Story Pipeline

Image: RUBIN, Ben. 2002. 'Story Pipeline'. Ear Studio. Available at: http://www.earstudio.com/projects/alaska.html [accessed 18/02/09].

Bullivant, 2006, project 29:

"Ben Rubin's Story 'Pipeline' artwork (2002) is located at the BP Energy Centre in Anchorage, Alaska, a facility for use by community-based non-profit organisations. Stories told by Alaskans appear on a plasma video screen and simultaneously emerge as real-time text transcriptions on a 150-foot long LED display. The text zigzags indoors down a glass corridor, then veers out through the plate glass facade, dancing between the trees until it disappears out of sight."

Extract taken from the following book:

BULLIVANT, Lucy. 2006.

Responsive Environments: Architecture, Art and Design.

London: V&A Publications.

The House Café Kanyon

Established in 2003, Turkish studio Autoban designs and develops commercial and residential interior environments and products.

Stardom came relatively early for them, with widespread global press coverage for projects and exhibitions, and awards such as Wallpaper's "Best Young Designers".

The pictures above are of their most recent project, The House Cafe Kanyon in Istanbul, Turkey, which was completed just this year (2009). Light and airy, the harsh structure is tamed through its dressing in wood and draped fabric. An eclectic mix of furniture and fittings have been used and pattern and texture are applied subtly throughout the space.

I like the way in which a potentially cold, industrial skeletal structure has been so successfully turned into an airy and inviting meeting place. The overall effect is one of understated, masculine glamour.

'Projects/Interior/Cafe & Restaurant & Club/The House Cafe Kanyon'. Autoban. Available at: http://www.autoban212.com/ [accessed 09/02/09]

Milan: UCF Exhibition 2009 (iv)

Over recent weeks, our group has been exploring ideas for the UCF stand through sketches, face-to-face discussions and emails and through researching the work of other designers.

Work so far has predominantly focused on the structure of the display – by that, I mean the format and configuration of shelves, tables or podiums that will be used to display the students’ work at the show. A number of concepts have been put forward, some more developed than others.

As yet, however, less focus has been placed on two other important ingredients:
1) the overall look-and-feel of the stand beyond its basic structure, and
2) how the stand will be consistent with the three keywords of Innovation, Sustainability and Interactivity, as required by the brief.

With this in mind, I thought it would be useful at this point to put forward three or four clear concepts which pull together the group’s work to date, but which also start to more clearly address these two key factors. A written proposal is given below – sketches will follow after discussion with the group.


CONCEPT ONE
Title: Colony

Description: We discussed the idea that the student group is made up of designers from many different backgrounds and with a wide variety of skills, who have come together at UCF for the single purpose of achieving their MA. The wide-ranging mix of disciplines makes for a valuable and unique experience and by working together in new ways, we work more innovatively than if we were to study in isolation or with no crossover of specialism.

Creative concept: The form of a hexagon will be used to draw parallels with bees, hives and honeycomb. This reflects the idea of a colony coming together as a community; it also refers to the cross-pollination of crafts and deign disciplines.

The main display mechanism would be individual, hexagonal shelves of varying sizes, following a hexagonal grid. A boundary wall would be formed at one side of the stand by stacking these hexagonal shelves side-by-side and on top of each other. Shelves would be made of strong, corrugated cardboard.

Some shelves would be left backless and empty, so that passers by on either side can see through from/to other parts of the show. Other shelves will be closed at the back and will contain the students’ work. The back of these closed shelves will be made not of cardboard but of translucent paper (with the possible exception of shelves which are used to frame printed textiles). Translucent paper will allow some light to pass through the shelves so that they are not dark and dingy; it will also mean that a silhouette of the contained piece of work can be seen from behind the shelf, encouraging the people behind to come round and view the contents. Further interest can be added to these paper shelf backs with a layer of laser cut paper, cut with a hexagonal, honeycomb pattern. This will give a subtle, textural pattern to the shelf-back, as the light shines through the layers.

