Objectified

Objectified is a documentary by Gary Hustwit. There are a lot of ideas raised in the video through video interviews with some of the most influential designers of today. The video gives an excellent insight into objects that are around us that we subconsciously interact with on a daily basis, and don’t even realise. 'From the moment you wake up, almost everything that fills your world has been designed in one way or another.' The bed you sleep in, the blankets, the alarm clock, the shower, the cups and bowls, door handles, pretty much everything. The are all designed with the users likes, needs, interactions and beliefs in mind. To design objects in new ways to make things easier or more comfortable or more fun.

All the objects are expressive in their own way through there use of form, colour, size shape, the general elements and principals of design. Sitting in a chair for instance, a chair with a egg shape form and soft texture creates a completely different experience for the user than a cube chair with hard surfaces. It creates different emotional reactions and feelings for the user about different objects thus influencing its successfulness and The longer a person uses a product for, the more emotionally attached they become to that object because of the memories associated with it. This means they are much less likely to throw it out.

This video is good for an Industrial Designer to watch as it gives insight into the minds of other designers that have major influences on us as students and on the designs being created by other designers or design companies. It helps you in forming your own design philosophy, and this is something that designers have to develop.

Upcycling - Coffee Table

Before I started to design my upcycled product, I researched some places of where I could get industrial off cuts. I wanted to design a piece of furniture made from off cut wood materials and these industrial off cuts are obtained from cabinet makers, picture framers, wood workers and some wood suppliers. The objects I ended up using was industrial off cuts from a picture framing company and large sheets of laser cut out shapes than I obtained at reverse garbage. I then brainstormed the different types of furniture I could possibly create out of my materials. The easiest option and the first thing I thought to make was a room divider or screen, but I wanted to take it a bit further than that, and ended up with the idea of making a table. I had several designs of all different types of tables, eg. bedside table, coffee table, dining table, study desk etc. The coffee table best suited the materials I had, although the design I had was too over the top and had too much going on. I simplified my design a bit and changed around the size to fit with the materials I had.

Upcycling is the process of converting waste materials or useless products into new materials or products of a better quality or a higher environmental value. I didn’t use any screws or metal in my design, the coffee table I created was made entirely out of wood, it is held together with dowels and PVA glue and therefore is 100% recyclable. The table top is made from 2 different 8mm laser cut out sheets, one with a koala design on it and the other a platypus design. I didn’t want the final product to look like the cut outs so I cut up and overlayed them to achieve an entirely different pattern. The legs of the coffee table and the frame holding the table top in, are all made from picture frame cut offs. They were black frames which I cut up and shaped too fit in with the rawness of the black and wood cut outs. Too stabilise the coffee table I cut out a thinner piece of the frames and used it around the edges. I then cut out a thinner more detailed 3mm sheet of laser cut outs with kangaroos and wombats on it too use as a trim and add to the detail of my design.

The final product was made to look like a low-lying Chinese style coffee table. I wanted it to have a modern look to it and break away from the tradition style of Chinese coffee tables. The koalas, platypus, kangaroo and wombat cut outs add to its uniqueness and creates an original Australian made design . My target market I was aiming for was males or females aged between 25-40 years old, living in a small apartment or house.

Design For Life - Philippe Starck

Design for Life is a British television series on the BBC. It is a show about the famous product designer, Philippe Starck and his design agency and 12 aspiring designers aged from 19-32 years old. They are competing for a 6 month internship working with Philippe Starck. He sets tasks for them to complete and to prove to him why they deserve this opportunity. Thousands of people applied for a position on the show, but he chose only 12, that he believed were a new generation of British design talent. Each person sent in sketches of ideas they had or created and that is how each person was chosen. Starke seemed to choose the most abstract, original designs; examples include a bungee cord kitchen storage shelf, corkscrew coffins and a light fitting in the style of a noose. He invites the 12 lucky hopefuls to a design school he set up in Paris.

I think the series is a great insight into the life and work of industrial designers as it shows us Philippe Starcks design philosophies and his opions on the everyday products that we use. Through out the episode Starck is trying to train his students of a new way of thinking like a designer through life, not thinking about the product it’s self and that they should question everything about a design. He says 'They need to immerse themselves into the environments of other people to understand there behaviours.’ He focuses on the benefit for mankind, sustainability, ecology and ethicality. It is interesting to see the designs that the contestants come up with and how Philippe criticizes them. Through the emotional development of the contestants as the show advances it is evident that there will be struggles and disappointments. They are constantly put down but through criticism but grow and benefit from it as Starck is honest, up front and rational with his criticisms.

Getting inspiration for a design project can come from unusual or normal things, for example, plants nature, living or everyday things. Starck believes in designing for everyone. 'It is about creating objects that benefit everyone through value, are sustainable and function,' This is called demographic design.

The winner is decided in the last episode and it is based on how well the developed throughout the series and there overall successfulness. The contestant won due to her ambition to succeed while sticking to the brief and her original creative way of thinking and design.

Project 2 - peeer comments

Frankie Tsz Hin Ho - http://frankie-industrial-design.blogspot.com/2010/10/project-2-upcycling.html


Zenon Zoltaszek - http://zen-industrialdesign.blogspot.com/2010/10/upcycling-mirror-timbers-of-australian.html

Kane Yong - http://mycollectionsofmisdirections.blogspot.com/2010/10/assignment-2-upcycling-rationale.html

Debbie Tram - http://z3333759.blogspot.com/2010/11/upcycling.html

Henry Treloar - http://henrysdblog.blogspot.com/2010/10/upcycling-posters.html

Project 1 - peer comments

Xavier Mancini - http://xavmancini.blogspot.com/2010/09/experience-enrichment-hero-shot.html


Sebastian Gregory - http://sebgregable.wordpress.com/2010/09/26/project-1/#comment-7

Kane Yong - http://mycollectionsofmisdirections.blogspot.com/2010/09/experience-enrichment-appearance-model.html

Judith Torzillo - http://z3334292.blogspot.com/2010/09/experience-enrichment.html

Adara Taista - http://adarataista.blogspot.com/2010/09/project-1-product-enrichment.html

Experience Enrichment - Hero Shots

Experience Enrichment - Products Context of Use

This is a Cheese/Fruit and Vegetable grater. There are 4 main components that make up the entire design. The Lid, the Bowl, the Grater and the Rubber Stopper.

1. The Lid is used to hold the cheese so that there is no contact with the grater, thus eliminating the chance of grating your knuckles. It has thirteen reinforced plastic semi-blunt sticks inside the lid which stab into large pieces fruit and vegetables, this is shown in the picture below showing the positions of the spikes. The spikes are just under the edge of the lid so that it does break off or get grated into the food. On the top side of the lid there is a dynamic handle moulded to fit the hand with indented grooves for your fingers and thumbs to rest.
2. The next compartment is the Bowl. It is used to collect all the grated bits of food. It is very easily interchanged and can be swapped for larger of finer grain graters depending on the food you are making. The bowl has a 5mm recess around the rim so that it can hold the grater in place.
3. The Rubber Stopper has two functions. Firstly when not in use it holds together the bowl and the lid. It has a 2mm overbite that sits perfectly onto the recessed edge of the bowl and the edge of the lid. Its second use is for when the product is in use, it holds the bowl in place for when the user is grating. It is hollowed out in the middle and chamfered to cup the bowl perfectly so that the bowl doesn’t slide around on the table.
4. The Final component is the actual grater itself it is 2mm thick and stainless steel, shaped to fit with ease into the recess of the bowl. The grater is interchangeable and can be swapped for large or finer grain graters for different thickness results when grating.