Vis Comm 1 Assignment 3: Speedy Recovery! – Get Well Soon Card (3)

The Final Work…Get well soon…

Changes that I made using the feedback are as follows:

The outside(back and partially the front which is the fold) is made to look like a simple canvas material bandage like texture.. There are some hint of colours almost like drops of wet diffusing water colours, with the colour spreading.
The corporate text is aligned better and the arrangement is more concise. However, the typeface could be slightly thinner in terms of its weight.
I changed the floral patterns inside to a slightly thicker vector drawing as compared to the one in the mock up. I did that to make them more prominent, but it could have been a tad bit thinner.
I made them colourful as suggested in the earlier consult, but the colours did not seem very likeable for all, but the idea was to make it bright and cheerful which can easily pass off as tacky. However, I find this a little subjective, especially because we are dealing with cheery get well soon cards.
I generally retained the elements of light watercolour splashes and floral motifs that I chose to work with. There was an attempt to make it look like they were growing bigger from the centre. Exploding out, but not vigorously. I did not want to suggest too much movement.

What would I do to better this card if I was given another 2 weeks to work on it?

The use of typeface can be explored further. Apart from that the use of colours can be more stylised and varied and I would study more on the flower motifs.
The choice of paper was a 150 gsm white card. It is a matte paper, but had a slight sheen, which i found suitable for a card. In my opinion glossy cards a little old-fashioned, like season greeting cards of the 90s. However, I would have loved to try slightly textured paper.

MY REFLECTION

I have definitely seen myself starting to find things challenging finally, in my first step in Vis Comm. I do not take this stumbling blocks and learning obstacles as a negative factor and I do not see it as a failure. I would like to take my learning from this semester to the next, so that I can improve myself further. I have learnt many important points in this course, thanks to the numerous feedback from Michael and my friends. I enjoyed exploring with liberty in the assignments. I had fun! 🙂

Vis Comm 1 Assignment 3: Speedy Recovery! – Working on the design (2)

Progression…

I chose to work with the diagonal gate fold card, as I found the other designs to be too complicated for a get well soon card, which should essentially be simple and pleasing.

Design for the visual composition…

I chose to work with the visual graphics of floral patterns and light watercolour like washes. I wanted to work with this idea as I wanted to link this with assignment 1’s therapeutic elements of flowers/plants.

Back and partial front of the card

Inside and partial front of of the card

The design for the inside and outside are contrasting, as I wanted to put two styles in the card to see which one works better.

Please don’t mind the pointers noted down on the mock up.

The mock up was not very perfectly placed due to printing in my home printer. However, it was close enough to give me a rough idea of how the card would work.

I added a bandage sort of texture and a plaster to make it look like a plaster being ripped apart when the card is opened. It is meant to bring out the surprise element of colours inside.

The diagonal gate fold card before slight modification.

During the consultation, Michael decided to cut of the portion of the “diagonal gate” which extends out in front of the rectangular portion, to see if it makes a difference. It actually did. It seemed to be better. I initially thought that that portion can be folded, but totally getting rid off it was more sleek.

The design of the card was settled, but the typography and visual graphics needed to be cleaned up and be better. Michael has given quite a few advise, and I hope it would be reflected in the final work. 🙂

Vis Comm 1 Assignment 3: Speedy Recovery! – Initial explorations (1)

Get well Soon… 🙂

So we are at the final project of the module and to wrap up the theme which we had been working from the start, which is related to healthcare, this get well soon card is our last opportunity of working with a single sheet of paper.

Once again this is in collaboration with Ng Teng Fong hospital. The get well soon card is meant to be from their care team to the patients.

Initial Ideas…

Please see my mood board to see some of the ideas i was initially looking at:

http://www.gomoodboard.com/boards/KGY4tj75/share

Initial creations of some mock ups in scrap paper.

A diagonal gate fold card

This was the first trial in class

The need to create a 3D form card using only a single sheet of paper is the challenge. But if we think carefully of how we can fold a single sheet without cutting and sticking back portions, then its definitely possible.

My take was to make something simple yet pleasing. Patients should not get something very complicated.

Vis Comm 1 Assignment 2: Combating Zika Outbreak – “Don’t let your baby blame you” (4)

Final work…

My final composition is a result of the feedback from the previous consultations. The actual print itself was not that great due to the colour turnout(was slightly darker).

I had another variation, which was this, but I decided to put up only the one shown above.

2nd variation

Me with the poster 😀

The actual poster

Reflection…

As told by Michael, there is certainly room for improvement. The type hierarchy could be even more fine tuned and the colour of the work should be carefully adjusted in accordance to the print outcome. Taking the lessons learnt, I hope to be more sensitive to these factors in my future work.

Vis Comm 1 Assignment 2: Combating Zika Outbreak – Change! (3)

Changes made!

After the feedback from the last lesson, I decided to revisit the composition of the poster and change it. I wanted to focus on the idea of the baby being harmed by the Zika virus. I personally liked the pop of colour the baby gave, but it was suggested that it would be better to do away with the the baby itself and use type to indicate the baby as the main subject matter of concern. Speaking of type, the orphan in the paragraph at the bottom and the visual hierarchy issues were still pressing. I was trying to understand the poster as truly informational, hence the need for slightly bigger wording for clarity. However, it was advised that the visual interest brought about by the visual hierarchy is more important. So a few more changes is needed.