Hexagonal laser cut paper will also be used to drape the back of the stand and overhead, in order to add graphic interest, with the addition of clusters of small, light and decorative hexagonal tubes of paper to form a light, sculptural texture. This will visually define the perimeter of the UCF stand and will help contain visitors within the space. The aim will be to evoke a feeling of being inside the ‘hive’ or colony, giving a sense of an intimate or sacred space.

Innovation, Sustainability, Interactivity: Use of paper and card is not unique in itself so can’t be claimed as highly innovative. That said, its use is not commonplace and if done well, the overall sculptural effect could be seen as innovative. Further evidence of innovation is in the stand’s strength as a highly-sustainable design: paper and card can be ethically sourced, possibly from recycled sources; it is lightweight and can be flat-packed for transportation; and it can be recycled after the show and need not be transported back to the UK. Interactivity is suggested (although not strongly) by having see-through shelving, and through the sense of visitors passing through our hive-like space – whilst they are in the space, they become part of our colony.


CONCEPT TWO
Title: Reclaim, Reuse, Recycle

Description: Each member of the team will have a box in which they display their work. One key benefit of using boxes is that no one person’s work will stand alone or predominate, even if boxes of different sizes are used. This avoids students fighting for prime spots on the display, like the back wall for example, and gives everyone an even platform for displaying their work. The same can also be said of the hexagonal shelving in the Colony concept above.

At the heart of this concept is the reuse of reclaimed materials to construct the boxes: palette wood, driftwood, vegetable crates, cardboard boxes, old painted wooden doors, old drawers, wire baskets are just some of the ideas that immediately spring to mind.

Creative concept: Boxes of varying sizes will be constructed from found, reclaimed or reused materials. Boxes will be stacked side-by-side and on top of each other to form a boundary to our exhibition area. Using found objects will introduce colour and texture to the stand, through the random mixture of materials and surfaces.

Ideally, some features of the original item would be left, adding an air of romance and interest and a sense of history. For example, a box made from an old wooden door could retain its paintwork, complete with chips and scratches, and might still have the brass door plate attached to it.

To communicate and strengthen this concept, a printed book or folded poster could be published containing a photographic record of where the materials were found. I imagine moody shots of a skip with an old front door poking out, crates washed up on a windy Cornish beach, a pile of cardboard boxes on a street corner and so on. Perhaps we could show ‘before and after’ shots, with the ‘after’ shot being the finished box with the student’s work inside it. To enhance the concept of ‘Reclaim, Reuse, Recycle’, it may be possible to source old cast-off paper to print this on, perhaps fire-damaged or faded. Alternatively, printing can simply be on recycled stock and with environmentally friendly inks.

Innovation, Sustainability, Interactivity: Our use of reclaimed materials in this way is innovative as well as highly supportive of sustainability. Innovation and creativity is suggested through the notion that we are working with, and adapting, what we can find to use. Since there is a limit to how much of this is in our control, we will be required to think and respond innovatively throughout our designing and making process. I’m not yet clear how much interaction can be introduced; however it is possible that the boxes can be in some way interactive – for example, one may use an old drawer that visitors will open to inspect the contents, or a door with hinges that can be opened.


CONCEPT THREE
Title: Multi-Purpose Crates

Description: This theme uses custom-made crates both for transporting and for displaying work. As with the previous concept, each member of the team will have a box in which they display their work.

Creative concept: Crates would be used to pack and transport the work in. Upon arrival, the same crates would be emptied and used to construct the display. Crates of varying sizes will be constructed from a single, strong material. My preferred choice of material for construction would be either timber (from renewable sources or reclaimed) or particleboard (wheat-based). We could potentially use cardboard as previously discussed, although this introduces issues with strength and durability, particularly for larger boxes when used for display.

Boxes will be stacked side-by-side and on top of each other to form a boundary to our exhibition area. To communicate and strengthen the concept of Multi-Purpose Crates, a series of well-shot photographs could accompany the display, showing ‘frames’ depicting us unpacking the boxes from a van, emptying the contents and then setting up the stand, with the final shot being all of our lovely work displayed on and in the crates. This sequence could be shot at a place of local natural or historic beauty – on a beach in Falmouth, on Bodmin Moor or perhaps even somewhere on campus – promoting Cornwall and UCF and giving our exhibition a sense of place and origin.

