OUGD502 - Studio Brief 02 - Student Survey

What course are you currently on?

The majority of students who took part in this survey were from the Graphic Design course, as well as a large portion of results coming from students on Printed Textiles. The survey did not get any responses from students on some courses, which could potentially mean the results of this survey are slightly more biased in terms of opinions as we did not get a view of the students as a whole. Despite this, a lot of the answers received through the rest of the survey suggests that many of these students already have pretty similar views on the current wayfinding system in the university and what features make a creative environment.

What kind of environment inspires you?

The majority of students who took part in this survey said that a natural environment is what inspires them the most, with colour being a close second. This suggests that in proposing a new wayfinding system, this needs to incorporate some form of natural elements, such as plants and natural light. Additionally, this links to the Arts and Crafts Movement which the university was heavily influenced by in its early days.

What do you think of the current wayfinding system in the university?

All responses to this question were pretty equally weighed. Many students thought the current wayfinding system within the university is confusing, boring and not clear to understand at all. Other students questioned what a wayfinding system even is, whilst others had not noticed there was a wayfinding system within the university due to how unobvious it is. These results suggest that in proposing a new signage system for the new university building, this needs to be clear to understand, which is especially important for new students and visiting professionals.

What do you think of the current interior of the university?

Responses here show that the majority of students who took part in this survey consider the current interior of the university to be plain and boring, with only two students describing the interior as inspiring and only six students considering it to be engaging. Other responses described the interior as too minimalistic for an arts university, some suggesting that the walls could be made more interesting and inspirational if artworks were hung on these. This would also add more colour to the university, which many students thought was an essential feature in making a creative environment.

What do you think represents your course?

The most common themes which arose from this question were ideas of creativity and colour. Another theme was the idea of industry, the courses being a chance to develop industry-standard skills and understanding in preparation for potential job opportunities after our degrees. This suggests that the new wayfinding system should make considerations about industry and life after university, or perhaps even focus on the history of the university such as celebrating notable alumni. The new wayfinding system could also potentially change dependent on each course and department, designing signage in a way which reflects what current students think represents each course.

What makes a creative environment?

Most responses in regards to this question mentioned the idea of inspirations, such as inspiration from other students who you are able to work well with and bounce ideas off, inspirational work mounted on walls and the idea of everyone being motivated to work towards achieving something. Another common theme which showed from this survey was the idea of a quiet and calm working space, somewhere with lots of natural light and potentially other natural objects, such as plants. Essentially, a place where students feel comfortable enough to work.

OUGD502 - Studio Brief 02 - Current Wayfinding System

Features of the current wayfinding system:

• All of the wayfinding signs are set on grey plaques.
• The wayfinding for multiple levels are all shown together in one long list along the walls.
• Individual rooms have labels, however these can vary in shape, size and colour (white and grey). Some also have plastic sections where additional paper can be slotted in to allow for potential room changes.
• Some courses have large-scale vinyl lettering on the walls.
• Vinyl arrows are used within the building in different forms, for example long-armed arrows and sequences of arrow tips.

OUGD502 - Studio Brief 02 - Features of the New and Current Buildings

Themes found within the features of the current building:

• In many of the studios large windows allow lot of natural light into the rooms. Throughout the university there is an interesting mix of various shaped and sized windows.
• The building is fairly complex and has evolved over time meaning it can be difficult to find your way around the building initially, also due to an inconsistent layout and wayfinding system.
• Throughout the university there is an eclectic mix of lighting, ranging from wall mounted lights to hanging ceiling lights with reflective metal.
• Plants are heavily used around the Printed Textiles department, but not so much around the rest of the university and course studios.
• There are exposed pipes, vents and other structural elements around the building, particularly on the ceilings.
• Common materials around the college include foil (from the extraction system), metal (stainless steel, galvanised sheet metal, reflective metal), and plasterboard (on walls).
• The main colours around the building are grey, particularly on the doors and lines on walls, white on the studio walls, and blue used on most of the doors.

