Summer Reading and Other Plans

A few 5-point plans for the summer break… 

Books I Intend To Read:

1.    “Blink” by Malcolm Gladwell – After reading Gladwell’s “The Tipping Point” in semester one I am intrigued to read another title by this author.

2.    “The Mind Map Book” by Tony Buzan – After being asked to read part of this book in preparation for semester one I would like to complete the rest of the book as I found the section I did read very useful.

3.    “A Green Vitruvius: Principles and Practice of Sustainable Architectural Design” by J. Owen Lewis – After completing a studio project centring around sustainable design I would like to explore the topic further and incorporate the practice in future designs. The synopsis of this book states that it gives “advice suitable for undergraduate and post graduate students on the integration of sustainable practice into the design and construction process, the issues to be considered, the strategies to be adopted, the elements of green design and design evaluation within the process.”

4.    “Think – Inside The Sketchbook” by Gillian Robinson, Alison Mountain and David Hulston – By reading this book I hope to discover how to use a sketchbook fully as a design tool.

5.    “Conversations With Frank Gehry” by Barbara Isenberg – This book focuses on the career of Frank Gehry, the world-renowned architect, whose latest design, the 76-story tall New York by Gehry building, opened in February of this year. With a long list of well-respected designs, I would very much like to find out about his work in greater detail.

Updates I Intend To Make On My Blog:

1.    Purchase a domain name. A website and blog with a personal domain name and an email account with a sophisticated address will be much more professional.

2.    Link my current website (which I will update) to my blog in order to display my projects in greater detail in relation to any posts on my studio work.

3.    Create a Delicious account. Working between computers in the college, my laptop in the studio and my desktop at home often makes keeping track of bookmarks difficult so a delicious account will be of great use to me, making things a lot easier to find!

4.    Create a Twitter account to allow me to quickly update followers on new posts on both my blog and website. Twitter will also allow me to receive regular updates from other people from the design industry who may be of interest to me.

5.    Change my blog layout. I aim to have a common theme running throughout both my blog and website so they are easily recognisable as being related. It will make it easier for visitors to relate both to me personally.

People I intend to Connect with over the summer:

1.    Lindsey McIntosh – Lindsey is currently doing a Masters in Design and has given lectures to second year IED students over the semester on materials used in architecture. Her lectures have included information on sustainable materials, which has been helpful to me when completing my current project. Lindsey had lots of interesting things to say so by following her on Twitter I hope to stay informed of any knowledge she has to share.

2.    Alex Pearson – Alex has taught IED student from all years in 3D Max and Sketch-up recently and in doing so has given examples of his own work. I was impressed with his past projects and am interested to connect to Alex’s website to keep up to date on any future projects.

3.    Jonathan Baldwin – I would like to follow Jonathan on Twitter as he regularly posts information on articles, T.V. programmes etc. that are relevant or of interest to design students.

4.    Keppie Architects – Designers at this firm have recently built a new hospital in Larbert where I was brought up. Last summer I completed a mini project on the hospital and found their work fascinating. Many of you will be familiar with their work as they also designed Dundee’s local shopping centre, the Overgate. I would love to find out more about this particular company and have been given contact details for possible work experience.

5.    Delta Studios: The Creative Centre – The centre opened in my home town of Larbert a couple of years ago and over the summer I intend to visit the exhibition space in the hope of getting more information about the studios. Ideally I would like to get contact information from members to find out about any up and coming projects in the area.

The Forth Valley Royal Hospital by Keppie Architects.

Assignment 5A

Planning For The Future

In Semester One, after further investigation of Malcolm Gladwell’s “The Tipping Point,” I came across “The Law of the Few,” one of the major aspects associated with the spread of ideas – referred to in the book as epidemics - amongst groups of people. According to Gladwell’s theory, “The Law of the Few” refers to three different groups of people: Connectors, those who know lots of people and have a gift for bringing groups together; Salesmen, who use technique, enthusiasm, persuasion and charm to make ideas attractive; and Maverns, who use their accumulative knowledge to pass information on to others.

In further application of “The Law of the Few,” I researched the subject in relation to social networking within the design industry. My investigation included referring to Nancy K. Baym’s “Personal Connections in the Digital Age,” which focuses on social aspects of the Internet, mobile phones and digital media. Also used was Tanguy Coenen’s “Structural Aspects of Online Social Networking Systems and Their Influence on Knowledge Sharing,” which is relevant to the process view on knowledge management where the emphasis lies on sharing through interactions between people.

