The Power of Color

                  The first box of crayons you ever got probably had the basic eight: black, white, red, yellow, blue, purple, brown and orange. And at that time, this was all you needed-every shade in the world fit into one of these categories. And then you discovered pink and you had to get the new box with sixteen colors. Your palette expanded. Gray, peach, silver...before long, you asked for the big one. The mother of all crayons. The 96 count set with the sharpener on the box. Surely now you had them all; every color was in your grasp.                 

http://67.222.3.121/~handruin/forum/showthread.php?t=5568

                  Color is an important form of nonverbal communication. From the clothes we wear to the food we eat, color influences our choices. Our perception of the world is affected by color. Likewise, the way the world perceives us is also affected by color. In fact, color, many times, is the most significant feature of an item. Designers, therefore, cannot afford to treat color lightly. When mixing and matching, it helps to know a little color theory. Back to kindergarten and that box of eight crayons. One exercise you likely completed was a color wheel. The wheel is made by placing the three primary colors (red, yellow, and blue) equidistant from each other on a circle. By blending the primaries you get the secondary colors: red and yellow produce orange; yellow and blue produce green; blue and red produce purple. Further blends of adjacent colors produce tertiary colors, and so on.

http://www.malanenewman.com/browser_safe_color_wheel.htm

                  You don't need a Ph.D. in color theory to know that relationships exist between adjacent, complementary, clashing colors. Our perception of color is affected by the surrounding colors as well as the proximity of other colors, and the amount of light. Furthermore, certain colors and combinations evoke emotional responses, which, depending on your background, you probably already intuitively know. It is the designer's business to create a visual experience which is pleasing to the eye. The elements of visual harmony are simple to explain, yet much more difficult to practice. Harmony engages the viewer and creates an inner sense of order, a balance. Combinations fail to harmonize if they are so bland as to bore the viewer. At the other extreme, chaotic, overdone combinations will be rejected as something which the mind cannot organize or understand. Simply put, the designer must strive to achieve the balance between under-stimulation and over-stimulation. This is harmony, a dynamic equilibrium.
                  Adjacent or analogous colors are those next to each other on the color wheel. These are harmonizing hues, since they each contain of a little of each other in themselves. They work well together, although they can appear washed out if they are too close to each other on the wheel. Adding black or white to one or both colors (creating tints or shades) can create higher contrast, solving this problem.
                  Complementary colors are separated by one color on a twelve part color wheel. While this combination of colors creates higher contrast, it also causes undesirable visual vibrations which puts physical strain on the eyes. This effect can be alleviated if complementary colors are separated on the page by at least one other color.
                  Direct opposites on the color wheel are called contrasting colors. (Sometimes direct opposites are also called complements.) When used carefully in designs, these combinations have high contrast and visibility along with a sense of harmony.
                  In addition to these basic formulas, designers must be aware of associations to colors due to cultural references, gender, age, and class differences. It is important to understand how the color has been used in a political and historical context as well as how it has been used in past and current trends. Religious and mythical implications can also effect the use of a color. Even linguistic usage (i.e. phrases like "in the red," and "moody blues") will affect how people view a color.

                  When it comes to politics, what immediately comes to mind is the Green Movement in Iran, which refers to the series of actions taken after the 2009 Iranian presidential election, where protestors demanded the removal of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad from office. Green was initially used as the symbol of Mir Hossein Mousavi’s campaign, but after the election it became the symbol of unity and hope for those asking for annulment of what they regarded as a fraudulent election.

http://scottpantall.com/2009/12/07/irony-in-iran-students-day-2009/

http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2009/07/does-irans-green-movement-need-us-aid/

Dangerous Design

           Beyond their violent employment, weapons have broad reaching iconography in Western culture.  A symbol of power, of dominance and of masculinity, the weapon has been idolized in entertainment media and even infused in modern design. 

There is a series of works done by the late Philippe Starck, who has taken inspiration from weaponry. This 18k gold-plated pistol, for example. Although it may rest at your bedside, and it may not ward off any intruders,  the Bedside Gun Lamp brings character and high style to any room in your house, bedroom or otherwise.  Initially designed in 2005, Starck said that “design is my only weapon, so I use it to speak about what is important”. 