Vis Comm 1 Assignment 2: Combating Zika Outbreak – Coming up with the compositions (2)

Coming up with the compositions…

I chose to expand on 2 out of the 3 concepts which I came out with at the start, to come up with the visual for the poster. I didn’t expand on the zit/rash idea as I found it not as visually teasing as the other two ideas.

Don’t wake up to Zika…

The first idea, is to create awareness of the possibility of contracting the Zika virus while we are asleep in the night. I wanted to show a sleeping person being in a vulnerable state of getting bitten by an aedes mosquito carrying the zika virus.

Variation 1

Variation 2(which is better)

Variation 3

Comments and Reflection:

The visual hierarchy is the main the issue. The main image, supporting details and typeface are all fighting for equal attention. This is due to their weight which is almost the same. Therefore the eye is not able to look at one main focal point and makes as confused as to where we should start looking at from.

As a Vis Comm newbie, my viewpoint was a little different. I took the project in the direction of the content rather than the artistic direction. If I may put it in this sense, I felt that it needed to have a “poly clinic poster effect”,that has all that ingredients of a typical poster that aims to warn us of the harms of the illness (in this case, Zika).

Zika and Pregnancy…

This composition is meant to clearly show the harm that the mosquito can bring to fetuses.

However, the reception for this was not as expected as well. The large sized mosquito was attention grabbing and the baby scan overlayed on the stomach of the pregnant lady, was seen as tacky to some extent.

Time to go back and work on the visual and typography.

Vis Comm 1 Assignment 2: Combating Zika Outbreak – Slogan and Moodboard (1B)

” The slogan must have only 6 words ”

That was quite a challenge, as a slogan ought to have a punch. The slogan should deliver the message with clarity. However, it should first of all grab the attention of the audience. Churning out some slogans proved to be quite a challenge, and here are some of those that I did churn out.. (You can laugh.. some are meant to be funny..)

1.Kick’a Zika! 2. Ain’t anybody got time for ZIKA! 3. Keep calm and fight Zika 4. Don’t wake up to Zika 5. It’s Zika… Not a zit ah! 6. Don’t let Zika affect your baby 7. Zika can make their head small 8. Pregnancy and Zika cannot go along! 9. Don’t let your baby blame you.

3 Concepts to work with…

1. Don’t let your baby blame you…

Zika affecting pregnant women. – The Zika virus’ harm is mostly for pregnant women, considering the fact that their babies can get microcephaly as a result of the infection on the mother.

2. Don’t wake up to Zika…

Mosquitoes attacking us away when we are sleeping – We need to make sure we prevent getting mosquito bites in the night when we are sleeping and as such unaware.

3. It’s Zika… Not a zit ah!

Looking out for symptoms closely. Zika may not necessarily show its symptoms immediately even if one is infected. This may mean that one might pass on the virus to another without realising that they have Zika. Eg. Through sexual transmission.

MoodBoard…

Please visit this link to see my moodboard:

http://www.gomoodboard.com/boards/EDN97piY/share

Vis Comm 1 Assignment 2: Combating Zika Outbreak – Visual Research (1A)

Health communication posters play a vital role in the health sector.

We find them in hospitals, clinics, pharmacies and even in neighbourhoods when there is a spread of an epidemic or so on.

Health communication posters hold a big responsibility in the transmission of its message. As such some factors that needs to be taken note of in a health communication poster would:

1. Clarity 2. Simplicity 3. Attention-grabbing.

Clarity is required to make sure the message is clear and not complicated. This factor applies to both the visual and textual images.
Simplicity is required to allow the message to go through the audience easily without having their eyes to look all over the poster to try to make out what the message is. In other words it should not be too messy.
An attention-grabbing poster is ideal in the case of health communication, as the motive is to spread awareness, or at least in the case of epidemics or other serious health related issues. We obviously would not want people to pass it off without bothering much.

Some interesting health communication posters… (Some are NSFW.. maybe..)

AIDS awareness poster from 1986 in Baltimore (source: https://www.nlm.nih.gov/exhibition/survivingandthriving/digitalgallery/detail-A025231.html)

Developed in 1990 by the Red Hot Organization, this campaign featured diverse people locked in intimate poses. The posters combined text and visuals to normalize and eroticize safe sex. Both provocative and instructional, the carefully positioned subjects aimed to encourage viewers to change their sexual practices. (source: https://www.nlm.nih.gov/exhibition/survivingandthriving/digitalgallery/detail-D00205.html)

The ‘cleanyourhands’ campaign is a national initiative in England and Wales to combat preventable, healthcare associated infection by improving the hand hygiene of healthcare staff. The campaign was launched to National Health Service (NHS) in September 2004. (source: http://publichealth.gwu.edu/departments/pch/phcm/casesjournal/volume3/showcase/cases_3_07.cfm)

Simple health awareness poster by Health Promotion Board. Vector illustrations. (source: http://www.healthhub.sg/programmes/48/drinkhealthy)

Haze related health awareness poster by MOH, during the haze season in the past few years.