As a result of my research, I found that Connectors, Salesmen and Maverns use social networking as a tool to both rapidly spread ideas among a vast number of people and receive information from other sources that may be of use to them. Companies or individuals can connect with others through common friends or even set up groups in order to do this efficiently.

To further my knowledge of the importance of social networking within the design industry - along with Connectors, Salesmen and Maverns - beyond secondary sources, I intend to plan a research strategy focusing on primary research to get a better understanding of the topic.

Research Method

For my main method of research I intend to speak directly to people within the design industry from a number of disciplines, such as a tutor who has practiced or still practices Interior Design, and find to what extent they rely on social networking systems to connect with others within the workplace.

Below an initial brainstorm I made to help me think about my main goal when formulating a series of questions in which to ask my potential interviewees.

To discover the level of use of social networking among companies in the design industry, I have decided to use a series of structured questions that would be asked to each company. A positive aspect to this method of research is that by using the same set of questions for each design firm, I will be able to easily compare the difference of each firm regarding the extent of its social networking usage. Another positive aspect of such a method is that by having a series of questions that have been pre-written, there is the option to ask questions on a wide range of aspects of their social networking use, such as whether they would use it to connect with possible clients, employees or graduate students. However, a possible negative aspect of this method of research is that by having a set list of questions, there is little opportunity to change questions after certain firms have been interviewed, as once some questions have been changed, it will become more difficult to compare responses if some firms have been asked different questions from others.

Another method I will employ in order to research the use of social networking within the design industry, I will conduct a survey of fellow design students. With this survey, I would seek to discover the ways in which such students use social networking to collect information from companies working in design, such as the graduate careers (if any) available, and the specific areas of the industry in which they work. Social networking is very popular among students, so this may be an effective tool for collecting information. Despite this, a possible limitation is that some companies in the design industry may not use social networking as a means of communication, possibly preferring to use email, telephone or post instead.

Plan

I feel the idea time to approach both practicing designers and students would be around the time of the up coming graduates degree show at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design. Students will at this stage be looking to make and may have already made connections within the design industry. They will hopefully have been dealing with potential employees and publicising their personal work, which is to be shown as part of the degree show. Design firms may perhaps be looking for innovative new designers and seek to contact graduates at this stage and I would look to find how graduates and companies communicate.

Due to the stress of preparing for a degree show, the next few weeks could well be difficult for students and university staff to set aside time to answer questions or complete a survey. If this is the case I plan to approach students who are present during the degree show about their work and ask if they would mind filling in a quick questionnaire about their use of social networking. In order to get accurate results I feel only a few students will need to be asked as, presumably, they have each dealt with a couple of different companies within the industry over the past couple of years.  In order to get practicing designers opinion I intend to approach staff just after the degree show, just before the summer break, when they are likely to have more time to spare. I seek to ask as many practicing designers as possible to find out if in the past, social networking was relied on as heavily as it appears to be today.

Completing these tasks should require no extra input from anyone else other than the people I will interview and ask to complete the survey. I intend to spend one day analysing and recording the results, which I will then blog about to reveal my findings. I fully expect to be shocked by the lack of traditional methods of knowledge sharing, such as writing letters, as my research so far indicates that social networking has replaced the more personal approaches of the past.

Why do people accumulate stuff? Part 1: Questions and answers.

Assignment 4 asks us to pick a topics, formulate and conduct interviews of a few people about our chosen subject, write up our findings and offer our own opinions.


I decided to investigate why people accumulate stuff. To form a structure for my interview I first completed a mind map to fully explore my chosen question.

The above shows the different avenues of my interviews ranging from questions on the experience of shopping to the experiences of throwing away items in the home.

Here is a list of the questions I asked in the order in which I asked them...

1. Are you a person who accumulates stuff?
2. What type of thing do you accumulate? Is it a collection or things with no connection?
3. Do you have a use for the things you accumulate?
4. Where do you keep the things you accumulate?
5. Where do you keep the things you accumulate? Are they on show or stored out of sight?
6. Do you have an emotional attachment to the things you accumulate?
7. Do you by these things simply for want or need?
8. How do you feel when shopping?
9. On reflecting of buying these items how do you feel about them? Worth keeping them? Waste of money?
10. Could you live without them?
11. Would you stretch your budget or go out of pocket to purchase these items?
12. Is purchasing these products an addiction?
13. When you clear out your house do you throw any of these items away?
14. If you do, how do you feel about doing so? Relieved? Regret?
15. Are there any items which you keep because they have been passed down to you by a family member?
16. Are there any items you have accumulated you are keeping to pass down to another family member?

