05.0 Visual Design For Print and Screen: Design Systems

Reading Reflections:

I think the readings this week were really informative about the ‘rules’ regarding grid systems and alignment. I think the concept of design that I am still getting the hang of is the case-by-case nature of the rules for every concept. There are general rules for everything, but very few of them are hard and fast rules that can never be broken. In the case of grid systems, there is almost always a case that a rule can be broken in favor of a better design decision. I think that if I continue to study and practice using and looking at grids, they will begin to make more sense to me and I’ll be able to use them skillfully. Right now, though, I think they’re a little confusing and complicated. Sometimes I struggle to see the grid in that was used to build a page (for example, the Willi Kunz example in the Making and Breaking the Grid reading). I think simpler grids (with a few columns) are easier for me to work with and visualize.

It was interesting to see all of the amazing things that Massimo and Lella have been able to design and create over the course of their careers. Watching the documentary and understanding Massimo’s love of grids made me wonder if he uses the grid in his design process for 3D objects (like the chairs or kitchen ware).

Weekly Assignment:

This week the assignment was to lock down content for our symposium designs and begin working on sketches for the deliverables.

I went about this assignment by first looking through Pinterest and Google images for visual inspiration, both for the concept and grid systems that I might use for my designs. If I saw something that inspired me, or came up with an idea of how I might want to design my poster (I started with the poster design concept first), then I would go to my notebook and quickly sketch out a concept. This iterative process resulted in a bunch of sketches in my notebook and a large Google doc of inspiration pictures that I collected from my online searches. See the sketches below:

Of the sketches in my notebook, I decided I liked the two on the bottom of the middle page the best (long image/content in the middle, bordering title and symposium information). I felt that this design was not only visually interesting, but it contains a grid system that I might be able to change and reuse for the other design deliverables in the coming weeks.

Of the images I saved from Google/Pinterest, I liked this one the best:

The image is dramatic and has a lot of the emotion that I think I want to convey in my symposium materials, and also would go very nicely with the grid system I conceptualized from my sketches.

Looking at my sketches and my image together helped me to think of a grid concept that I could use for my poster and article spreads. I sketched out a grid system (below) with 5 columns, that could be broken up unevenly to include one larger element and two smaller elements (as with my poster sketches), or changed to accommodate the page content.

After deciding on these pieces, I moved into Canva to ‘sketch’ more effectively. Because it’s difficult for me to draw very well, and since I don’t have an iPad or any nice drawing software, I felt that working in Canva would allow me to create nice low fidelity ‘sketches’ that I could use to lock down my creative concept. In Canva, I created a bunch of mock ups for my poster, including these:

I like the idea of moving the symposium text along the arm in the picture to create visual interest in the poster, but I’m not sure if that will ruin the appearance of the grid. I can’t decide yet if I like the image best when it takes up the entire page, or when it is placed in a single column. I think the column might create a more obvious grid system.

I think my BIG IDEA for the design system is going to have to do with “reaching” or “extending a hand”, something that ties in the arm component of the image with the idea of recentering marginalized designers in the design conversation.

After my grid concept became clear to me, I began sketching out what my article spreads would look like. Here are some initial sketches, both of the grid and article spread:

I can see clearly how my poster design is set up in one big column, two small columns, and one flowline to separate images and bodies of text. These are the elements that I used to sketch out my article spread designs.

Finally, I moved on to sketching the designs for a website. I wanted to continue the columned layout (1 big 2 small), and also place special emphasis on the title of the symposium. I also included a few sketches that incorporated a section that would feature the speakers of the symposium, as well as a short bio or blurb quote. One of the last sketches I made was of a page featuring one speaker and their work. This page includes the 3 column system as well.

I think that moving forward into this week, I need to continue to develop my website sketches and concept so that it is more polished and more clearly linked to my poster design.