Design for screen gave the opportunity to write the brief ourselves in response to a identified problem, this could relate to our overarching interests and in terms of graphic design. As the solution was on screen there were very different production considerations compared to print.
Digital design is an area that perviously hadn't been explored prior to the brief, this lack of knowledge meant that all of the fundamentals of screen design had to be realised. This brief has allowed a greater understanding of communication on screen. The book Type on Screen by Ellen Lupton in particular gave in depth and thorough information into the full scope of design for screen, what to do and what not to do, in terms of impact on a project this book was fundamental. The professionalism shown in the apps design is directly informed by this research. In the future a bending of these rules could create some more innovative designs, the overall imagery could be interpreted as tame.
User experience and how a design manifests on screen in terms of navigation is another area that prior to the project was unexplored and required further research and development. Using the Xd software gave extremely detailed working prototypes that both visually and technically would not be far off the real app if created. As well as this understanding of navigation the app could be tested at real scale, an aspect of this project that could be overlooked is the scale of the icons, typefaces and images all have been greatly considered and when shown at real scale the effectiveness is clear.
The work and talks of designer Erik Spiekermann showed a way of branding a design through a typeface, this was a bit of a wake up call and something previously not considered, translating this design technique into the app kept a high level of consistency that could be translated into the branding and advertising of the app.
Apples IOS guidelines offered their interpretations on how an app should visually be made up, once again the designs fit to these specifications, more of an adaptation of these guides could have lended to more eye-catching and unusual designs. However the current apps design does relate to the target audience and how the content would be engaged.
A strength of the response to this brief has be the ability to make the work tie inline with my personal interests and aspirations in design, this makes the whole process more engaging and less of a chore. Time mangement is another part of this brief that has been strong, booking sessions when appropriate and ensuring that attendance is high means for constant engagement in crits, one to ones and studio time.
In terms of improvements of this brief there was an opportunity to be more adventurous in the concept and the designs aesthetics. The possible responses for the project could have been in more depth, something that is important when designing is to interpret the brief in many ways, something that is often not a problem but could definitely have been improved on in this brief.
The final outcomes for this project have been effective in answering the original problem. The Museo Map is a mobile service for finding out what is on in the art world displayed in an interactive and immersive user experience, aiming to answer the users needs and allow the content to be at the forefront, achieved through simple, clear and un-intrusive design. As well as giving a level playing field for smaller independent galleries.
Overall design for screen offered many new opportunities and challenges as a designer. Compared to print, the tactility and physical processes of print are missed. In terms of creating something innovative and different this brief has been more challenging, often the designs created seemed more conventional, this could be improved on as experience og the processes grows. There are of course similarities between print and screen, that form the fundamentals to designing, outlining a problem, target audience, solution based on research and development of ideas.
In terms of moving forward as a designer and preferences of print and digital, personally I would always try to utilise both, some information is better suited online and vice versa, and that most projects should be able to manifest in both. An understanding of the limitations and advantages of print and screen is crucial.
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