Author: Julie Knight

  • 28JanDesigning the future

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    Food for Thought: typography and food reunited.

    “Holidays are always a time to gather around the dining table with family and friends to share good food and stories about times gone by. Now family favorites–whether text or images–can actually appear on the fruit, nuts, and vegetables being served with the help of a laser sign cutter. Since the process takes only five minutes per edible, the food messages can be extremely timely.”

    Before 3D printing musical instruments or computer etching on bread, David Small had thought of printing on fruits, a way to catch the attention of Martha Stewart. This is the story that today Dr David Small told us during a talk at our lab.

    Awesome speaker and visionary designer, he presented his twenty-year history of inventing the future of visual design. From the beginning, as a student of Muriel Cooper in the Visible Language Workshop, he has maintained a strong interest in understanding how technology is changing the way that information can be designed and appreciated. His company, Small Design Firm, creates unique environments in which people come into contact with rich, tactile information. With a focus on the interplay between computer technology, interaction, dynamic typography and information design, he sketched out some next steps towards the Design of the Future.

    I loved his story, the way he is fond of typography and sees it everywhere as a design principle for his interactive products. I found his Museum of Sex installation perfectly expressive.



    One of the four interactive exhibit for the Museum of Sex

    He revisited the written correspondence of a prostitute with one of her client. The exhibition presents a bed, with a women underneath a fabric, with letters projected onto the body shape traveling through the interstices of the white sheets. The letters resemble ants that dynamically convey the message of her fate, constructing words from her correspondence that announce her death. Very well executed, the piece is moving. What fascinates me about his work, is the actuality of his design principles. He proposes that design research is the key to the future innovation, well… we’ll see…

    Posted by Cati Vaucelle

    Architectradure


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  • 25JanWearable vs furniture radiator

    Another interesting design concept, the modulo radiator by Anna Gotha, discovered on Kontrastblog. Anna Gotha wanted to make more use of the heat from a radiator by designing a radiator with multiple functions. The modules are designed with an upholstered aluminium core to use the installed radiator parts as a piece of furniture to lean up against. The core is warmed up by the radiator to be used outdoor.

    Apparently the radiator is made of multiple parts that can work independently from one another or connected to each others. Heating parts can be hanged on a wall, carried in a purse, or used more traditionally as a “furniture” that heats a large surface.

    Existing radiators take up too much room and the design is often rather conservative. With the new radiator, Anna Gotha has made use of the heat, and at the same time given the user a more functional and simple design.

    Posted by Cati Vaucelle

    Architectradure


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  • 24JanHugging my furniture

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    A landscape designed for the body. These livingstones, “les coussins galets” created by French designer Stephanie Marin, remind me of Ernesto Neto’s work. I stumbled upon these and I love them. I can now embrace my furniture, discover the spaces inside, around and between my body!

    See also the felt rocks by Molo!

    Posted by Cati Vaucelle

    Architectradure


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  • 22JanPictograms

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    Screenshot from the symbol serie building

    I love pictograms. IIT Bombay offers graphic icons for signage systems to be used for your design works in .eps format: Hospitals, Railway/Bus stations and Public building environments. Enjoy!

    Posted by Cati Vaucelle
    Architectradure

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  • 22JanHuman sculptures

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    The gigantic modern bronze figures of taiwanese sculptor Ju Ming are inspired by the ancient Chinese martial art of tai chi chuan. His sculpted bodies in action remind me of the playstation statue-like forms of people playing with playstation. Our next step is to create 3d sculptures of people playing second life and exhibit them in second life!

    Thank you Nan Wei for introducing me to the work of Ju Ming!

    Posted by Cati Vaucelle
    Architectradure

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  • 22JanHuman sculptures

    If you’re new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed to receive the latest Architectradure’s articles in your reader or via email. Thanks for visiting!

    The gigantic modern bronze figures of taiwanese sculptor Ju Ming are inspired by the ancient Chinese martial art of tai chi chuan. His sculpted bodies in action remind me of the playstation statue-like forms of people playing with playstation. Our next step is to create 3d sculptures of people playing second life and exhibit them in second life!

    Thank you Nan Wei for introducing me to the work of Ju Ming!