To give you some background on the interviewees, I have put together a character profile on each person

Interviewee 1

Age: Unknown.

Sex: Female.

Marital Status: Single.

Occupation: Design Student.

Dependants: One Daughter.

In charge of Household: Yes.

Interviewee 2

Age: 19.

Sex: Male.

Marital Status: In a Relationship.

Occupation: Accounts Student and Works in Super Market Part-Time.

Dependants: None.

In Charge of Household: No. Lives with mother and sister.

Interviewee 3

Age: Early Forties.

Sex: Female.

Marital Status: Married for over 20 years.

Occupation: N/A

Dependants: 3 Daughters.

In Charge of Household: Yes.

Notes from first interview:

She does accumulate stuff, particularly books, which she has a practical use for, and other items such as shells, for their sentimental value. The books she collects are on topics which interest her/ make her more knowledgeable on the subject rather than novels for reading pleasure. The books and mementos are on display around her home. She feels these items make the house her own and much more homely. She also keeps materials which she does not have a use for but refuses to throw them out in case they come in handy one day. She finds it hard to resist bargains and will collect many items from car boot sales. She has a hard time throwing away any work from school as she would like her daughter to be able to use them to aid her own studies. She has a habit of retrieving items her daughter bins, particularly old toys as she has an emotional attachment to them and hopes one day any grandchildren she has will make use of them. When clearing out she looses sight of her intention of throwing away unwanted items and often goes back through piles she has made of stuff to be thrown out, deciding to keep most of it. Her garage and attic are filled with various things as she has run out of room in her house. She mostly buys for need rather than want, feeling the need to justify any spending. She is attached to her personal belongings but not to the extent that she could not live without them. After initial disappointment, she would recover if any of these items were taken from her. She owns a bedding box which her father made and gave to her which she keeps. Apart from perhaps this item she has no particularly treasured items, she likes them all!

Notes from second interview:

The things he accumulates are related to his interests in film, music, computer gaming and comic books. He also accumulates issues of Rolling Stone magazine and has several issues at any one time. He has several hundred DVDs and many album CDs. Although he could simply download or borrow DVDs or CDs he has a need to own the physical item himself. In the case of the CDs this is simply for show as he only listens to music on his laptop or ipod. Comic book and records are items he collects and many have sentimental value to him. Records he feels he could live without and simply buys them for quality of sound. Games he is not so attached to as after playing them he has no problem trading them in for different games. When shopping for these items he feels excited and is usually very glad he purchased the items. He realises DVDs and CDs come down in price rapidly but feels he can not wait for them to do so and regularly pays full price for the satisfaction of owning them straight away. After attending music concerts he proudly displays the used tickets on his bedroom wall. He plans to keep his collection of Disney Pixar blu-rays as he believes they are classics. He hopes any children he has in the future will be able to appreciate them.

Notes from third interview:

She accumulates stuff she has a use for and has a purpose around the house. She buys for practicality. Very few sentimental items are displayed around the house and any belongings are tidied away. She shops mostly for need and only occasionally for want. The items she buys often last for years as she chooses classic items she thinks will not date or go out of fashion and takes care of her belongings. Looking back on such items she still thinks they are a worth while purchase.She is very pleased and feels successful when she finds what she is looking for in a shop often bragging about her find. She is frustrated when she cant find exactly what she needs. She is very ruthless when having a clear out and when something has for filled it's purpose and no longer has a use she has no difficulty parting with it. She tends not to keep things in the hope she one day might need it. On the other hand she recently refused to throw out chopsticks as she feels they have a practical use when redecorating the house as they can be used for stirring paint... She doesn't plan to redecorate anytime soon. For a short while she is relieved to be rid of stuff but often finds a use for something once it has been thrown out and then regrets getting rid of it. 

Studio Update!

It’s about time I filled everyone in on my current project! It’s a big one but thankfully we’ve been given an extension so I can just about manage to squeeze in a blog or two...

So, our brief for semester two is to come up with a solution for a Business Hub to be used by SEPA. SEPA, or The Scottish Environment Protection Agency, is an organisation in charge of regulating, protecting and improving Scotland’s environment. They strive to make businesses aware of their environmental responsibilities and have the power to enforce legislation to ensure everyone complies.

The hypothetical site given for this business hub is a warehouse currently used by DC Painters and Joiners situated on the corner of Tannadice Street and Neish Road, Dundee. The building is owned by Dundee United Football Club and overlooks the stadium.