           Now although the design itself may not be a dangerous one, it is nonetheless inspired by weapons of violence and goes to show how desensitzed society has become. By having weapons of violence on display in a household it may propose the idea to children that weapons are acceptable and should be used. Weapons may seem like a symbol to power to some but ultimately they are a symbol of death and violence. So once again this design in reality is not dangerous but in actuality the seeds it plants are deadly.

Utopian Design

         Of all the different kinds of water storage containers that are available plentifully in the market, a stainless steel water bottle would be the ideal one for the many kinds of advantages that it has to offer. It will leave you with the least of worries when it comes to the matter pertaining to your health. For those ecologically conscious beings too, a stainless steel water bottle would be an ideal choice as the bottle can be reused again and again.

         Since the stainless steel is a tough material, there is no risk of the plastic leaching into the water. This would leave you a little less worried considering that here is enough and more to worry about the chemicals that are already present in the water coming in plastic containers these days. The drink that is stored in the stainless steel container will remain intact and will not lose its flavor at all. This does not happen in the case of plastic bottles and even the aluminum bottles.

http://safewaterbottlereview.com/reviews/earthlust-stainless-steel-water-bottle-review/

         The steel containers are naturally more resistant to the infiltration of bacteria than that of the containers made from any other material. And a reusable steel bottle is advantageous on the economic side too considering that you need not spend extra bucks for plastic bottles which has to be thrown away after use. The steel containers are tough enough that they will remain in great shape for a lot more years. It might only need an occasional change of parts.

         As mentioned earlier, the steel alternative to bottles are a lot more sustainable. It will reduce the trash that is becoming a growing menace with its predominantly plastic composition. And the principle of reuse is certainly better than the principle of recycling or the habit of use-and-throw.

         The steel bottles are designed so that it can suit any sort of users, be it construction laborers, sports enthusiasts or students. They come in countless colors and designs, with a screw on air tight cap, aaand many come with hiking hooks attached to the top which is a convenient feature to have, say if you were hiking and wanted to hook it on to your backpack for quick and easy access. The bottle will ensure that the iced water remains iced for at least five hours.

         So not only are these water bottles beautifully and simply designed, they are designed with the enviornment in mind, and have become somewhat of a mainstream trend. Sustainability and simplicity? Doesn’t get any better.

HTML5 + Music = Awesomeness

        Further pushing the boundaries of the "music video" concept, Indie band Arcade Fire released a vid for the song “We Used to Wait” (directed by Chris Milk) off of their album, The Suburbs, and it’s basically one big ball of HTML5/Google Maps/musical goodness. The project utilizes Google Street View, multiple browser windows and 3D canvas rendering, which really shows off the capabilities offered by HTML5.

        “The Wilderness Downtown” video is a new kind of musical experience, reminiscent of — but much more advanced than — hypertext storytelling of old. Basically, you surf over to “The Wilderness Downtown” page using Google Chrome (don’t use Safari the program will murder your browser), and type in the address of your childhood home when prompted. If Google Maps has enough footage of home sweet home, you’ll be pulled into a multi-browser movie of your own making. The experience of watching this highly personalized video is not easily described, but basically the story of childhood ending as time rapidly slips away becomes your own as trees shoot up out of nowhere on your old street, culminating in an opportunity to write a letter to a younger you. Check it out when you have a moment to really watch the whole thing. Just press play on Arcade Fire’s new web music video, “The Wilderness Downtown”  and you'll know that you're seeing a glimpse of the future of entertainment.

        The project follows up equally innovative online clips for the band's 2007 sophomore album "Neon Bible" - the video for the title track used point-and-click technology, while “Black Mirror” let viewers trigger different instruments during the song. Check out the links to these two as well… SO COOL!

The Ergonomic Keyboard

            Mass production of products does not take into account that humans come in various shapes and sizes. The proportions of a chair that work well to support a six foot tall body frame can add stress and challenges to a smaller sized person. Mass production can make the most commonplace products difficult to use. Considerations like the size and shape of tools and how they fit into the hand that will use them are important to ergonomic design. 