A recent ZIKA related health awareness poster by Gov.sg , which is relevant to our assignment topic.

These posters are interestingly from both Singapore and other countries such as UK and US. Also, they are from different years. Some date as far back as the 1980s and some are very recent. They show the evolution in the style of visual communication, especially in terms of health communication posters.

One that struck me…

This particular mixed media poster immediately attracted my attention. The text was the first thing that stood out to me. The choice of warm colours at the back and cooling tones at the foreground brings a subtle contrast in this poster and the overlaid typeface in a bold blood red pops out.

The visual interest is created using the slightly vintage style using local elements(the coffee cup and saucer). The information is clear with the focus on the slogan/main message having bigger fonts. The main subject matters are zoomed in. The layout of the poster is pretty much centralised, which keeps the attention centralised as well. Centralised layout is traditionally found in vintage visuals as well . There are minor details like the circular pattern created around the main text to look like a mug stain, which creates additional visual interest.

I feel that the choice of colours and the typeface is very earthy, which keeps the appropriateness in the subject matter, which is meant to informational in a very light manner. It is not a warning or instruction. It is meant to be a friendly word of encouragement/advise. In that sense, this poster evokes a friendly emotion, as though a good friend is simply telling us a few good words of advise in concern of our health.

Vis Comm 1 Assignment 1: Therapeutic Graphics – “Rejuvenating Blossoms” (3)

Final proposal

Recapping on my initial process, I came down to the idea of working with the abstract floral pattern for the therapeutic graphic. Flowers are part of nature, and these delicate product of the natural surrounding is something most of us cannot dislike heavily. Every hospital generally has a florist. Flowers play such an important role in the recovery of patients. They symbolise recovery, happiness and so much more.

Poggi-Giovanni-di-Dio-Hospital-in-Florence-Italy

Flowers as a subject matter in art displayed in hospitals.

From the previous week, I took the advise of Michael to work on expanding the design for the therapeutic graphics. After also looking at some of my own overlapping ideas, this is what I have come up with:

Rejuvenating Blossoms

I put my design in Illustrator to trace them out neatly.

WhatsApp Image 2016-08-28 at 21.11.13 (2)

My hand-written mood board from the first stage of Therapeutic Graphics

I had initially wanted to use the idea of stained glass art. Also, my theme revolved around the rhythmic beauty of nature and the underlying spirituality it exudes in a subtle manner. Therefore i made the colours translucent, so that the actual piece will allow the sunshine to pass through.

This pattern is not only reminiscent of flowers, blossoms, etc. But it is also satisfyingly therapeutic with the continuous curved lines.

The colour choice revolves mostly around complementary and split complementary colours. Hospitals tend to have a very dull mood and atmosphere, especially in relation to their colour scheme. In my opinion, these colours I have chosen are energetic, vibrant and evokes a rejuvenating feel in the viewer.

Some parts of the design is meant to allow the outside to be visible. As such, the external surrounding is not completely blocked off vision, taking in consideration claustrophobia and feelings of being stuck in a jail-like place.

This pattern can be used in repetition to create an extensive design:

Vis Comm 1 Assignment 1: Therapeutic Graphics – Trying out Colours (2)

Out of the patterns which i came up with, i felt most connected with this particular piece. In fact i found it very therapeutic to look at and felt the same while redrawing it. Amongst the earlier sketches i did, this particular one received the most response. This piece is an abstract floral design. The curve lines of the floral patterns are meant to be therapeutic. The rhythm in this floral abstraction is meant to create an almost lyrical effect.

blossoms, blooming, mellifluous, joyous, nature, soothing, vibrant, invigorating, rejuvenating, enlivening, fragrant, spiritual, prayer, hope, gentle… These are some words that comes to our mind when we think of flowers…

WhatsApp Image 2016-08-12 at 11.49.27 (6)

J-Walk @ Ng Teng Fong

In the experimentation of colours for this project, it is important to consider the colours carefully. Therapeutic colours can be of various nature, but since this is in a public space, it must be both therapeutic and appealing. The space we are working with is white. The floor, pillar and walls are all almost white and as such the whole place is a little too bright. Therefore i decided to stick to the usage of colours that would sort of tone down the “whiteness” of the space, but at the same time not darkening it.

My choice of colours for this design, is based of the possibilities of colours in flowers. There are endless possibilities in fact.

I chose both pastel and vibrant colours to fill in the work. I also tried a gradient stained glass effect. I would not say that i like it a lot, but it is not too bad. Since the start i have been mindful not to cover up the entire window with the patterns. If i was to fill the entire window with opaque colours, then it might cut away the connection that the space has with the external surrounding. The patients there may have already been feeling stuck in the space, like as though it is a prison. To completely block the view of the outside would further aggravate that and not serve the purpose of being therapeutic.

There are more possibilities that i can experiment with. I expect the end result to be something rhythmic and mellifluous.. the idea of a soothing musical effect that the pattern should exude along with its vibrant yet calming colours. 🙂

stained glass effect

working with the vibrancy of complementary and split complementary colours

A little more green to relate back to nature