Although we are not allowed to propose many changes to the original structure of the building, we are free to use the space pretty much how we like!

The requirements being:  

•   An entrance and reception
•   Waiting area
•   Office space for 24 staff
•   A CEO’s office
•   4 Managers offices
•   A cafeteria
•   Toilets
•   2 meeting rooms
•   Research Labs to house 4 members of staff
•   A library with quiet space
•   Storage

Each with their own minimum space requirements!

Quite a hefty project as you can see...

It’s also very important that the finished building be as environmentally friendly as possible.

So where on earth did I start? Well after research into what is involved in eco design, as discussed in an earlier blog, I had a look at current office design.

One of my favourite designs was by a company called HASSELL who won the 2010 World Architecture Festival’s Interior and Fit out of the Year Award for the AZA Centre in Melbourne.

As you can see from the above pictures, all offices centre around a hub on the ground level at the heart of the building. This space is visible from almost every room in the building and includes cafes, a visitor centre and often displays public art. It is this particular feature of the building which drew me to this design. I liked the idea of a building having a centre space where the social areas were all grouped together at an equal distance from all the work areas. I also appreciated that all the work areas looked down onto this space where lots could be going on, creating a positive atmosphere throughout the building. This void of space between offices, along with the lack of dividing walls, gives an open feel and detracts from any claustrophobic feelings typically associated with a typical work space. This creates a less stressful environment, with higher productivity across the organisation due to an increase in staff morale.

From these pictures you can see the use of various different seating arrangements around tables or desks providing multi-purpose break-out spaces for staff. Personally I feel this is a very important feature in any office environment as it allows alternative working arrangements and flexible meeting spaces. A flexible and adaptable space is vital in keeping up with the needs of employees which can change on a daily basis.

I’ll be sure to write up another blog soon to keep you updated on my final proposal!

Fundraising for the degree show...

The big problem of fundraising is stressing out many students in IED at the moment...

Every year the responsibility of raising money for the current 4^th years degree show is given to the 2^nd years and after raising some money as a year group, it was decided that due to the hectic projects it would be easier if each person had a target of £60ish to raise each. 

As many of you will be aware, at the beginning of the year we held a class bake sale once a week outside the Cantina. While this was successful at first, in the New Year business slowed down with people claiming to be dieting as a resolution! Personally I enjoyed making (and eating) the cakes but came to the conclusion that if I were to continue the selling of cakes myself it was unlikely to be successful for one of three reasons...

1. It would be time consuming both baking and selling2. I’d end up making a loss as baking can be expensive and I’d have to make a fair few to  make any profit
 
And
 
3.The cakes would go off after a day or two so I’d have to sell them instantly or I’d be left with them to eat all by myself (tempting I’ll admit!)

So, what could I sell with very little output on my part, which was quick and easy to make and could last long enough for me to sell a number of them?

MIX-UPS!

Everyone loves sweets right?

In the end it cost me just £15 to buy the sweets, an hour to make 80 bags and, after sitting on my desk for just 10 days, with little advertising on my part, I made a profit of £60!

Pretty SWEET deal if you ask me! (Sorry. It had to be done...)

Design Safari

Ethnography.

The Ethnography Primer describes ethnography as a research method based on observing people in their natural environment rather than in a formal research setting.

This method is commonly used in design as it creates a deeper understanding of people. It can be used to make sense of different cultures, understand norms and communicate information in ways that are easily comprehendible to people.

Understanding clients or potential markets are key in creating a successful product.

The Importance of Rules.

Bourdieu gives a good example of how people avoid situations, which could make them uncomfortable, as they are not familiar with the social codes or “rules” associated with that particular situation. He states that galleries and museums are places that ‘ordinary’ people are put of going to as they feel there is a stereotypical type of person who attends such places and they themselves do not fit in that category. Although ‘ordinary’ people could go to such places, they assume they would not fit in or know how to act.

Observe and Record.

To test both Ethnography and Bourdieu’s theory, we were asked to put ourselves in a situation we were not used to, identify any “rules” and assess how we feel. We were also asked to visit places such as supermarkets to observe people going about their daily business…

Primary Site: The Casino.

Preconceptions:

Having never been to a casino before I was expecting a very busy and loud atmosphere, Las Vegas style! I anticipated that there would be a very strict dress code and that almost all of the people attending would be fairly wealthy. I expected to feel very out of place being a young student and didn't imagine anyone of similar age to myself would be there. I pictured the casino to be a very grand place and that I would have to behave in a very formal fashion.

