crossedwires

Back to School

I recently saw the inspiring joinedupdesignforschools exhibition at Somerset House, which showcases the work of the the Sorrell Foundation Young Design. The exhibition highlights what young people want from their schools, and shows how they develop life skills when given an important role in the process.







Paul Smith worked with one school in Nottingham to design a new school uniform. Through working with pupils to find out what they wanted, he found out that young people don’t necessarily want a uniform that looks cool or trendy, but one that makes them feel comfortable so they can learn better. The finished design is pictured below.

“We want a uniform that will make us proud of our school.”
- Client team



Joinedupdesignforschools is an example of ‘co-design’, identifying both problems and solution with the user, rather than imposing a solution with no user consultation.

“The kids can list the problems in a school quicker than teachers or governors. That’s very important.”
- Sam Jacob, designer

These projects illustrate what happens when you involve the user in the design process from the beginning, in this case a process that has improved young people’s environment, learning experience and ultimately, their education.

- Posted by Emily

Signage: A Tale of 2 cities

Madrid

Over Christmas, I had the opportunity to stopover in Madrid’s celebrated Barajas airport. As beautiful as it was, exposed unembellished gargantuan struts married with an undulating laminated bamboo ceiling, the experience of awe was soon overcome by one of frustration.

The signage system comprises of different combinations of letters and numbers covering (and sometimes not covering) long corridors, and ambiguous arrows that often make it difficult to discern whether they mean straight ahead or down. Whereas I like to think my eyesight is quite good, my mother who was travelling with me, pointed out (and complained at length) that the lime green background of some of the signs did not provide enough contrast with the white writing.

Indeed, hailed “best new airport” by Wallpaper magazine, I have found online, critiques about its functionality and user experience . Disconcerting when you consider that Barajas is Spain's busiest airport and handles more than 40 million passengers a year!

Marrakesh

On city signposts such as these below, it is clear that clarity of communication takes priority over self-conscious attempts to be clever. The combination of Arabic, French and illustration ensure that the message gets across, no matter where you’re from!

In a country with a rich history and cultural representations of it everywhere, it is interesting to observe its love affair with signification (signage in its wider sense!). From the Berber maids who express their joy, sadness and aspirations through the intricacies of the rugs they weave (playfully referred to as Berber literature books since the Berber language is an oral one); to the 16th century Saadian tombs where the size, height and location of the tombstones represent the identity, importance and relationship of those buried.

Tord Boontje talk at the Design Museum

I went to a talk by product designer Tord Boontje the other day, designer of the Garland lampshade for Habitat.

He spoke about sustainability and the social responsibility of a designer, not in terms of ‘eco’ friendly processes and materials but in terms of the rich/poor divide. His Transglass range is manufactured in a factory he set up in Guatemala to help bring jobs and prosperity to the area.

“We surround ourselves with ‘luxury’ goods made in appalling conditions” he observed.

Tord’s work is largely self-directed. I liked his take on the design process “a lot of designers say they are solving problems and you need a brief to begin solving them – I don’t need problems!”

Read more from the talk here.

- Posted by Emily

Lighting the way

We went to see an exhibition of chandeliers by Madeleine Boulesteix, who makes her unique pieces from second hand materials. They are incredibly beautiful. Even though the idea is quite contemporary, the mix of materials from different eras makes them seem timeless.

In Madeleine’s own words: “Recycling has been around forever, born of a need and not having the luxury to waste but coupled with a basic human desire to create, recreate and entertain and I like to think that my work is part of this age old tradition.”

www.madeleineboulesteix.co.uk