then become more interactive than the user just shining a torch at it.
The problems I have with this project is how difficult it would be to find and execute an appropriate shape that worked for multiple users.

Grouping of 2 Objects and Table...

Grouping:

When my two objects were put into groups they immediately went into what seemed like the most obvious category; toys for the paint, electrical items for the hair straighteners. However after some re arranging the paints ended up in the expressive category as they are something that you use to express yourself. The straightener was tossed up between the highly functional as it serves one specific purpose and the 'self' visually appealing as it is an object that is used to help increase the overall appearance of a person.

Below is a table of the final categories we ended up classifying everyones two objects under along wit the 5 senses. Together Holly and I brainstormed ideas to create a table of possible experiments you could do for this project combining the category with the sense.

2 Object: Functional and Playful

Functional Object:

One of the objects we had to bring in today had to be something highly functional, either is served/performed a specific purpose and/or was something well made and designed.

The object I chose was a GHD hair straightener.

I chose this object because I think it is something that is highly functional in the sense that it is designed entirely to for fill one purpose, to straighten/'improve' hair and everything about the object is designed to help enhance this purpose. For example the design of the straightener is extremely simple - there is only one button (on/off) and no settings to change. The sleek design also makes it easy to use, there are no decorative bits that get in the way or might get caught in the users hair etc. 

Playful Object:

This second object had to be something that was still well designed but also a bit quirky/just a bit of fun. For my a set of acrylic paints. I thought it was perfect as paints are the kind of things that have no age restrictions to them- they are something I used as a child e.g. with finger painting, and have carried on using up until now to do actual paintings. Paint is a perfect tool for artistic expression as it is used to create something else and by combining it together you have a say in what kind of colors you want and what shapes you want to create. Paint is also fun because it is an object that anyone can use, you do not have to have certain skills or qualities to be able to experiment with paints.

Colour Game

This is a link to the game where the name of the color is written in a different color and you have to click on what color it is written in, not the word, e.g. if pink is written in blue then you have to click the blue button.
This game has come up as an example so I though I would try it out, i found it is a perfect way of explaining how you can create an experience for someone by confusing their senses. It is amazing that something so simple can be so difficult to do.

http://www.gamefudge.com/Click-the-Color-Not-the-Word

5 objects...

These are the five object I bought in to represent each of the five senses....

Smell - Perfume. 

I bought in a perfume because not only do I love the smell but it is an object that is very specifically for the sense of smell. Perfume is designed to increase something/someones appeal by improving how they smell to others or used to cover up the smell of something else. I also like the idea that although all perfumes are designed to smell good, each one can appeal differently to different people, you will never find one smell that everyone loves.  

Sound - Zip

The zip i used was on my pencil case. I thought a zip was a good sound to choose as it is a noise that is very distinctive and universally recognizable but at the same time each zip is slightly different sounding to the next depending on its size, material used to make it thickness etc. 

Touch - Paint

I chose paint for touch as I really like the smooth texture of it and how for a liquid its really thick. I also liked the idea that it you touch paint then touch something else it will leave a mark so it becomes a way of tracing where you touch.

Sight - Sunglasses

I bought in sunglasses less for the actual look of the sunglasses but more for the idea that they are something you look through and it changes your perspective. Although they do not actually distort you vision in anyway, the fact that they make everything darker still changes how you view the world to how you do normally. I also liked that they are an aid to help improve our sense of sight.

Taste - Teabag

I chose to bring in a teabag because it is an object that you cannot taste purely on its own, it needs an added substance (water) to make it functional. I liked this idea that although it is an object almost completely designed for the 'taste' sense, it can't be accessed without extra help

Another Inspiration...

Someone brought in a Rubix Cube as their playful object to one of the tutorials which i thought was another fantastic example of the kind of project that the brief is looking for. I loved the idea of how it combines touch with sight and is such a simple idea yet so difficult to execute. Rubix cubes confuse the senses by often not going the way you think it will, for example you think a certain move will create a certain effect but often it ends up changing something else along the way. This is why so often you can have 2 or 3 sides that have all but one square complete with the same color but one more and it ruins all the sides at once. I think a rubix cube is a perfect example of a cause and effect project.

Final Adaptable Form Layout

This is my final board of 5 sequences from one adaptable form (top right corner). As well as having each individual sequence show the process of how the form is adapted,  I have tried to link my whole board together as one to make it like one piece of 25, not just 5 pieces of 5. I have done this by increasing the line weight over time. I have also tired to keep some balance in my board by avoiding the temptation to make every sequence end with the shape coming neatly together, instead in my last 2 sequences I make my shape 'blow up' to appear larger and less contained at the end.