How I felt:

Once inside the casino I initially felt very intimidated when becoming a member. I felt embarrassed being so young when I handed over my ID and was concerned about being judged. I felt particularly awkward when posing for a photograph by myself.
Once up the stairs I was surprised by the way what other people were wearing and suddenly felt a little over dressed! People were dressed smart but not as extravagantly as I was lead to believe.
I was also surprised by the relaxed atmosphere around the bar area where I decided to stand, not having a clue about gambling... I'm sure I easily stood out as a new comer!

Observations:


After attempting to read people, I put together a quick mind map of my findings...

Conclusion:

After spending a few hours in the casino I began to pick up on the common accepted "rules" and noticed a pattern in how people generally conducted themselves. For example,  it was frowned upon when people reached a level which was considered to intoxicated to stay on the premisses. I witnessed one girl being asked to leave, not noticing myself that she was particularly drunk. It was obvious impeccable behaviour was expected and people were not impressed when others did not conduct themselves in the correct way. Another thing I picked up on was that the "hard core" gamblers were easily recognisable and could be set apart from the "casual" gamblers quickly. Casual gamblers would head straight to the bar in small groups and perhaps played on the slot machines for quite sometime. They appeared relaxed. The more serious gamblers appeared t be in a very intense and focused "bubble" choosing not to socialise too much. When playing the casual gamblers would be talking amongst themselves where as the serious gamblers would be quiet, leaning towards the table appearing very frustrated and slightly aggressive when they lost money, very involved with the game.

Secondary Site: Tesco.

Observations:


I applied the same observations to a supermarket environment...

Conclusion:


There weren't too many surprises when I wandered around Tesco. I was slightly more aware however of how people acted depending on wether or not they were alone, in a group of friends or if they were a family shopping. 
Generally, people by themselves appeared to be very focused with no distractions. In some cases, people appeared deliberately focused suggesting perhaps they did not enjoy being alone, throwing themselves into the task to distract from the fact they were by themselves. These people seemed to go around the shop in a hurry, obviously limiting the time they were alone. Another explanation for peoples hurried manor could be that they were simply in a rush and chose to go alone for quickness. They could also be shopping quickly to avoid a social interaction which would make them feel uncomfortable, perhaps bumping into someone they knew but did not wish to speak to.
People with young families often appeared stressed having children in public for any length of time with their unpredictable behaviour. Some parents also seemed embarrassed when this unpredictable behaviour took a turn for the worse. Other customers tended to avoid aisles where a parents body language suggested they were angry with their child and did not want to be involved. Some parents could be overly defensive if someone looked at them while they were giving their children a row. Perhaps putting on a front so they did not give away their embarrassment.
Young people in groups of friends on the other hand were much more relaxed and tended to wander around the shop without appearing to have anything in particular to buy. I noticed this laid back approach to shopping could annoy customers who were perhaps in a hurry and needed those around them to speed up!
Shopping can obviously be a very different experience for various people. Some people treating the experience as a chore and others as a more sociable event.

Service Design Tools

 The website “servicedesigntools.org” provides a comprehensive list of many tools which are useful within the design process. Although the tools stated are given in the context of service design they can be related and used in various other disciplines.

 The “Storyboard Tool” page offers a collection of case studies showing how this tool can be applied in service design research.

A storyboard is used within service design to map touch points and their relationship between them and users in the given experience.

One case study, The Handy Man Shop, François Jégou, Ezio Manzini (Sustainable everyday project), demonstrates how a storyboard can be used to portray different scenarios within a shop and proposed solutions.

Note: The above example uses a clever and simple orange barrier to separate each scene!

This technique could be directly applied to the Interiors design process. Storyboards are a great way of communicating how a space is occupied or for example, how a person would move through a space. The storyboard tool could be used in both the research and final proposal stages of creating a space. They could show the current uses of the existing space during a renovation project at the new proposed use of the space at the end of a project. The use of storyboards at the final proposal stage would be arguably the most relevant as it is essential to portray to clients how users will enter a space, which rooms they arrive at first and the general layout of the building in context.

I once used this technique in a commemorative space project in first year. I used simple line drawings in sequence to demonstrate how the monument was viewed from different positions around the site.

The tool would definitely be useful in my current project, designing a business hub, as in particular I am looking at the way users move through the building and what areas need to be linked to one another. The order in which people enter each space in this project could be clearly shown through the use of a simple tool such as a storyboard!