A Field Guide To Typography
I never knew there was an art to typographic design until one day one of my friends told me she had studied it (while simultaneously trashing the layout of something I had just made). This new world of serif, san-serif, ascenders, descenders, terminals, baselines and kerning fascinated me so I set out to try to educate myself on the subject. Read more
Shenzhen Photo Story Exhibition
Last Sunday evening I had the pleasure of being invited to present some of my photos along with ten other photographers at a “Photo Story Exhibition and Salon” held at Yishu Art Book Bar in Shekou, Shenzhen. While a few of my photos have been used in a couple of museum exhibitions I’d never properly presented them before and was a bit nervous to be doing so alongside real professionals! Read more
No Photos Please!
As a foreigner in China it’s not unusual to get stopped by people wanting to take your photo (especially outside big cities or at tourist attractions). This is OK the first few times but does get increasingly tiresome, especially when you don’t like having your photo taken in the first place. A friend of mine was recently looking for a way to deter said snappers so I put together a quick T-shirt design for her: Read more
PechaKucha Night Shenzhen
The words “culture” and “Shenzhen” are rarely heard together in the same sentence, such is the nature of a young city of immigrants who have come to make their fortune. This isn’t to say there is no culture in Shenzhen but it can be hard to find. One place trying to invigorate Shenzhen’s art scene is OCT-LOFT in Nanshan district where old factory buildings have been renovated into a modern art and cultural center (somewhat similar to Beijing’s 798 district). Read more
MUJI Design in Taiwan
One of my favorite shops is MUJI – the Japanese “no-brand” brand which sells a wide variety of household and consumer goods distinguished by its emphasis on minimalist design and environmentally friendly manufacturing. Read more
Asian Music Videos Made With iPhones
With its many sensors (touch, proximity, direction, sound, camera) the iPhone has become a versatile platform for both developers and artists alike. Apps like Drum Meister, Bassist, iDrum, NLog Synthesizer, I Am T-Pain, Ocarina, and BeatMaker (to name but a few) turn the iPhone into a veritable collection of musical instruments in a single device which you may or may not look stupid using! Read more
Apple Farm Cafe in Wonju
A friend of mine has recently opened a quaint cafe in Wonju, South Korea (1 hour from Seoul) called Apple Farm / 사과농장. It serves hot/cold drinks and light food daily in a cozy relaxed atmosphere where even well-behaved pets are allowed: Read more
Japan – The Strange Country
Continuing my series of quirky videos about Japanese culture here’s a beautifully executed infographic introduction to the country created from a foreigners point of view (by Kenichi Tanaka, a Japanese designer): Read more
Can Success Be Designed?
It struck me the other day that most of the great internet companies and services which have seen massive success in recent years were in many ways a result of coincidental evolution rather than by prior design. That is to say few of them started off life how we know them today and that most came from small groups or individuals rather than massive corporations. Here are a few examples to name but a few:
- Flickr was originally built as part of an online multiplayer game
- Facebook started life as a student information directory at Harvard
- Twitter began as an internal project at a company doing something completely different
- YouTube came about when the founders couldn’t find an easy way to share videos
Some people will put this down to luck or being at the right place at the right time but to a larger degree all these people were just trying to solve problems they were experiencing themselves. They didn’t start out thinking “I’m going to build the next worldwide communications platform” or anything so grand but rather were creating something to suit their own needs. Once it became clear that what they had made would be useful to others then things took off and evolved.
From this perspective one might argue that success is not something which can be designed but rather the result of something far less tangible. A smart person alone wont necessarily be successful even if they do everything they plan perfectly and likewise the perfect solution may be too specific to be useful to anyone else. The creation of something new by definition is not a well defined process.
Another part of this is innovation. A product which allows you to do something quicker, easier and for less might have something going for it but to be revolutionary it has to do it in a way which has never been done before. Twitter generated the perfect storm for this by providing simplicity with a new mode of instant messaging. A key point here is not to do something different for the sake of it but to do something different in a way which improves on what came before or opens entirely new doors.
With all this in mind I think there are a few key points to bear in mind for anyone with a “killer idea”:
- Great things happen when you are scratching your own itch
- Provide real value by allowing people to do more with less
- Innovation comes from people, not corporate strategies
- Long term planning is overrated when the ground beneath you is shifting so fast
There are obvious exceptions to these rules, Apple being one of them, but these are few and far between (there is only one Steve Jobs after all). Most large companies manage to succeed through sheer momentum gained by their early growth and user dependence. Case in point Microsoft makes pretty shoddy products but still makes tonnes of money because their users are hooked into a perpetual upgrade cycle. I would give an analogy to a drug dealers but perhaps that would be going a little far!
I’d be interested to hear what you think on this. Can success be designed or is it something far more organic?
Tube Map Evolution: 2009 Edition
So it looks like someone at TfL was listening last year when I posted my critique of the 2008 version of the London Underground Tube Map which had become horribly cluttered and complex. Last month they issued a new version of the map which immediately sparked controversy because the River Thames had been removed along with many other changes designed to simplify the map which made the original so effective. Now that the outcry has died down I thought I’d take an objective look at the changes…
Let’s recap – the clean and simple 2004 version (click for larger version):
The horribly complex and cluttered 2008 version:
Leading to the new 2009 version:
What a breath of fresh air – at a glance you’d think they’d simply gone back to the 2004 version but aside from the obvious removal of the river and fare zones there are some more subtle omissions:
- walking distances
- blue/orange info boxes
- limited-time junctions (e.g. Kennington, Woodford)
- “check before you travel” symbols
In keeping with the tidy-up the DLR and Overground lines are now better integrated into the rest of the system and many junctions have been simplified. The wheelchair accessibility symbols are still excessive (but probably required by law).
In general I like this new design a lot; it solves most of my gripes with the 2008 version and brings back a certain artful elegance to the classic design. There is only one problem I have with this version: the lack of the River Thames. This was an iconic part of the map which was also a useful geographical indicator to help you know which side you were on (North/South). Apparently Major Boris Johnson feels the same way and has promised it’ll be reinstated so it’s not all bad news.
Despite its drawbacks the London Underground is the circulatory systems that supplies the lifeblood to the city so it’s no wonder that people are passionate about how we look at and navigate through it. Within the perspective of its evolution it seems that a step backward was needed to move things forward; “back to basics” if you like. It will be interesting to see how this continues to develop but TfL definitely deserves a small pat on the back for taking this brave step.