PHILLIP CAMPIONFALL 2011 | THESIS 1 | 10/17 | JULIA WARGASKI

INTRODUCTION

preface For my thesis project, I had a difficult time landing upon a topic that I was genuinely interested in. The thought of working on one project for the entire year put a lot of pressure on me as I wanted to come up with something original as well as personal. In the beginning, I was leaning towards focusing on the affects of social media in the context of advertising, consumerism and everyday life. I thought about concepts such as participatory culture and the accessibility of media. After vast research, I came to the conclusion that although I find those topics interesting, I don’t want to pursue them. This was probably the best thing that has happened to me thus far because I have landed on a topic that can really harness all of my skills as well as get me thinking in a new way.

whatI want to combine the idea of 3D scale modeling with a complex wayfinding system. The details of my idea are still in the works but essentially I want to explore a way for signage to be tested and created in a scale environment. My current sketches show laser-cut buildings, bus shelters, metro-stations and other elements from a metropolitan environment arranged in a certain way to maximize the affects of signage and other wayfinding tools.

whyThe hardest part about designing any type of environmental graphics or spatial graphics is that the designer will never truly know how it will look in a space until it is actually there. Although elevations and 3D models help, not all designers have access to these resources - especially for design projects on a smaller scale.

goalMy goal is to create a useful resource for designers working on spatial or environmental graphics. I also want to use the system myself to re-create the signage in a particular area in New York City.

RESEARCH

RESEARCHING ABOUT WAYFINDING AND SIGNAGE IN NOTABLE BOOKS AND PUBLICATIONS. KNOWING MORE ABOUT THE TOPIC WILL HELP ME DEVELOP MY CONCEPT FURTHER.

INSPIRATION (1 OF 2)

INSPIRATION (2 OF 2)

MINDMAPS (1 OF 2)

MINDMAPS (2 OF 2)

PROTOTYPES / SKETCHES (1 OF 2)

TESTING OUT HOW BUILDINGS COULD BE CONSTRUCTED AND WHAT POTENTIAL BLUEPRINTS COULD LOOK LIKE TO MAP OUT SIGNAGE.

POINTING OUT CERTAIN AREAS WHERE SIGNAGE WOULD BE PLACED AND HOW IT COULD BE DISPLAYED.

PROTOTYPES / SKETCHES (1 OF 2)

POINTING OUT A FEW OF THE AREAS IN AN URBAN SPACE THAT REQUIRE SIGNAGE.

SIGNAGE AND BUILDING ELEMENTS WOULD COME PERFORATED AND EASILY CUSTOMIZED.