    Posted by Cati Vaucelle
    Architectradure

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  • 20JanA personal fitness coach

    If you’re new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed to receive the latest Architectradure’s articles in your reader or via email. Thanks for visiting!

    The Personal Robots Group at MIT researches on social affective touch for robots and designs robotic teddy bear! Recently Cory Kidd completed a PhD from the group and started a company: Intuitive Automata Inc.

    Intuitive Automata Inc. creates robots that can help you in your everyday life. By applying new research in sociable robotics, the company is developing robots that can talk, see you, and help you in many ways.

    Their first product is Autom™, a robotic weight loss coach, designed to help people who are trying to lose or keep off weight. Autom helps by encouraging you to stick with your diet for long enough to create long-term change and keep extra pounds off!



    Autom the weight loss coach! – Photo © Intuitive Automata Inc. 2007

    The research that led to this product started at the MIT Media Laboratory in the Personal Robots Group. Their earlier results in controlled Human-Robot Interaction studies have shown that a robot can be seen as more credible and informative than a character on the screen. Hence, there is reason to believe that a robot may be a more effective mechanism for conveying the behavior change message. Results showing that a robot can be more engaging than an animated character lends itself to the possibility of creating a set of longitudinal interactions, or a relationship, that is longer-lasting than previous techniques and therefore also more likely to have the opportunity to create long-term behavior change.

    Posted by Cati Vaucelle

    Architectradure


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  • 19JanPhysical visualization

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    Mount Fear Statistics for Crimes with Offensive Weapon South London 2001-2002 (2002) corrugated cardboard 2.3m x 1.85m x height 1.85m

    After tactile videos or high touch visual, data visualization becomes sculpted and physical. Artist Abigail Reynolds works with materials to bring fugitive knowledge and connections into the immediacy of physical experience.



    130 layers of 10mm polystyrene with sprayed finish

    In this work, she generates data sets relating to the frequency and position of urban crimes. Each individual incident adds to the height of the model, forming a mountainous terrain.



    MOUNT FEAR Statistics for Violent offences 2001-02 Central Manchester (2003) Scale: 1:22,000 (1cm:22m) Relief: 1:24 (1 layer represents 24 offences per km2) Fits a 4×8ft x 70cm plinth. Height 203cm (including plinth)

    The imaginative fantasy space seemingly proposed by the sculpture is subverted by the hard facts and logic of the criteria that shape it. The object does not describe an ideal other-worldly space separated from lived reality, but conversely describes in relentless detail the actuality of life on the city streets.

    Posted by Cati Vaucelle

    Architectradure


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  • 16JanPlaystation human sculptures

    If you’re new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed to receive the latest Architectradure’s articles in your reader or via email. Thanks for visiting!



    Sculpture in perforated steel with sections upholstered in felt

    Designers came up with a landscape of concept furniture derived from the statue-like forms of people sitting, standing or leaning against walls engaged in playing the PlayStation Portable (PSP). The result is “sculptural and machine-like”. Each piece contains a PSP unit and users are encouraged to step inside these structures to play, the idea being to create an individual gaming experience while allowing for interaction with other gamers in other pieces using the PSP’s wi-fi capabilities.

    Inspired by gaming, after the Nintendo Wii, the Wii-fit is coming. Also check the new hypnotic video-ad for playstation!



    Posted by Cati Vaucelle

    Architectradure


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  • 16JanPlaystation human sculptures

    If you’re new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed to receive the latest Architectradure’s articles in your reader or via email. Thanks for visiting!



    Sculpture in perforated steel with sections upholstered in felt

    Designers came up with a landscape of concept furniture derived from the statue-like forms of people sitting, standing or leaning against walls engaged in playing the PlayStation Portable (PSP). The result is “sculptural and machine-like”. Each piece contains a PSP unit and users are encouraged to step inside these structures to play, the idea being to create an individual gaming experience while allowing for interaction with other gamers in other pieces using the PSP’s wi-fi capabilities.

    Inspired by gaming, after the Nintendo Wii, the Wii-fit is coming. Also check the new hypnotic video-ad for playstation!



    Posted by Cati Vaucelle

    Architectradure


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