Design Success and Failure in Relation to Syntactical Guidelines

Good: 

The Syntactical Guidelines used in this chair are sharpening, balance, attraction & grouping. It uses the guidelines well because it is balanced as a person can sit down in it without it falling over and sharpening because it is not completely symmetrical yet is still pleasing to the eye. It is made out of just two strips of elastomer and some pieces of wood that are placed so that it can easily roll up as well as be sturdy for sitting. The chair's pieces of wood are grouped so that the attraction between the pieces gives it stability. 

Bad: 

This cup on a necklace is an example of bad syntactical guidelines. It is not balanced very well and looks as if it will fall over and spill out with the slightest of movements. it looks like a good idea if you are to just stand still, but without a top or a way to make sure that the cup is not heavier then the base, the balance is completely off. 

 (www.dumpaday.com/index.php/2010/10/simple-ideas-that-are-borderline-genius)

Product Design: Basic Elements

Dots: 

The dot is the simplest form of visual communication. When multiple dots are connected, they lead the eye and create illusions. The dots in this example are placed together so close that the dots lead the eye in an intensified manner all over the chair. The closer the dots are together the more we see the directional-ability of the dots. It is almost like the McLuhan theories where seeing is in the act of the meaning of the dots. 

 Shape:
There are three basic kinds of shapes, the circle, the triangle and the square. This table is made out of triangles that are shaped to form a circular table. The triangle shape is formed by the lines that intersect them. From the three kinds of shapes there are numerous shapes that can be made. This table uses the triangles to not only create another of the basic shapes, but to create a table as well.

Line:
A line can be considered a dot in motion. The lines that create this bench are the essential tool of previsualization. They draw your eye to the pattern that is also made by the length of the lines. The lines are a way to make visible what cannot be seen, such as the waves in the center of the bench.

Visual Thinking Research

The Cat and the Triangles: 

To find the total number of triangles that make up the cat I went through and numbered all of the triangles that were completely visible, even if they were really only part of another triangle or made by two triangles placed together. 

My mom went through the cat and colored in all of the triangles and did not count the ones created by two triangles together, such as in the tail.

The visual concept that was being used here is Categorizing. 

         

Match the Blocks: 

For this exercise we went through and had to figure out which block patterns were the same. There are two of each kind and we needed to figure out which ones matched even though they are not in the same positions. 

We went through and basically did the same things. We looked at the separate pieces of the blocks in total and took them apart by coloring in sides and then matching them together. 

Top-Down Phone

Top Down Visual Processing: This is a sliding LG GW620 Android phone. I consider it to be top-down visual processing because when you first look at it your eyes only register the actual phone, but as you keep looking harder you see that it is able to slide open. After you slide it open there is even more for you to process. It shows many buttons that your eyes need to sort through, and in the end you are able to see it all. There is constant relinking between the images of the front of the phone and the inside sliding out part of the phone. Your eyes are directed to a goal depending upon what you are planning on doing with the phone.

(http://www.loopygadgets.com/2009/09/lg-gw620-is-the-companys-first-android-phone/)

Interactions between the three levels

Representational

- identify what role it plays in the whole: 

    The picture is of a chair. It represents to us the visual information that we are looking at a chair. 

- describe what kind of impact it has:

   When you see chair, you think furniture. It is just some place for us to sit as well as a decoration to tie more then just one piece of furniture together. 

- how it relates to the other two levels: 

The abstract level shows us that although the picture is representational because what we see is a chair, it is a non-taditional chair, and while we are shown a chair, we are also shown a symbol of love. 

Abstract

- identify what role it plays in the whole: 

   We see here a chair in the shape of a heart. It is abstract in the sense that heart does not really look like that, and a chair does not traditionally look like a heart. 

- describe what kind of impact it has:

  It has an impact on us by showing us that a chair does not have to have four legs a back and arm rests. It shows us love and intensity through the colors it presents us with. 

- how it relates to the other two levels:

While the chair may be non-traditional, we are also shown by the representational side that it is in fact a chair, and the symbol of a heart that describes more to us then a chair does. 

Symbolic

- identify what role it plays in the whole:

   When we represent a heart it is usually to show love to someone, and showing a picture of an actual heart beating in our chests is not something we like to think of as lovely. The symbol for a heart really does not look anything like a heart, yet we take it as it is. 

- describe what kind of impact it has:

    The heart chair symbolizes love and could be a thoughtful gift for someone on valentines day. It has an impact of being bold yet unrealistic, and possibly even comfortable. 

- how it relates to the other two levels:

The representational part is the chair in general, and the abstract part is the fact that it is more then just a chair. 

Meaning

(http://www.laracaz.com/painting05.html)

 Abstract: This tree is an abstract tree. It is the perception of the tree that we see, because there is nothing about the painting that actually says tree. It is far over the top about what a tree should look like. It uses a continuous line for where leaves should be, and continues those lines down the trunk unrealistically. The picture modifys the visual facts of what a tree should be to emphasize color and light. The picture is a exaggeration realism of a classic style. It is unrealistic yet keeps a recognizable way about it.

(http://www.bestfreechristian.com/cms1/cms719.htm)

Symbolism: This tree is just a symbol of a tree. It is the tree sown to its simplest form. It is the reduction of any visual details. It is so simple yet it is obviously seen as a tree. The outside shape is the main component to tell us that the picture is indeed a tree, and that is all that is really needed. The symbol is not too abstract though,  which is why we know what it is trying to portray to us. 

(http://ivc.tamu.edu/research.html)

Representational: Finally it is the representational tree. It is the basic and most dominating of the visual experiences. The other two category's, Abstract and Symbol, take the visual experience and narrow it down so that the final picture you see is not one that you would be able to recognize if it showed up in real life. Through the Representational picture of a tree, you can tell its a tree, and might also be able to determine which type of tree it is too. The picture here is of different types of evergreen trees, and if I knew trees better I might be able to tell you what kind. Other types of representational images might have come from photographs. Before photographs were taken, paintings were the best way to communicate what a thing was supposed to represent.