Innovation, Sustainability, Interactivity: The use of a single item for multiple purposes (transport and display) is supportive of both innovation and sustainability. The material we use to construct the crate will also support sustainability. It is not yet clear how this theme can introduce an element of innovation, so further thought is needed here.


CONCEPT FOUR
Title: UniForm

Description: This concept uses pieces which slot together to assemble a display shelving system. When disassembled, the system will pack flat.

Creative concept: The principle idea behind this concept is the design of just one cleverly-shaped piece which uses slotting and tongue and groove methods so that multiples can be slotted together to form display shelving. This will give infinite options for size, form and configuration. It will also mean that the stand can be completely broken down and flat-packed for ease of transportation. As well as being used to construct display shelving, pieces can also be slotted together as tiles, to create boundary walls and possible a tiled floor to the stand. This will add texture and interest to the overall scheme.

Pieces will be cut from an environmentally sound wooden or particle board for strength and durability and can either be painted or left bare. The design of the uniform piece should be carefully considered for its aesthetic merits as well as structural function. Decorative cuts and contours should be incorporated into the design, with a pleasing shape adding greatly to visual interest and the overall effect of the stand (although care will be taken not to overly weaken the structure).

Innovation, Sustainability, Interactivity: The use of a single piece with multiple purpose is supportive of both sustainability and innovation; sustainability will further be considered through the choice of construction material. There is the potential of interaction to be introduced by leaving a stack of unused pieces out, which visitors can play with, construct and reconfigure themselves. It might be fun to install a digital camera with a computer and screen – we could take photographs of visitors playing and configuring it and run them on a rolling slideshow, perhaps inviting people to put their names against their own creation.

Milan: UCF Exhibition 2009 (iii)

Here are two very different examples of wooden crates being used effectively, as an integral part of shelving or display systems.

Left: Matali Crasset Production. 2006. Cuisine Fraich'attitude. From: Aitana Lieonart. 2007. Ultimate Paris Design (pg. 224). teNeues Publishing Group.

Right: From: Storage: Get Organized (pg. 6) [extract, magazine supplement]. Elle Decoration.

Milan: UCF Exhibition 2009 (ii)

Fig. 6

Fig. 7

Further demonstration of how a hexagonal grid would allow shelves, boxes and other display solutions in varying sizes.

Milan: UCF Exhibition 2009 (i)

Fig. 1

Fig. 2

Fig. 3

Fig. 4

Fig. 5

Following on from the group discussions we've had over the last couple of weeks, here are my latest sketches for our Milan stand.

I'm still working with hexagons a fair bit at the moment. They provide a narrative, thanks to their links with beehives and honeycomb: this fits both with the theme of 'colony' for the MAs at UCF, and of 'sustainability' as identified in That's Design's brief.

An additional advantage of using hexagons is the grid this provides. This grid gives great scope for combinations of geometric shapes, patterns and configurations (demonstrated at the top of fig. 5).

I've not yet explored using slotted panels to form a cabinet arrangement, but I have been playing with stacking and fanning panels vertically, which would provide pattern interest and structural strength (particularly important if we decide to use cardboard, as discussed in the previous meeting).

Having seen the MA Design exhibition last week, and the variety of work that was displayed, I'm concerned that boxes and shelving units alone will not cater for the formats of work that the various members of the group are likely to want to display. For this reason, I've been playing with combinations which allow for both shelves and podiums.

I've also started to think about using light decoratively - shown in figs. 1 and 5.

A very quick making project

In the spirit of making (and because I couldn't find a suitable present), I decided to make my Dad a birthday card that was also a gift. Here’s what I came up with in the short time I had, using bank notes to spell the word “Dad”.

Not the most thoughtful or sophisticated piece of design I’ve ever done, but good fun, and great to play with paper and card again. And it was well received by its intended recipient!