CDF Project 1:Identifying Communication Design

Effective

This is a ticket from the Whitney Museum in New York City. The date and time of entry is the most important part of a paid ticket for museum entry, and thus it’s emphasized with large, bold text and high contrast here. Less important information is printed in smaller text below, but the same font is used and thus creates cohesion throughout the entire ticket. The white background and gray lines are light and simple enough to still make the black text clear on top of it. Promotional content at the bottom is not convoluted with icons or images or decorative fonts and no additional, useless information is overpopulating the face of the ticket. This museum ticket clearly and succinctly delivers its vital information to both the museum-goer and the museum staff of the time and date of entry and the status and price of the ticket, creating an example of effective communication design.

Ineffective

This is a bathroom sink that depicts poor communication design. Though minimalistic and arguably contains elements of great interior design, this product does a poor job of communicating how one would operate it. There are no handles nor demarcations of “hot” and “cold” typical to faucets. Additionally, it could be confused for an automatic faucet with a sensor since the button is rather inconspicuous. (When I first encountered this sink, I waited with my soapy hands under the faucet for a little bit, waiting for the faucet to turn on automatically.) In person, the button is not actually a button that can be pressed — it simply requires a light tap or human contact. The shape and design of the button seems to convey that it requires a tactile push like an elevator button, so this is confusing at first. This sink’s functionality and operational instructions are not communicated well by its design.