Themes found within the features of the new building:

• Common colours proposed for use in the new building are metallic gold.
• The new building continues use of suspended lighting, such as LED strip lighting which is a necessary feature due to the high ceilings within many of the rooms.
• Sky lights will also become a feature to allow for natural light to enter the buildings.
• Common materials which will be used throughout the new building are concrete (flooring in gallery spaces, ceilings and other surfaces), anodised golden metal (with details for external walls), grey carpets, timber surfaces, wood wool (acoustic baffles), steel, plasterboard, aluminium (trims) and galvanised (pipes).
• Other interesting features suggested in proposals include magnetised paint on the walls which will be grey in colour, large scale wall art, hanging artwork, and spray painted timber to match the gold features of the building.

OUGD502 - Studio Brief 02 - Examples of Existing Wayfinding

London College of Communication wayfinding by Pentagram.

The aim of this wayfinding system was to find a solution that would work within all four of the college’s buildings and be adaptable enough to allow the college to change room names and redecorate when necessary. A cost-effective solution suitable for the college’s upcoming move.

The material palette of the wayfinding and signage was inspired by one of the college’s principles, a dedication to making and physical design. The signage can be fixed onto any wall type without the need for a massive redecoration programme. It uses a consistent background plate, made from perforated powder-coated aluminum, which helps visitors identify signage. These become a platform for room types and directional signs to be screwed on top of. Colour coding has also been introduced to signify the college’s four main areas. Small naming alterations have been introduced to further simplify the system. Helvetica has been used to create a consistency between the College and UAL’s overall identity.

The Tanks at Tate Modern wayfinding by Cartlidge Levene.

The Tanks at Tate Modern imaginatively reuses the underground space to the south of the existing building, which once contained the oil for Bankside power station. They developed a graphic language and material application for the wayfinding and interpretation material, to suit the raw, industrial aesthetic of the architecture. Two simple media were used for graphic language: projection and fly posters. Both are direct methods of application which reveal the raw, contoured surfaces of the ‘as found’ concrete walls. An elevation map with clearly defined levels makes the building easy to navigate, as well as a reductive approach and clear hierarchy which works in harmony with the architecture of the building.

UAL Neon exhibition wayfinding by Alphabet.

University of the Arts London converted the ground floor of its headquarters in Holborn, London into a new arts exhibition space open to all. To help the general public locate the entrance they needed a sign that was an illuminated reminder of the creativity to be found within.

Wayfinding Westerdals by Marius Holtmon.

Westerdals is one of the leading communication schools in Norway, ranked as one of the top ten creative schools in the world. The new building, drawn by Kristin Jarmund Arkitekter (KJARK), is situated at Vulkan in Oslo, an old industrial area. It was nominated for both the Statens Byggskikkpris and Oslo City Architecture Award 2012.

The building is charaterized by it´s industrial and rough expression, which became an importaint factor in the design process. By using the buildings existing surroundings and surfaces, the design maintaines the roughness and industrial touch of the building. The wayfinding unites the identity of Westerdals with the architecture of the new building, by using elements from the schools identity, together with the colors used in the buildings.

Mediateket Library Wayfinding by Madeleine Skjelland Eriksen.

Mediateket is the media library at Westerdals School of Communication. It`s a site for collecting research and inspiration, and contains books, films and magazines that emphasizes disciplines taught at the school. Madeleine Skjelland Eriksen were given the task to design a signage system that made it easier for students to navigate and find what they were looking for in the library, as well as giving the space decoration and identity. The goal was to create a system, complementing the environment, without overwhelming the architecture. Hence the use of the original windows and floors as a canvas for the signage system.

A new typeface was created named Skygge (Shadow in Norwegian), where the letters and numbers are united with shadows, making it a functional and aesthetic system to use in the wayfinding. The shadows are a metaphor for the relationship between the library and the student. The input/output of inspiration and creation.