            The need for ergonomic design is thought to have originated during World War II, when it became apparent that military systems could be more effective if they took into account the environmental requirements of the soldiers operating them. After incorporating ergonomic changes in some military systems, efficiency and effectiveness as well as safety were improved. The number of manufacturers and business recognizing the benefits of ergonomic design principals continues to grow…

            With all that said, I give you the Ergonomic Keyboard. For those of you not so familiar with this product, an Ergonomic Keyboard is a computer keyboard designed with ergonomic considerations. Let’s take a look at this rather strange looking invention:

Safety- Sufferers of carpal tunnel goes through injections, wear wrists guards and they will no longer have the ability to type as they once did! The idea behind the Ergonomic Keyboard is that it overcomes the stress and strains people inflict on themselves as a result of frequent extending of the hands, wrists, and fingers which take place on a traditional keyboard over the course of several hours on a daily basis. This is most true with those who work in an office, behind a computer day-in and day-out.

Comfort- Your hands, wrists, shoulders and back are the areas of your body most vulnerable to repetitive strain injury. An Ergonomic Keyboard is going to keep your hands, wrists and shoulders in a better position and the hands do not crowd the keyboard, as in case of traditional keyboards. Ergonomic Keyboards provide a natural position that reduces muscle stress and strain while typing. The split keyboards are designed to specificity fit the position of the wrist and hands while typing. Instead of conforming your hands to the keyboard, the keyboard is conformed to the natural way your hands, fingers and wrist are positioned when typing.

Ease of use- Many people who use ergonomic split keyboards find the positioning of the keys to be natural. Instead of forcefully pressing the keyboard keys, an ergonomic keyboard is designed so that you only have to use a light touch in order to type. Two-and-three-key combinations also come easier when using this special keyboard. Granted most people feel a two to three week transitioning period, generally users don’t experience too much trouble adjusting.

Performance/ Productivity- Although Ergonomic Keyboards have many health benefits, that doesn’t make them any less efficient than a traditional keyboard. In fact, it is quite the opposite. These split keyboards have shown an increase in their users’ type speed, which ultimately result in more efficiency in the work place and again, less stress for the person behind the keyboard.

Aesthetics- In all fairness, for everything an Ergonomic Keyboard has to offer, it doesn’t look toooo bad. But let’s be real, it is not the best looking keyboard on the market. A common ergonomic keyboard design is one where the keyboards seems to be split in half, and each half is positioned on an angle to match the shape of your wrists when typing. Usually ergonomic split keyboards come in two types. The "split" or the divide of the two parts of the keyboard can either be altered in angles or the split angle is fixed. A fixed-split ergonomic keyboard uses a single board just as any other inline keyboard may use, but this one is probably curved slightly outward. The other type of ergonomic split keyboard is the adjustable split keyboard. This keyboard is split into several independent pieces, allowing you to increase or decrease the space between the groups of keys, ultimately making it more personalized to your wrists and hands.

            A thorough understanding of the specific tasks an object is intended for is central to achieving the ergonomic design goal of aiding the human form in executing them. Quality ergonomics is thought to reduce the risk of injury and errors by ensuring that technology and humanity fit and are working together. Greater accuracy and more efficient performance will be achieved by meeting human needs with technology. But best of all, quality of life will also be improved.

          Don’t you find it rather intriguing that even today, after more than 140 years, all conventional keyboards and other ergonomic keyboards are based on 1860s typewriter's staggered key arrangement design?

 

Message in a Bottle

           Bottle of Notes is the first public sculpture in the United Kingdom by the two internationally renowned artists, Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen.  The piece, which soars thirty feet high, alongside mima in Centre Square, was completed in 1993, and it is a magnificent piece of public art in Middlesbrough, UK, home of voyager and mapmaker James Cook.

