PROJECT 2
Process Documentation
This documentation will include the processes involved in developing the final compositions for the following terms; order, congestion, tension, playfulness and comfort. Following the Gestalt Principles, the aim of the project was to create designs using only black squares that successfully convey the effect of each term. Below are my final iterations of the terms.
PART 1: Thumbnail Sketches
Playfulness
Personally for me, I think playfulness was the most difficult term to convey. In my sketching process I tried to keep in mind to use the least number of black squares but this deemed to be a difficult task.
For playfulness I thought a lot about the term order and how breaking rules of system may carry elements of play. Ay-symmetry, and slightly off compositions also came to mind. The three left-most side sketches and lower right thumbnail sketch were inspired by this idea.
I also thought about how movement could suggest playfulness. In the top right sketch, I tried to suggest a pattern of movement with the squares following the same path as they become increasingly larger.
Comfort
For comfort, I thought about elements that were comforting to me, in that sense, I tried to keep my black boxes in scales that were fully visible within the frame and aimed to keep away from any suggestions of surprise.
When thinking about comfort, I thought about “enclosure” and how being tightly or perfectly surrounded by something can be comforting. The top two and lower left thumbnail sketches represent this idea.
I also thought about how being closely in a group within a larger space could also convey elements of comfort. I imagined, the lower right sketch as to suggest a group people huddled together in a large open space.
My last sketch (middle right) came from looking back at my sketches and feeling that the compositions felt a little claustrophobic. Thus I decided to have just one square placed directly in the center of the design.
Congestion
Congestion was the most exciting composition for me to create because I didn’t have to stress too heavily about the specific interactions between boxes. I also played a lot with scale and the overlapping of boxes.
For congestion I thought a lot about how utilizing negative spaces could emphasize the feeling of being congested. The top two sketches represent this concept; most of the space within the frame is occupied by the black boxes leaving little room for negative space.
For the other sketches I wanted to create an illusion by overlapping the black squares and leaving the overlapped moments highlighted with white strokes. However I mistook the project guidelines and was told not to use white strokes, so my digital iterations are quite different for these sketches.
For my last sketch for congestion, I tried to imagine four squares all trying to be contained but failing to do so, I made the alignment of the boxes slightly off to convey this concept.
Tension
After I finished my initial sketches for tension, I realized that I was having some trouble finding the key differences between congestion and tension. I felt as though if my sketches hadn’t been labeled it would be difficult for a third person to differentiate between these two categories
Similarly to congestion, I focused on how the negative spaces between boxes could emphasize tension. The interaction between boxes became important and for the top left and bottom left sketches, I wanted to suggest elements of tension, by applying pressure to a smaller box.
In the lower right hand sketch I wanted to foreshadow a moment of tension by suggesting a fall of the upper box.
I also thought about how a forceful pull could indicate tension, the top right thumbnail represents this concept.
In the middle left sketch I tried to portray the tension between two boxes by placing them very close to each other, the negative space between them creating a moment of tension.
Order
For order I included a lot of patterns and sequences. I thought a lot about how an increase or decrease in sequence could suggest order. However I think this term was the most limiting because the design had to follow certain rules and relied on precision.
For order, most of my sketches were of patterns that repeated and overlapped. Similarly to congestion, I had used white strokes in my sketches to indicate the section of overlap. All my sketches other than the top left thumbnail represents the order of pattern.
Next I thought about how an increase in size could suggest a sequence. In the top left sketch the boxes start small and become increasingly larger to the point where the third box is not fully included within the frame.
However I changed my digital iterations for order quite significantly because it was difficult to represent the designs without the white strokes.
PART 2: Digital Iterations
A lot of my final iterations differed greatly to my original sketches because it was easier to create these types of compositions on the Illustrator program rather than drawing by hand.
Playfulness
For playfulness I decided translate two sketches and made two new compositions in Illustrator. For my top right iteration I realized making recognizable constructions such as a face could refer to elements of play. For the lower left sketch, I tried to imitate a group of small children following an adult figure.
For my final piece I decided to stick to a sketch that I had done that represents four identical squares misaligned suggesting movement and interaction.
In-class Feedback: PLAYFULNESS
I like your use of scale.
I like how you were able to convey so much with such few squares. The way the squares are positioned creates a lot of movement in the piece.
Comfort
For the comfort designs I primarily stuck with my original thumbnail sketches. These are my final digital iterations for comfort.
My final design for comfort also came out of the original thumbnail sketch. I liked this composition because it was minimal but also provided a sense of warmth and enclosure.
In-class Feedback: COMFORT
I like the clarity here and that you avoided over complicating.
Congestion
For congestion I had to change up my sketches slightly because I refrained from using strokes to indicate areas of overlap. I really enjoyed how some of these pieces came out because the negative spaces became further emphasized by the larger boxes.
Personally I think my final piece for congestion was the most interesting composition out of the five digital iterations. Its quite simple, only consisting of three squares, but the overlap of these three shapes created some very interesting negative shapes such as the triangles and line. I also think it portrayed the feeling of congestion more successfully than the others.
In-class Feedback: CONGESTION
I love your use of negative shape. The white forms really pop!
Tension
For the tension digital iterations I focused more carefully on the negative spaces between the boxes. For many of the compositions I tried to create a point where two faces meet to suggest elements of tension.
My final tension composition features just two boxes with very little space between them. Looking back at it now and with the feedback I had received during class, I think I could have incorporated other elements in which could have emphasized the feeling of tension within this design.
In-class Feedback: TENSION
I wish you made the difference between the two squares more exaggerated so that they seemed more in tense.
Order
My digital iterations for order were also greatly different to my original thumbnail sketches. I think the designs for order were much easier to create within Illustrator as the tools allowed for more precision and more efficient duplication.
For my final design, I decided to go with a more minimal composition. I envisioned all the blocks lining up and leaving an equal amount of space between them.
In-class Feedback: ORDER
I like the consistent spacing, feels ordered even though horizontal space doesn’t line up.
Conclusion
I think this project was a really valuable experience and a good introduction to design. I think the terms and our restrictions to use only black squares really pushed us to think outside the box. Also as I had previously only used Photoshop before through this project, learned a lot of new ways to navigate in Illustrator. The project also made me pay particular attention to how the interaction between shapes can convey meaning. The feedback I received in class from my peers also allowed me to see my designs with a different perspective. However I think the most interesting aspect of this project was when we assessed other people’s designs. It was really intriguing to see how different the designs ended up being despite the restrictions.
