Introduction to Semiotics

Semiotics is the study of signs and signifying practices.

Everyday, Everybody will have signs around them and most will not even realise they are there because we are so used to seeing them everywhere, from road signs to facial expressions. There are three different types of sign: iconic, index and symbol.

Iconic.
An iconic sign is something that looks like what it represents. It shares similarities with the visual meaning that it points to. For examplea roundabout sign does not look exactly like a roundabout but it has its similarities with the real thing. This also applies to a fire exit sign too.

Index.

An Index sign has a casual link between the sign and object. For example a 'Caution wet floor' sign or a Disabled badge.

Symbol.
A symbol sign is a sign where we have to learn what it means in order to understand it for example a toilet door sign and a national speed limit sign as they do not have similarities of what they point towards. We locate the meaning of a sign by the presence of signs around it.

Signs are important but mean nothing on there own because we rely on the things around them for us to understand what they mean. For example a simple cross can mean so many different things in different contexts. Although in whichever context people are familiar with it. wether it be in a grave yard, at the side of an ambulance, hanging on a flagpole or in a doctors, we know what they represent because of the various signs around them.

I understand the importance of semiotics in visual communication now and look forward to learning more about semiotics.

Motion Graphics.

The Design for digital lecture with Rob Tovey (a researcher at the cambridge school of art) in my opinion was the most interesting and inspiring lecture yet. He put motion graphics into simple terms and presented a wide range of different motion graphics, good and bad. Motion graphics is simply graphic design that moves, They typically feature sound because sound anchors the meaning.Their are two different types of motiongraphics, Animation and film. But what is the difference? Animation is manugraphic meaning they are open to the viewers interpretation of something and film is photographic meaning it is what you see. However sound anchors their meaning, showing you how they are meant to be understood.

Coleridge: the suspension of disbelief

Definition

the suspension of disbelief is an effect where by an audience accepts what happens within a narrative unquestioningly, despite the implausibility of the narrative

or the limitations of the medium.

Motion Graphics use different framing modes, one being diegetic mode and the other mimetic mode.

Diegetic mode - The audience is told whats going on normally by an authorial voice.

Mimetic mode - The audience is shown whats going on therefore they are invited to suspend disbelief.

Although the majority of motion graphics have diegetic content there are some out there with mimetic content however, very few. We see more and more motion graphics around today than ever as it is used not just in film credit and titles etc. but TV idents too

which are becoming more popular because they reinforce the brand association and remind the viewer what channel there watching. In my opinion Channel 4, More 4 and BBC have the most interesting Idents.

In my opinion Channel 4 and More 4 have used a little bit of diegetic and mimetic as you are shown what is going on however they are inviting the audience to suspend disbelief as it is almost like a collage of photographs together, you are told by an authorial voice what you are about to watch but not what is happening in the motion graphics.

Our brief from Rob was to create an American educations sho

w for children that is based around a character called Brainiac Jack. The show would teach children about different historical facts by using Brainiac Jack as a super hero that encounters a variety of historical times and figures. My interpretation of Brainiac Jack is that he is an alien landing from outer space, landing in different historical times and learning about them on his journey. I chose to use an alien like figure because in my opinion it is something children are familiar with and is a friendly figure. It also adds humour because it is completely unbelievable and is completely mimetic.

I created a short storyboard which I found to be quite hard to get across what was happening in the scenes and can now fully appreciate the amount of work that goes into creating short motion graphics.

Information Design.

Information design is everywhere in everyday life, even if we do not notice it.

After the Designs cannons lecture I decided to research some more into information design, as I have not really learnt much about this part of design before. I realize there is a lot of complexity involved and more to information design than what meets the eye. I felt the most dominant principles in information design are consistency, grid structure, graphic elements and most importantly attention to detail. In my opinion Richard Saul Wurman applies all of these principles to his work brilliantly. He often uses pastel colours in his grid structures, which helps to navigate your way around the pages. I have also noticed that he leaves a lot of white space on his designs, which in my opinion is a good idea as it is less intimidating to read the information.

In comparison to Wurman there is David Carson, He is a well-known designer who mixes typography with different types of media. His work is quite different to all other information designers as he lets the eye work out the information being presented in a form of abstract art. Which some could argue that this does not make it design information because of the way he presents his work. He often uses photography in his work with overlapping type, which in my opinion adds a lot more interesting elements and breaks the boundaries of information design.

Carson is most recognized for his early work with Ray Gun magazine, it is not surprising being that David is a surfing fanatic he has now created designs for Quicksilvers new spring 2011 collection.

Vernacular Typography - So-Me

The Name So-Me came about because he hated the way artists and designers looked at theirs and others work and said "thats So Me". In my opinion this suggests that he does not take himself too seriously and often adds humour to his work. Most people will identify him because he has done a lot of work for Ed Banger Records. His work is largely inspired by a combination of historical references such as Leonetto Cappiello's hand rendered work from the early 70's and the work of Richard Hamillton from the Pop Art era, evidence of this shows through his work with the hand rendered type, collage effect and the bright colours of the Pop Art era.

The context of the portrait is very simple, consisting of flat vector lines throughout with bright shocking colours and hand rendered organised type. The type has been positioned perfectly to be apart of the portrait rather than being a background to the image. The composition of this portrait is very balanced in a way where the type and image counteract with each other so no element is more important than the other. This engages the audience with the bright eye catching colours and different elements of the portrait. This also suggests to the audience that the tone of voice is very playful.

Design for digital.

In this day and age digital design is becoming more important and dominates the design world. Code is the new way of designing for the web as big brands take it seriously. For example Ikea changed their typeface for the brand last year. Although to many peoples disgust they changed the typeface from a customised version of Futura to Verdana, which in my personal opinion was a good choice as Verdana is more versatile and remains consistent on print and online, which was one of the main reasons ikea bosses decided to change the typeface because everything is going digital. Also Verdana was originally designed by Microsoft to use on screen and not on paper.

Another example of designing for digital becoming more popular is that smart phones have overtook computers in sales because people now consume digital media instead of static because it is easily accessible. Amazon sell more e-books than physical books because their easier for on the move. The Brilliant thing about digital design is that digital distribution offers different methods of communication. Although Physical should facilitate digital and vice versa, you cant have one without the other because they rely on each other.

The task for this lecture was to help an independent coffee shop to go digital. I decided to create an iPhone app for customers to order and purchase their coffees so that collecting them can be much easier. These designs will be easily accessible to anybody working on a busy time consuming schedule and will have the option for a pick up time or a delivery option.

PICTURE

I feel my sketches for my designs would work well as their simple and easy to navigate around the pages. I found this task to be quite difficult as it is not something I have done before, although it is something I have become interested in.