            In 1986, a program had been started to help revitalize the economically depressed region of Middlesbrough through commissions of art. The sculpture was to be built in Hebburn, helping to provide employment for workers in the abandoned shipyards along the Tyne River.

http://www.pbase.com/jabtas/canon_28135mm

            A lattice-like steel sculpture in the shape of a bottle set at an angle in a bed of bark chips. The bottle has a steel “cork”. The piece is formed of a hand-written message (Claes Oldenburg) which has inside it another hand-written message arranged in a spiral. The bottle, the inner text and the cork are all painted in polyurethane enamel-white, blue, black respectively. The outer text is taken from the log of Captain Cook’s first voyage to the South Pacific in 1768. It reads, ‘We had every advatage we could desire in observing the whole passage of the planet Venus over the Sun’s disk”. The inner text is from a 1987 poem, ‘Memos of a Gadfly’, by van Bruggen about her childhood in Amsterdam: ‘I like to remember seagulls in full flight gliding over the ring of canals.’ Appropriately, the sculpture is sited beside a small ornamental lake in a new, centrally-located park.

Word and Image- Brian Fries

            When freelance writer Brian Fies’ mother was diagnosed with both lung cancer and a brain tumor, he started to document her struggles and what such an event does to a family as a whole. The result is the amazing little Eisner Award-winning graphic novel Mom’s Cancer. It’s done in comic book style and it’s just phenomenal.

            The storytelling is brutally honest, yet humorous and insightful. Each member of the family is pulled into the struggle against incredible odds. Cancer, like most crises, brings out both the best and the worst in a family.

            Mom’s Cancer isn’t some overly sentimental cancer story. Fies doesn’t glorify his mother, as would be the tendency of some. He keeps her honest. She smoked, she had trouble understanding what she was going through, and she frustrated the hell out of him sometimes.

http://chinotto-is-my-nemesis.blogspot.com/2010/01/9-book-reviews.html

            He also portrays the family in humorous and interesting ways. There’s a Kid Sis and Nurse Sis and each have their strengths and faults. There are very vivid, visual metaphors for things in the book I found especially compelling.

            The artwork is clean and simple, yet detailed and emotive. The storyboard look and feel of the book really helps one to understand the scientific aspects of what is going on with the cancer cells.

With the graphic format, Fies manages to get me to understand medical jargon, which would normally be too boring for me to be interested in. Instead of being bored, I was fascinated, which is saying a lot for me.

If someone you know has cancer, this is a book for them. It’s educational, hopeful and humorous. I highly recommend it.

I (heart) iProducts

          Staring at the screen of this very laptop, thinking of what to make this blog about, it occurred to me… This MacBook is exactly what I want to write about.     

 

            I find it interesting that a lot of attention is paid and discussion time alloted to the styling of laptop computers. Computer design is either good or bad. There are few companies today taking design as serious as Apple. They may not be the market leader fiscally; in terms of design and quality-control they are, though. Whatever your stance towards them is, one has to acknowledge their expertise in making a seemingly mundane object aesthetically outstanding.

            Steve Jobs stated once that the “design is not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works.” While this statement has proven to be crucial over thousands of years, one shouldn’t misinterpret it by emphasizing the functionality despite the design. When it comes to product design, the significance of aesthetics of a given device, the way its design looks and feels, determines the choice of the customer once the functionalities of multiple devices are more or less similar.

            Apple has launched iconic products such as the iPod, iPhone and iMac. These are prominent for their one-button-one-scroll interface, multi-touch technology and all-in-one offering, respectively. Take the iMac, for instance, and look at its evolution from a half-orb to a flat-panel all-in-one powerhouse. It's undeniably one of the most beautiful computers on the market today. At Apple everything's shiny, elegant and sleek. Decidedly so, Apple's design is timeless. Jonathan Ive has created an aesthetic identity, which is unique and captivating. A MacBook Pro is a stunning piece of electronics. From an engineering point-of-view it's also very innovative. Using the so-called unibody-construction, MacBooks have become a paradigm of clear computer design. This has also helped perfect the fusion between aesthetics and foolproof usability.

            It's not the products that are timeless, though; it's the principles by which they are created. To make something markedly simple is an easy task. However, to make it so without compromising its sophistication is not as easy. Few products are timeless. Especially in industrial design it's hard to stand out, and stand the test of time. Innovation is the only way to advance a mundane product to something which is indispensable. If a computer's design is organic it will blend in with its environment, making it an intuitive part of our home or workspace.